George LeRoy Irwin (April 26, 1868 – February 19, 1931) was a major general of the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

Fort Irwin National Training Center Fort Irwin National Training Center (Fort Irwin NTC) is a major training area for the United States military in the Mojave Desert in northern San Bernardino County, California. Fort Irwin is at an average elevation of . It is located northeast ...

is named in his honor.

Early life

Irwin was born on April 26, 1868, at

Fort Wayne (Detroit) Fort Wayne is located in the city of Detroit, Michigan, at the foot of Livernois Avenue in the Delray, Michigan, Delray neighborhood. The fort is situated on the Detroit River at a point where it is under half a mile to the Ontario shore. The or ...

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

. His parents were colonel (later Army Brigadier General)

Bernard J. D. Irwin Bernard John Dowling Irwin (June 24, 1830 – December 15, 1917) was an assistant army surgeon during the Apache Wars and the first (chronologically by action) Medal of Honor recipient. His actions on February 13, 1861, are the earl ...

, a surgeon in the Army Medical Corps who received the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

in the

Apache Wars The Apache Wars were a series of armed conflicts between the United States Army and various Apache tribal confederations fought in the Southwestern United States, southwest between 1849 and 1886, though minor hostilities continued until as l ...

, and his wife Antoinette Elizabeth Stahl Irwin.

Career

Irwin graduated from the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

in 1889. He served in the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

Philippine–American War The Philippine–American War, known alternatively as the Philippine Insurrection, Filipino–American War, or Tagalog Insurgency, emerged following the conclusion of the Spanish–American War in December 1898 when the United States annexed th ...

Cuban Pacification The Provisional Government of Cuba (Spanish: ''Gobierno Provisional de Cuba'') lasted from September 1906 to February 1909. This period was also referred to as the Second occupation of Cuba. When the government of Cuban President Tomás Estra ...

and

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

.Davis, Henry Blaine Jr. (1998). Generals in Khaki. Pentland Press, Inc. p. 196. . OCLC 40298151 Irwin graduated from the

United States Army War College The United States Army War College (USAWC) is a U.S. Army staff college in Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, with a Carlisle postal address, on the 500-acre (2 km2) campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks. It provides graduate-level instru ...

in 1910. During World War I, Irwin, then a brigadier general, commanded the

57th Field Artillery Brigade The 157th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade, also known as the Iron Brigade, is based out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It was formerly known as the 57th Field Artillery Brigade, at which time its subordinate organizations included the 1st Battalion, 126t ...

of the 32nd Infantry Division under the command of Major General William G. Haan. Irwin distinguished himself during the Second Battle of the Marne, Oise-Aisne Offensive and

Meuse–Argonne offensive The Meuse–Argonne offensive (also known as the Meuse River–Argonne Forest offensive, the Battles of the Meuse–Argonne, and the Meuse–Argonne campaign) was a major part of the final Allies of World War I, Allied Offensive (military), offe ...

and received the

Army Distinguished Service Medal The Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a military decoration of the United States Army that is presented to soldiers who have distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious service to the government in a duty of great responsibility. ...

. After the war, Irwin reverted to his permanent rank of

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

in 1919. He was promoted to brigadier general again in 1923 and then to major general in 1928.

Personal life and family

Irwin married Maria Elizabeth Barker on April 30, 1892. Irwin's son,

Stafford LeRoy Irwin Lieutenant General Stafford LeRoy Irwin (March 23, 1893 – November 23, 1955) was a senior United States Army officer who served in World War II. He came from a family with a strong military tradition: he was the son of Major General George Le ...

, retired as a

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

Death and legacy

Irwin died on February 19, 1931, on

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger, more populous island of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the country. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is the southernmost island in ...

. The general and his wife were buried at the

West Point Cemetery West Point Cemetery is a historic cemetery on the grounds of the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York, West Point, New York (state), New York. It overlooks the Hudson River, and served as a burial ground for Continental Army s ...

next to his parents. In 1942, the Mojave Anti-Aircraft Range (today:

) was named in his honor.

Decorations

Citation

The citation for Irwin's Army Distinguished Service Medal reads: :General Orders: War Department, General Orders No. 19 (1920) :Action Date: World War I :Name: George LeRoy Irwin :Service: Army :Rank: Brigadier General :Company: Commanding General :Regiment: 57th Field Artillery Brigade :Division: 32d Division, American Expeditionary Forces :Citation: ''The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Army Distinguished Service Medal to Brigadier General George LeRoy Irwin, United States Army, for exceptionally meritorious and distinguished services to the Government of the United States, in a duty of great responsibility during World War I. General Irwin Commanded with ability the 57th Field Artillery Brigade, 32d Division, during the Marne-Aisne, Oise-Aisne, and Meuse-Argonne offensives. At all times he displayed keen judgment, high military attainments, and loyal devotion to duty. The success of the Division whose advance he supported was due in a large measure to his eminent technical skill and ability as an artillerist.''

References

Official Homepage of the National Training Center Fort IrwinMilitarytimes.com - Official Army Distinguished Service Medal Citation
;Notes {{DEFAULTSORT:Irwin, George LeRoy 1868 births 1931 deaths 19th-century United States Army personnel United States Military Academy alumni Military personnel from Detroit American military personnel of the Spanish–American War American military personnel of the Philippine–American War United States Army War College alumni United States Army generals of World War I Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) American recipients of the Legion of Honour United States Army generals Burials at West Point Cemetery