Charles D . Herron Charles Douglas Herron ( March 13 , 1877 – April 23 , 1977 ) was a general in the United States Army . Early career . Herron was born in Crawfordsville , Indiana on March 13 , 1877 . He was the son of William Parke Herron ( 1843 – 1927 ) , a captain in the Union Army during the Civil War . Herron attended Indiana ' s Wabash College and was a member of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity before accepting appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point , from which he graduated in 1899 . Herron was appointed a Second Lieutenant of Infantry , and served in the Philippines during the Spanish - American War . He then carried out a series of increasingly demanding assignments , including Professor and Assistant to the Quartermaster at West Point , Instructor and Inspector of the Indiana National Guard , Adjutant of the 10th Infantry Regiment in Panama , and commander the 10th Infantry ' s Machine Gun Company . In 1908 he received a Master ' s Degree from Wabash College . World War I . During World War I Herron served as Deputy Chief of Staff of the 1st Division and Chief of Staff of the 78th Division , participating in the Meuse - Argonne Offensive and the occupation of St . Mihiel . The governor of Indiana appointed him as a Brigadier General in the National Guard , intending to have him command troops from that state , but Herron could not procure a discharge from the Regular Army and remained on active duty . At the end of the war his sustained superior efforts were recognized with the Distinguished Service Medal . After the war he attended the Army War College , served on the General Staff in Washington , and was assigned as Chief of Staff of the Philippine Department , headquartered in Manila . From 1934 to 1935 Herron was the Army ' s Executive for Reserve Affairs , receiving promotion to brigadier general . From 1935 to 1937 he was commander of the 6th Field Artillery Regiment . In 1937 he earned a law degree from Wabash College and was promoted to major general as acting VI Corps commander and then commander of the Hawaiian Division . Later career . As head of the Army ' s Hawaiian Command from 1938 to 1941 , Herron was promoted to lieutenant general and bucked Army conventional wisdom by advocating for the integration of Japanese - Americans into the Organized Reserves , reasoning that their citizenship trumped their ancestry . While his stance ran counter to public opinion , he was credited with helping keep Japanese - Americans in Hawaii from being interned at the start of World War II , as happened in California and other Western states . Herron also documented his concern about the military ' s ability to defend Hawaii , citing its vulnerability to attack by aircraft carrier . After the attack on Pearl Harbor , Herron provided evidence during the inquiry into the conduct of his successor , General Walter C . Short , stating that prior to Short ' s arrival he had provided General Short with a briefing book and other materials about the current situation in Hawaii , and that Short had acknowledged not having had time to read them before Herron departed . Herron retired in early 1941 , but was recalled in 1942 , serving on the Personnel Board that considered officers for promotion . He retired again in December 1946 , receiving a second Distinguished Service Medal . In 1947 he was promoted to General on the retired list in recognition of his superior service during World War II . From 1946 to 1966 Herron resided in Bethesda , Maryland , where he was active in civic affairs and served on the Montgomery County Court of Tax Appeals . In 1966 his wife and he moved to Hawaii to live near their daughter , and Herron died on April 23 , 1977 at the Honolulu nursing home where he had resided for several years . General Herron was buried in Crawfordsville ' s Oak Hill Cemetery . The Charles Herron Papers ( 1908 – 1949 ) are part of the collections of the Wabash College Library . The Charles D . Herron Photograph Collection ( 1899 – 1941 ) is preserved at the U . S . Army Military History Institute at Carlisle Barracks , Pennsylvania . His sister Jessie was the wife of Will H . Hays ( 1879 – 1954 ) , Republican National Committee Chairman , U . S . Postmaster General and President of the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America ( MPPDA ) , later named the Motion Picture Association of America ( MPAA ) . Citation for first Distinguished Service Medal :