From 1936 to 1938, General George C. Marshall (1880-1959), who will go on to play a leading role during and after World War II, is the commanding officer at the U.S. Army’s Vancouver Barracks in Vancouver, Clark County. Gen. Marshall and his wife Katherine enjoy the post and are popular in the Vancouver community.
General George Marshall was assigned to Vancouver Barracks in 1936 as commanding officer of the Fifth Brigade. During his two years at the post, Marshall took an active interest in training activities at the Barracks, and encouraged a close relationship between the regular army and reserves in the area. Marshall also oversaw, and strongly supported, the region’s Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), which sent young, otherwise unemployed men to forest camps where they constructed trails and other facilities.
Both Marshall and his wife Katherine Tupper Marshall enjoyed their time at Vancouver. Gen. Marshall wrote that the assignment was like "a pleasant dream" (Vancouver, 86) and Mrs. Marshall called the Vancouver years the happiest of their marriage. The Marshalls appreciated the area’s many outdoor activities, and spent time horseback riding, hunting, and fishing, and playing tennis and golf. They also maintained many contacts in the Vancouver and Portland communities, where the general often spoke to clubs and community organizations.
When Marshall was ordered to Washington, D.C., to join the army general staff in 1938, the Vancouver and Portland chambers of commerce held a farewell banquet in his honor. In 1939, he became chief of staff, America’s top-ranking military official, and in that position oversaw operations during World War II. After the war, Marshall served as Secretary of State, organizing the Marshall Plan to help Europe recover from the war, and then as Secretary of Defense.
