WINTER 2023-24 HISTORY ACQUISITIONS
Patton in Columbus Of the many renowned Army generals to have served at Fort Moore, one name appears most frequently in Chattahoochee Valley lore: Patton. By the time George S. Patton, Jr. (1885– 1945) arrived in Georgia, he had already competed in the 1912 Olympics in Sweden, fought in World War I, and served in Hawaii. When World War II began in Europe in 1939, the U.S. Army mobilized its forces and Patton was rapidly promoted, arriving in 1940 at what was then Fort Benning. In December of that year, he directed the more than 2,500 tanks and vehicles of the 2nd Armored Division to Panama City, Florida, and back, observing from the air to study how the division could be effectively deployed. Nearly 11,000 soldiers made the trek in two columns on either side of the Georgia-Alabama border. Patton was promoted to commander of the I Armored Corps in January 1942. Before deploying to North Africa in the fall of 1942, Patton enjoyed Columbus’ warm hospitality for Army officers, attending dinner parties and famously developing a love of Country Captain Chicken. He also waged a war of words with nightclubs and gambling establishments in Phenix City, threatening to roll his tanks over the entire town to eliminate distractions to his soldiers. In this letter from February 1942, General Patton offers words of encouragement to a major at Fort Knox, Kentucky, who felt overlooked for a promotion. Writing on I Armored Corps stationery,
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Patton writes: “…Personally, I should be very glad and, in fact, delighted to have you as a battalion commander, because I believe your experience should be very helpful. I would not be downhearted just because I have been jumped. I was
jumped in the last War and in this one, and have not suffered by it in the end.” Image: Maj. Gen. George S. Patton letter, written on HQ I Armored Corps stationery, Fort Benning, 1942, The Gladys Dudley History Fund, The Columbus Museum G.2023.23
