GMS History The History of Greenbrier Military School | Page 15

coaches—became majors. Department heads eventually became lieutenant
colonels, while only those few members of the administration held the title
of full colonel. And those administrators were promoted over the years.
Col. John the later superintendent was, in 1951, the assistant commandant
Maj. W.J. Moore. Maj. H.B. Moore Jr. was the long-time faculty member,
but he was Col. H.B. Moore when he became superintendent in the final
years of the school. Rank signified importance at the school; some faculty
and staff, of course, had actually earned their rank in the U.S. Army. Cadets
earned their rank or, if they had too many demerits or an infraction of the
honor code, had it taken away from them.
The cadet battalion was divided into Companies A, B, C, D, E, and
Band, each with its own squads and platoons, commissioned and
non-commissioned officers. The smallest unit was the squad, headed by a
sergeant. Then came the platoon with its commissioned lieutenant. Each
company had its own captain, and commanding over all was the cadet
major. Since Company E was the junior school, or “peanuts,” a senior cadet
served as captain. Through the 1920s, the junior school included cadets in
primary school. As education tilted toward older students, however, and
college classes were added, the junior school dropped the youngest cadets
and accepted only seventh and eighth graders. There was gentle rivalry
between the companies. At the end of the year, one of them would be named
Honor Company. Best Drilled Company, Athletic Company, Best Drilled
Cadet, and the Band Medal were other honors to be awarded.
When H.B. Moore became principal of Greenbrier, he quickly
concluded after six years that “the best results are accomplished in
connection with the military discipline” (GMS Catalog 1925-26, p. 66). In
1921, the U.S. War Department established a Junior ROTC unit and
stationed an Army officer to supervise it (Ambler, p. 743). The government
supplied all rifles and equipment. The 1925 catalog (p. 76) states that “our
Tactical Officer is stationed here by the War Department and our students,
when entering Senior ROTC schools receive credit for work done at
Greenbrier and get their daily stipend as well as uniform equipment.” The
catalog further assured that military activities were not detrimental to
regular classwork and did not take up required study time. In 1925 “the
cadets drill for one hour a day for five days in the week when the weather
permits, and during the inclement season this time is taken up in setting-up
exercises, the manual of arms, signal corps work, map-drawing, and
classroom lectures on military science. All formations, including the school
and class formations, are military and students are accounted for at least
twelve times per day in this way and by personal inspections” (p. 68). By
1960, the cadets had drill three times a week, plus a dress parade, but
otherwise, until its closing days, the school’s schedule remained about the
same.