Biography of Oscar Franklin Miller 1882-1918
Arkansas World War I Hero Was Also a Civil Service Pioneer
Aug 27, 2009
Shortly after the Civil War, A. J. Miller and his wife Adelia settled in Franklin County, Arkansas. They had eight children, the third of whom was Oscar Franklin Miller. Oscar’s given name was spelled Ausker in the family Bible, and it is not clear when the spelling was changed.
The Education and Early Years of Oscar Franklin Miller
Oscar and his siblings attended public schools in Saline County, Arkansas, in the city of Bryant. Although he only finished grammar school, he was apparently a good student, because he made a score of 100% in the spelling and math portions of his U.S. Civil Service exams.
In 1899, when he was seventeen, Oscar moved to Paris, Texas and found a job in a newspaper publishing house. He learned typesetting, publication and delivery skills. Then he moved again, this time to Colorado City, Texas where he was a waiter in a Mexican restaurant when the twentieth century arrived. He quickly learned to speak Spanish during this time.
Military Service and Employment with United States Government
On April 9, 1901, Miller enlisted as a private in the United States Army. He was sent to the Philippine Islands as an interpreter of Spanish. After three years of service, he was discharged and returned to the States in 1904. After a short stay in Berkeley, California he found work as a mail clerk for the United States Mail Service in his home state of Arkansas. Employed in Little Rock, he soon met and married Anna Conrad, daughter of the city’s Chief of Police.
By 1907, Oscar and Anna had moved to Laredo, Texas where Oscar had become an immigration inspector. He excelled in this kind of work, having learned Spanish in his younger days. Soon he was transferred to the immigration office in Nogales, Arizona as a supervisor. His annual salary was $1600 at that time. He kept his wife and only son moving from place to place for the next few years with assignments in Amarillo, Texas, Los Angeles, California, and San Pedro, California. By the time World War I started, he had become an expert at apprehending illegal aliens, especially Chinese immigrants.
Oscar Miller’s Service During World War I
After enlisting for military service on May 16, 1917, Miller studied war at the reserve officer’s training camp at Presidio, California. He was promoted to the rank of major and was sent to France with the 361st Infantry.
In September of 1918, a United States offensive commanded by General John J. Pershing set out to capture the Sedan-Mezieres railroad and deployed more than one million U.S. soldiers in the effort. Miller’s 361st Infantry joined with the 362nd Infantry and several others to form the 91st Division. They stormed the German-occupied small town of Epinonville and then went into the orchards to the north, eventually securing the town of Gesnes for the Allies.
Major Miller led the attack on foot, encouraging his soldiers with the cry of “Powder River”. He was hit twice with enemy fire and was carried from the battlefield by his comrades. He died on September 29, 1918 on the battlefield. He is buried in France.
Miller Receives Medal of Honor and Other Military Awards
In August of 1919, Oscar Franklin Miller was awarded the Medal of Honor. Part of the citation reads “Major Miller inspired his men by his personal courage … and was shot in the right leg, but he staggered forward at the head of his command. Soon afterwards he was again shot in the right arm, but he continued the charge, through the heavy machine-gun fire.”
A native of a tiny town in Franklin County, Arkansas, Oscar Franklin Miller was a pioneer in the civil service field and a gallant hero in our nation’s First World War Surely he deserves a place of honor in the annals of Arkansas history.
Sources:
Pershing, John J. “One Hundred Heroes,” Ladies Home Journal, August 1919
Johnson, John Allen, “Oscar Franklin Miller: Arkansas’s Forgotten Hero”, Arkansas Historical Quarterly, Autumn 1972
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