Chapt5Sec2 .doc

                                                                              © Boulton B. Miller 11/09/96

A HAND ON MY SHOULDER

Chapter 8

 

(From Fall of 1954 to Spring 1961)

Command and General Staff College

Weapons Systems Evaluation Group

Armed Forces Staff College

1st Cavalry Division in Korea

 

                                      COMMAND & GENERAL STAFF COLLEGE

 

            Student quarters on Fort Leavenworth consisted of both apartments and small rambler houses. We drew a rambler just off the main road that entered the Fort. Much to my disgust, when I entered the house for the first time I found that the entire household shipment from Germany had been unpacked and piled in one corner of the living/dining area. It was a mess, with the main shipment of furniture, piano, etc., arriving on the same day from where it had been in storage during our stay in Germany. The first night I slept under the piano. Marian always had more furniture than we needed and in this small rambler it was extra crowded. As a solution, we had a garage assigned, but it was quite a distance from the house; however, we used it for storage and left the car out during the year we were there.

            Due to the heat, we made the trip from Peoria to Fort. Leavenworth at night. Marla and Michele slept well during the trip while Marian and I took turns driving. Remember, this was before air-conditioning and we had to rely on open windows in the wagon to help keep us cool. The wagon worked fine and we were glad that we had it and that it was paid for! Frank and Bobbie Penn, one of the many couples we had served with in the 2nd Armored Division had arrived on post earlier and were well established. They were most helpful in taking care of Marla and Michele for us while we worked trying to get relocated. The wife of my advisor, Col. Robert Schultz, was also very helpful.

            One of the problems that came with the shipment from Germany was two large pictures we had purchased in Rothenburg. The frames had been damaged beyond repair and the pictures were covered with mildew. At our first opportunity we took the pictures to Kansas City to an art store to see what could be done. After a discussion, their conclusion was that nothing could be done. However, when the gentleman suggested that we let him dispose of them, I decided that we could handle that on our own. I didn't know what to do, but on our return to Fort Leavenworth I found some bug killer liquid under the kitchen sink. Where we had purchased it we could not remember, but I decided to take a cloth and use the liquid and wipe off the mildew. Much to our surprise, it worked, cleaning the pictures almost perfectly. After they dried, we took them back to Kansas City, to a different dealer, and had them framed. Both pictures now hang in my study.

            Although I had experienced quite a bit of schooling and had completed the nine-week wartime course while assigned to NWSC (Northwest Service Command), the work seemed terribly hard. The problem was that C&GSC was used as a screening ground to eliminate officers from further advancement in rank. Competition was tough, and help from fellow students did not exist because we were all competing for the same slots. I did not know the reason some of my fellow AG officers were not spending the time I was spending studying until after the course when I was in the Pentagon. There were five of us, all AGs. The other four had been given a packet of examination questions and graded solutions from previous AG students who had successfully attended the same course. I found out about it when I was asked to turn in my exams. My "friends" had another dig at me. Out of the five AGs, I ranked second in the final grading, and well up in the top ten percent of the class as a whole. When I asked why I did not receive a set of prior exams, I was told that since I had been selected to go for a graduate degree and had completed one of the C&GSC war-time courses, they didn't think I would need them! Talk about jealousy, the gang that handled our assignments was tops. This was a small group of officers who kept each other protected and kept one or two of their group in the Pentagon at all times to look after the others. It was not broken up until after Ken Bush made Major General and listened to my gripes. Prior to that time, if the good Lord had not kept a hand on my shoulder I would have floundered on numerous occasions.

            The course at C&GSC was long and boring. I never saw so much detail for memorization, rather than problem-solving. Of course, we had large tactical map problems to solve about once a month, but the relationship of the course content to the map problems was kept as confusing as possible. This is what the Army did to keep the upper hand with the students. The short course I had taken back in 1943 was more help than I had thought it would be. At that time, the attitude at the school was to teach and educate the students with what they needed to know to fight a war. During the long course, it seemed to me that the result was just the opposite, as they were making it as hard as possible to apply what instruction was included in the classroom. A successful instructor was one who was able to flunk a number of students. The grading system was “E” for excellent, “S” for satisfactory, and “U” for unsatisfactory, or a flunking grade. Three Us and you were out.

            Marian had the usual rounds of coffees and other social functions. In addition, she kept up her bowling. There were dances at the Officers Club every weekend when we all let our hair down after a week of study. Marian’s log is full of people she met and the many activities she attended. She also was able to go into Kansas City to shop. Since we had been stationed at Fort Leavenworth during the war, she knew her way around Kansas City. This time she had wheels, which made a big difference.

            One event that I had looked forward to was attending the American Royal in Kansas City. The Penns went with us. On one of the trips, Bobbie Penn’s brother and his wife had us all out to their home for cocktails, then we all went to the Golden OX for dinner. This was the famous eating place in the Kansas City Stock Yards, known far and wide. Dinner there was a real treat.

            Marian’s log notes that I had my thirty-ninth birthday that fall and Susie had her ninth! Michele must have been taking music lessons and dancing. Monday and Wednesday afternoons show schedules for both at 1600hrs. Marian also attended what she entered in the log as Streamliners, every Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 1000. Michele was elected a Patrol Leader in her Girl Scout Troop.

            Just before the Christmas holiday our good friend Sam Hogan from 2nd Armored days was promoted to full Colonel. Sam was the Division Judge Advocate (attorney) when I was the Division Adjutant General. He was a combat soldier, West Pointer, and former commander of a battalion in Europe that was shot out from under him during the Battle of the Bulge. He was among the few survivors. The unit held a road junction in spite of heavy German odds. In fact the unit no doubt deserved a unit citation for the way they stood their ground. However, in the end the unit was overrun and the casualties were tremendous. Sam, because he survived and escaped, was like the Captain of a ship that goes down and he does not go down with his ship. I am surprised that he had the helpful attitude he had with me. As commander of the Division Rear Area, Sam was under my command, but he was sure helpful in setting up our defenses and in helping me run the show. I’ll never forget how good he was to me when I needed all the help I could get because I had not experienced any combat, yet commanded many who had. A different person in Sam’s shoes could have caused me no end of trouble. Sam talked the Army into sending him to law school and as a result he was in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps. I admired him very much. His wife Ginner became a good friend to Marian. We all served together again in Washington, DC. Sam lost Ginner. He became a fishing and hunting camp owner in Ecuador; remarried to a native woman and was raising another family the last time we heard from him.

            During the Christmas holiday, we made a trip to visit our families in Illinois. We had promised our old armored crowd that we would be back for the New Year's Eve party. It began to snow the night before we were to leave Peoria on our return trip. By the time we reached Quincy, IL, the snow was too heavy to continue. Fortunately, we were able to get two rooms at the hotel even though there was a big basketball tournament going on. The rooms were on different floors. Susie, the dog, and I slept in one room, and Marian and the girls in the other. Mother Fowler's maid, Mary, had prepared a huge picnic basket of fried chicken and all the trimmings for us to eat on our way to Kansas. Due to the snow, we did not have an opportunity to eat while on the road. As a result, we had plenty of food with us to eat for lunch and dinner while we were in the hotel. The next morning, we went down to breakfast in the hotel and realized how fortunate we had been to pull off when we did. The main floor was full of people who had slept in the lobby the night before. After breakfast, the day cleared, and we were able to depart for Kansas. A short distance into Missouri we had a near accident when an approaching car was passed by another and nearly crowded us off a bridge. Marian was holding a Chinese Satsuma lamp her mother had given her. We made it, but I will always remember my thoughts when I was dodging that guy passing when there was insufficient room on a snow-covered road.

            The only thing good that happened to me during the school tour was that I quit smoking. In Germany I had developed some sinus problems and thought that with the dry climate of Kansas I would soon shake them. However, this did not happen and sitting in class and spending more and more time studying made matters worse. One of my classmates in our car pool to go to class suggested that I stop smoking. On New Year's Eve, 1954, the 2nd Armored group had a table at the club and I felt magnanimous enough to declare that I was putting out my last cigarette. Marian and my car pool mates made me stick with my decision. That was over 40 years ago! I tried to get Marian to stop at the same time, but was not successful.

            In January, 1955, Michele was elected class president of the 5th grade. She attended the school on post at Fort Leavenworth. Years later, she had a student who had also attend the same school. In 1994 we visited Fort Leavenworth, Michele was able to see the school building in the final stages of renovation.

            I did not realize how many cocktail, and 2nd Armored parties we attended while at Fort Leavenworth. I guess we needed a lot of social life after all the boring classroom work. My fellow Adjutant General Corps students were jealous of the treatment we were receiving from our old armored crowd and made efforts to show it. I was on the verge of requesting reassignment to the Armored Corps anyway and really did not give a damn. However, as it turned out, I gave up the idea and stayed in the AG.

            With Bobbie Penn having a sister-in-law in Kansas City, it made it nice for the girls to go into the city, shop, have lunch, and return before school was out. Marian’s log is full of references to these trips. Many of her notes are in shorthand, which makes it impossible to translate as I have never really used what little shorthand I was exposed to when I had to take it in order to take typing at Greenfield High School. Her shorthand notes show her privacy, which we will continue to respect.

