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Albert Hazan Blanding (November 9, 1876 – December 26, 1970) was an United States Army soldier. Among the most distinguished military figures in Florida's history, he was a recipient of the Distinguished Service Cross.
Biography
Blanding was born in Lyons, Iowa, but his family moved to Florida when he was two years old. Blanding attended East Florida Seminary in Gainesville, graduating in 1894. He was commissioned a captain in the Florida National Guard in 1899. At the time, he was a phosphate company executive.
Blanding was promoted to the rank of colonel in 1909 or 1910 and ran a turpentine, sawmill, and lumber business from 1910 to 1914 while active on the National Guard roster. In the 1916-1917 Pancho Villa Expedition, Blanding, then ranking Florida National Guard officer, led the Second Florida Infantry.
On August 5, 1917, Blanding was called up to serve in World War I, where he commanded the 53rd Brigade, 27th Division, as a brigadier general. After hostilities ceased, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and was discharged from the Army on March 1, 1919, after which he resumed his service to the Florida National Guard.
Blanding served as State of Florida Chairman for the American Legion for a time and was a member of the Florida Board of Control from 1922 to 1936. From 1936-1940, Blanding was Chief of the National Guard of the United States by appointment of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. In 1939, he was honored by the establishment of a military station, Camp Blanding, in his name; this would become the primary military reservation and training station for the Florida National Guard. He was also recognized by the bestowal of the honorary rank of lieutenant general before his retirement in 1940.
The University of Florida awarded him Doctor of Laws in May 1942. During World War II he served on the Florida Board of the Selective Service System and helped found Everglades National Park.
Blanding died in 1970. He was designated a Great Floridian by the Florida Department of State in the Great Floridians 2000 Program. A plaque attesting to the honor is located at Bartow City Hall.
Camp Blanding was a major U.S. Army training facility during the Second World War. It was originally established as a state-owned training reservation in 1939 for the Florida National Guard. However, as war clouds materialized, the mobilization of reserve forces and the rapid expansion of the entire United States Army required Camp Blanding to be converted to a federal reservation. It was subsequently enlarged to house two complete infantry divisions along with many separate units.
Prior to turning Camp Blanding into an Infantry Replacement Center (IRTC) in 1943, dozens and dozens of army formations comprising hundreds of thousands of troops trained at Camp Blanding. Included were formations of Infantry, Cavalry, Tank Destroyer, Field Artillery, Engineer, Medical and other specialist troops. Nine entire Infantry Divisions trained at Camp Blanding:
1st ID (Big Red One), 29th ID (Blue & Gray), 30th ID (Old Hickory), 31st ID (Dixie), 36th ID (Texas), 43rd ID (Winged Victory), 63rd ID (Blood and Fire), 66th ID (Panther) and the 79th ID (Cross of Lorainne).
For most of 1944 and 1945, a very large percentage of the individuals sent to replenish the ranks of America’s combat infantry formations trained at the Camp’s IRTC. In Addition, the Camp was the site of a 2800-bed hospital, a German Prisoner of War Compound and at the war’s end, a Separation Center.
Following the war, Camp Blanding reverted to state control, and today is a Joint Training Site for the National Guard and other Reserve Components and some Active Component training.
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