Photo By Joseph Siemandel | Brig. Gen. Ensley Llewellyn, (left), was the adjutant general from February 25, 1947...... read more read more
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For nearly a decade, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee and the state’s Adjutant General, Maj. Gen. Bret Daugherty, have demonstrated a respectful relationship.
Looking back, that governor-adjutant general relationship hasn’t always been friendly.
Following World War II, the Washington National Guard was in a state of flux. The organization had just gone through a massive deployment and soldiers were returning from overseas conflicts. The Guard formation was essentially an organized militia that needed to be reconstituted and strong leadership was needed.
Brig. Gen. Maurice W. Thompson, who had twice served as the adjutant general before the war and elected retirement in 1941, was asked by Gov. Monrad Wallgren to return in 1945 at the age of 67 to take the reins of adjutant general for a third time. This time his job was to prepare for the reconstitution of the Washington National Guard. Following a third stint as TAG and suffering a stroke, Thompson retired for a final time from the organization.
Wallgren needed to appoint a new adjutant general and on February 25, 1947, he appointed Brig. Gen. Ensley Llewellyn as adjutant general and commander of the Washington National Guard. This appointment was the initial step to what is forever known as the “Battle of Camp Murray”.
Brig. Gen. Ensley Llewellyn
A resident of Tacoma, 17-year-old Ensley Llewellyn joined the Washington National Guard in August of 1922, serving with Troop B, 58th Machine Gun Squadron. In five short years he promoted from the rank of private to first sergeant before attending the officer's course and commissioned as a second lieutenant on March 13, 1929. Before being called to active Army orders in February 1941, Llewellyn had climbed to the rank of Major in the Washington National Guard.
Working as a civilian in advertising, Llewellyn knew the importance of information and promoting a message. When he reached England in 1942, General Dwight D. Eisenhower, commander of operations in the European Theater, knew the perfect position that Llewellyn’s talents could serve him best. Llewellyn's duties included press censorship and plans to counter German Nazi propaganda. In March 1942, Eisenhower asked Llewellyn to establish a newspaper for the overseas armed forces.
Llewellyn obtained $1,300 from army funds and added $876 of his own money to start Stars and Stripes for the third time. It had been a newspaper for military service members during the Civil War and again during World War I. The paper was so successful it became a daily publication and earned money for the first time in the publication’s history and earned him a promotion to Lt. Col.
Following the war Llewellyn returned home in July 1945 and established the Llewellyn Advertising Agency before Wallgren named him Washington’s adjutant general.
Governor Arthur B. Langlie
In November 1940, Seattle Mayor Arthur Langlie, a republican, made history when he became the first Seattle mayor to be elected governor of Washington. Sworn in on January 15, 1941, at the age of 40, he became the youngest governor in the state's history to that point and was not overwhelmingly popular among the democratic controlled Legislature. The gridlock among the governor and the Legislature caused frustrations.
Langlie’s first term as governor was also dominated by World War II and controversial policies.
Set for a re-election bid in November of 1944, Langlie was viewed by many as a "do-nothing governor," who was opposed to President Franklin Roosevelt's re-election and the popular New Deal. Langlie was ultimately defeated by U.S. Senator Monrad Wallgren.
A member of the Naval Reserve, Langlie spent the next year on active duty in Seattle and Virginia. In 1946 he became a senior partner in the law firm of Langlie, Todd, and Nickell, but devoted plenty of time to politics, maintaining his control over the state republican party and keeping in contact with local politicians around the state. So it came as no surprise in 1948 when Langlie launched a campaign to regain the governor’s office.
A better legislator than an administrator, Wallgren had many shortcomings during his time in Olympia. Langlie was able to defeat Wallgren with more than 50 percent of the vote in the 1948 election, re-gaining the governor’s seat in January of 1949.
The fight begins
On May 2, 1949, Langlie asked Llewellyn to resign his adjutant general position. Llewellyn refused, so Langlie relieved him of duty asserting he asked for the resignation because of "administrative irregularities" in the adjutant general’s office. Llewellyn responded that his relief was political because a democrat had appointed him and Langlie was a republican.
Langlie established a court of inquiry to review 12 charges of irregularities. The board sustained 11 of the 12 charges. They included improper expenditure of funds, unauthorized use of state property, exceeding the budget, and failing to respond to fire-safety hazards in a Seattle armory. With the court of inquiry finding, Langlie again dismissed Llewellyn from the office of adjutant general on July 8, 1949, and on the same day, by executive order, relieved him from active service and from the detail as the adjutant general, reverting him to his former status as a major in the Washington National Guard.
Col. Ellsworth C. French, an Air Force officer in the Washington National Guard was appointed acting adjutant general while interviews were being conducted for the next adjutant general. After a short search, the governor, by executive order, relieved French as acting adjutant general and ordered Lt. Colonel Lilburn H. Stevens to active service and named him adjutant general on August 1, 1949.