            Since I had served with a division and enjoyed the armored officers so much, I put Fort Hood, TX as first choice on my preference card. There was an Armored Corps stationed there and I could see myself as executive officer in the Corps AG section. My "friends" in the Pentagon had other plans. There was an AG opening in the Weapons Systems Evaluation Group in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. No one wanted the job because the work had nothing to do with AG functions. After an officer served there for four years, it was extremely hard to get back up to speed in the details of AG functions. None of my "friends" wanted the job because the present director was an Air Force Lieut. General, and the next would be a Navy Vice Admiral. I would have my time in before an Army General would take over. Some of our old armored division friends were going to Fort Hood and they tried to get help through friends at the Pentagon to have my assignment changed. All this did was to make my "friends" more adamant than ever to see that old Boulton B. got the job. We were notified on March 25th that I would be assigned to the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

            Marian had her own graduation as wives were most important to getting their husbands through the very competitive course. The old Locators system had been disbanded since our last tour at Fort Leavenworth; however, Marian volunteered many hours at the Post Hospital. Her New York dancing friend, Jane Everett, was from Kansas City and her parents and grandfather were still living there. Her grandfather was a baseball Hall of Fame, being Charles (Kid) Nichols, a pitcher 1890-1906. The grandfather had built and managed several bowling alleys in Kansas City and was still operating them during our first tour; however, he was in full retirement on our second tour. Jane had married Herbert W. Jones who was not too friendly to us when Jane came by to see Marian when we lived in Fairlington. They had three children, a son Thomas, and two daughters, Catherine and Christa Ann. Jane’s brother, Harlan L. lived in Kansas City.

            For her graduation, Marian received a very impressive diploma, shown in the following figure, conferring upon her the honorary degree of P. H. T. This stood for Pushing Hubby Through and I can attest to the fact that it was well earned in her case.

 

Figure 5-2-1

Marian’s P. H. T. Diploma

 

            At graduation, I was able to meet Lieut. General Palmer, the former 2nd Armored Division Commander who had left the division just prior to my arrival. He was handing out diplomas and surprised me with a comment that he was sorry that I had not been sent to the division while he was there. Apparently, some of our armored friends had been talking to him. From what they had told me, I am sure we would not have had any problems. He was the type that when he said jump, he did not want to be asked why, but only asked how high. I was developing the same attitude and knew that the pending job in the Secretary's Office was no place for me to butt heads with a bunch of politicians. I had been successful in dodging the assignment to Paris, but this time I was caught. We were off to Washington. Marian had so much furniture from what her folks and my folks had given us that we could not get it all on the van. As a solution, we talked the Penns into taking dining room chairs with them to Fort Knox, KY. A year or two later we made a trip through there and picked up the chairs.

            These chairs had an interesting history. We acquired them from an antique dealer in Ludwigsburg, a suburb of Stuttgart, who had taken them out of an old castle. The leather was hand-tooled and I tried to save it by using saddle soap and olive oil; unfortunately, it was so old that by the time they arrived in Fort Leavenworth, we knew the leather had to be replaced. The Army Prison at the fort had a large leather shop as a result of the prisoners working with leather. We took the chairs down to the prison and had them replace the leather seats and backs with good old American cowhide. As it turned out, a number of years later, the prison leather tooling had been cut too deeply into the leather and the leather came apart. Marian chose to fix them herself this time and spent many, many an hour needle pointing new backs and seats. (Note that the backs are two pieces, in that, there is a back to the back, if you can follow this!) The chairs today are in our dining area and still show the beautiful work she did.

 

 

Figure 5-2-2

Marian’s Dining Room Chairs

WEAPONS SYSTEMS EVALUATION GROUP

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE

Second Tour, the Pentagon (August 1955-August 1959)

                                                                             

            I went to Washington in advance of the family to find a place to live. Having been there for five years the last time, it was like old home week. I wanted to buy a house, but we could not agree on one to purchase, so I ended up signing a lease to rent a place in Virginia in a section called Arlington Forest. We had lived on the Virginia side of the District of Columbia before and liked it as opposed to living in Maryland. I was able to find a two-story house, just off Arlington Boulevard. This made it possible for me to catch a bus a half-block from where we lived and ride in without changing buses. The bus stop at the Pentagon was under the building, just below the concourse. My office was on the outside of the Pentagon this time with a grand view of Washington, DC across the Potomac River. The Jefferson Memorial, Washington Monument, and other buildings made the view worthwhile. It was about time; most of the four years I had spent in The Adjutant General's Office were in the basement. I was in an outside office during the last year when I got promoted to working for Colonel Bush again where he also had a corner office. However, that office did not overlook the Potomac River like the corner office General Anderson had in WSEG (Weapons Systems Evaluation Group).

            Our furniture arrived while the family was still in Illinois. We thought we had been fortunate when the Allied Van Lines pulled up in a new van to load our furniture and other belongings in Fort Leavenworth. Much to my surprise, when the big rear doors of the van were opened in Arlington, our belongings were engulfed in water. The new van leaked! The most damage was to mattresses that had been placed at the rear and to several wardrobes full of clothing. Allied paid for the mattresses to be recovered and for the clothes to be dry-cleaned. It was a good thing the family was still in Illinois, because sleeping would have been rough without mattresses. I used a cot and an air mattress we had acquired in Germany.

            During my leave, I visited with the officer I was replacing and filled out all the security check documents because we were handling a large volume of top secret material. In addition, our office area was under the security control of the Joint Chiefs of Staff where security was rigidly enforced. In those days, security checks had to be made and completed prior to the issuance of a pass that would permit a person to go to work. Of course, they had my previous top secret clearances from my tour in Europe. This made the extended security checks much easier. In those days, there was no temporary security issuance.

            After my first meeting with the man I was to replace, I concluded that the job would be like working in a bank with my view of banker's hours. The office was made up of officers from all three services. Each service had a senior officer in grade of major general or rear admiral. The director was Air Force Lieut. General Samuel E. Anderson. There was an executive secretary and a deputy executive secretary. The latter was the job I would fill. The service officers were well-educated and experienced in their specialties. Almost all of them outranked me. The majority of the WSEG workers were civilian scientists, nearly all with Ph.D.s. In addition, we had plenty of Civil Service employees to support the operation. My boss and I were responsible for running the office and, in particular, attending the staff meetings when reports were finalized for various studies the group was assigned to make. Upon conclusion of the discussions, we were responsible for getting the reports agreed to by all concerned and published. As most all were top secret there was a lot of paperwork.

            Before I reported in for duty, and after evaluating my office hours and position at WSEG, I decided to begin work on a Ph.D. My previous graduate work had been most enjoyable and I had made tentative plans to continue upon my retirement. This was in keeping with my old friend Karl Reyer's suggestions. Much to my surprise, Dr.Elmer B. Staats, who had been my mentor for my Master's thesis, was now the Comptroller General. He no longer taught part-time for George Washington University, but had moved to help support a new program at American University. I made an appointment to see him and he encouraged me to take up my graduate studies on a part-time basis. The new program was a degree program in Public Administration, my field exactly. He called Dean Catheryn Seckler-Hudson at American University and recommended me as a graduate student. Before ever reporting for duty, I was enrolled as a part-time graduate student to work on a Ph.D. in Public Administration. Here was that hand on my shoulder again.

            My first two years in WSEG could not have worked out any better for me and for my future. My boss was an Air Force Colonel who was working for a promotion to Brigadier General. He had served with General Anderson several years previously and knew exactly how to get along with him. As time wore on, he gave me more and more to do because of his preoccupation with working on his promotion. I got along well with General Anderson. We had met in Atlanta when he returned with the first group of the Eversharp program. He was a major general then, and that had been years ago. In fact, he was one of the youngest major generals to come out of WWII. He was known for his early work using operations research to help identify bombing targets and missions over Germany. The British had been using mathematical resources for some time, but prior to Anderson's application, no use had been made of the technique in our Air Force. WSEG was full of top ranking operations research scientists.

Since my immediate boss was another Colonel Miller, I made sure that no one ever got the impression that he had been downgraded, partly because of what happened at TAGS (The Adjutant General’s School). Fortunately, we did not sound a bit alike on the telephone and seemed to work well together. I had plenty of time to study and go to school at night. The library service in the Pentagon was excellent.  Working in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, I considered it one of my perks and took advantage of it by letting the Pentagon library obtain books and inter-library loans for what I needed from all over town. The Ph.D.s in WSEG were all eager to help me and to encourage me in my studies. They were most helpful in many subjects and went out of their way to educate me in every way they could. The following figure is a copy of one of the nicest observations ever made about me. Dr. Smith was one of the Ph.D.s I am referring to. Major General Barriger was the senior Army officer assigned to WSEG at the time. I had no idea that he was even contemplating a letter about me. The letter follows:

 

OFFICE OF THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF DEFENSE

WEAPONS SYSTEMS EVALUATION GROUP

WASHINGTON25, D.C.

 

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT                                                       October 25, 1956

 

Maj General W. L. Barriger

Quarters 21-A

Ft. Meyer, Virginia

 

Dear General Barriger:

 

            It is unusual for a civilian of my rank, and of my experience in rating personnel, to sit alongside a lieutenant colonel for seven months, as I have sat next to Boulton Miller, and watch him work. It occurs to me that you might find my observations helpful and perhaps worth incorporating as part of his official record. Since he would not approve of my writing you on this matter I am doing so privately and without his knowledge.

 

            Having watched Colonel B. B. Miller work during these seven months or more, under widely varying degrees of strain and on the wide spectrum of matters that are the main part of his job, I have come to have some very definite and well supported impressions of his qualities as a man. My main impressions are these.

 

            1. High integrity.  This officer has a German type of firmness for what is right and against what is wrong. He never compromises nor yields an inch of ground on what he thinks is the fair and just thing to do. It may cost him embarrassment or inconvenience, it may cost him money, it may cost him someone’s good will, it may even jeopardize his chances for promotion, it does not matter. He just goes on sticking to what is right as he sees it. I have seen this quality demonstrated over and over again.

 

            2. High individuality. Boulton Miller is one of the very rare men who know how to listen to competent advice yet who can keep these outside influences from swaying his judgment unduly in deciding what to do. This man’s decisions are never synthetic but are always his own. They are always reached after he has convinced himself about what is the correct thing to do. He then gives firm, concise and sensible directions for action. I am sometimes surprised at his decisions but they are always “Miller” decisions and they always seem to be right in the end. I have also seen this demonstrated many times.

