With the death of Major General Andrew Hero, the Army lost one of its most distinguished Artillerymen, and West Point one of her best-loved sons.
Born of an old New Orleans family on December 13, 1868, he grew up in that city and attended Tulane University before entering the Military Academy in 1887. His father, a prominent notary, had served throughout the Civil War in the famous Washington Artillery, the oldest artillery organization in the Confederate Army.
Graduating eighth in his class in 1891, Lieutenant Hero's first commissioned service was with the 12th Infantry at Ft. Yates, N. D. where he was stationed until November of that year. A vacancy then occurred in the Artillery, and he transferred to the 4th Artillery at Ft. McPherson, Ga. He served with that regiment there and at Washington Barracks until 1894, when he was sent as a student to the Artillery School at Ft. Monroe. After graduating from the two-year course he remained at the school as an instructor until 1898.
It was during these years at Monroe that he met Fanny Caroline Davis, daughter of Brigadier General J.M.K. Davis, also stationed at Monroe. They were married in July, 1897, and after a honeymoon abroad, established themselves in one of the old sets of casemate quarters on the post.
At the outbreak of the Spanish-American War in 1898, Lieutenant Hero was appointed aide-de-camp to Brigadier General J. P. Sanger, commanding the 3rd Division, First Army Corps, and joined him at Chickamauga Park, Ga., where the Division was concentrated. Subsequently they were sent to Cuba and established headquarters at Matanzas, where Lieutenant Hero remained until June, 1899. At that time he was assigned as a 1st Lieutenant to the 5th Artillery, but two months later he was detailed as an instructor in the Drawing Department at the Military Academy.
There followed three pleasant years, at West Point, of duty which his considerable artistic talent rendered particularly congenial. In 1902, by then a Captain, he was ordered back to Ft. Monroe as a member of the Artillery Board and Editor of the Journal of the U.S. Artillery. He thus became the fourth editor of the Journal, which had been founded in 1892, and served in that capacity for five years. During that period, immediately preceding the separation of the Coast Artillery Corps and the Field Artillery, interest in artillery matters reached a new high, and Captain Hero succeeded in reflecting that interest in the Journal, which rose to one of its high points as an instructive and valuable service publication.
In the Fall of 1907 he was transferred to Ft. Casey, Washington, serving there until promoted to Major the following year, when he was placed in command of nearby Ft. Flagler. In 1909 he was recalled to Washington as Assistant to the Chief of Coast Artillery, where he remained for two years. Then followed a few months of duty at Galveston as Adjutant of the 1st Separate Brigade, after which he was ordered once more to Ft. Monroe.
On the establishment of Coast Artillery Districts in 1913, he became Adjutant and Materiel Officer of the South Atlantic District, with headquarters at Charleston. S. C. This was an interesting assignment professionally and brought him many new contacts. Due to his promotion to Lieutenant Colonel in 1915, he was relieved from Charleston and assigned to command Ft. Terry, located on Plum Island in Long Island Sound.
At Ft. Terry he organized and commanded the first Military Training Camp for Boys, which was held during July and August, 1916. This camp, the forerunner of the Citizens Military Training Camps, was the first of its kind held in this country. Sponsored by a group of patriotic civilians and encouraged by General Leonard Wood, then commanding the Department of the East, it was one of the country’s initial steps toward preparedness for war. Twelve hundred boys from schools and colleges throughout the East attended and were given basic military training by a picked group of Regular officers, Plattsburg-trained civilians and West Point cadets. Enthusiasm ran high both in instructors and pupils, and the success of Camp Washington, as it was called, was immediate and complete. It was widely acclaimed by the boys themselves, their families, and by leading educators. Colonel Hero’s own enthusiasm and energy, his ability to harmonize the military and civilian points of view in his dual role of commanding officer and headmaster, made him an ideal commander for the camp. His fine work was highly praised both by his military superiors and the civilian group connected with the camp, and brought him considerable attention.
Foreign Service orders transferred Colonel Hero to Hawaii in the Fall of 1916, and our entry into the World War the following Spring found him commanding Ft. Ruger as a full Colonel. In September, 1917 he was appointed Brigadier General, National Army, and assigned to the 79th Division at Camp Meade, Md., as commander of the 154th Field Artillery Brigade.
On arrival at Camp Meade, he found the Division in the throes of organization. He plunged into a year of intensive training with his Brigade prior to going overseas. The Division sailed for France in July. 1918. Upon arrival, his Brigade was sent to La Courtine to undergo further intensive training and to await the horses and equipment which it lacked. Unfortunately, the Armistice arrived before the horses, and the Brigade consequently never saw action as a unit. General Hero was attached to the 153rd F.A. Brigade for a brief period during the Meuse-Argonne offensive, and in December was assigned to duty with the Chief of Artillery at GHQ. During this period he served as President of a board appointed to study the experiences gained by the artillery of the A.E.F. during the war, and to make recommendations based thereon. The Board's report was to have an important influence on the post-war development of artillery materiel in our Army. Subsequently, General Hero attended the Army Center of Artillery Studies at Treves, returning to the United States with his own Brigade in May, 1919.
On his arrival in New York he was assigned to command the 39th Coast Artillery Brigade, then at Ft. Hamilton but subsequently stationed at Camp Jackson, S.C. reverting to his regular rank of Colonel in 1920, he remained in command of the 39th Brigade until 1921, when he was transferred to Ft. Totten, N.Y. A year later he was again sent on Foreign Service, this time to the Philippines.
Colonel Hero commanded the artillery garrison at Corregidor from 1923 to 1925. This service he always recalled with great pleasure as one of his most interesting and agreeable commands, and it was with reluctance that he departed at the expiration of his tour of duty. He returned to the United States with his family by way of Suez, and on arrival after a three-month trip, he was assigned to command the 4th Coast Artillery District at Ft. McPherson. Ga. There, in December 1925, thirty-four years after having reported to the same post as a Second Lieutenant of Artillery, he was notified that he had been selected to be the next Chief of Coast Artillery.
General Hero’s appointment as Chief of Coast Artillery was acclaimed throughout the Service as a sound choice and a fitting recognition of his outstanding professional qualifications. During his four year tour of duty as Chief, he fully justified this confidence and was able to accomplish much for the development of the Coast Artillery Corps. Upon his relinquishment of the office in 1930, his officers tendered him the following tribute:
“The officers of the Coast Artillery Corps wish upon this occasion to convey to you the profound sense of admiration, esteem and affection in which they hold you. Your capable administration of the affairs of the Coast Artillery during the last four years has aroused our approbation, your high qualities of character have commanded our veneration, and your thoughtful courtesy and human attributes have won our love.
“Our regret at taking leave of you is tempered only by the thought of the satisfaction that must be yours as, in retrospect, you look back to a long and successful career of selfless devotion to the ideals of Duty, Honor, and Country.”
General Hero retired in the Spring of 1930 and made his home in Washington during the succeeding twelve years. Although he lived very much by himself after the death of Mrs. Hero in 1932, his many interests kept him occupied to an extent that always amazed his friends. He was one of those rare beings who never grow old in spirit but retain their enthusiasm and mental alertness to the very end. With him at his death were his three children, Jacklyn, wife of Lt. Col. H.W. Brimmer, F.A.; Elinor, married to Lt. Cmdr. T.G. Murrell. USN., and Andrew, now Lt. Col., Field Artillery.
It is perhaps for his human qualities that General Hero will be longest remembered by the Service. An old friend of his spoke for many when he wrote, “He was always an inspiration to me, and I shall always remember him as the most thorough gentlemen I have ever known.”
—A. H., III