Robert S . Beightler Robert Sprague Beightler ( March 21 , 1892 – February 12 , 1978 ) was an American military officer and Ohio political insider , engineer , and business owner . In the military , he reached the rank of major general , and served as military Governor of Okinawa , War Department General Staff , and as commander of the 37th Infantry Division , the only National Guard General to lead his troops through training and into battle during World War Two . In political activities in Ohio , he served as head of the Ohio State Highway Department , President of the Army Personnel Board , Executive Director and board member of the Ohio Turnpike Commission . Beightler was the only World War II National Guard general to have commanded his division for the length of the war . In addition to being one of only eleven generals who commanded their divisions for the entire war and the longest serving of these eleven , Beightler was appointed to the regular army in 1946 as one of only two National Guard major generals to receive such an appointment at that time . Surname etymology . Beightler is derived from Bigler . Because some German immigrants were illiterate when they came to Colonial America , the name has been transcribed numerous ways by English clerks not familiar with the ethnic surnames and anglicized , including Beighler , Beigler , and Beegler . The " t " was added to the name upon the arrival of Robert ' s ancestor in Marysville because of how the name sounded , where his ancestors were said to have spoken with a strong German accent which was barely understandable . The traditional pronunciation of the name is " Beat - ler " , reflective of the origins of the name , and is still used by many descendants of Robert ' s Marysville ancestor Tobias , however , other descendants have adopted the evolutionary pronunciation , " Bite - ler " . Early life . Beightler was born on March 21 , 1892 in Marysville , Ohio , of German - British - French descent . He was the son of William P . Beightler , an elected local surveyor , city and state engineer . His father was also the president of the Perfect Cigar Company . His mother was Joana Sprague , daughter of Franklin B . Sprague and a cousin of Cdre . Oliver Hazard Perry , Gov . William Sprague IV , and U . S . Senator William Sprague III . Beightler ' s paternal ancestors came from Germany , having immigrated to and settled in Berks County , Pennsylvania in the 18th century . In the early 19th century , those ancestors were some of the first pioneers of the western United States , first settling in eastern Ohio , and eventually in Marysville . They had served in the American Revolution , and would serve as well in the American Civil War , among other early United States conflicts . Beightler was raised in a Protestant home that stressed church , community , service , duty , and patriotism . They lived on the westside of Marysville on 7th street . As a young man he learned from his father ' s industriousness and grew vegetables in the back yard to sell door to door . He was an excellent student , and avid hunter , having been quoted saying " from the time I was knee high to a grasshopper , ( I had a rifle in my hands ) . " Education . After graduating from Marysville High School in 1909 , he enrolled at The Ohio State University for two years . While there he studied civil engineering , was active is Sigma Alpha Epsilon , trained as a cadet , and was manager of the basketball team . Following the two years at OSU , Beightler left to take employment as an assistant engineer with Union County . Marriage . While he was in college , he met his future wife Anna Lawrence Porter , who was a student at Ohio Wesleyan University . Her father was an executive with the Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Company , and her grandfather was a judge in Union County . They would marry on October 14 , 1914 and have three children , two who lived , Robert Jr . , and Marjorie . Beightler ' s best man at this wedding was John W . Bricker , the future Governor of Ohio , U . S . Senator , and 1944 Republican Vice Presidential Nominee . Military service . National Guard enlistment . On August 7 , 1911 , Beightler had enlisted with the Ohio National Guard . He was part of the 4th Ohio Infantry , which had been re - organized from the 14th Ohio National Guard . Beightler served with Company E , based out of an armory in Marysville . By 1913 Beightler had achieved the rank of first sergeant , and second lieutenant by 1914 . Mexican Conflict . In August 1916 , President Woodrow Wilson mobilized 400 , 000 troops from across the nation , including from the Ohio National Guard , to be sent to the Mexican border to deal with the border crisis and Pancho Villa . The forces were led by John J . Pershing . A young Beightler would serve in this conflict . World War One . On August 5 , 1917 , Beightler was commissioned as a first lieutenant in the U . S . Army , serving as an adjutant for the 3rd Battalion . The 4th infantry would be designated the 166th U . S Infantry Regiment by the U . S . War Department . Beightler would be moved to Camp Mills on Long Island in preparation for deployment to France in the European theater of World War I . Before departing for Europe in October 1917 , Anne would visit to wish Robert well and inform him that they were expecting their first child . Upon arriving in France , Beightler ' s regiment undertook basic training operations , including learning the French language . He would be involved in the Sedan incident , as