 

            3. High devotion. This officer works not only very efficiently but also very hard. I estimate that he averages not over 10 minutes of relative relaxation per day when he can read a journal or a book and he seems to spend most of these periods on self-improvement study. This man never pretends to be at work just to create an impression. He really works and works hard.

 

            4. High loyalty. Boulton Miller is one of the most loyal men I have ever known. He is loyal to those under him, to those around him, to those over him, to his service and most of all to his country. He never lets one down, nor talks behind one’s back, nor makes unpleasant remarks or insinuations about anyone, least of all about his superiors, no matter what the provocation might be. I have observed him keep his loyalty at times when one normally would be sorely tempted to drop it temporarily.

 

            5. High responsibility. Colonel Miller never shuns responsibility, he never unloads his own work on lower echelons and, most of all, and he never tries to pass the buck. On the contrary, whenever he can, he will straighten out a matter or expedite an action that is not directly a part of his responsibility. I have seen him render these extra-job aids sometimes at considerable personal inconvenience.

           

            6. High ambition. This officer’s career attitude is unusually good. He is very definitely not the common kind of minimum-to-get-by officer but always extends himself near the limit of his capabilities, and is always trying to increase this limit through outside self-improvement. He is studying hard now to improve not only his effectiveness as an army administrator but also his fitness for a responsible administrative position when he retires. I have acted as an advisor in this study program and can assure you that he is making good progress.

 

            7. High character. Boulton Miller has never, in my hearing, told a foul joke, nor used unwholesome language, nor made off-color remarks about women, nor behaved in any other manner that would not become a cultured gentleman. Furthermore, he not only behaves like a gentleman but he always looks like one, and is one.

 

            There, General Barriger, are my unsolicited and voluntary observations of some of the qualities of Boulton Miller as a man and as an officer. I hope they may be useful to you.

 

                                                                                                S/ Richard H. Smith

 

                                                                                                Dr. Richard H. Smith

            (General Barriger sent a copy of Dr. Smith’s letter to The Adjutant General.)

 

            With my boss, Colonel Miller, doing most of the heavy work my first year and a half, I had time to get a number of tough subjects out of the way in night school. I had access to my office around the clock and it was an ideal place to study. The family had to put up with my absences, but Marian took it in stride and began preparing late-night dinners two nights a week just as she had done on my previous Pentagon tour. This time we had more space; I fixed an office at home in the basement, but spent much time at the office in the Pentagon where the library was open at night and on weekends. Marian continued to take the kids and go back to Illinois during the summers to stay with her parents and to work for her father. She made some extra spending money, had a chance to turn the girls over to her mother and Mary, and enjoy herself while I continued my school work during the summer. I would be able to take leave and either drive out with them or go out and drive back to Virginia. This went on for four years.

            On this tour we were able to take full advantage of the Army Navy Country Club. Neither of us played golf. This was unfortunate in that the club has some of the best golf facilities in the DC area. There are two club facilities; the newer one is devoted entirely to golf. The original club has two 18 hole golf courses, five swimming pools, and many tennis courts. We did enjoy the swimming pools, dining facilities, and formal dances.

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-3a

The Girls Swimming

Army Navy Country Club

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-3b

The Girls at the Club Entrance

 

            The Fowlers had been able to stop in Fort Leavenworth to visit with us when they were returning from a trip to Arizona. In fact, I am still wearing the western belt they brought me on that trip. Mother and Dad Fowler also came to Washington on a number of visits. Dad Fowler loved baseball and we would try to go to a game whenever he came out.

            A note in Marian’s log—that my mother had an operation for a blood clot in her right leg. I remember her being in the hospital several times, but I did not remember the cause this time.

            We had a lot of company during this tour in Washington. Marian was working part time at a department store, Woodward & Lothrups at Seven Corners in Arlington and was kept busy putting everyone up and waiting on them. I was filling a full-time job and going to night school. This relieved me of much of my share of the duties that Marian assumed without complaint. As I look back on her notes, I can see that she was really kept busy.

            We did try to get to Philadelphia to visit with Virginia and Jimmie Powell. Marian liked them both and they both thought so much of her. I talk to Virginia once in a while. She lives in a retirement home in Pennsylvania.

            New Year’s Eve for 1955 did not turn out well. We had been invited to attend the party at the Army Navy Country Club with the Jordahns and the Frank Davises. Unfortunately, for some reason, we were unable to get a baby-sitter and had to stay home. Apparently it turned out OK as Marian noted that we “Celebrated at home with Chele." Took Pictures, showed slides, played new records, etc.”

 

Figure 5-2-4

New Year’s Eve Picture

 

            The last-half of the second year Colonel Miller was my boss he spent less and less time in the office. General Anderson had me doing most everything. One assignment I loved was going up on the Hill for him to testify. General Anderson was partially deaf from flying airplanes in the early days in open cockpits. He wore a hearing aid and in those days they were not too dependable. When we would go up on the Hill for budget hearings, I would be sure to have a new hearing aid battery with me. If they asked some question the General did not want to answer, he would suddenly have hearing aid trouble; I would get chewed out for not putting in a fresh battery that morning, and we would break long enough for me to make the repairs. When we resumed, the General would get the question restated to his liking. I was amazed how well he got along with the Congressmen. His relationship with his good Texas friend Senator Lyndon B. Johnson did not hurt him any. We had frequent requests from "Lady Bird" Johnson at the office; all of which we always handled without ever asking any questions.

            Budget hearings were a problem because we had worked out a way to pay our scientific professionals more than they could ever earn under strict Civil Service rules. I had been in on the initial planning stages of the effort to set up a corporation to support WSEG. An Air Force recently-retired Major General McCormack, who had been employed by MIT, was hired by General Anderson to head the formation of the corporation. I was made his office boy and contact point within WSEG. In other words, I kept the corporation in a field safe in my office during its formation. In the end, the corporation became the Institute for Defense Analysis or IDA, incorporated in the State of Delaware. IDA is operating as one of the leading "think tanks" in the Washington, DC area. In addition, they are reported to have other offices in cities across the country.

            Having met General Anderson in Atlanta was an opening; however, one of my first assignments was to get the General a stand-up desk. He had a bad back, but could stand for hours without the pain it caused him when seated. I had lunch with an old Navy friend about a day or two before the desk task came up. I called him to see if he had any suggestions. He did, because he knew where the Navy had a warehouse of furniture stored in the Washington area. I made arrangements to go out to the warehouse and have a look. Navy ship captains also had enjoyed stand-up desks and, when stationed in the Philippines, had them made out of Philippine mahogany. The warehouse had three beautiful stand-up desks. I selected the best one, with lots of hand-carving and a beautiful finish. Since I was from the Office of the Secretary of Defense, all I had to do was sign for the desk and tell them where to deliver it in the Pentagon. General Anderson took a great liking to the desk immediately. Neither he nor Colonel Miller could figure out how quickly I had been able to fill the desk order. It made me think of getting the mattress for Colonel Scherer’s van so it could go to the field.

            Also early in my assignment working for General Anderson, he had to make a briefing before the National Security Council at the White House. Colonel Miller was away, so I had to be chart-man and briefing room arranger. Much to my surprise, my old boss General Cutler was the man General Anderson would work for during the briefing. Fortunately for me, Cutler, who was now the head of the Council as a top Presidential appointee, recognized me right off and was very gracious in greeting me, much to General Anderson's surprise. On the way back to the Pentagon in the sedan General Anderson cross-examined me on how the hell I ever got to know Bobby Cutler! This was the sedan ride referenced earlier where I told General A that if Cutler ever asked for me to please tell him that I could not be released. From then on, when he had to go to the White House for a briefing, he took Lieut. Colonel Boulton Miller instead of Colonel Miller.

            My hobby during the four years I was assigned to WSEG was working on my doctorate. Marian put up with four more years of dinner between ten and eleven two nights a week. Fortunately, the job required little travel, only when something came along that would help educate me for my assignment. For example, I was sent to Los Alamos, NM for a week-long briefing on atomic energy. This was because we were doing studies on atomic fallout. We had a group of scientists and officers going to Europe and the Far East about once a year, but I was always left at home to "tend the store."

            One of the most exasperating weekends I spent when General Anderson was my boss was when he attended an Air Force golf tournament in Puerto Rico. He left me instructions to borrow a report the Army had prepared on base-hardening. This had to do with the installation of missiles in silos. Lieut General Gavin controlled the report, he was one of the officers that I met in San Antonio when he returned with the Eversharp group. Although the Army had permitted the Air Force to see a copy, it had been refused for the next level, our WSEG organization. This simply did not make sense to me, so I went about my mission with "full speed ahead." I initiated my request Friday morning, as General A was leaving, by making a trip to General Gavin's office area and presenting a request in writing. I was told to come back that afternoon, which I did. At that time I was told to come back Saturday morning. That night General A called me from Puerto Rico to see how I was progressing. When I told him the status, he told me to stay with it, no matter what. I knew then that for some reason it was very important to him, although, in the beginning, it just seemed to me that I was chasing down another report.

            General Gavin had a Colonel as an Executive Officer. It was the Colonel I saw first. On my next trip I saw one of his Brigadier Generals. Gavin had a large office because he was the head of Army Research and Development. On Saturday morning I spent most of the time sitting outside Gavin's office in a waiting room. After I came back from lunch and had waited another hour or two, Gavin's deputy, a two-star general, sent for me and told me that the report would not be ready until late Sunday morning. Sunday was a repeat performance. This time I ate lunch before entering the Gavin sanctuary where, again, I was made to cool my heels until mid-afternoon when the deputy finally came out and told me that the report was not available. I could hardly believe what I was hearing. I asked to see General Gavin, but was told that he was not available. I could not tell whether or not General Gavin was in the office. General Anderson did not call me Sunday night when he returned from Puerto Rico. This gave me all the more time to stew over my failed mission. It was the first time I had failed him, but damn if I could figure out any way to get the report.

