Rank Insignia Previous Honoree ID Next Honoree ID


   
honoree image
First Name: John

Last Name: Hines

Birthplace: White Sulphur Springs, WV, USA

Gender: Male

Branch: Army (1784 - present)



Middle Name: Leonard



Date of Birth: 21 May 1868

Date of Death: 13 October 1968

Rank: Major General

Years Served:
John Leonard Hines

   
Graduate, U.S. Military Academy, Class of 1895

Engagements:
•  Spanish-American War (1898)
•  Philippine-American War (1899 - 1902)
•  World War I (1914 - 1918)
•  Mexican Expedition (1916 - 1917)

Biography:

John Leonard Hines
Major General, U.S. Army

John Leonard Hines was born on 21 May 1868 in White Sulphur Springs, WV.

Hines graduated from the U.S. Military Academy and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant of Infantry on 12 June 1895. His first assignment was to the 2nd Infantry Regiment. Hines served with the regiment in Nebraska and Montana from 1891-98 where he married Harriet Schofield "Rita" Wherry, one of the daughters of Brigadier General William M. Wherry and Alice Grammer.

Hines served in Cuba during the Spanish-American War and in the Philippines during the Philippine-American War. He was Adjutant of the Mexican Punitive Expedition in 1916-17 under General John J. Pershing.

During World War I, Hines experienced a meteoric rise in rank as he was promoted from Major to Lieutenant Colonel in May 1917, then to Colonel, Brigadier General, and, in August 1918, to Major General-four grades in 16 months. He assumed successively larger commands-from regiment to brigade, division, and finally, corps.

Hines commanded the 1st Brigade, 1st Division, from May to August 1918 during which time he received the Distinguished Service Cross, the Army's second-highest award for valor, for actions near Berzy-le-Sec, France, on 21 July 1918.

On 16 August 1918, Hines took command of 4th Division. He commanded the 4th ID during the American operations at St. Mihiel and in the Meuse-Argonne until 11 October 1918. Hines then took command of III Corps, leading it during the final engagements of the war and the occupation of Germany. His post-war commands included the 5th Division, the 2nd Division and the VIII Corps Area.

In December 1922, he was assigned as Deputy Chief of Staff of the Army, and became Chief of Staff on 14 September 1924. On 7 May 1925, Hines dedicated the landing field at the Vancouver Barracks in Vancouver, WA, to the memory of Lieutenant Alexander Pearson, Jr. who was killed on 2 September 1924 in Fairfield, OH, while flying the Curtiss R-8 in preparation for the upcoming Pulitzer Trophy Race.

In 1926, after completing his tour as Army Chief of Staff, Hines took command of the IX Corps Area in California, which he led until 1930. In 1930, Hines became Commanding General of the Department of the Philippines. He retired from active duty in May 1932.

Honors

On 5 May 2000, the U.S. Postal Service issued the Distinguished Soldiers stamps in which Hines was honored.

Medals and Awards

Distinguished Service Cross

Distinguished Service Medal

Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (UK)

Commandeur Légion d'honneur (France)

Croix de guerre (France)

Commander Order of Léopold (Belgium)

Order of the Crown (Italy)

Medal of Solidarity, 1918 (Panama)

Personal

Hines' son, U.S. Army Colonel John L. Hines, Jr. (1905-1986), served in World War II with the 6th Armored Division, Commanding the Division's Combat Command A from November 1944 to March 1945. He was twice decorated with the Distinguished Service Cross and was severely wounded outside Frankfurt, Germany when an 88mm antitank shell grazed his face.

Death and Burial

Major General John Leonard Hines died on 13 October 1968 in Washington, DC, at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, at age 100. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, VA.



Honoree ID: 2633   Created by: MHOH

Ribbons


Medals


Badges


Honoree Photos

honoree imagehonoree imagehonoree image

honoree imagehonoree image

honoree image

Remembrances


Tributes