Thomas Cruse (December 29, 1857 – June 8, 1943) was a

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

who was a recipient of the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...

for valor in action on July 17, 1882, at the Battle of Big Dry Wash,

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. An 1879 graduate of

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 ...

, he served in numerous campaigns on the Western Frontier and later in the Philippines. He retired as a brigadier general in 1918.

Education and military career

Cruse was born in

Owensboro, Kentucky Owensboro is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Daviess County, Kentucky, United States. It is the fourth-largest city in the state by population. Owensboro is located on U.S. Route 60 and Interstate 165 about southwest of Lou ...

on December 29, 1857. Before attending

, he attended

Centre College Centre College is a private liberal arts college in Danville, Kentucky. It is an undergraduate college with an enrollment of approximately 1,400 students. Centre was officially chartered by the Kentucky General Assembly in 1819. The college is ...

in Kentucky from 1874 to 1875. He then began attendance at 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 ...

, from which he graduated in 1879. Cruse was commissioned a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

in the 6th United States Cavalry upon graduation. Cruse was an honor graduate of the Infantry and Cavalry School in 1891. On July 12, 1892, he received the

"for distinguished gallantry in action with hostile Indians" at Big Dry Fork, Arizona on July 17, 1882. Three others also received the Medal of Honor for this action: Frank West,

George H. Morgan George Horace Morgan (January 1, 1855 – February 14, 1948) was an American cavalry officer and Medal of Honor recipient. Early life George Horace Morgan was born in St. Catharines, Canada West, on January 1, 1855, to the American Civil War, Ci ...

, and Charles Taylor. Cruse later served in the

Philippine–American War The Philippine–American War or Filipino–American War ( es, Guerra filipina-estadounidense, tl, Digmaang Pilipino–Amerikano), previously referred to as the Philippine Insurrection or the Tagalog Insurgency by the United States, was an arm ...

. He graduated from the Army War College in April 1916 and was promoted to brigadier general in December 1916. He retired from active duty in January 1918, nine months after the

American entry into World War I American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry ...

Fraud allegations

Shortly after his retirement, Cruse was accused of involvement in a scandal involving acquisition procedures which involved his employment with

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

manufacturing agent Henry H. Lippert. Lippert and his son Ralph were arrested; they argued that they had not committed fraud, and that Cruse had not been employed by them until after his retirement from the military. All three argued that Cruse had obtained an opinion from the Army's Judge Advocate General,

Enoch Crowder Major General Enoch Herbert Crowder, USA (April 11, 1859 – May 7, 1932) was an American Army lawyer who served as the Judge Advocate General of the United States Army from 1911 to 1923. Crowder is most noted for implementing and administering t ...

, which indicated that becoming an agent of the Lippert company did not violate the law. The case against Ralph Lippert was not pursued because he was drafted into the military. In April 1918, Cruse followed the advice of Henry Pinckney McCain, the Inspector General of the Army, to return to the Lipperts the money they had paid him (about $1,000), which ended his involvement in the matter. The case was resolved when authorities in Chicago reviewed the evidence against the Lipperts and declined to prosecute.

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Second Lieutenant, 6th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: At Big Dry Fork, Ariz., July 17, 1882. Entered service at: Owensboro, Ky. Birth: Owensboro, Ky. Date of issue: July 12, 1892. ;Citation Gallantly charged hostile Indians, and with his carbine compelled a party of them to keep under cover of their breastworks, thus being enabled to recover a severely wounded soldier.

Personal life

Cruse retired to Longport,

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, where he wrote ''Apache Days and After''. He died on June 8, 1943, and was buried in Section 3, Lot 1763, of

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

. He married Ms. Beatrice Cottrell (1862–1936), who is buried with him. They had two sons, Fred Taylor Cruse and

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

Midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afr ...

James Thomas Cruse. James was killed in an explosion aboard the in 1907. He is buried next to his parents. Fred T. Cruse was married to Marjorie Hamilton Hinds (1891-1986), the daughter of Major General

Ernest Hinds Ernest Hinds (August 18, 1864 - June 17, 1941) was a career officer in the United States Army. A veteran of the Spanish–American War, Philippine–American War, and World War I, he attained the rank of major general and was notable for his ser ...

References

: {{DEFAULTSORT:Cruse, Thomas 1857 births 1943 deaths United States Army generals United States Army Medal of Honor recipients Centre College alumni United States Military Academy alumni People from Longport, New Jersey People from Owensboro, Kentucky American military personnel of World War I American military personnel of the Philippine–American War Burials at Arlington National Cemetery American Indian Wars recipients of the Medal of Honor United States Army generals of World War I United States Army War College alumni Military personnel from Kentucky Military personnel from New Jersey