well as other combat during his time stationed in France . Post - World War One civilian life . Following the war , he returned home to Ohio in 1919 . Re - entering civilian life , he worked as an engineer for the state in Columbus over requests by his father to work in Union County as an engineer . His daughter was over a year old after he left the military , and the young family moved to Columbus to be closer to Beightler ' s employment . Columbus was also a booming city with many opportunities . Beightler would complete his engineering degree at OSU . He would also start a private civil engineering firm with Adolph Stellhorn . He went on to Command and General Staff School in Leavenworth , Kansas , to complete a course on National Guard Officers where he was first in his class . In 1930 , he graduated from the Army War College ' s G - 2 course . Return to active duty . In 1932 , Beightler returned to active duty , serving with the Army General Staff in Washington D . C . This exposed him to the highest levels of the Army , something rarely afforded to National Guard officers . He would spend most of his time working on plans for the Interstate Highway System . In 1936 he returned to Ohio , working as chief of staff for the 37th Infantry Division , and commander of the 74th Infantry Brigade . Having earned the opportunity , in 1939 his longtime friend John W . Bricker , who had become Governor of Ohio , appointed Beightler to Ohio State Highway Director . In 1940 , Bricker would appoint Beightler commanding General of the 37th Infantry Division . Training the 37th Infantry Division . Beightler assumed his duties as commanding General of the division in 1940 , and immediately began exhaustive training and preparation of the soldiers . His philosophy was simple , the better trained the soldiers are , the less casualties there would be . He also had moral reasoning , having been quoted after World War Two saying " . . . I have never been able to completely harden myself to the sacrifice of American lives . I have always felt a deep - seated responsibility to the families of these men , many of whom might be called my neighbors . " The 37th would participate in the Louisiana Maneuvers , in which future senior military leaders Dwight Eisenhower , George Patton , Omar Bradley , and Leslie McNair were present . McNair would say of Beightler that he was " one of the best " National Guard commanders . A few months later , America would be thrown into World War II following the Pearl Harbor attacks . World War two . Following the training of the 37th , Beightler would lead them into battle in the Pacific theater of the war . The " Buckeye Division , " as the 37th was called , entered the theater in 1942 . The 37th were victorious in numerous battles , including victories at New Georgia , Bougainville and at the Battle of Manila . They would go on to liberate 1300 internees at the Bilibid Prison in Muntinglupa . The Buckeye Division produced 7 Medal of Honor recipients during this war . Beightler was the only National Guard commanding officer to have led his troops throughout the course of the entire war . They were demobilized in November 1945 . Japanese surrender . On September 5 , 1945 , Beightler accepted the articles of surrender from Major General Iguchi , Commanding General , 80th Brigade , Imperial Japanese Army , in Luzon , Philippines . Post - War . At the end of the war , Beightler was the only World War II National Guard general to have commanded his division for the length of the war . In addition to being the army ' s longest serving division commander in 1945 , Beightler was appointed to the regular army in 1946 as one of only two National Guard major generals to receive such an appointment at that time . Following the war , Beightler was assigned command of the 5th Service Command at Fort Hayes in Columbus . In 1947 , he was appointed President of the Personnel Board of the Secretary of War , moving back to Washington . In 1949 , he was assigned to the Far East , taking over the Marianas - Bonins Command on Guam . Military Governor of Okinawa . In 1950 , he was appointed the Deputy Military Governor of Okinawa , as well as the Deputy Governor of the Ryukyus Islands Command . During this period he dedicated most of his time toward rebuilding the infrastructure of the Ryukyus Islands . Following a massive heart attack in 1952 , one of nine Beightler would suffer throughout his life , he was flown to Walter Reed Medical Center in Washington D . C . Beightler retired from the military after 42 years of service , in 1953 . Politics . Beightler had been involved in politics since his return from World War One . He was a lifelong critic of too much federal power , and constantly feuded with Washington in defending the National Guard . He was a staunch conservative in the classical liberal sense , believing in the freedom of the States and a skeptic of the federal government . He was active in the Ohio Republican Party , having been a longtime friend of John W . Bricker , and close friends of Ohio Republican leader Ed Schorr and U . S . Senate Majority Leader and Presidential Son Robert A . Taft . He had extensive media contacts in Ohio , from Preston Wolfe at the Columbus Dispatch , David Baylor and Carl George of WGAR Cleveland , Gene DiMario of the Cincinnati Post , and Robert Harper of the Ohio State Journal that he would use to the 37th ' s advantage in a dispute with the War Department in Washington , as well as to keep up on the political environment personally . At one point