            When General Anderson came in Monday morning he must have had some premonition, or some knowledge, why the Army would not release the report to him. At least he did not seem to blame me after I went over exactly what I had done and whom I had talked to on each of the days he was away. He told me to be ready to tell my story just as I had told him because he was going to take me with him to the next meeting of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and let me tell General Twining, the Chairman, what had happened. General Twining was another officer I had met when he was one of Eversharp returnees. He remembered me, but honestly I think General Anderson tipped him off to make it easier for me because the Army Chief of Staff was a member of the Joint Chiefs and I was in a spot, reporting, in front of him, to his superior what one of his staff officers (General Gavin) refused to do. General Anderson must have had a lot of confidence in me to put me in such a position. He told me later that he was proud of the way I handled the situation. Just before I was called on, I was privileged to hear the discussion of whether or not to drill into Cheyenne Mountain in Colorado for the new headquarters for NORAD. At that meeting the project was approved. It was about forty years before I was able to visit the mountain and see the results.

            In April, 1956, Marian noted in her log that while attending a WSEG Wives’ Luncheon at the Army Navy Country Club, Mrs. Nixon, wife of the Vice President was in the Receiving Line. Marian often said how pleasant and gracious Pat Nixon was to meet.

            When General Anderson commanded the Fifth Air Force in Korea they discovered an eleven-year old Korean boy who could play the piano much better than anyone expected. During a break in an Air Force entertainment program the boy, Tong Il Han, or “Tony Han,” as he was known, had been asked to play and proved that he could handle several Chopin numbers very beautifully. General “A” and others organized a support group and brought the boy to American for education both in school at Saint Hilda’s Day School, and at the Juilliard School of Music. At Juilliard, Tony was a pupil of Madame Rosina Lhevinne who was most enthusiastic about his progress and his future. Unfortunately, we lost track of Tony after General Anderson was reassigned, received his fourth star, and we became too involved with other things. However, several years later, as Marian’s log disclosed, we attended a recital given by Tony at Monticello College in Illinois. This is referenced later in a following chapter.

            In addition to my job, my school work, and what should have been more time with the family, I brought Fanfare and her foal, now a two-year old, down to the area where we were for me to work with on weekends. I found this too much, and sent Missy Go Boy for training with one of Mr. Turner’s former employees who then had his own stable in Gettysburg, PA. I had caused us to become “horse poor”, and as a result had to sell Fanfare and her new foal. The training did not work out with Mullins as I found that he was only working her one way in the ring. I ended up selling Missy Go Boy as well. Merry GO BOY was the famous Walking Horse stallion Mr. C. C.Turner had purchased in Tennessee and stood him at his spread in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia near Harrisonburg. This ended my walking horse venture. Why Marian did not gripe, I’ll never know. She should have!

            On a trip Marian made to Illinois with the girls in July 1956, Marian noted that she drove 614 miles the first day out. The girls stayed in Illinois until late August when I took leave and we went to Fort Knox to pick up the chairs from the Penns. We also went through Mammoth Cave while in the area, then to the Walking Horse Celebration in Shelbyville, Tennessee, and finally back to Illinois to pick up the girls and Susie, and then back to Arlington.

            In September 1956, Marian notes that the Fire Department came to get Marla out of the basement where she had locked herself in. What a day that turned out to be! When Marian called the fire department for them to come to the house to rescue Marla she thought one or two men would come in a small vehicle. Imagine her surprise when three fire engines arrived, sirens blaring, with a department of men to perform the rescue! When she asked why all of them had come, they responded that they had to be together in case they were called to put out a fire. Needless to say, the whole neighborhood was aware of the situation.

            General Anderson's tour had been for two years. He had joined WSEG only a short time before my arrival. He and Colonel Miller were reassigned at the same time, and it fell to me to break in the new Navy Vice Admiral, John "Savvy" Sides and the new Executive Secretary, Navy Captain Hathorn. Admiral Sides was "black shoe" Navy. This meant that he was not a Navy Aviator. However, to hold up the "brown shoe" role for the Navy, the senior Navy Officer was Rear Admiral John "Jimmy" Thatch. He was a hero out of the Pacific and was well known for developing what was known in Navy circles as the "Thatch Weave," a tactical air maneuver designed to suck in Jap Zero planes so they could be shot down. It proved to be very successful and widely used in the Pacific. Captain Hathorn was known as "Skipper." He too had an enviable war record in the Pacific and was determined to maintain his status as a Navy flier. He told me when we met that he was a flyer, and that since I had been in the office for two years, he expected me to continue to run the office while he flew airplanes. He added that he would come in every day and back me up whenever necessary, but he did not intend to get very deeply involved in "office work." We got along fine.

            Some days the Skipper would not come in until mid-afternoon. I'd say to him, "Skipper, what have you been doing?" His answer was that he had just returned from "JAX." This meant he had returned from Jacksonville, FL. But, I'd say "its mid-afternoon!" He'd say, "I've been to JAX twice today" and went about reading his Wall Street Journal. I never had such an accommodating boss. When I got in trouble over one of our scientists refusing to follow Top Secret procedures, he came to my rescue. In every case, it turned out the same way.

            Admiral Sides was hard to work for. He was too damn smart for me. When it took me longer than he thought it should to make a summary statement, or present some topic, he would show his disdain. I worked like a dog for him, but I never felt that I was doing enough. He, too, was working for his fourth star. General Anderson was rewarded with his fourth after he left WSEG, and Admiral Sides did not want anything to happen to his. I seemed to have a knack for getting into hot water. Part of this was due to my preference to be with troops and my dislike for the Pentagon and the way much of it operated. I was enjoying my school work, but if it had not been for my studies, I would have requested a transfer.

            For example, one of the problems I became involved with was a heated argument one day up in a senior civilian's office. There were three of them. I was alone. We went round and round. I knew I was right and that they were lying, but in no way could I prove it since they vouched for each other. I was so mad that on my return I barged into Admiral Sides' office and told him that, in my opinion, the three men he had sent me to deal with were nothing but damn liars, and to never send me to deal with them again. Admiral Thatch was in the Admiral's office when I came barging in, and, as will come out later, never forgot my prediction. Admiral Sides, who did not want to cause trouble, told me to forget the whole thing, and not to mention it to anyone. Neither did he ever send me to deal with those people again. Neither did they make trouble for me. (Both Admiral Sides and Thatch received their fourth stars prior to retirement.)

            In January, 1957, we attended the Eisenhower Inauguration Parade. We also took Harold Doe to his Massanutten Military School at Woodstock, VA. His parents had put him on the train in Maine. On Michele’s birthday we had to attend a dinner for General and Mrs. Howze. I hated it for Michele’s sake, but sure enjoyed it a lot more than our having to attend a party for my old Seventh Army boss.

            Marian was able to see a lot of our old 2nd Armored Division crowd who were also stationed in the Pentagon. It gave her something to do while I was busy trying to get my degree finished. Some of the social functions were a lot of fun. One in particular was the retirement party for Major General Barriger at the Army Navy Country Club. She saw a lot of Mary Howze, Ginna Hogan, Gert Davis (Wayne’s wife, he was our division I.G.), the Brannocks, and Missy and Bob Martin. Bob was G-1, the General Staff identification for personnel officer, of the 2nd Armored when I was AG.

            Attending a WSEG social function attracted a VIP list. We were fortunate to be included. According to Marian’s log she listed these people after a party in March, 1956: Mr. Newberry, Asst. Sec. Of Def., Mr. Brucker Secy. of the Army, Mr. Martin, Asst. Secy. of the Army for R & D (General Gavin’s boss), Dr. Killian, President of MIT, Mr. Snyder, Trustee of MIT, Dr. Robertson, Trustee of IDA and Cal. Tech., Tom Ford, Asst. to the President of Stanford, Mr. Green, Trustee, Case Institute, Mr. Horner, Actg. Asst. Sec of Air Force, our boss Gen. Anderson, Gen. Freeman who took Gen. Barriger’s place, Gen. McCormick who was the man behind getting IDA off the ground, and Gen. O’Mara who was Gen. Gavin’s Exec.

            I had forgotten, but Marian was job hunting. In May, 1957, she had an interview at Saudi Arabian Embassy! Michele went to Williamsburg and Jamestown on a school trip where she stayed at the Williamsburg Lodge. The same month, Marla was christened in Arlington Forest Methodist Church by Rev. A. McK. Reynolds. Our own membership was transferred from the Fairlington Methodist Church to the Arlington Forest Methodist Church. I went to the Maryland Hall of Records at Annapolis with the Archivist Class during the same week.

            In June, 1957, while I had taken the train to Illinois, the Fowlers came out to visit in Arlington. Marian took them down to Monticello and Ashlawn, over the Skyline Drive, and to dinner at Cab-Inn or Rte. 211 near Warrenton. Marian also took up painting and in my opinion did extremely well; however, she tired of it and kept only one painting that I can identify. Perhaps the girls have some of her work. While at Fort Lee, Michele was submerged in a pool after a kid jumped in on top of her. As a result she developed a fear of water and quit swimming. Marian talked her into taking private swimming lessons and as a result she was swimming again during the first lesson. She also took up diving again in order to get Michele to participate, In August the girls went to Illinois and stayed until time for school to begin in September. Marla was four years old that fall. Later that month, Queen Elizabeth II passed our house en route to the Mellon Farm near Warrenton, VA. We stood along Arlington Boulevard to see her as she passed us.

            On the first of November 1957 Marian started to work at Woodward and  Lothrup, one of the department stores near where we lived. She worked four days a week from 1740 until 2140 and from 0900 on Saturday until 1800. Michele and I took over a number of extra duties. In December, Michele was able to make a trip to New York City via train where they visited the Hayden Planetarium. The following Sunday she joined the Arlington Forest Methodist Church. Michele decorated the tree that year as her mother was working.

