J. Franklin Bell
James Franklin Bell (January 9, 1856 – January 8, 1919) was an officer in the United States Army who served as Chief of Staff of the United States Army from 1906 to 1910.
James Franklin Bell
January 9, 1856
Shelbyville, Kentucky, U.S.
January 8, 1919 (aged 62)
New York City, U.S.
United States
Bell was a major general in the Regular United States Army, commanding the Department of the East, with headquarters at Governors Island, New York at the time of his death in 1919. He entered West Point in 1874, and graduated 38th in a class of 43 in 1878, with a commission as second lieutenant of the 9th Cavalry Regiment, a black unit.
Bell became notorious for his actions in the Philippine–American War, in which he ordered the detainment of Filipino civilians in the provinces of Batangas and Laguna into concentration camps, resulting in the deaths of over 11,000 people.[1]
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"Franklin Bell" redirects here. For U.S. Commissioner of Fish and Fisheries, see Frank T. Bell.$_$_$DEEZ_NUTS#2__titleDEEZ_NUTS$_$_$
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Personal[edit]
On January 5, 1881, Bell married Sarah Buford (April 28, 1857 – December 22, 1943) at Rock Island, Illinois. She was the niece of Civil War generals John Buford Jr. and Napoleon Bonaparte Buford.[7][22][23]
Early life and education[edit]
Bell was born to John Wilson and Sarah Margaret Venable (Allen) Bell in Shelbyville, Kentucky. His mother died when he was young.[2] During the American Civil War, Bell's family, living in a border state, stood strongly in favor of the Confederacy.
In 1874, after two years of working in a general store,[3] Bell sought a military career, and secured appointment to West Point, where he eventually graduated 38th in a class of 43. The War Department assigned him to the 9th Cavalry, one of the black units formed after the Civil War. Then in Kentucky on home leave, Bell attempted to resign his commission. This, in fact, was illegal, but someone at the War Department understood the attitudes that were behind this action and assigned him to the all-white 7th Cavalry. He joined the unit at Fort Abraham Lincoln, Dakota Territory, on October 1, 1878.[4]
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1878–1919
Department of the East
77th Division
Department of the West
4th Division
Philippine Department
Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army
Colleges and Schools, Fort Leavenworth
3rd Brigade, Luzon Department
1st District, Luzon Department
4th Brigade, 2nd Division
36th U.S. Volunteer Infantry
