Blackshear M. Bryan
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Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...
Blackshear Morrison Bryan (February 8, 1900 – March 2, 1977) was a
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...
general who served during the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
and
Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
.


Early life and education

Bryan was born in
Alexandria, Louisiana Alexandria is the ninth-largest city in the state of Louisiana and is the parish seat of Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies on the south bank of the Red River in almost the exact geographic center of the state. It is the prin ...
on February 8, 1900. He was attending the
Virginia Military Institute la, Consilio et Animis (on seal) , mottoeng = "In peace a glorious asset, In war a tower of strength""By courage and wisdom" (on seal) , established = , type = Public senior military college , accreditation = SACS , endowment = $696.8 mill ...
when he received an appointment to the
United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...
at
West Point, New York West Point is the oldest continuously occupied military post in the United States. Located on the Hudson River in New York, West Point was identified by General George Washington as the most important strategic position in America during the Ame ...
in 1918. Because of World War I, two classes were graduated from the academy in 1922. Bryan was with the portion of the Class of 1923 that graduated after accelerated course of studies in three years, receiving a commission as a second lieutenant of artillery. After graduation from West Point, Bryan took artillery officer training at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. He returned to West Point to serve as an assistant Army football coach during the 1925 and 1926 seasons. Bryan was also an instructor there in 1928–29 and 1933–34. He was promoted to first lieutenant in 1927 and captain in 1935. In 1936, he graduated from the
Command and General Staff School The United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC or, obsolete, USACGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is a graduate school for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military ...
. In 1940, Bryan was promoted to major and graduated from the
United States Army War College The United States Army War College (USAWC) is a U.S. Army educational institution in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on the 500-acre (2 km2) campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks. It provides graduate-level instruction to senior military offic ...
.


World War II

At the outbreak of World War II, Bryan was chief of the Policy Section for the War Department General Staff in Washington, D.C. where he was promoted to lieutenant colonel. In 1942 he was promoted to colonel and assigned as Chief of the Aliens Division for the
Provost Marshal General The provost marshal general (pronounced "provo") is a United States Army staff position that handles investigations of U.S. Army personnel. It is the highest-ranking provost marshal position in the U.S. Army, reporting to the Chief of Staff of ...
's Office. With his promotion to general and a 1943 reorganization, he headed the Prisoner of War Division with charge over Japanese internment and prisoner of war camps throughout the United States. In July 1945, Bryan became Provost Marshal General and transitioned an agency whose lifespan rarely exceeded beyond the end of combat hostilities into a post-war organization with charge over Army military investigations, the military police and the Army's military police school.


Cold War and Korea

In 1948, Bryan transferred to Panama Canal Zone, serving as chief of staff under General
Matthew Ridgway General Matthew Bunker Ridgway (March 3, 1895 – July 26, 1993) was a senior officer in the United States Army, who served as Supreme Allied Commander Europe (1952–1953) and the 19th Chief of Staff of the United States Army (1953–1955). Altho ...
who headed a newly established unified multi-service command structure, the Caribbean Command, the predecessor to United States Southern Command, replacing the Army's World War II Caribbean Defense Command. In March 1951, Bryan was part of the first rotation of combat commanders since the start of the
Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
, taking charge of the 24th Infantry Division, a first combat command that he took on with Ridgeway's full faith, despite not having combat experience. After a year in Korea, Bryan served as Deputy Chief of Staff for the Far East Command in Tokyo before commanding the XVI Corps in Japan. He then took on a leading role on the military armistice commission of the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
that concluded hostilities in Korea in 1953 and directed the repatriation of prisoners of war. After promotion to major general and a stint as commanding general of
I Corps I Corps, 1st Corps, or First Corps may refer to: France * 1st Army Corps (France) * I Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * I Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French A ...
in Korea, he was appointed the 43rd superintendent of the United States Military Academy at
West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...
, serving from 1954 to 1956. It was during this time Bryan made an appearance on the March 30, 1955 episode of ''
What's My Line? ''What's My Line?'' is a panel game show that originally ran in the United States on the CBS Television Network from 1950 to 1967, originally in black and white and later in color, with subsequent U.S. revivals. The game uses celebrity panelis ...
''. In July 1956 Bryan took command of United States Army, Pacific in Hawaii. In July 1957 Bryan assumed his final command as commanding general,
First United States Army First Army is the oldest and longest-established field army of the United States Army. It served as a theater army, having seen service in both World War I and World War II, and supplied the US army with soldiers and equipment during the Kore ...
at
Fort Jay Fort Jay is a coastal bastion fort and the name of a former United States Army post on Governors Island in New York Harbor, within New York City. Fort Jay is the oldest existing defensive structure on the island, and was named for John Jay, a memb ...
,
Governors Island Governors Island is a island in New York Harbor, within the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is located approximately south of Manhattan Island, and is separated from Brooklyn to the east by the Buttermilk Channel. The National Park ...
in New York City. After 37 years of active duty, Bryan entered the retired list February 29, 1960.