            Another trip the girls liked to take was to visit Eames and Pat Patterson at their retirement place on the North River called “North Green.”  It was about a three hour drive from Arlington. They had purchased this old farm house on the water a number of years prior to Pat’s retirement and kept fixing it up until it was a really nice place to live. They had their own oyster bed and I learned to harvest oysters, open them, and loved to eat them raw. Pat enclosed the big front porch with glass windows all-around after the following picture was taken.

Figure 5-2-5

Eames and Pat Patterson at North Green

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-6

The Girls at Greenbrier Street, Arlington, VA

 

            In February 1958 the Arlington, VA area was hit with an eighteen inch snow storm. Michele was away at a Girl Scout Camp at Potomac Woods for the weekend  along with seventeen other scouts. The snow came down thick and fast. The road to the camp quickly became impassable so the girls had no way to get out. Help was sought. They went to a large field which belonged to a nearby farmer to be rescued by an Army helicopter that was one of a fleet used by then President Eisenhower. The helicopter held fifteen passengers so two rescue trips were needed. Michele was on the second flight. Reporters were present by the time Michele’s group arrived. A picture with an article made the newspapers up and down the East Coast. The girls were flown from the scout camp to Fort Belvoir where we had to go and pick them up. It was quite a relief to find them safe and sound.

            Dad Fowler was to have surgery and Marian had trouble getting out of Washington due to the snow. She took Marla with her when they left on February 17th, but Michele and I stayed for school and work. He had undergone a ventricular gram. He ended up with a dead right hand and little use of his lower arm. Marian and Marla did not return until March 16th. So Michele and I had a log time to “hold down the fort.”

            Marian began work again at W & L in early April 1958. She worked Monday, Wednesday and Thursday nights and on Saturday. Michele and I had to go back to our additional duties. From her log, she kept this up for the remainder of the year except for the W & L vacation period. Her working cut us off from the old 2nd Armored crowd and we saw little of them for the rest of my tour in the Pentagon. Of all the Army people I served with there is no question but the gang we were with at 2nd Armored were the best people ever. The Adjutant General Officers I remember best were my old mentor General Ken Bush (from Quincy, IL), General Scherer, and Lt. Col. Otto Johnson. I could also add Col. Marnane who was my boss at Fort Monroe, but my tour with him was cut short when he retired.

            In April 1958, I came down with an inner ear infection and was admitted at the De Witt Army Hospital at Fort Belvoir, VA. They kept me about a week, did all kinds of tests, and finally released me. I guess my system cleared it up. No further problems until last year when I had Vertigo a couple of times. One in particular when Marian and I were in the Health Care Facility just a week before she died.

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-7

Michele and Marla at White House Easter Egg Hunt

 

            In the middle of June Michele fainted and hit her chin on the basement floor. She was standing straight so Marian could pin a skirt to be hemmed. When she fainted, Marian at first thought Michele was demonstrating a move from her tumbling class at school. She had to have stitches at Fort Meyer. I was working at the office in the Pentagon when Marian called to tell me what had happened. I went home immediately. Marian was also in a minor auto accident at Tyson’s Corner on a trip to Charles Town, W VA.

 

 

Figure 5-2-8

Marla and Our Wagon

 

            We lost Susie the last of October 1958. She was a great dog and wonderful friend to all of us. Marian wrote that she died just eight days shy of being thirteen years old. We buried her at Aspin Hill Pet Cemetery. The girls took flowers to her grave

            In 1959, Marian added Tuesday afternoon to her working arrangement at Woodward & Lothrup. I don’t remember the hours, nor does her log indicate them.

            While I was assigned to WSEG, the railroad continued the policy of letting service people, as long as they were in uniform, ride on passenger trains at half price. This gave me an opportunity to go from Washington, DC, overnight to Chicago, then catch the train down to Carlinville and have my folks meet me there. By buying the use of a pillow for .25 cents, I slept on the train, shaved before entering Chicago and really enjoyed the trip. In those days the domed observation cars were quite popular and I enjoyed riding in them very much. I probably went home three or four times a year trying to help my parents hold on to the old family Boulton Stock Farm.

            In May of 1959 Dr. Charles Hitch invited himself to a visit with us. He was staying at the Shoreham Hotel, but was associated with the Rand Corporation, the Air Force scientific unit comparable to our WSEG. We picked him up, took him to the Army Navy Country Club for Sunday dinner, out to the house for a brief visit, then at his request, he had me take him down to my office to show him WSEG. I really do not know what his intentions were, but we never heard from him again. He was the son of Colonel Hitch who was the head of Kemper Military School and his mother was my mother’s good friend at Monticello.

            In June 1959, Marian terminated her employment at the department store and we took a trip to New England, visiting the Powells in Jenkintown, PA, where we met Virginia’s mother, Mrs. Salisbury. We visited Virginia and Stacy Capers at West Point, then Yale University at New Haven, Conn., the Coast Guard Academy at New London, drove out on Cape Cod, stopped at Plymouth Rock and Mayflower II. We took a tour of Boston and took a picture of Marla, never located; aboard the oldest Navy ship the USS Constitution. Years later, it was on this ship where Rear Admiral Grace Hopper’s retirement ceremony took place.

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-9

A Picnic Lunch

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-10

Marian and Marla at Xmas Time

 

            On the New England trip we visited Salem, MA that included a tour of the House of Seven Gables, then on to Augusta, Maine, and the next day to Burlington, VT, across Lake Champlain, on our way to Montreal where we stayed at the Windsor Hotel. We had two huge connecting rooms with a big bath. I’ll never forget unloading the station wagon and having to haul all our belongings up to the room. It was an enjoyable stay. One of Marian’s aunts had stayed there several times. The three and a half hour Gray Line Tour of Montreal was most interesting. Then we went down to Ticonderoga, NY, and visited Fort Ticonderoga. The fort is about a hundred miles north of Albany, NY, on the Vermont border, at the southern end of Lake Champlain. This is where Marla left her pink bunny. She did not realize it until we were down the road about an hour, and I refused to turn around and go back for it. I don’t think she ever forgave me! On our return home I found that my mother was in the hospital, so I went by rail to Illinois.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-11

Boulton at Fort Ticonderoga

 

            Shortly before my tour was up at WSEG, our offices were moved to a different location near the Potomac River Entrance to the Pentagon. I made a mistake in my measurements for the secretaries' work area. This did not go over well with the Admiral, and I could not blame him. However, he vetoed my plan for correction as it would make him appear to have made the mistake. Needless to say, I was glad to see my tour end, because I had completed all the subjects required for my degree and had passed the comprehensive examinations in all five areas. Dr. Staats agreed to my choice of him as my faculty member to be on the five-member committee to approve my dissertation. With his help, we were able to obtain a subject for the dissertation and have the subject approved by the committee prior to our leaving the Washington area. With the leave I had coming prior to departing for the Armed Forces Staff College at Norfolk, VA, I was able to complete an early draft. Marian finished typing it on July 20. I had been researching the subject for the previous two years.

            Just prior to our departure for Norfolk, I became ill. I never did know what the trouble was, but all I wanted to do was relax on the floor and watch the movers pack us up and load the van. One of the older, black workers told Marian to feed me vegetable soup, all I could eat. We were staying in a motel the night after the van was loaded, before heading for Virginia, and they fixed me two bowls of vegetable soup. The next day I felt some stronger, but Marian did almost all the driving to Norfolk.

 

 

 

 

            ARMED FORCES STAFF COLLEGE

(AFSC)

 

            On the way down from Arlington to Norfolk we stopped at the hotel in Fredericksburg, VA for lunch. I took the following picture of the girls there.

Figure 5-2-12

Fredericksburg, VA Hotel

 

            Being selected for a Joint Service School was an honor and a help for my career. As soon as I sized up the curriculum, I knew that my C&GSC background would be a substitute for a lot of study. As a result of my appraisal, I arranged with the school librarian for Marian and me to have a small office in the library where we could work on my dissertation. The course was to last only six months. In my estimate we could complete the rewrite of the dissertation during that period if we worked at it.

            We had lived in some small quarters before, for example, the apartment in Indianapolis; however, since I requested quarters on the base (it was a Navy installation), we were assigned a small apartment in a converted receiving station. It was handy to everything at school, but sure tiny. The two girls had to sleep in bunk beds. Marian had to store her carpet sweeper under the living room couch. The kitchen sink was so small that it resembled a shoe box. Just after we moved in, while I was still trying to get my strength back, I was on the floor in the living room resting. When I awoke, a child was standing on my stomach. She came up from downstairs, and was trying to get my attention. I scared her so when I woke up that she went screaming down to tell her daddy what a terrible man I was. He was an Air Force Lieut. Colonel, junior to me, but in his opinion they were to have nothing to do with us from then on, or so his wife told Marian. I had tried to talk to him, but in my opinion it was a useless effort.

            As an example of how hard I was working on my dissertation, I was returning from our office in the library rather late one evening and entered the wrong apartment, one building too soon. All buildings looked alike. The only differences were the names on the buildings and the numbers on the apartments. No one locked their doors on the base, so it was easy to enter the living room. Fortunately, the occupants were at a movie or someplace, because I recognized that I was in the wrong living room and made a hasty retreat before being noticed. At first I thought Marian had moved the furniture around for we all there had the same basic furniture provided by the Navy. Our furniture, other than some small chests, lamps, and knickknacks were in storage during this assignment.

            Michele was enrolled at Granby High School, the second of the four high schools she attended.

            Our social life at AFSC was most enjoyable. We lived only a short walk from the Officer's Club, base theater, exchange, my school building, and the library.

