Merritt Barton Curtis, (August 31, 1892 – May 16, 1966) was a

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

officer with the rank of brigadier general during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He was also a lawyer who in

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Janu ...

ran for

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

in Washington with B. N. Miller and vice-president in Texas with Charles L. Sullivan under the Constitution Party banner. Curtis also ran for vice-president in Michigan with Lar Daly under the Tax Cut banner.

Early career

Merritt Barton Curtis was born in 1892 at

San Bernardino, California San Bernardino ( ) is a city in and the county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California, the city had a population of 222,101 in the 2020 census, making it the List of ...

, son of Israel Hamilton Curtis and Eliza Allen Mee. He attended the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

, where he earned his

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree in 1916. Curtis subsequently entered the Marine Corps on August 10, 1917, and was commissioned second lieutenant on that date. He also married Francis Claire Bracewell on April 23, 1917, at

Riverside, California Riverside is a city in and the county seat of Riverside County, California, United States. It is named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. As of the 2020 census, the city has a population of 314,998. It is the most populous city in th ...

. Curtis was assigned to the Marine Barracks Quantico,

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

, and served there during the whole duration of

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 ...

. He was transferred to the 1st Provisional Brigade of Marine and sent for duties in

Haiti Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...

on June 1, 1920. Curtis was transferred to

Garde d'Haïti The Armed Forces of Haiti (, ) are the military forces of the Republic of Haiti, is composed of the Haitian Army, the Haitian Navy, the Haitian Aviation Corps and also the BSAP. The Force has about 2000 active personnel as of 2023, with the army ...

in January 1922 and served there until October 1923, when he returned to the United States. He was assigned back to the Marine Barracks Quantico after his arrival, but at the beginning of April 1924, Curtis was transferred to the

Naval Submarine Base New London Naval Submarine Base New London is the primary United States Navy East Coast submarine base, also known as the "Home of the Submarine Force." It is located in Groton, Connecticut directly across the Thames River from its namesake city of New L ...

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, where he was appointed commanding officer of the local Marine detachment. He was later transferred at

Headquarters Marine Corps The Headquarters Marine Corps (HQMC) is a headquarters staff within the Department of the Navy which includes the offices of the Commandant of the Marine Corps, the Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps and various staff functions. The funct ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, where he was assigned to the Paymaster's Office. During his duties in Washington, D.C., Curtis attended

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

and earned a

Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

degree in 1927. As a lawyer, he was a member of the bar in California.

World War II

Curtis was appointed executive officer of the Paymaster's at

, and served there until December 1944 under the command of Brigadier General Raymond R. Wright. During his time in this capacity, he was promoted to the 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 ...

on April 29, 1942. Curtis was promoted to the rank of brigadier general in December 1944 and appointed paymaster within Fleet Marine Force, Pacific. He was stationed at

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

and later also participated in Philippines Campaign. For his service in this capacity, he was decorated with the

Navy Commendation Medal The Commendation Medal is a mid-level United States military decoration presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. Each branch of the United States Armed Forces issues its own version of the Commendation Medal, with a fift ...

. Curtis returned to

, in August 1946 and was appointed chief of disbursing branch. He was responsible for

Naval rating In military terminology, a rate or rating (also known as bluejacket in the United States) is a junior enlisted sailor in a navy who is below the military rank of warrant officer. Depending on the country and navy that uses it, the exact te ...

and for maintaining of personnel records, preparing reports and accomplishing accounting procedures. Curtis served in this capacity until his retirement from the Marine Corps in June 1949.

Later life

In 1960, the Constitution Party put up retired

Marine Corps Marines (or naval infantry) are military personnel generally trained to operate on both land and sea, with a particular focus on amphibious warfare. Historically, the main tasks undertaken by marines have included raiding ashore (often in supp ...

Brigadier General Merritt B. Curtis for president, and B. N. Miller for vice-president in the state of Washington. Curtis received 1,401 votes for 0.11% of the Washington vote.1960 Results
from uselectionaltas.org Curtis received 18,162 votes as a candidate for vice-president in Texas, and 1,767 votes in Michigan. Curtis died in 1966 while a resident of

, and is buried at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

Decorations

Here is the ribbon bar of Brigadier General Merritt B. Curtis:

Footnotes

References