Funston, Frederick

Funston, Frederick

(1865–1917) soldier; born in New Carlisle, Ohio. Son of a farmer and a five-term congressman known as "Fog Horn" Funston, he was trained as a botanist. In 1896–97, he served as a volunteer with the Cubans revolting against Spain. As a volunteer in the U.S. Army, he fought in the Philippine insurrection that followed the Spanish-American War (1899–1901). Promoted to brigadier general, he led a small unit that captured the Philippine leader Emilio Aguinaldo in his camp in March 1901. He commanded the U.S. Army forces that in 1914 seized Veracruz during the revolutionary unrest in Mexico. He spent the remainder of his career commanding troops on the U.S. border with Mexico.

The Cambridge Dictionary of American Biography, by John S. Bowman. Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995. Reproduced with permission.