General Clifton Bledsoe Cates 4B 37
N 36° 22.646 W 089° 29.030
16S E 277188 N 4028677
Marker is located in Tiptonville, TN.
Waymark Code: WM2BGA
Location: Tennessee, United States
Date Posted: 10/07/2007
Views: 38
General Clifton Bledsoe Cates
1893-1970
United States Marine Corps
Clifton B Cates, born on August 31, 1893, in Cates Landing, Tennessee, attended school in Lake County and the Missouri Military Academy in Mexico, Missouri. A graduate of the University of Tennessee's School of Law, Cates served as a Marine in both the First and Second World Wars. His service included combat duty in five operations in World War I and four operations in World War II. After service in China with the fabeled Fourth Marines, he commanded the Second Battalion, Sixth Marines in 1937. Then Colonel Cates led the First Marine Regiment, First Marine Division, on Guadalcanal during World War II.
As a Major General, Cates commanded the Fourth Marine Division during the conquest of Tinian and Iwo Jima in 1944. Cates was the first Tennessean to achieve the rank of full general. From 1948 to 1952, he served as the 19th Commandant of the Marine Corps. Wounded seven times, General Cates received many American and foreign medals. A marine for thirty-seven years, General Cates died on June 4, 1970. His remains are interred in Arlington National Cemetery.
Marker Name: General Clifton Bledsoe Cates
Marker Location: City
Type of Marker: Person
Marker Number: 4B 37
Group(s) Responsible for placing Marker:
Tennessee Historical Commission
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