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General John J. Pershing lived through a personal tragedy that would have destroyed most men.
Birthplace museums are my favorite place to understand how ordinary people accomplish extraordinary things: Pershing, Amelia Earhart, Cronkite, Elvis, John Wayne and even Jesse James. Their museums tell the story of how unique circumstances and building personnel foundations allow these people to lead impactful lives.
John Joseph (Jack) Pershing was born in 1860 on a farm in Laclede, Missouri. One of his earliest memories as a 4-year-old, was that of his staunch Unionist father barricading their home and fighting off bushwhackers.
Hard work on the farm was the order of the day until he took the West Point entrance exam and got in. He excelled in his four years at The Point leading his class and showing his mettle. After graduation, he was sent on many deployments climbing the ranks at each stop.
Fighting American Indians in the West, battling the Moro in the Philippines and 'observing’ the Sino-Russian War in Japan, “Jumping Jack” Pershing leaped over hundreds of others in rank as he impressed military and political leaders.
One notable assignment was as a Lieutenant with the 6th-colored cavalry, the Buffalo Soldiers. They were sent to Cuba in support of Teddy Roosevelt's Rough Riders. Pershing's leadership along with the soldier’s tenacity helped save the day on San Juan Hill and Roosevelt knew it. The Rough Riders were stuck under horrific fire climbing the Hill when the 6th flanked the heights and changed the battle.
The Buffalo Soldiers didn’t get much recognition that day except from fellow soldiers gaining their respect in the most impactful place, on the battlefield. “Pershing did get a new, some say derogatory nickname that stuck from leading his troops, Black Jack,” so says director of the John J. Pershing Boyhood Home Museum in Laclede, Missouri, Denzil Heaney.
The Russo-Japanese War saw Pershing in Tokyo, gaining needed experience and knowledge that helped mold the man. The 1904 conflict was over territory but it changed warfare. This would be the first mechanized war fought anywhere. As throughout history, Russia needed a year round deep-water port, and Japan wanted the Korean peninsula as part of its “sphere of influence.” Russia refused the Korean demand, seeking a buffer zone between the two countries just north of the 39th parallel.
With negotiations at a standstill Japan did what they do best, launched a “surprise attack,” on the Russian Eastern Fleet at warm water Port Arthur. Russia then declared war but Japan had the upper hand. After a year and six months of fighting on both land and sea, Japan was the clear victor but Russian leaders were egotistical and stubborn. Czar Nicholas II battled on in favor of settling to a “humiliating peace.” That peace came anyway after the battle of Tsushim, six Russian battleships were sunk with none lost by the Japanese.
In 1905, the Treaty of Portsmouth was negotiated by President Theodore Roosevelt at the Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth Maine. This war saw the decline of Russian influence around the world and the rise of the Japanese Empire. For his negotiating efforts, Roosevelt received the Nobel Peace Prize, first American to be awarded one.
“Pershing was in the middle of all the action and Roosevelt was impressed,” Denzil smiles.
Black Jack’s next notable assignment was to chase down Pancho Villa in the middle of the Mexican Revolution. The United States was heavily invested in Mexico mining, railroads and oil production. Villa wanted change for his impoverished people. To make his point, the Bandito attacked a small town in New Mexico, Columbus. Now General Pershing was given a force to capture, if he could, the charismatic leader.
It was 1915, while still in Mexico, the unfathomable happened. Pershing’s family had moved to the Presidio on San Francisco Bay while Jack was trying to corral Villa. Pershing and his wife Frances had three daughters and one son Warren. Hot coals fell out of a stove, catching the newly waxed kitchen floor on fire, quickly spreading, killing Frances and the three girls who were upstairs; only 5-year-old Warren survived.
Pershing rushed back to the scene only to be overcome with grief; it was unbearable. Upon arriving looking at the charred house, Pershing said,” they didn’t stand a chance.” The loss was personal, he felt guilty for being gone. In order to cope, the General never spoke or wrote of the incident the rest of his life.
Things changed however for the military. After the fire, Pershing ordered each military installation around the world to have a 24/7 fire brigade on location; they still do.
Devastated, Pershing immersed himself in work. He relocated Warren to live with his sister in Lincoln, Nebraska, and wrote to him religiously, as deployments continued.
Then there was that little problem in Europe going on called “the War to end all Wars!” America had stayed out of World War I but the isolationist policy was fading as the effect of an Axis victory would be worldwide. By 1917 the butcher's bill in Europe was staggering with combat and disease killing millions on both sides.
For the first three years of the war, America stood on the sidelines trading with all countries, but Britain, France and democracy needed help. In 1917, President Wilson felt the United States could assist in winning the war and lead a Post-War world economically, politically and morally.
Now, who was the right man with the leadership skills and experience to steer the Allies to victory?
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