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 [decorative delimiter] Class of 1849

Vol. II
p367
1407

(Born O.)

Quincy A. Gillmore​a

(Ap'd O.)

1

Quincy Adams Gillmore: Born Feb. 28, 1825

Military History. — Cadet at the Military Academy, July 1, 1845, to July 1, 1849, when he was graduated and promoted in the Army to

Bvt. Second Lieut., Corps of Engineers, July 1, 1849.

Served: as Asst. Engineer in building Fts. Monroe and Calhoun, for the Defense of Hampton Roads, Va., 1849‑52; at West Point, N. Y., attached to the company of Sappers, Miners, and Pontoniers, 1852‑56; at

(Second Lieut., Corps of Engineers, Sep. 5, 1853)

the Military Academy as Asst. Instructor of Practical Military Engineering, Nov. 15, 1852, to Sep. 15, 1856, — Treasurer, Sep. 1, 1855, to Sep. 11, 1856, — and Quartermaster, Sep. 1, 1855, to Sep. 15, 1856; as Asst.

(First Lieut., Corps of Engineers, July 1, 1856)

 p368  Engineer in the construction of Ft. Monroe, Va., 1856; and in charge of the Engineer Agency at New York for supplying and shipping materials for fortifications, etc., 1856‑61, — and of Fortifications in New York Harbor, 1857‑58.

Served during the Rebellion of the Seceding States, 1861‑66: as Chief Engineer of the Port Royal Expeditionary Corps, 1861‑62, being

(Captain, Corps of Engineers, Aug. 6, 1861)

present at the Descent upon Hilton Head, S. C., Nov. 7, 1861, and was engaged in the construction of Fortifications on that Island, Nov., 1861, to Jan., 1862; as Chief Engineer of the Siege of Ft. Pulaski, Ga., Feb. to Apr. 11, 1862, and in command during its Bombardment and Capture,

(Bvt. Lieut.‑Colonel, Apr. 11, 1862,
for Gallant and Meritorious Services in the Capture of Ft. Pulaski, Ga.)

Apr. 10‑11, 1862, being one of Commissioners to arrange the Terms of Capitulation of the place; on sick leave of absence, May to July,

(Brig.‑General, U. S. Volunteers, Apr. 28, 1862)

1862; in assisting the Governor of New York in forwarding State troops, Aug. 13 to Sep. 12, 1862; in command of Division operating from Covington, Ky., Sep. 18‑28, 1862, — of District of Western Virginia, Sep. 28 to Oct. 14, 1862, — and of 1st Division, Army of Kentucky, Oct. 14, 1862, to Jan. 25, 1863, — of District of Central Kentucky, Jan. 25 to Apr., 1863, — and of the U. S. Forces at the Battle of Somerset, Ky., Mar. 30, 1863;

(Bvt. Colonel, Mar. 30, 1863,
for Gallant and Meritorious Services at the Battle of Somerset, Ky.)

on leave of absence, Apr. to May, 1863; in command of the Department

(Major, Corps of Engineers, June 1, 1863)

of the South, June 12, 1863, to Apr., 1864, and of 10th Army Corps, July 16, 1863, to June 17, 1864, being engaged in command of the Operations against Charleston, S. C., comprising the Descent upon Morris Island, July 10, — Bombardment and Reduction of Ft. Sumter, Aug. 17‑23, and Nov. 1‑10, — and Siege and Capitulation of Ft. Wagner, July 10 to

(Major-General, U. S. Volunteers, July 10, 1863)

Sep. 7, 1863; in command of 10th Army Corps, in Operations on James River, near Bermuda Hundred, Va., May 5 to June 17, 1864, being engaged in Actions of Swift Creek, May 9, and near Chester Station, May 10, 1864, — Assault and Capture of the right of the enemy's intrenchments in front of Drury's Bluff, May 13, 1864, — Battle of Drury's Bluff, May 16, 1864, — Defense of Bermuda Hundred, May 18 and 20, 1864, — and Reconnoissance of the enemy's lines before Petersburg, June 9, 1864; in command of two Divisions of 19th Army Corps, in Defense of Washington, D. C., July 11, 1864, and in Pursuit of the Rebels under General Indicates a West Point graduate and gives his Class.Early till July 14, 1864, when he was severely injured by the fall of his horse; on sick leave of absence on account of injures, July 16 to Aug. 21, 1864; as President of Board for testing Ames's Wrought-iron Cannon, Oct. to Nov., 1864; on Tour of Inspection of Fortifications from Cairo, Ill., to Pensacola, Fla., Nov. 28, 1864, to Jan. 30, 1865; in command of the Department of the South, Feb. 9 to Nov. 17, 1865; as

Bvt. Brig.‑General, U. S. Army, Mar. 13, 1865,
for Gallant and Meritorious Services in the Capture of Ft. Wagner, S. C.)

