Frank C. McConnell

Frank C. McConnell (21 June 1898 – 23 August 1981) was a career officer in the United States Army. He served in 1918 and from 1921 to 1957, and was a veteran of World War II and the Korean War. McConnell attained the rank of brigadier general, and his commands included the 5th Infantry Division, the 8th Infantry Division, and the post at Fort Jackson, South Carolina. His awards included the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, and Air Medal.

A native of Cicero, Indiana, McConnell was raised and educated in Sheridan, Indiana and served in the Student Army Training Corps during World War I. He graduated from Purdue University in 1920 and received a commission in the United States Army in 1921. Assigned to the Coast Artillery, he served at coastal defense posts in New Jersey, New York, and the Philippines. During World War II, he served in both the European and Pacific theaters, and commanded Coast Artillery units and port facilities. He served in the post-war Occupation of Japan as assistant division commander of the 24th Infantry Division, and he returned to the United States in 1948.

In the late 1940s and early 1950s, McConnell commanded the 5th Infantry Division, 8th Infantry Division, and the posts at Fort Jackson and Fort Gordon. During the Korean War, he served first as assistant division commander of the 25th Infantry Division, then as a member of the United Nations panel that negotiated the Korean Armistice Agreement. After his service in Korea, his assignments included command of the post at Fort Stewart and the 34th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Brigade. He retired in 1957.

In retirement, McConnell resided in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and Cape Coral, Florida. He died in Cape Coral on 23 August 1981 and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Early life Frank Charles McConnell was born in Cicero, Indiana on 21 June 1898, the son of Charles M. McConnell and Mary Elizabeth "Lizzie" (Burris) McConnell. He was raised and educated in Sheridan, Indiana, and attended the elementary school in Bakers Corner, Indiana through the eighth grade. In 1912 he began attendance at Sheridan High School, from which he graduated in 1916. After completing high school, McConnell enrolled at Purdue University.

In October 1918, McConnell joined the Student Army Training Corps as a private. The Armistice of November 11, 1918 ended World War I before McConnell's training was complete and he was discharged in December. While in college, he became a member of the Sigma Nu and Alpha Zeta fraternities. At the end of October 1957, McConnell married Major Catherine Florence Baker, a member of the Army Nurse Corps.

Start of career After graduating, McConnell was employed by the U.S. government as the manager of a farm on the Camp Knox, Kentucky army base, a First World War enterprise that produced dairy products, grain, and other crops for military use. The farm was scheduled to be closed at the end of 1921 as the result of post-war troop discharges, and in June McConnell took the competitive examination for an army commission. According to contemporary news accounts, 85 applicants nationwide passed; of 25 Camp Knox applicants, only McConnell attained a passing score. As a result, he was appointed a second lieutenant of Coast Artillery.

After receiving his commission, McConnell served initially at Fort Hancock, New Jersey and Fort Tilden, New York. In July 1925, he was assigned to the 92nd Coast Artillery Regiment (Philippine Scouts) at Fort Mills on the island of Corregidor in Manila Bay. As part of this effort, McConnell persuaded local newspaper editors that he was merely following President Harry Truman's executive order to integrate the military and asked them not to widely publicize his decision, which was implemented without opposition. Following this duty, he was assigned to command the post at Fort Gordon, Georgia.

In January 1952, McConnell was assigned as assistant division commander of the 25th Infantry Division, then performing Korean War duty in South Korea. In May 1952, McConnell was selected to take the place of Vice Admiral C. Turner Joy on the five-man United Nations delegation that negotiated the Korean Armistice Agreement, which was signed in July 1953; delegation member William Kelly Harrison Jr. succeeded Joy as the lead negotiator, and McConnell took Harrison's place as a delegation member. After returning to the United States, he served in the office of the army's assistant chief of staff for logistics (G-4) until February 1953, when he was appointed to the Review Board Council, an army panel that oversaw the functions of several personnel-related boards, including those related to discharges, awards, disability, and correction of records. In December 1953, he was transferred to West Germany, where he commanded the 34th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Brigade.

In March 1955, McConnell was among the former Review Board Council members who were questioned by United States Senate investigators about the circumstances that led to the discharge of Major Irving Peress after Peress was accused by Senator Joseph McCarthy of being a communist sympathizer. In July 1956, he returned to the United States and was assigned to command of the post at Fort Stewart, Georgia. He served again on the Review Board Council until July 1957, when he was assigned to Headquarters, Sixth U.S. Army at the Presidio of San Francisco while his retirement was pending. He retired on 30 September 1957.

In 1960, McConnell received a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree from Golden Gate College, and he graduated cum laude. In retirement, he was a resident of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He died in Cape Coral, Florida on 23 August 1981. McConnell was buried at Arlington National Cemetery. Captain, 1 August 1935 Lieutenant Colonel (Army of the United States), 1 January 1942 Brigadier General (Army of the United States), 7 October 1943 Lieutenant Colonel, 1 November 1944 Colonel, 11 March 1948 Brigadier General, 5 April 1953 Brigadier General (Retired), 30 September 1957