William M. Miley

William Maynadier Miley
Nickname(s)	"Bud"
Born	December 26, 1897 Fort Mason, California, United States[1]
Died	September 24, 1997 (aged 99) Starkville, Mississippi, United States
Place of burial	Odd Fellows Cemetery, California, United States
Allegiance	United States
Service/branch	United States Army
Years of service	1918–1955
Rank	Major General
Unit	Infantry Branch
Commands held	501st Parachute Infantry Battalion 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment 17th Airborne Division 11th Airborne Division
Battles/wars	World War I World War II
Awards	Distinguished Service Medal (2) Silver Star Bronze Star (2)
Other work	Professor (Mississippi State University)

Major General William Maynadier "Bud" Miley (December 26, 1897 – September 24, 1997) was a senior United States Army officer and a professor of military science who fought in both World War I and World War II. During the latter he was one of the early pioneers of airborne warfare and served as Commanding General (CG) of the 17th Airborne Division, leading the division through the Battle of the Bulge and Operation Varsity.

Early life

William M. Miley was born at Fort Mason in California, to Sara Miley and Lt. Col. John D. Miley (for whom Fort Miley Military Reservation was named). His family had a long history of military service, with three generations before him serving in the United States Army. Two great-grandfathers, his grandfather, his father, his great-uncle, his uncle and his son all graduated from West Point.

Miley himself attended West Point, where he earned a national intercollegiate championship in gymnastics (in the tumbling, rings, and parallel bars events), and graduated in 1918. Immediately after graduation he served with the 1st Division on the Western Front, during World War I.

Following the war, Miley held a series of assignments, including as a professor of military science at what was then Mississippi State College, in Starkville, Mississippi. It was during this time that he met and married his wife, Julia Sudduth. Other assignments included serving as athletic director at West Point, and infantry assignments in Panama, the Philippines, and at Fort Sam Houston.

In 1940, Miley (then holding the rank of major) was ordered to organize and command the United States Army's first paratrooper unit, the 501st Parachute Infantry Battalion.^[2]

World War II and later

After his promotion to lieutenant colonel, he was ordered to organize and command the 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment. Shortly afterwards he was appointed Assistant Division Commander of the 82nd Airborne Division at Camp Claiborne, Louisiana, serving under Major General Matthew Ridgway.

In 1943, Miley organized the activation of the 17th Airborne Division at Camp Mackall in North Carolina. He was the sole commander of the 17th during the war, leading the Division through such actions on the Western Front as the Battle of the Bulge and Operation Varsity. The Division was deactivated in late 1945, but reactivated briefly in 1948 as a training unit.

After the war, Miley was appointed to command the 11th Airborne Division while it occupied Japan, and after its return to Fort Campbell, Kentucky. He had several later assignments, including serving as Director of the Joint Airborne Troop Board, Commander of U.S. Army Alaska, under the Alaskan Command. He also served as Chief of Staff of the former Continental Army Command (which became the United States Army Forces Command in 1973). He retired from the military in 1955, with a rank of major general.

Post-military life

Following his retirement from the army, Miley worked for Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Beane, until his retirement in 1976, at which time he returned to Starkville, Mississippi. Miley was the second to last living division commander of World War II. He died in Starkville in September 1997 at the age of 99, three months short of turning 100. Only Major General Ralph Smith, who commanded the 27th Infantry Division during the war, would live longer, passing away in January 1998 at the age of 104.

Awards and decorations

Parachutist Badge

	Army Distinguished Service Medal with oak leaf cluster
	Silver Star
	Bronze Star with oak leaf cluster

A section of Mississippi Highway 389 (where it runs through Starkville) named the Major General William 'Bud' Miley Highway.^[3]

References

1. Bio of Maj. Gen. Miley. Retrieved on December 29, 2009.
2. U.S. Army Infantry Homepage
3. SB2888 (As Sent to Governor) - 1998 Regular Session

External links

• Obituary of General Miley