After returning from duty in the Occupation Army in Europe, John Marsh served as town attorney and judge for New Market, Virginia, an experience that helped him win elections to the U.S. House of Representatives from 1963 to 1971. He would then hold prestigious and cabinet level positions for Presidents Nixon and Ford, culminating with Secretary of the Army, a post he held for more than eight years, longer than any other Secretary. There, he focused on the systems that modernized the Army, including the Abrams tank, the Bradley Fighting Vehicle, the Black Hawk and Apache helicopters, and the Patriot Air Defense System. He remained in the Army Reserves and National Guard even while in Congress, and served in Vietnam with troops who were unaware of his status as a Congressman. Secretary Marsh is a recipient of the Gerald R. Ford Medal for Distinguished Public Service, the Association of the Army Marshall Award and the Doughboy Award.
