 He commanded the 1st Division at Fort Hamilton from May 1 to September 1, 1927 and the Hawaiian Department in Honolulu from January 25, 1928 to August 5, 1930.He was assigned as commander of the First Corps Area in Boston on October 7, 1930.Conner was Pershing's preference for Chief of Staff in 1930, but was passed over in favor of Douglas MacArthur.