while commanding the Buna Task Force in New Guinea. After recovery, he was given the command of the 158th Regimental Combat Team (the Bushmasters) at the Bicol Peninsula. His command of the 158th RCT in the Philippines was excellent and it was there that some of the toughest fighting of the war occurred. A regimental legend contends that at one point men of the 3rd battalion became drunk from a cache of Japanese Sake, at which point MacNider finding the men in poor conditions downed a whole bottle in a single moment and decried the troops for being poor soldiers. MacNider earned the respect and love of the men of the 158th by his courage and great battlefield leadership, this has led to an almost mythical reputation in the regiment even today. MacNider was eventually promoted to brigadier general in the United States Army, and then major general until his retirement in 1951. After retirement, he was promoted to lieutenant general by an act of Congress on August 7, 1956. He is one of only four individuals to be promoted to lieutenant general after retirement from the army. Death On February 18, 1968, while on vacation in Sarasota, Florida, he died at a hospital of pulmonary edema. It has been said that he was interred in Mason City's Elmwood Saint Joseph Cemetery; the cemetery office has no record of his burial, and it is believed that he was cremated and his ashes scattered in an unknown location. Legacy Today MacNider is considered one of Iowa's greatest war heroes, the 158th RCT (Infantry) wartime leader, and an effective politician during the inter-war years. He is one of a very few individuals to be awarded three Distinguished Service Crosses. Military awards Hanford MacNider received during his military career many decorations and awards for heroism and distinguished service. Here are official citations of the most important military decorations: First Distinguished Service Cross citation The official U.S. Army citation for his first Distinguished Service Cross reads: General Orders: War Department, General Orders No. 44 (1919) Action Date: October 3–9, 1918 Name: Hanford MacNider Service: Army Rank: Captain Regiment: 9th Infantry Regiment Division: 2d Division, American Expeditionary Forces Citation: The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Captain (Infantry) Hanford MacNider, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in