Arthur MacArthur , Jr . Lieutenant General Arthur MacArthur , Jr . ( June 2 , 1845 – September 5 , 1912 ) , was a United States Army general . He became the military Governor - General of the American - occupied Philippines in 1900 but his term ended a year later due to clashes with the civilian governor , future President William Howard Taft . His son , Douglas MacArthur , was one of only five men promoted to the five - star rank of General of the Army during World War II . In addition to their both being promoted to the rank of general officer , Arthur MacArthur , Jr . and Douglas MacArthur also share the distinction of having been the first father and son to each be awarded a Medal of Honor . Early life . Born in Chicopee Falls , then part of Springfield , Massachusetts , MacArthur was the father of General Douglas MacArthur , as well as Arthur MacArthur III , a captain in the Navy who was awarded the Navy Cross in World War I . His own father , Arthur MacArthur , Sr . , was the fourth governor of Wisconsin ( albeit for only four days ) and a judge in Milwaukee . Civil War . At the outbreak of the Civil War , MacArthur was living in Wisconsin . On August 4 , 1862 , at the age of 17 , he was commissioned as a first lieutenant and appointed as adjutant of the 24th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment , seeing action at Chickamauga , Stones River , Chattanooga , the Atlanta Campaign and Franklin . At the Battle of Missionary Ridge on November 25 , 1863 during the Chattanooga Campaign , the 18 - year - old MacArthur inspired his regiment by seizing and planting the regimental flag on the crest of Missionary Ridge at a particularly critical moment , shouting " " On Wisconsin . " " For these actions , he was awarded the Medal of Honor . He was brevetted colonel in the Union Army the following year . Only 19 years old at the time , he became nationally recognized as " The Boy Colonel " ( not to be confused with Henry K . Burgwyn , known as the " " Boy Colonel of the Confederacy " " ) . He was promoted to major on January 25 , 1864 and to lieutenant colonel on May 18 , 1865 - shortly before he was mustered out of service on June 10 , 1865 . In recognition of his gallantry in action he received brevets ( honorary promotions ) to lieutenant colonel and colonel dated March 15 , 1865 . Indian Wars . With the conclusion of the Civil War in June 1865 , MacArthur resigned his commission and began the study of law . After just a few months , however , he decided this was not a good fit for him , so he resumed his career with the Army . He was recommissioned on February 23 , 1866 as a second lieutenant in the Regular Army ' s U . S . 17th Infantry Regiment , with a promotion the following day to first lieutenant . Because of his outstanding record of performance during the Civil War , he was promoted in September of that year to captain . However , he would remain a captain for the following two decades , as promotion was slow in the small peacetime army . Between 1866 and 1884 , Captain MacArthur and his wife ( Mary Pinkney Hardy MacArthur ) completed assignments in Pennsylvania , New York , Utah Territory , Louisiana , and Arkansas . Three children were born during this time : In 1884 , MacArthur became the post commander of Fort Selden , in New Mexico . The following year , he took part in the campaign against Geronimo . In 1889 , he was promoted to Assistant Adjutant General of the Army with the rank of major , and was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1897 . Spanish - American War . During the first part of the Spanish American War , MacArthur was serving as the adjutant general of the III Corps in Georgia . In June 1898 he was promoted to a temporary Brigadier General in the volunteer army and commanded the Third Philippine Expedition . When he arrived in the Philippines he took command of the 1st Brigade , 2nd Division , VIII Corps and led it at the Battle of Manila ( 1898 ) . He was appointed Major General of volunteers on August 13 , 1898 . Philippine - American War . MacArthur was stationed in the Dakota Territory when the Spanish - American War broke out in 1898 and was commissioned a Brigadier General of U . S . Volunteers . He led the U . S . 2nd Division , VIII Corps during the Philippine - American War at the Battle of Manila ( 1899 ) , the Malolos campaign and the Northern Offensive . When the American occupation of the Philippines turned from conventional battles to guerrilla warfare , MacArthur commanded the Department of Northern Luzon . In January 1900 , he was appointed Brigadier General in the regular army and was appointed military governor of the Philippines and assumed command of the VIII Corps , replacing General Elwell S . Otis . He authorized the expedition , under General Frederick Funston , that resulted in the capture of Emilio Aguinaldo . MacArthur persuaded the captured Aguinaldo to cease fighting and to swear allegiance to the United States . He was promoted to major general in the Regular Army on February 5 , 1901 . After the war , President William McKinley named him Military Governor of the Philippines , but the following year , William Howard Taft was appointed as Civilian Governor . Taft and MacArthur clashed frequently . So severe were his difficulties with Taft over U . S . military actions in the war that MacArthur was eventually relieved and transferred to command the Department of the Pacific , where he was promoted to lieutenant general . Return to the United States . In the years that followed , he was assigned to various stateside posts and in 1905 was sent to Manchuria to observe the final stages of the Russo - Japanese War and served as military attaché to the U . S . Embassy in Tokyo . He returned to the U . S . in 1906 and resumed his post as Commander of the Pacific Division . That year the position of Army Chief of Staff became available and he was then the highest - ranking officer in the Army as a lieutenant general ( three stars ) . However , he was passed over by Secretary of War William Howard Taft . He never did realize his dream of commanding the entire Army . Retirement . MacArthur retired from the Army on June 2 , 1909 , having reached the mandatory retirement age of 64 . He was one of the last officers on active duty in the Army who had served in the Civil War . MacArthur was elected a member of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States ( MOLLUS ) in 1868 and was assigned insignia number 648 . On May 6 , 1908 he was elected commander of the Wisconsin Commandery of MOLLUS . He was elected as the Order ' s senior vice commander in chief on October 18 , 1911 and became the Order ' s commander in chief upon the death of Rear Admiral George T . Melville on March 12 , 1912 . On September 5 , 1912 , he went to Milwaukee to address a reunion of his Civil War unit . While on the dais , he suffered a heart attack and died there , aged 67 . He was originally buried in Milwaukee on Monday , September 7 , 1912 , but was moved to Section 2 of Arlington National Cemetery in 1926 . He is buried among other members of the family there , while his son , Douglas chose to be buried in Norfolk , Virginia . Awards and honors . MacArthur ' s military awards included the Medal of Honor , Civil War Campaign Medal , Indian Campaign Medal , Spanish Campaign Medal and Philippine Campaign Medal . Fort MacArthur , which protected the San Pedro , California harbor from 1914 until 1974 , was named after General Arthur MacArthur . Camp MacArthur , a World War I training camp in Waco , Texas was also named for the General . Medal of Honor citation . Rank and Organization : Citation : Just over eight decades later ( 1864 – 1945 ) , his son , Douglas MacArthur , would also gain fame for leading U . S forces to victory in the Philippines . Arthur MacArthur , Jr . and Douglas MacArthur were the first father and son ever to each be awarded a Medal of Honor . To date , the only other father and son to be given this honor are former President Theodore Roosevelt and his son , Theodore Roosevelt , Jr . Promotions . Union Army United States Army