Brig. Gen. Lilburn Stevens
Known as a no non-sense kind of person, Lilburn Stevens was just 15 years old when he enlisted in the U.S. Army on January 8, 1918.
“He wanted to go to war, just like he did during World War II,” said Kerry Stevens, son of Lilburn Stevens during an interview in 2017. “He had some problems at home, living on a ranch in Oklahoma and was the only ranch hand on the farm so his father didn’t want him to go but his mother signed the papers.”
Just 15, his mother signed the waiver saying he was 17 and Stevens was able to mobilize to World War I, where he served in the Army Air Corp. He caught the flu in 1918 which left him bedridden before returning to service and deploying to France. After returning home from war, Stevens relocated with his wife and her family to Washington and joined the 41st Infantry Division in 1924.
Not well off, Stevens was a mechanic and a sewing machine salesmen during the late 1920s and 1930s, a time when many Americans were struggling through the great depression.
“[Drill] was a little extra money when times were tight,” said Kerry. “Things were tight all over, meat on Sundays, and left overs with whatever genius mother could put together.”
Kerry said that a lot of National Guard members depended on that drill check, including his father.
As war broke out in Europe in 1939, then Capt. Stevens, who at the time was commanding a tank company from Centralia was eager to deploy to help his family and in 1940 he was activated to federal service on Camp Murray.
“[Dad] was happier to be in uniform than selling sewing machines,” said Kerry. “He much preferred it.”
Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, Stevens took part in a number of trainings and was deployed to the European theater in 1944. He would take command of the 610th Tank Destroyer Battalion in July 1945, the last commander of the unit before returning home. As units returned home and reorganized, Lt. Col. Stevens would take command of the 1st Squadron, 303rd Cavalry Regiment in March of 1947.
“He was a battalion commander when I joined the National Guard,” said Kerry.
Stevens would serve as the squadron commander until his appointment to adjutant general on August 1, 1949.
The Battle of Camp Murray
After being removed from his position in July of 1949, Llewellyn challenged the dismissal in court. On January 9, 1950, the Thurston County Court found him to still be the adjutant general and issued an order to that effect. On the morning of January 10, 1950, with court order in hand, Llewellyn arrived at Building 1 on Camp Murray, determined to regain his position as the adjutant general.
“Llewellyn refused to leave the office, so father got what others called his ‘goon’ squad,” said Kerry with a chuckle. “They were special people that were very loyal to him and they went in and carried Llewellyn out of the building.”
Llewellyn was physically removed from the adjutant general’s office and the building multiple times before guards were posted at the doors blocking his entry.
“He said he was appointed and he wasn’t going to leave,” said Kerry, who witnessed the entire incident on that day in 1950. “I don’t think many knew what was happening. The local guard knew but not many people were standing around watching this happen.”
As the scene went on, cooler heads prevailed and Llewellyn left the area.
Aftermath
The issue went to the Washington Supreme Court, which ruled against Llewellyn. In the 1950 case of Llewellyn v. Langlie, the court determined that under the laws at the time the Governor did have the authority to remove the adjutant general and appoint a replacement. A compromise was also reached allowing Llewellyn to retain the rank of Brig. Gen. in retirement.
Stevens went on to serve as the Adjutant General from 1949 to 1957. During his tenure he helped modernize the facilities and grow the number of National Guard locations across the state in a time of limited financial resources.
“I think he enjoyed living on Camp Murray, I think he enjoyed the travel and seeing the troops,” said Kerry.
Following the election and confirmation of Gov. Albert Rosellini in 1957, Stevens, who was 54 years old, decided to retire and submitted his resignation.
“I know father had a great relationship with Langlie. He wasn’t as fond of Rosellini but I believe he should have kept serving under him,” said Kerry. “There was a lot of good they could have done.”
Following his service he worked as a caretaker for a number of armories.
“He worked these mundane jobs. He was a farm kid from Oklahoma and that was his mindset,” said Kerry.
However, Kerry is very proud of his father’s legacy.
“He was an Oklahoma farm kid who didn’t even have a high school degree and rose up the ranks to be the adjutant general. He cared about the troops and he liked serving,” said Kerry. “He was a stern father, but a loving father.”
Llewellyn continued public service, supporting the YMCA Pacific Northwest Area Council until he was named the director of the Washington Department of Civil Defense in April 1962. The department was part of President Kennedy’s plan to make civil defense more of a priority than in the past. Llewellyn conducted exercises in the state, simulating a nuclear attack in Washington state.
While laws have changes since 1949, today Title 38 of the Revised Code of Washington, Militia and Military Affairs, addresses the rules, regulations and definitions and guidelines of who and when an adjutant general can be appointed.
| Date Taken: | 09.22.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 09.22.2022 13:14 |
| Story ID: | 429873 |
| Location: | CAMP MURRAY, WA, US |
| Web Views: | 543 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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