            One of the most interesting experiences at AFSC were the trips we were able to take to see demonstrations by each of the services. Each service tried to outdo the others by putting on the best show and treating us like VIPs. One of the first was a trip to the Air Force range at Eglin Field in northern Florida. The most terrifying part of the trip was the condition of the planes in which we had to fly. Similar to many military purchases, contracts seem to go to the lowest bidder, no matter what quality is provided. Someone had negotiated with an air transport contractor to move us and bring us back. We had enough aviators in our group who know airplanes, and because they were afraid, I was also afraid. We put up such a howl that, at least, they did not ship us in those planes again.

            The Army took us to Fort Benning, GA for a weekend. We flew down on Friday and I had Jane and Charles Balcer come over from Atlanta to spend the weekend. The Balcers beat us to the fort and were ready to pull up alongside our busses as we arrived from the airfield. Much to my chagrin, Charles had one of those bullhorns on his Cadillac, and as soon as they recognized me, he started honking the horn. Then Jane got out and threw her arms around me like a long-lost girlfriend. She was a very colorful girl, hair that could be a different color from one week to the next. On an Army post, she would put on tight slacks, then walk her Siamese cat with a rhinestone leash and collar, and wonder why the enlisted men whistled at her. Until the year she died, we did not know that she had been a long sufferer of cancer. Jane and Charles made my trip to Fort Benning one that I will always remember.

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-13

An Army Demonstration

 

            Marla received a new two-wheeled bicycle made in Germany and within two months was riding it without any trouble. Marian took part in the AFSC Women’s Club. One Sunday we went to Kitty Hawk, Kill Devil Hills, and Nags Head in North Carolina. Marian continued her art classes and bowling. We spent Thanksgiving with Eames and Pat Patterson at their place on the water. It was quite a trip from Norfolk. As soon as we returned, I went to Washington to discuss my dissertation with the board members.

 

 

Figure 5-2-14

The Balcers at Fort Benning

(Charles on Left)

 

            When the Marines entertained us students from the Armed Forces Staff College they did their best to put on a great show at Quantico, VA. Two things caused problems. One was the weather. This was December and the cold rain was most unpleasant. The second thing was a most unfortunate drop of a large howitzer along the beach in front of those of us on bleachers watching the performance. The show up to that point had been excellent; however, when the howitzer was dropped, barrel down, and stuck in the sand with the wheels up like a big ostrich hiding its head, it was more than our common courtesy could stand. We broke into a loud ovation. You must remember, we had been through a miserable day in the cold and wet. The program had been designed for fair weather, therefore was much too long for the environment. Sitting on bleachers with no windbreak is not something we would do by choice. The timing was just right for an eruption. We all felt sorry for the Marines, but for the Grace of God it could have happened to any of us! I never did find out what the Marines did with their officers who did not measure up. Any outfit has a few bad apples; however, in all my service I never met, served with, or knew of a Marine who was not first-class. I guess the exception turned out to be Ollie North, but I never had to serve with him.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-15

The Girls at Kitty Hawk

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-16

Boulton in Dress Blues Mess Jacket

 

Figure 5-2-17

Boulton in Cape

 

 

Figure 5-2-1

Michele and Her Dad

 

            Perhaps it was because the AFSC was located on a Navy base; whatever, the Navy did the most wonderful job of introducing us to what they did and how they did it. The Navy made the other services resemble a bunch of Boy Scouts in comparison. First, they divided us into groups and assigned each group to a submarine. See the following figure for a view of the group I was in.

 

 

 

 

                                                                  Figure 5-2-19

                                                    My Submarine Group at AFSC

 

            This was before the nuclear submarines were in sufficient quantity to use them for a group this size. The submarine I was assigned to had not been at sea for some time, so the seals were dry around the conning tower. I was with the small group stationed at the tower when the sub went under for the first dive. The Navy people knew what was going to happen, but of course we did not. As soon as the sub went under, there was a gush of water that came down like a shower from the seals being dry. I thought someone had left the hatch open, although I had seen it closed. It only took a short time for the seals to swell up and stop the water, but it sure gave us a scare. From Norfolk, we had to go out into the Atlantic about 50 miles to go beyond the continental shelf into deep water for diving. This made quite a trip. We had lunch aboard and found what it was like to live under truly crowded conditions. One of the most interesting peculiarities was the way the toilets flushed. I must admit, I still do not understand the mechanism sufficiently to attempt to describe how they worked. In the end, I became an Honorary Submariner on 9 December 1959, having been on the USS CARP, SS 338. We spent the whole day on the sub and had a most enjoyable and educational experience.

            The Navy took no chances of being outdone by any of the other services. Our next trip was aboard the Navy Aircraft Carrier the USS INDEPENDENCE CVA-62. On this trip we went for an overnight visit. The ship was tied up at the Navy Operating Base at Norfolk, the main supply and control base for the Atlantic Fleet. We boarded early one morning, were assigned sleeping quarters, stowed our gear and took tours around the ship as she pulled out of the harbor into the Atlantic. He had beautiful weather for the trip, and to look back at Norfolk and Virginia Beach was quite a thrill. I was thinking how much nicer it was than that ship I sailed on going to Europe a decade earlier.

            One of the most interesting things we witnessed was night flying. First of all, we had to understand how the pilots were protected from different lights at night to improve their night vision. Then we were assigned to positions on the topside of the carrier to witness touch-and-go exercises. This is when pilots practice landings on the carrier deck, but the tail hook does not grab a cable and the pilot flies off for another landing. Their jet engines screamed at a deafening pitch when they put on power to take off again. With the pitch and roll of the ship at night during blackout, we sure learned to have the utmost respect for Navy aviators. I had no idea how they were able to fly off and land at night, but we sure learned. I finally knew what my old boss, the Skipper, had done for a living.

            Due to the Skipper's influence on me, I put my name on a voluntary list for those who wished to experience flying off a carrier and landing again. I could not miss this opportunity! Before I knew what was happening, my name was called and they proceeded to equip me for my flight and give detailed briefings on what to do in case of emergency. Then we took off and before very long, we were high above the carrier having a spectacular view. The carrier looked like a postage stamp in my hand when held at arm's length as I looked down at it. A short time later, we were told to prepare to land. We had been warned about the jolt from the tail hooking on the cable and to anticipate the feeling; however, for my part they didn't tell me enough, as it was much more of a thrill than ever anticipated. However, the applause received on climbing down from the aircraft made the trip worthwhile. Very few of my friends could figure out why an ex-doughboy like me would ever want to volunteer for a carrier flight; but they never knew the Skipper. I was made a member of the Loyal Order of Tailhookers as the two shots of the card they gave me shown in the following figure. I was also made an Honorary Submariner.

 

                                                                             

                                                                             

 

 

 

                                                                  Figure 5-2-20

                                                     Tailhooker Membership Card

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-21

Back of Card

 

 

Figure 5-2-22

Honorary Submariner

 

            We spent the Christmas holidays with Eames and Pat Patterson at their home, North Green. While we were there they had an open house for over fifty of their neighbors and friends in that area. It was quite an affair. Both Eames and Pat were wonderful cooks and excellent at entertaining.

            My class graduated at AFSC on January 21, 1960. At least the atmosphere was one of instructing rather than trying to flunk everyone they could. My C&GS College background kept me ahead of most in my class without having to study very much. This gave us time to finish another draft of my dissertation. Marian and I thought that it would be the final one; however, I learned that it was not.

            Because on my last foreign tour I was accompanied by my family, my next tour was due to be a hardship tour, with the family staying home. Marian made arrangements to return to Peoria again and Michele would begin attending her third high school. Having attended five different schools before she finished the third grade, she was a good trooper. My orders were for Korea. At least it would only be for a year and I was anxious to get it over with. I had leave coming, so I took a month off to help Marian relocate the family and to work on the presentation of my dissertation to the committee in Washington. Marian was a bit rusty on her shorthand, so I became her tutor by giving her dictation at every opportunity. She picked it up much faster than I had ever imagined, and before I left for Washington she had a job lined up in Peoria. Since her father was retired, a man who looked after the assets of a very wealthy family employed her. The firm was Blanchard—Young and Associates. Mr. Harry C. Blanchard was the owner. Her boss was Mr. Carl Young. Her first job was arranging for the sale of Mr. Blanchard’s winter home in Jamaica. She arranged her hours so that she had Friday afternoon off, working four and a half days a week. This was a big help to do laundry, shop, prepare meals, and have time to spend with the girls on the weekend.

            Upon reviewing Marian’s log, I found that I was on leave longer than I had realized because I did not depart for Korea until March 8th.

            From Illinois I made a trip to Washington to present my dissertation findings to the committee. The presentation went better than I had expected. The work we had accomplished at AFSC paid off. The results of my research were accepted; but the dissertation had to be rewritten to put it in line with the desires of the committee. I am sure that Dr. Staats continued to be my mentor in this case. Before leaving Washington I was able to hire a lady who had been secretary to a dean at the university and had to quit to raise her family. She had some time to do typing and seemed anxious to help me put the dissertation in final form. I was concerned that Marian would feel slighted after she had done so much in getting the document in the form it was at that time. If she was, she never showed it. As it turned out, my selection of the lady to do the typing proved to have been a sound choice.

            On my leave, prior to departing for Korea, Marla wanted me to come to her school, Franklin School, in my dress blue uniform for her classmates to see how her Dad looked. I even wore my cape. The kids thought that I was Zorro! Zorro was a popular character on a TV show at the time, who wore a cape. What a leveling experience for me! For some reason we never did take a picture of me at the time. I donated all my uniforms to the Greene County Historical Society in Carrollton, IL.

