Robert Sprague Beightler was born in 1892 in Marysville. A graduate of Marysville High School, he began his military career in 1911 when he enlisted as a private in Marysville's guard unit, Company E, Fourth Ohio Infantry Regiment. He served in Mexico from 1916-1917, in World War I from 1917-1919, and in World War II from 1940-1945. Rising from his service in the Ohio Infantry, he became a Major General and commanded the 37th Ohio National Guard Buckeye Division during World War II. He was one of the most successful National Guard generals and the only National Guard general to lead his troops through both training and combat in World War II. He remained with his troops through 700 days of fighting in the South Pacific Theater, including combat on Bougainville Island and in the islands of New Georgia and the Philippines. At the end of World War II, he was commissioned in the regular army. After processing his troops home, he returned to Ohio in December 1945 with the 37th Ohio National Guard. He also served in international, national, and state leadership roles, including military Governor for Okinawa, the United States War Department General Staff, head of the Ohio State Highway Department, and Director and Board member of the Ohio Turnpike Commission. He died in February 1978 and was buried in Oakdale Cemetery. In 1969 and 2007, Marysville officially recognized his contributions by giving Fifth Street the honorary name General Beightler Way.