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Long, brilliant career set John Hines apart

John Leonard Hines soldiered from 1891 until 1932. He served in China, Cuba, France, Mexico and the Philippines before reaching the top Army job of chief of staff. Few soldiers have equaled his achievements as a warrior and staff officer — or his longevity.

Born in May 1868 in White Sulfur Springs, W.Va., Hines graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in 1891 and was commissioned an infantry second lieutenant. He served the next seven years with the 2nd Infantry Regiment in Nebraska and Montana.

After the U.S. declared war on Spain in 1898, then-1st Lt. Hines deployed to Cuba with the Quartermaster Corps, where he saw hard fighting. For gallantry in action against Spanish forces at Santiago, Cuba, on July 1, 1898, Hines later received the Silver Star medal.

After returning to the U.S. for a brief time, Hines sailed to the Philippines where, from 1900 to 1901, he participated in combat operations against the insurgent forces led by Emilio Aguinaldo. Hines later served in the Philippines as a captain from 1903 to 1905.

After returning to the U.S. from his second tour in the Philippines, Hines filled a variety of adjutant and quartermaster positions until 1916, when he was selected to be Gen. John J. Pershing’s adjutant for the Punitive Expedition into Mexico.

The next year, when Pershing’s American Expeditionary Force sailed to France, Hines was promoted to colonel and appointed assistant adjutant general.

In November, he was given command of the 16th Infantry Regiment but, after being given his first star in April 1918, he left to assume command of the 1st Brigade, 1st Division. For heroism while leading this brigade in action at Berzy-le-Sec, France, on July 21, 1918, Hines received the Distinguished Service Cross, second only to the Medal of Honor.

According to the citation for his award, he “personally went through terrific artillery fire to the front lines” and linked up two regiments that had become separated in the chaos of battle, “thereby enabling the operations to be pushed forward successfully.”

Hines received his second star in August 1918. He commanded the 4th Division in the St. Mihiel and Meuse-Argonne offensives. Shortly before World War I ended, Hines was given command of III Corps, which he led until 1919. This last job put Hines into the history books, as he was the only Army officer in World War I to command a regiment, brigade, division and corps in combat.

After World War I, Hines held a series of important positions, including command of the 5th Division and VII Corps area. In 1923, he became deputy chief of staff of the Army and, in September 1924, reached the pinnacle of his remarkable career as Army chief of staff.

After leaving this position in 1926, however, Hines did not retire. On the contrary, he remained on active duty, with his last assignment being commander of the Department of the Philippines.

Hines retired as a major general in 1932 but was advanced to four-star rank in 1940. He died five months after his 100th birthday, and was buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

In 2000, the Postal Service issued a postage stamp honoring Hines.

Fred L. Borch retired from the Army after 25 years and is the regimental historian for the Army Judge Advocate General's Corps. He is the author of “The Silver Star,” a history of America's third-highest award for combat heroism. His e-mail address is borchfj@aol.com. Robert F. Dorr, an Air Force veteran, lives in Oakton, Va. He is co-author of “Hell Hawks,” a history of an American fighter group. His e-mail address is robert.f.dorr@cox.net.