 

1st CAVALRY DIVISION IN KOREA

 

            It seemed strange to me that I could not find out what my assignment was to be in Korea. I had visited the Pentagon while in Washington, but my "friends" there claimed that they had no idea to what I would be assigned. Apparently, no one had requested me by name, and I was just being sent to fill whatever slot Colonel Alex Ransone had available. It did not make sense to me, but there was nothing I could do about it. The secrecy made me all the more curious to find out what I was getting into. I felt sure that someone did not want me to pull strings to avoid it.

            San Francisco was the staging area for officers going to the Pacific. About the time of my arrival, the news carried an account of my friend from NWSC days, Senator Dick Neuberger's death. Dick had written me while we were at AFSC to ask me to let him know when I would be in Washington and to come by and have lunch "on him" at the Senate Dining Room. On my trip out there to work on my dissertation, I did not find the time to see him. I had not eaten in the Senate Dining Room since Senator Green took me when I was working on the Soldier Voting legislation. I could have kicked myself for not taking the time to see Dick Neuberger.

            In the account I read in the San Francisco paper, there was a chance for Dick's wife, Maurine, to fill out his term. In spite of the timing, just after Dick's death, I contacted her to express my sympathy, but primarily to encourage her to take advantage of filling out his term. I'm sure that she had many others giving her the same advice. I went on to the Far East and she not only filled out his term, but also was reelected on her own.

            When I arrived in Japan, I found that Colonel Alex Ransone, the Eighth Army Adjutant General, had arranged for me to spend considerable time there to become acquainted with the resources located in Japan that we relied on in Korea. This I thoroughly enjoyed because they gave me the VIP treatment wherever I went. I also had time to visit around in the cities of Tokyo and Yokohama. One night I had dinner with an old Army friend Colonel Robert (Bob) Denniston who had lived next door to us in Fairlington. He was then the G-2 (Intelligence Officer) for the Eighth Army in Seoul. He was on his way to Hawaii on temporary duty. He had heard that I was being assigned and thought that I was going with one of the divisions. I could hardly anticipate that assignment since I had served as Adjutant General of the 2nd Armored in Germany nearly a decade ago.

            Within a couple of days after our dinner, I received word from Seoul that I was to be AG of the 1st Cavalry Division that was located on the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). Colonel Ransone was very apologetic about having to assign me up there, but there were some problems, and since I had been a division AG, he felt that I was the one to get the assignment. His phone conversation gave me the answer to why my "friends" in the Pentagon did not know what he had in store for me. Apparently, none of Ransone’s hand-picked officers in his headquarters wanted to risk taking the job. I could not have been more pleased. An assignment to the Army Corps would have been more to my liking, but there were too many full AG Colonels around for them to put a Lieut. Colonel in that slot. I learned later that an old friend from the 2nd Armored, who was Chief of Staff at the Replacement Depot at Inchon, had tried to get me assigned there. The AG there was an old friend of Colonel Bush's, and an acquaintance of mine, but I was happier to be with troops in the field.

            After I learned where I was going, I could not get there fast enough. The 1st Cavalry was another armored division and I had enjoyed serving with armored officers in Germany. I was really anxious to arrive before the AG I was to replace left to return to the States. After leaving Japan, I was routed through Seoul to spend time with Ransone and the AG Section at their headquarters. One week in Seoul was enough for me. I didn't like the environment and was more than pleased that I had not attempted to bring my family over. If I had, it would have been a full three or four year tour, and, in my opinion, we would have been more than sick of the place by then. Seoul has changed much, I am sure; however, at that time it was no place for a family, or an officer without his family. I am sure that seeing the big beautiful buildings in downtown Seoul would be thrilling; however, I never left nor lost anything in Korea and have never had a desire to go back and look for it.

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-23

1st Cavalry Division Command Group

 

            I was able to reach the division prior to the departure of my predecessor, but I didn't learn much from him. He was so glad to be going home that he really did not want to fill me in on his problems at the division. The first thing I noticed was that, in spite of the fact that the unit had been there for some time, the AG Section was still without sidewalks and walking in the mud every time it rained. As soon as I took over, they started building sidewalks!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-24

Boulton and His Korean Jeep Driver

 

 

Figure 5-2-25

Boulton, When Adjutant General, 1st Cavalry Division

 

            Living conditions were not posh like we had had in Germany at the Kurhaus. I was assigned to a hut we called a "hooch" with three other officers; the division surgeon, the division legal officer (called a Judge Advocate General), and the division provost marshal. It turned out to be a most congenial group. The division chaplain, a Catholic priest, lived in the hooch just above us on the side of the hill. I soon learned that he was an early breakfast eater, so we became breakfast companions. I was privileged to belong to the Commanding General's Mess; this was a most enjoyable experience.

 

Figure 5-2-26

Boulton’s Hooch at 1st Cav. Div. Hqrs.

 

Figure 5-2-27

Commanding General’s Mess

 

            The division followed some old British customs, for example, a small replica of a "popason" (an old Korean), was placed in front of a different officer at each evening dinner meal. When you had the popason placed in front of your place, you had to return thanks for the entire group. This was old hat to me because that was the way I grew up, but some really hated that little man! As I was the most senior Lieut. Colonel on the staff, I ate next to the Assistant Division Commander, with the Chief of Staff, a colonel, eating next to the Commander at the center of the table. By seating on both sides of the table, conversation was easy. Sometimes meals were mini-staff meetings, but only when some item needed urgent attention. This was the most pleasant environment in which I had ever served. If I could have had Marian and the girls near, I could have stayed with the division for the rest of my Army duty. I loved it.

            On my first trip to get acquainted, I visited the Division Post Office, located several miles from our headquarters in closer proximity to the troops. In addition to other duties, my responsibilities included the APO (Army Post Office) and its operation. I was amazed to find that the money taken in for Postal Money Orders at payday was left in field safes at the APO overnight. One soldier was left as guard, with no one around for a mile or more. Koreans were well known for thievery; it was called "slicking" and the individuals, "slicky boys." Stealing, I learned, was not wrong in their opinion. It was only wrong when you were caught! It seems to me that in U.S.A. we have adopted some of the same thinking. We had a Turkish Artillery Battalion attached to our division. They had no stealing. The reason was that the first slicky boy they caught was hung him upside down at the gate to their camp area. With my indoctrination into stealing in Korea, I had the Provost Marshall on payday provide an armed convoy guard to bring the cash from the APO to the headquarters finance office where they had a large safe. It was none too soon, as the APO was robbed a month or so later, while the guard slept, but all they took was a bunch of stamps.

 

Figure 5-2-28

A Typical Sandbagged Emplacement

            My hooch mates had the stealing well under control prior to my arrival. They had hired some of the undercover Korean police as house boys. We had no stealing. When my tour was up and I had to leave in a hurry because of the death of my father, they packed my things for shipment home without a single loss. In addition, they included some handmade Korean brass items as gifts. It was a real pleasure to be able to go to the field and feel that when you returned, all would be as you left it. We had a happy group in our hooch. The mess could not have been any better. We even took table cloths to the field and had the same service in the field that we had at Camp Howze.

            The headquarters camp, called Camp Howze, was named while I was assigned to the division. The following picture was taken at the dedication ceremony. The name Howze was a very famous old Army name. When I was in the 2nd Armored, Colonel Hamilton Howze joined the division to be promoted to Brigadier General and become the Assistant Division Commander. I first became acquainted with him prior to his promotion. He had an idea that he could pick tanker soldiers better than our assignment system based on the MOS (Military Occupation Specialty) could do. He had never been in a place where he could try out his concepts, and he asked me if I would help him. It was a challenge, and one that I did not want to miss. When a new group of replacements came in, I called Ham, as we knew him, and invited him down to pick out the tankers, those to be assigned to armored units. The first time did not work out so well for him, as his selections were full of undesirables. He tried it again before giving up and letting me do the assignments without further interference. He took to me kindly for the way I handled the experiment. Fortunately for me, I did not make an issue of it, nor did I place him in an embarrassing position of defending his concept. Ham had a brother who was also a general officer, as their father had been, and as had his wife Mary’s father.

 

            Figure 5-2-29

                                                  Camp Howze Dedication Plaque

                                                                               

            By the time we met again in Korea, Ham and Mary, his wife, were quartered in Seoul. Ham was on the Army staff, and Mary had told me on my stopover in Seoul not to bring Marian over as it was not worth it. By this time, Ham was a Major General and I was still a Lieut. Colonel. They were invited up to our headquarters for the dedication ceremony. Since our general knew that I had served with Ham and knew Mary, he assigned me to some special duties concerning their visit. One of the guests during the ceremony was Colonel Pugh, who had returned with General Wainwright when I met them in San Francisco. According to a recent report from Korea, Camp Howze is still very much in existence as I left it over thirty years ago.

 

 

Figure 5-2-30

Major General Hamilton Howze at Ceremony

 

 

 

            During my early trips around the division area, I ran into several officers and enlisted men who remembered me from our service together in Germany. Just as I had done over there, I spent all my spare time visiting the units in their field locations. In Germany we were located far back from the boundary where the Russians and the East Germans were in charge. About the only time our unit was on the border was on a big maneuver we kicked off from Kassel. At that time the division went up from Bad Kreuznach about a week early to let the troops assigned to defend Frankfort get into position before we came screaming down in the attack. As commander of the division rear, we were sitting on the border with the combat troops out in front of us heading southwest. We knew that our division movement was well observed by the Russian intelligence. I spent a lonely week hoping they would also learn that we were really on maneuvers and not heading for Berlin!

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-31

The Ceremony Speaker from a Different View

 

            The 1st Cavalry had control of the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) area and was dug in to defend the attack route if the North Koreans headed for Seoul. Each unit had a combat mission and was located in a defensive position as well. This made the job much more interesting and kept everyone on their toes. We had a large territory and a number of additional troops attached to the division. In addition, we had about 3,000 ROK (Republic Of Korea) soldiers assigned to the division. They came under my supervision along with over twenty Korean Army Officers to help control them. The soldiers and officers were assigned to the various division units throughout the area. I had a major in my office as their senior. My trips around the division gave me a chance to check on the ROK troops as well.