Retirement and family

From 1960 to 1965 Bryan served as the first president of the
Nassau Community College Nassau Community College (NCC) is a public community college in Uniondale, New York, using the Garden City, New York ZIP Code. It was founded in 1959 and is part of the State University of New York. History Nassau Community College was crea ...
in Long Island, New York. Two of Bryan's sons also served in the United States Army: *Blackshear M. Bryan, Jr. or "Morrie" was born in 1929 at West Point during his father's tenure as assistant football coach. He attended the Academy, graduating with the class of 1954. He accepted a commission with the Air Force, then transferred to the United States Army in 1963. Serving in Vietnam he was cited twice for heroism during his tour. On September 22, 1967, as he was rounding out his tour in Vietnam, Major Morrie Bryan was killed in a crash of his U-21A during a training mission as he attempted to avoid trespassers on the runway. *James Edward "Jamie" Bryan was born in 1940 in Washington D.C; he also died in a military aircraft accident. On September 14, 1977, at 23:48 hours, Jamie was coordinating his unit's operations from aboard an Air Force Boeing EC-135K command and control aircraft that had just taken off from Kirtland Air Force Base, near Albuquerque, New Mexico. Shortly after takeoff, the aircraft banked right and crashed into a mountain peak in the Manzano Mountain range, killing all 20 military crew members aboard. Investigators said that fatigue may have played a part in the accident. Major Bryan had served two combat tours in Vietnam. Blackshear M. Bryan died in
Silver Spring, Maryland Silver Spring is a census-designated place (CDP) in southeastern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, near Washington, D.C. Although officially unincorporated, in practice it is an edge city, with a population of 81,015 at the 2020 ce ...
on March 2, 1977. He was interred at the
West Point Cemetery West Point Cemetery is a historic cemetery in the eastern United States, on the grounds of the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York. It overlooks the Hudson River, and served as a burial ground for Revolutionary War soldiers and ear ...
on March 7, 1977.


Citations


References

* United States Army Pacific, History, Commanding Generals, Blackshear M. Brya

* United States Military Academy Class of 1954 Webpage – Combat Death
Bio on his son
* "German Prisoners of War in the United States" by
Arnold Krammer Arnold Paul Krammer () was an American historian who specialized in German and United States history and a professor at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. He was twice a Fulbright scholar: in 1992–1993, he studied at the Universi ...
in ''Military Affairs'', Vol. 40, No. 2 (April, 1976), pp. 68–73 *. Retrieved on February 4, 2008. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bryan, Blackshear 1900 births 1977 deaths People from Alexandria, Louisiana Virginia Military Institute alumni United States Military Academy alumni Military personnel from Louisiana United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni United States Army War College alumni United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army generals Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) United States Army Provost Marshal Generals United States Army personnel of the Korean War Recipients of the Air Medal Superintendents of the United States Military Academy Burials at West Point Cemetery 20th-century American academics