he was the mayor of Marble Cliff , Ohio , a tony hamlet just outside downtown Columbus . He was an alternate delegate from the Ohio delegation to the 1940 Republican National Convention . Gubernatorial and congressional consideration . In the spring of 1945 the Ohio Republican Party attempted to draft Beightler to run for Governor against Frank Lausche in 1946 . His candidacy was urged by Bricker , and Ohio Congressman Clarence J . Brown . This would have provided early key endorsements . Hundreds of insider Republicans wrote to Beightler stating he would have their support , would easily clinch the Republican nomination for Governor , and could defeat Lausche . However , citing the lack of a completely unified party around his potential candidacy , he didn ' t want to cause a factional split in the party . He also cited the unlikelihood that he could beat Lausche because he was a great campaigner , as well as the fact that he agreed with him on almost every issue , in deciding that the attempt was not worthwhile . His decision was also influenced by the fact he was still engaged in battle in the Pacific theater . He did write that ending his public career as governor of " the grand old state of Ohio " was an appealing prospect . Beightler miscalculated the political atmosphere , as Lausche would lose by 40 , 000 votes the following year in a banner year for Republicans . In 1946 , talks circulated again of Beightler running for political office , this time for Congress . However , he said was not interested in a legislative position and called it " a nobody ' s job . " Opposition to Eisenhower candidacy . On November 9 , 1950 , he sent a letter to Robert A . Taft congratulating him on his Senate re - election victory while stationed in the Pacific . The letter offered a little insight into Beightler ' s political world , in which he expressed doubt in Dwight Eisenhower being President of the United States , if elected in 1952 . The letter discussed a personal meeting with Gen . Douglas MacArthur on the subject , in which Beightler had encouraged MacArthur to run in ' 52 , but MacArthur showed no interest . MacArthur shared the same views as Beightler on Eisenhower , and both would go on to endorse Taft in 1952 . In Taft ' s reply on November 24 , 1950 , he implies to Beightler that Eisenhower is incompetent and likely to be influenced by money and political endorsements . Ohio Turnpike Commission . After leaving the military in 1953 , Beightler would head the Ohio Turnpike Commission , being appointed executive director . Beightler oversaw the construction and completion of the Ohio Turnpike . He resigned as executive director to become a member of the commission , before he retired altogether in 1962 . Retirement and family . Beightler retired officially in 1962 to Worthington , Ohio . Over the years he had been a good investor , and had a large retirement savings . He enjoyed gardening and fishing , and spent his winters in Florida . He followed national and international affairs closely , as well as Wall Street out of interest of his own financial holdings . He was also active in veterans and civic groups . Beightler had two children with Anne , Robert Jr . , who would go onto attend the United States Military Academy at West Point , and Marjorie . Robert Jr . served in the Philippines during World War II as a platoon leader in the 511th Parachute Infantry Regiment ( United States ) of the 11th Airborne Division . Despite both father and son fighting in their respective divisions in the Battle of Manila , neither would meet in combat until April in northern Luzon . Beightler died on February 12 , 1978 . He is buried at Oakdale Cemetery in Marysville . Beightler had said of his hometown “ With you , I lived many of my greatest moments , from which I have many of my fondest memories . Memories of Marysville during my 28 years here are among my warmest thoughts . ” Honors . Robert Beightler was the recipient of numerous honors , including the Distinguished Service Cross for his leadership in the Philippines campaign , the Silver Star Medal , the Purple Heart , the Combat Infantryman Badge , the Distinguished Service Medal for the New Georgia campaign , with an Oak Leaf cluster for his service in Bougainville and Luzon , and the Legion of Merit with an Oak Leaf cluster . On September 25 , 1945 , Beightler received his 33d degree from the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry . He was awarded the Legion of Honor from the Philippine government . In June 1952 , Beightler was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of the Ryukyus for his work in rebuilding the infrastructure . The National Guard armory in Columbus is named in his honor . It is the headquarters of the Ohio National Guard . In 1969 , the city of Marysville , Ohio dedicated 5th Street in honor of Beightler , naming it Major General Robert S . Beightler Way . In 1993 , the Ohio Department of Veterans Affairs inducted him into the Ohio Veterans Hall of Fame . In 2007 , the Union County , Ohio Chamber of Commerce declared September 28 to be Major General Robert S . Beightler Day . In 2007 , the Ohio Historical Society dedicated an historical marker on 5th Street in Uptown Marysville in honor of Beightler . Hundreds of citizens attended the ceremony , with officials present from the office of Gov . Ted Strickland , U . S . Senator George Voinovich , and the Ohio National Guard . In 2007 , the Ohio Department of Transportation funded his memorial marker at the Veterans Memorial in Marysville , Ohio .