 

Figure 5-2-32

Boulton with His Korean Officers

 

 

Figure 5-2-33

Unveiling a new tank at 3d Tank Bn.

 

            The middle of April Michele took her driver’s license written test and passed it with flying colors. The girls were kept busy with school, Marian with her work, and helping her mother look after her father who had frequent health problems. The major entries for many weeks are her trips to the hospital. One note shows that her washing machine caught fire. A following note shows that a new Westinghouse Laundromat was delivered.

            In June, 1960, Michele registered for summer school where she took typing. Marla started Day Camp, one of Don Greenwood’s All-star camps. From the log, Marla attended camp for about three weeks that summer. In August they attended the “Holiday on Ice” show at Bradley Field House. School started in September. Marla was at Franklin School and Michele at Peoria Central High School.

            In early October, Marian took her mother on an antique trek to Grand Detour, the John Deer home and other places in Oregon, IL. Later that month, Marian and Marla attended the United Fund Parade in Peoria. Michele marched with the Coquettes. And even later in October, Marian purchased our first color TV, an RCA 23 inch screen. I believe Marla still has the cabinet the TV was in at the time she purchased it. It was a beautiful piece of furniture. This was an excellent buy and what a shame the RCA did not keep up their leadership in the TV industry.

            In November, my assignment to Fort Monroe was made known and I called Marian from Korea with the good news. Michele became Assistant Leader of Marla’s Brownie Troop. Christmas that year was another taste of separation. From Marian’s log I can see that she was glad to go back to work.

            Hardship tours of duty in the Army are extremely hard on some individuals. I learned to anticipate this when in Yukon Territory. It was worse during peacetime in Germany when we were on foreign duty a year or more before our families could join us. The Korean tour was about a month over a year, but knowing when it would end did not eliminate the longing for loved ones. I had learned that the best solution was to keep occupied, and I enforced this on all those assigned under me. My subordinates often resented this policy, but as long as they worked for me that was what they had to put up with. Many told me after these tours were over that keeping them busy was the best medicine they had received. I was finding new things to do every day or so, not just building sidewalks. My motto since CCC days had been that no matter where I was I would leave it better than I had found it upon my arrival.

            I learned in Germany that one way to influence the selection of enlisted men assigned to the division was to loan some soldiers who were good assignment people to the replacement center as liaison. By supplying these men with our MOS shortages and needs, they could be on the lookout for those needed to fill the requirements. The Replacement Depot AG was having trouble getting the Army AG to authorize him sufficient personnel to meet his needs. Because of this situation and my friendship with his Chief of Staff, he more than welcomed my offer to send down some additional liaison people. Of course, if they helped find some former football players to help our team when we played the other division or any other team! Needless to say, we had an unbeaten football team. I learned this from the way the 1st Infantry Division operated in Germany. That division was, and still is, called the "Big Red One." I did not learn how they had liaison assignment enlisted men at the Replacement Depot in Saarbrucken until I visited there from Stuttgart after I was transferred to Army headquarters...

            A few months into my Korean tour, the division chief of staff was replaced. My new boss had an accident with a helicopter and did not like to fly in the chopper assigned to him. Since I did more traveling around the division area than most of the other staff officers, he let me use his chopper about anytime I had to make a trip. This put me in the enviable position of flying in for the AG meetings called by Colonel Ransone, the Army AG. The meetings were held monthly at various locations in Korea. All the others came in by jeep. The roads were either dusty or muddy, seldom anything in between. The chopper was a two-seated arrangement with the passenger riding in the bubble with the pilot. Of course, I took my pilot to lunch with me at these meetings and I am sure that rubbed it in. The most enjoyment I had was when the meetings were held, for example, at the Replacement Depot at Inchon, and I could fly in while Colonel Ransome had to be driven down on dusty or muddy roads. I offered to send my chopper after him, but he declined.

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-34

The Chopper Boulton Used

(Being Admired by Korean Boys at an Open House)

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-35

Boulton at the Open House

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-36

Boulton’s 45th Birthday

 

            In the 1st Cavalry, we were known as The First Team, and did everything possible to live up to it. For example, I had our AG branch insignia mounted on crossed sabers to show that we were special. See the following figure that shows the AG shield with the sabers. The Koreans were experts in working with brass.  Because there were so many shell casings left over after the fighting stopped they had huge stockpiles of brass. I had the insignia made up for all my officers and saw to it that they wore them. When a new officer was assigned, we held a welcoming dinner for him, with all AGs present, and at the end of the meal I removed the AG insignia he was wearing and replaced them with the AG shields with crossed sabers. He was then, officially, a member of the first team.

 

 

 

 

            Figure 5-2-37

                        AG Insignia Mounted on Crossed Sabers

 

            After our annual general inspection by a group of visiting dignitaries from the Pacific Headquarters in Hawaii, we had a reception and dinner for them in Seoul. Of course, I wore my 1st Team Insignia. In the receiving line, the senior visiting general told me that I was out of uniform! He was standing next to our division commander who heard my remark that was, "Hell no General, I'm just out of the 1st Cav area." Fortunately for me, he took it as I had intended. I didn't realize it at the time, but the old man had been a former member of the 1st Cavalry Division. I took a lot of ribbing about my remark later at our mess back in the division area.

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-38

 Receiving an Oak-Leaf Cluster to Commendation Medal

 

            Army Headquarters had a problem with the assignment quotas at the Replacement Depot. I received a call one day requesting me to change some replacement figures that showed what replacements we had received, by MOS, over the past several months. I told them to go to hell, and reported the conversation to the Chief of Staff and the Commanding General. It just happened that the CG was going to Army Headquarters the next day and took my story with him. He reported the incident. We never heard anything further, but my relationship with the AG section in Seoul was strained from then on; but by that time I was well-established and we could run our own show. After all, they were supposed to support us. My reaction had surprised them so much that they were careful of how they handled me in the future. My reporting their problem caused me trouble later on, but that was to be anticipated.

            One of the most interesting places to visit in our area was with the battalion manning the DMZ, especially when the monthly meetings were held with the North Koreans. The conference table, in a building, sat on top of the demarcation line between North and South Korea. The North Korean representatives sat on their side of the line and our men sat on our side. There was a ribbon down the middle. The North Koreans were not to be trusted. They would spit on our MPs, cause all kinds of harassing problems, just to keep things stirred up. It's too bad more of our State Department people have not had the experience of tolerating them, up close.

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-39

VIP Briefing at DMZ

 

            I had a chance to visit in Japan on my way over and did not take an R&R (Rest and Recuperation) leave while in Korea. Instead, I had planned to go home through Asia and Europe. However, my father died just as my tour was near its end and I was returned to Illinois for his funeral. Although my tour was not completely up, my replacement was on the ground before I was notified about the death. A major, who was due for promotion, had been selected to take my place. He had been with me about two weeks by that time and there was no reason for making me return for another few weeks. My assignment to CONARC (Continental Army Command) at Fort Monroe, VA was well known before my replacement arrived.

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-40

Boulton Nailing His Name to a Plaque Prior to Departure

 

            Marian and I had not realized the importance of an invitation, while I was attending AFSC, to visit CONARC at Fort Monroe, VA and attend their big annual AG dinner dance. This invite was really a screening to see if we would fit in. The CONARC AG, Colonel Tom Marnane, was an old friend of Colonel, then General, Bush's, and an officer I had known while serving in Washington. Apparently we met their expectations, because I was assigned. I must admit that my preference while in Korea was still the Armored Corps Headquarters in Fort Hood, TX, as I was on the list for full Colonel and really wanted to become a Corps AG.

            I did not realize that my father had been in the hospital from February 7th, when he was operated on for a growth on his bladder and for prostate, until he had a stroke on February 23rd when his left side was paralyzed. Marian went down to Jacksonville to see him on the 24th, but he was still in a coma, and died the following morning. The Red Cross came through in their notification of me and in helping arrange my flight from Korea to Chicago.       

            The trip back was tiring, but uneventful. I had a few hours in Japan and spent my time tracking down some antique firearms to carry back with me. By the time I left, Colonel Ransome had been replaced and was at The AG School at Fort Benjamin Harrison, IN. I was sure glad that no one had assigned me to the staff and faculty again, even with big quarters on post.

            After Dad died, Mother gave me their Ford. Up to that time, we had only had one car, but we needed a second. The Ford sure came in handy, as Marian continued to stay in Peoria until school was out while I went on to Fort Monroe to report in and begin trying to obtain quarters. On the way, I stopped at Fort Harrison to visit at TAGS. One night at dinner when Colonel Ransome, the  Commandant, Colonel Wickham (later The Adjutant General with two stars), and Colonel (later Brigadier General) Morey Halper and I were discussing the status of the AG Corps, I said that we were not giving sufficient attention to the position of Adjutant General at division and corps level. In my opinion, that was where the action was and the school was omitting an opportunity to get my point across. I was the only one at the table who had served as a division AG. The others disagreed with me, pointing out how important all the other AG jobs were. This was during the spring of 1961. The decline of an Adjutant General’s Corps was under way at that time, but those in the senior positions did not realize what was going on. This decline and near elimination of the Adjutant Generals Corps will be discussed further in the next section.

Additional Pictures

 

Figure 5-2-41

Marla’s Fourth Birthday

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-42

Marla at North Green on the North River

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-43

Marla’s Graduation

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-44

Missy Go Boy, the Tennessee Walking Filly We Raised While In Germany

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-45

Marian and Boulton, Xmas at Arlington Forest

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-46

Marla and Her Dad

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-47

Michele

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-44

Boulton on the USS Independence CVA-62

 

 

 

Figure 5-2-45

The Girls on the Mayflower