Bvt. Maj.‑General, U. S. Army, Mar. 13, 1865,
for Gallant and Meritorious Services in the Assault on Morris Island, S. C.,
July 10, 1863, and the Bombardment and Demolition of Ft. Sumter)

Assistant to the Chief Engineer in charge of the 3d Division of the Engineer  p369 Bureau, at Washington, D. C., Dec. 5, 1865, to Nov. 8, 1866; as

(Resigned Volunteer Commission, Dec. 5, 1865)

Member of a special Board of Engineers to conduct experiments in connection with the use of Iron in the construction of permanent fortifications, Sep. 11, 1866, to May 18, 1867, — and of Board for examining and improving the Washington City Canal, Mar. 10 to July, 1866.

Served: as Superintending Engineer of the Fortifications on Staten Island, N. Y., Dec. 10, 1866, to Nov. 19, 1869, July 18, 1870, to Nov. 27, 1882, and Apr. 2, 1883, to Aug. 20, 1884, — of the Coast Defenses from Cape Fear River, N. C., to St. Augustine, Fla., Nov. 19, 1869, to Nov. 27, 1882, and Apr. 2, 1883, to Aug. 20, 1884; on leave of absence, Jan. to Apr., 1870; as Superintending Engineer of Surveys of Rivers and Harbors in North and South Carolina, Georgia, and East Florida, July 19, 1870, to Nov. 27, 1882, and Apr. 2, 1883, to Apr. 7, 1888, — of Improvement of Ship Channel into Charleston Harbor, S. C., Mar., 1871, to Nov. 27, 1882, and Apr. 2, 1883, to Apr. 7, 1888, and of Mouth of St. John's River, Fla., Mar., 1871, to Nov. 27, 1882, and Apr. 2, 1883, to Aug. 20, 1884, — of Removal of Obstructions in Ashepoo River, S. C., and of Wrecks in Stono River, S. C., Apr., 1872, to Dec., 1873, — of Improvement of Savannah River and Harbor, Ga., Apr., 1872, to Nov. 27,

(Lieut.‑Colonel, Corps of Engineers, June 13, 1874)

1882, and Apr. 2, 1883, to Apr. 7, 1888, — of Fts. Monroe and Wood, Va., Aug. 12, 1874, to Nov. 27, 1882, and Apr. 2, 1883, to Apr. 7, 1888, — of Improvement of the inside passage between St. John's River and Nassau Inlet, Fla., Nov., 1876, to Nov. 27, 1882, and Apr. 2 to May, 1883, — of Improvement of Darien Harbor, Ga., June 26, 1878, to Apr. 24, 1879, — of Survey for a Ship Canal from St. Mary's River, Fla., to the Gulf of Mexico, and of St. John's and Upper Savannah Rivers, July, 1878, to Apr. 6, 1880; as Member of Board for testing Captain Indicates a West Point graduate and gives his Class.King's Depressing Gun Carriage, Aug. to Dec., 1871, — on Improvement of Cape Fear River, Jan. 10‑26, 1872, — for Examination of Officers of Engineers for Promotion, Apr., 1873, to Oct., 1877, — to examine Capt. Indicates a West Point graduate and gives his Class.Howell's project of a Ship Canal from Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico, July 20, 1873, to Jan. 4, 1874, — of James River and Kanawha Canal project, Jan. to May, 1874, — to determine strength and value of all kinds of Iron, Steel, and other Metals, Apr. 15, 1875, to 18–––, — on Improvement of Savannah River and Harbor, Ga., June 5‑12, 1875, — of Judges at Centennial Exhibition, on Group II, comprising Cements, Stone, etc., May, 1874, — of Commission on Improvement of Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, D. C., July 19, 1876, to May, 1877, — on Foundation of the Washington National Monument, Sep. 21, 1876, to June 18, 1878, — on Modification of Rock Creek Bridge, of Washington Aqueduct, Feb. 7 to Apr. 9, 1877, — and on Improvement of Charleston Harbor, S. C., Mar., 1878; as President of Mississippi River Commission, June 30, 1879, to Dec. 1, 1882, and Nov. 26, 1884, to Apr. 7, 1888, and Member

