Lawrence Clayton Smith – Lieutenant Colonel, United States Army

From a contemporary press report:

Lawrence C. Smith, 72, a retired Army Lieutenant Colonel who also was a civilian operations research analyst for the Army Corps of Engineers, died March 12, 2003, at Fort Washington Hospital after a heart attack. A Fort Washington resident, he had lived in the Washington area since 1978.

Dr. Smith served more than 20 years in the military, beginning in Korea during the war in that country. He was a field artillery officer in the Vietnam War and chief Army recruiter in Presidio, Calif., when he retired from active duty in 1973.

As a civilian, he worked as a management analyst for the Navy Manpower and Material Analysis Center Pacific in San Francisco, and as assistant to the deputy chief of naval operations for manpower and training at the Pentagon.

He worked for the Army Corps of Engineers from 1988 to 1995.

Dr. Smith was a native of Greenville, South Carolina, and a graduate of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. He received a master’s degree in systems management from the University of Southern California and a doctorate in business administration from Pacific Western University.

His military decorations included a Bronze Star.

Survivors include his wife of 45 years, Juanita M. Smith of Fort Washington; three children, Reginald L. Smith of San Francisco, Sheila S. Olive of Decatur, Ga., and Daryl G. Smith of Greensboro, North Carolina; and four grandchildren.

SMITH, LAWRENCE CLAYTON, Ph.D, LTC, USA (Ret.)

On Wednesday, March 12, 2003. Beloved husband of Juanita M. Smith; devoted father of Sheila S. Olive, Reginald L. and Daryl G. Smith. He is also survived by four grandchildren, Vincent L., Jacob T. and Brandon J. Smith and Bryce S. Olive; other relatives and friends.

The late LTC Smith will lie in state at Andrews Air Force Base Chapel #1, Tuesday, March 25 from 11 a.m. until services at 12 Noon. Interment Arlington National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to North Carolina A&T University, Greensboro, North Carolina.

Michael Robert Patterson

Michael Robert Patterson was born in Arlington and is the son of a former officer of the US Army. So it was no wonder that sooner or later his interests drew him to American history and especially to American military history. Many of his articles can be found on renowned portals like the New York Times, Washingtonpost or Wikipedia.

Reviewed by: Michael Howard