[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 130 (Thursday, September 30, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1995-E1996]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    TRIBUTE TO FRANK G. LUMPKIN, JR.

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. MAC COLLINS

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 30, 1999

  Mr. COLLINS. Mr. Speaker, Fort Benning, in Columbus, GA, is an 
important Army base associated with many distinguished individuals over 
time. It has received immunerable citations for its outstanding 
achievements. It is the home of the U.S. Army Infantry School and the 
U.S. Army School of the Americas. Some call it the biggest military 
school in the world, because it trains over 60,000 soldiers each year. 
Every infantry officer, enlisted man, and non-commissioned officer in 
the U.S. Army trains there at least once in his career. With a military 
population of 21,000, Ft. Benning is the home of the 75th Ranger 
Regiment, 3rd Brigade--3rd Infantry Division, the 29th Infantry 
Regiment, as well as an Infantry Training Brigade and a Basic Combat 
Training Brigade.
  The base is associated with many famous soldiers. Gen. Dwight D. 
Eisenhower, Gen. George C. Marshall, Gen. Omar Bradley, Gen. George 
Patton and Gen. Colin Powell served there.
  However, one individual whose name has become part of the post's 
heritage actually had a short career as a soldier. His name, Frank G. 
Lumpkin, Jr., is interwoven with Ft. Benning's history. Mr. Lumpkin's 
name was there at the Fort's founding, and will be there into the 
future, for it graces the road that runs through the main post. Frank 
G. Lumpkin Jr. was only 10 years old when he accompanied his father to 
Washington in 1916. His father persuaded Congress to place a military 
base on the Chattahoochee. Two years later, Fort Benning was founded in 
connection with the Lumpkins, and that relationship remains until the 
present day.
  Twenty-four years after that trip, Mr. Lumpkin himself served at Ft. 
Benning. It was

[[Page E1996]]

World War II, and he was a captain in Gen. Patton's 2nd Armored 
division. Cpt. Lumpkin served from 1940 to 1946, but although his 
service in the army ended, his service to Ft. Benning did not.
  In 1993, at the age of 90, Mr. Lumpkin heard the fort needed money to 
restore seven WW II-era buildings. Otherwise, they were slated for 
destruction. Mr. Lumpkin wrote a personal check for $100,000 to save 
the buildings. He told the commanding general at the time, Maj. Gen. 
John Hendrix, that the check was bad--he didn't have the money to make 
it good. Yet, he did make it good over time, by helping to raise money 
and resources to restore the structures.
  Mr. Lumpkin and his family have consistently dedicated themselves to 
the preservation and betterment of Ft. Benning. They are a true 
inspiration to the rest of us. By their faithful efforts, they have 
made a significant contribution to this county and to its history. I 
would like to enter into the record this commendation of an old soldier 
who may have stacked arms in 1946, but has never, in the following half 
century, stopped fighting to preserve Ft. Benning and its heritage.
  I salute you, Mr. Lumpkin, and I thank you for your contributions.

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