(Colonel, Corps of Engineers, Feb. 20, 1883)

Dec. 1, 1882, to Nov. 26, 1884; as Member of the Board of Visitors to Engineer School of Application at Willet's Point, N. Y., Mar. 11, 1886, to Apr. 7, 1888, — and of various Boards on River, Harbor, and Interior Coast Line Improvements, May 13, 1884, to Feb. 1, 1885.

Civil History. — Degree of A. M. conferred by Oberlin College, Ohio, 1856. Author of a work on the "Siege and Reduction of Ft. Pulaski, Ga.," 1862, — of a "Practical Treatise on Limes, Hydraulic Cements, and Mortars," 1863, — and of "Engineer and Artillery Operations against the Defenses of Charleston in 1863." Member of a Board of Civil Engineers to design a Railroad Bridge across Connecticut River at Middletown,  p370 Ct., Apr., 1867, to June, 1870, — for Railroad Bridge across Hudson River, near Peekskill, N. Y., 18–––, — for Bridge across the East River, at Blackwell's Island, N. Y., Dec. 10, 1875, to Feb. 21, 1877, — and for Examination of the Bulkhead-walls at Canal and King Streets, New York city, Oct. 12, 1875, to Feb. 18, 1876. Author of a work on Béton Coignet and other Artificial Stones, 1871, — on the Compressive Strength, Specific Gravity, and Ratio of Absorption of Building Stones of the United States, 1876, — of Practical Treatise on Roads, Streets, and Pavements, 1876, — and of a Report to the Bureau of Awards, Centennial Exhibition of 1876, on the Cements, Artificial Stone, Brick-making Machines, Kilns, Pavements, etc. Degree of Ph. D. conferred by Rutgers College, N. J., 1878.

Died Apr. 7, 1888, at Brooklyn, N. Y.: Aged 63.

Buried, West Point Cemetery, West Point, NY.

Obituary Notice.

General Stewart L. Woodford at the decoration of the grave at West Point of General Gillmore, May 29, 1888, by the U. S. Grant Post, Grand Army of the Republic, said of him:—

Gillmore graduated from the Military Academy at West Point in 1849, at the head of his class, and was appointed Brevet Second Lieutenant in the Engineer Corps. For the next three years he was engaged on works of construction; then for four years he was stationed here as Assistant Instructor; then for five years at New York on Engineering duty; then during almost the entire Civil War he was in active service, first at Hilton Head, South Carolina; next at the Siege and Capture of Fort Pulaski, Georgia; next with troops in the field in West Virginia and Kentucky; next in the Occupation of Morris Island, the Bombardment of Sumter, and the Capture of Fort Wagner; and next with the Army of the James in Virginia, and again in the administration of Department of the South during the spring, summer, and autumn of 1865. After peace came he was constantly on service in the Engineer Corps of the Army, and engaged in its most important duty and work. Meanwhile, as a scientific author and writer on subjects connected with his special studies of ordnance and engineering, he took the place of a recognized authority in our own country and in foreign lands.

"As a scientific, scholar­ly, and profound thinker on military problems, I believe that he ranked in ability, learning, and reputation among the really great engineers, not only of our own Army but even of the world. He was solid, not superficial; thorough and yet brilliant; sound in judgment, fertile in resource, persistent in purpose, honorable in life. His record in the Military Academy as a student, his work in peace as an engineer, and his service in war, make him a worthy type of the American scholar and soldier.

"So long as the waves shall beat upon the sands of Morris Island; so long as the debris of Sumter shall crumble at the feet of her newly erected walls; so long as the flag of the Nation shall float above that fortress which marked beginning of fraternal strife, — the records of our army and of our republic shall keep the name of Quincy A. Gillmore as a courteous gentleman, a wise scholar, a loyal citizen, a good soldier, and a truly great military engineer."


Thayer's Note:

a He was the father of Indicates a West Point graduate and gives his Class.Quincy O'Maher Gillmore.


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