Robert Mearns
{{short description|United States Army general}}
{{Infobox military person
|name = Robert Walter Mearns
|birth_date = {{birth date|1866|07|16}}
|death_date = {{death date and age|1949|5|23|1866|07|16}}
|image = Robert W. Mearns (1).jpg
|caption =
|nickname =
|birth_place = Kemblesville, Pennsylvania
|death_place = San Francisco, California
|placeofburial =
|placeofburial_label = Place of burial
|allegiance = {{USA}}
|branch = File:United States Department of the Army Seal.svg United States Army
|serviceyears = 1892–1922
|servicenumber = 0-415
|rank = 20px Brigadier General
|unit =
|commands =
|battles = Spanish–American War
Philippine–American War
World War I
|awards = Silver Star
|relations = LTG Fillmore K. Mearns (son)
|laterwork =
}}
Brigadier General Robert Walter Mearns (July 16, 1866 – May 23, 1949) was a U.S. Army general during World War I.
Early life and education
Robert Walter Mearns was born on July 16, 1866, in Kemblesville, Pennsylvania, to Andrew James Mearns, a farmer, and Martha Kennedy Mearns. He attended the West Chester Normal School, then entered the United States Military Academy and graduated number sixty-one of sixty-two in the class of 1892,{{cite book|last=Davis|first=Henry Blaine Jr.|title=Generals in Khaki|publisher=Pentland Press, Inc.|year= 1998|isbn= 1571970886|oclc=40298151|page=267}} one of thirteen who took five years to complete the requirements.{{cite book |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8HabECJ71A0C&pg=PA286 |title=Official Register of the Officers and Cadets |chapter=Class of 1892—Register of Graduates |date=1969 |pages=285–286 |publisher=United States Military Academy |access-date=9 October 2022}}{{cite news |url=http://digital-library.usma.edu/digital/collection/assembly/id/2615/rec/5 |title=Robert Walter Mearns |date=July 1950 |volume=IX |issue=2 |pages=57–58 |magazine=Assembly |access-date=9 October 2022}} Mearns later graduated from the Infantry and Cavalry School in 1897.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kocZAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA1139 |title=Official Army Register |date=January 1, 1941 |page=1139 |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |location=Washington, D.C. |access-date=9 October 2022}}
Military career
He was commissioned in the 20th Infantry on duty at Fort Assinniboine, Montana, and later, at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
During the Spanish–American War, his regiment was sent to Cuba. Mearns participated in the Battle of El Caney and earned the Silver Star. After the war, his regiment was sent to the Philippines.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_5neAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA548 |title=Biographical register of the officers and graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York since its establishment in 1802: Supplement, 1890-1900 |date=January 1901 |volume=IV |pages=548–549 |publisher=The Riverside Press |access-date=10 October 2022}}
Mearns was promoted to major and commanded the Philippine Scouts from February 28, 1905, to December 8, 1909.{{cite book|last1=Cullum|first1=George Washington|last2=Singleton|first2=Edward|title=Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military ...|year=1920|publisher=Houghton, Mifflin|location=Boston|page=651|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2BjcAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA651|access-date=19 April 2017}}
Mearns was promoted to lieutenant colonel effective May 15, 1917. During World War I, he received a temporary promotion to colonel on August 16, 1917, and to brigadier general on October 12, 1918. From November 1, 1918, to February 5, 1919, he served as commanding general of the 17th Infantry Division at Camp Beauregard in Louisiana.{{cite book |url=http://digital-library.usma.edu/digital/collection/p16919coll3/id/20080/rec/4 |title=Biographical register of the officers and graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York since its establishment in 1802: Supplement, 1910-1920 |date=September 1920 |volume=VI-A |page=651 |publisher=Seemann & Peters, Printers |access-date=9 October 2022}}
After the war, Mearns reverted to his permanent rank of lieutenant colonel on February 6, 1919. He was promoted to colonel effective July 1, 1920 and retired from active duty on December 31, 1922. On June 21, 1930, Mearns was advanced to brigadier general on the retired list.
Personal life
Mearns married Ethel Janet Brown on June 5, 1913. Together they had three sons, Robert, Fillmore and James. He was a Presbyterian and enjoyed riding horses, golfing and motoring.
Mearns and his wife settled in Berkeley, California after his retirement. He died at the age of eight-two at Letterman General Hospital in San Francisco on May 23, 1949. Mearns was buried at San Francisco National Cemetery.
References
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Category:Military personnel from Chester County, Pennsylvania
Category:West Chester University alumni
Category:United States Military Academy alumni
Category:19th-century United States Army personnel
Category:United States Army Infantry Branch personnel
Category:United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni
Category:American military personnel of the Spanish–American War
Category:Recipients of the Silver Star
Category:American military personnel of the Philippine–American War
Category:United States Army generals of World War I
Category:United States Army generals