In 1911 , at the age of 16 , Smith enlisted as a private in Company D of the 2nd Indiana Infantry of the Indiana National Guard . The Indiana National Guard was called out twice in 1913 , for the Ohio River flood and during the Indianapolis streetcar strike . Smith was promoted to corporal and then sergeant . During the Pancho Villa Expedition he served on the staff of the Indiana National Guard
Ohio River flood
Great Flood of 1913
Walter Bedell Smith