Ralph Hospital (January 27, 1891 – December 20, 1972) was an American career military officer who served during World War I and World War II and attained the rank of brigadier general.

Military career

Hospital graduated from

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 ...

in 1913. He was commissioned in 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 ...

in November 1913 as a

field artillery Field artillery is a category of mobile artillery used to support army, armies in the field. These weapons are specialized for mobility, tactical proficiency, short range, long range, and extremely long range target engagement. Until the ear ...

officer and saw service with the 15th Cavalry Regiment during the Mexican Campaign in

Douglas, Arizona Douglas is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States, that lies in the north-west to south-east running Sulphur Springs Valley. Douglas has a Douglas, Arizona Port of Entry, border crossing with Mexico at Agua Prieta and a history of min ...

, and

Sierra Blanca, Texas Sierra Blanca is an unincorporated area in Hudspeth County, Texas, United States. It is also the county seat of the county and the namesake of a census-designated place (CDP) in which it is located. The town is part of the Trans-Pecos region of f ...

. He served as an artillery officer in France during World War I and then took an instructor role at

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

Ithaca, New York Ithaca () is a city in and the county seat of Tompkins County, New York, United States. Situated on the southern shore of Cayuga Lake in the Finger Lakes region of New York (state), New York, Ithaca is the largest community in the Ithaca metrop ...

, until the mid-1920s. Hospital, at the rank of major, served with the 15th Field Artillery Regiment during its period under the

Hawaiian Division The Hawaiian Division was a division of the United States Army, dedicated to the defense of Hawaii. This division was named rather than numbered, as were the Philippine, Panama Canal and Americal Divisions. It was first activated under the peac ...

in 1925, and returned to the United States in 1926 to attend Command and General Staff College at

Fort Leavenworth, Kansas Fort Leavenworth () is a United States Army installation located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, in the city of Leavenworth, Kansas, Leavenworth. Built in 1827, it is the second oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C., an ...

. He was a distinguished graduate and soon returned to Ithaca to instruct

Reserve Officers' Training Corps The Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC; or ) is a group of college- and university-based officer-training programs for training commissioned officers of the United States Armed Forces. While ROTC graduate officers serve in all branches o ...

(ROTC) again. He attained the rank of lieutenant colonel in 1935. Hospital was promoted to colonel in 1941 and saw service in World War II, first as commander of the 75th Field Artillery Brigade and then was frocked to brigadier general and placed as commanding general of the 91st Division Artillery. In the spring of 1944, they sailed for

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

and then Italy, making the push for the

Po River The Po ( , ) is the longest river in Italy. It flows eastward across northern Italy, starting from the Cottian Alps. The river's length is , or if the Maira (river), Maira, a right bank tributary, is included. The headwaters of the Po are forme ...

Valley and the

Gothic Line The Gothic Line (; ) was a German and Italian defensive line of the Italian Campaign of World War II. It formed Field Marshal Albert Kesselring's last major line of defence along the summits of the northern part of the Apennine Mountains du ...

. Hospital was awarded the

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

for his heroism in the Italian campaigns. He retired in January 1951, and was promoted to brigadier general on the U.S. Army Retired List in February 1951. He returned to Cornell as Professor of Military Studies and Tactics until the mid-1960s.

Awards

Hospital's awards include the Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, Army Commendation Medal, and the Italian Medal for Military Valor. His campaign awards include the Mexican Campaign, World War I Victory, American Defense, American Campaign, European-Middle Eastern-North Africa Campaign Medal with three bronze campaign stars, the Army of Occupation Service Medal, and the World War II Victory Medal.

Personal life

Hospital was married twice, and had three daughters. He was the father of Polly Flansburgh, owner of

Boston by Foot Boston By Foot is a non-profit organization offering guided architectural and historical tours of Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1976, Boston By Foot offers daily scheduled tours from May through October. Tours are conducted by a trained corps ...

, and was father-in-law to

Earl Flansburgh Earl Robert Flansburgh (April 28, 1931 – February 3, 2009) was an American architect known for his modernist style and extensive work in the Boston area. Early life and education Flansburgh grew up in Ithaca, New York. His father, Earl Alva ...

, a notable Boston architect. Hospital died on December 20, 1972, and was 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. ...

. Hospital is the

maternal grandfather Grandparents, individually known as grandmother and grandfather, or Grandma and Grandpa, are the parents of a person's father or mother – paternal or maternal. Every sexually reproducing living organism who is not a genetic chimera has a m ...

of musician

John Flansburgh John Conant Flansburgh (born May 6, 1960) is an American musician. He is half of the long-standing Brooklyn, New York–based alternative rock duo They Might Be Giants with John Linnell, for which he writes, sings, and plays rhythm guitar. Earl ...

, one half of the

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

band

They Might Be Giants They Might Be Giants, often abbreviated as TMBG, is an American alternative rock and Children's music, children's band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years, Flansburgh and Linnell frequently performed as ...

, and

Paxus Calta Paxus Calta (born 1957), born Earl Schuyler "Sky" Flansburgh, is an American political activist, communitarian and writer. He has been involved with the anti-nuclear movement and is a member of the Twin Oaks Community. Biography Calta was born a ...

(born Earl S. Flansburgh), an

anti-nuclear activist The Anti-nuclear war movement is a social movement that opposes various nuclear technologies. Some direct action groups, environmental movements, and professional organisations have identified themselves with the movement at the local, na ...

. They Might Be Giants included a picture of Hospital on the cover art for their album ''

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the 16th president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln (na ...

''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hospital, Ralph 1891 births 1972 deaths Military personnel from Washington, D.C. George Washington University alumni United States Army Field Artillery Branch personnel United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni United States Army personnel of World War I United States Army generals of World War II United States Army generals Recipients of the Silver Star Cornell University faculty Burials at Arlington National Cemetery