Author: Thomas Ty Smith
Bio: COL (Ret.) Thomas T. "Ty" Smith grew up in Del Rio, Texas and was commissioned an Infantry officer from OCS in 1982. He earned a B.S. in Education from Southwest Texas State University, an MA in History from Texas A&M University, and an MA in Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College. He served in the Second Armored Division (Hell on Wheels) and the First Infantry Division (Big Red One), was the Garrison Commander at the U.S Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and at Fort Riley, Kansas, and commanded the Hanoi, Vietnam detachment of Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command. Holding a secondary specialty as a military historian, Colonel (Ret.) Smith was an assistant professor of military history at the United States Military Academy at West Point, was the Head of the Military History Department at the United States Army Command and General Staff College, and Director, Combat Studies Institute, Fort Leavenworth, KS. He has published numerous articles and seven books on the U.S. Army on the frontier, and was elected a Fellow of the Texas State Historical Association in 2003.