Ben Hebard Fuller

Ben Hebard Fuller (February 27, 1870 – June 8, 1937) was a Major General in the United States Marine Corps and served as the 15th Commandant of the Marine Corps between 1930 and 1934.

Biography

Born in Big Rapids, Michigan, Fuller was a member of the United States Naval Academy class of 1889. After serving two years of service as a naval cadet, a requirement at the time before commissioning, he was appointed a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps on July 1, 1891. He, with six other members of his class, attended the first course for new Marine officers at the School of Application, which was the prototype for today's Basic School.

On 26 October 1892, he married Katherine Heaton Offley. Together, they had two children.

Captain Fuller participated in the Battle of Novaleta, Philippine Islands on October 8, 1899 and was commended for gallant, meritorious, and courageous conduct in the Battle of Tientsin, China on July 13, 1900.

From 1904 to 1906, he served at the Naval Station, Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii. In June and July 1908, he was on detached duty with an expeditionary force organized for service in Panama, and from August of that year until January 1910, commanded a Marine Battalion at Camp Elliott, Panama Canal Zone. From March to June 1911, he commanded the 3rd Regiment of Marines at Camp Meyer, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.