Eric Fisher Wood
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Eric Fisher Wood Sr. (1888–1962) was an American
engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limit ...
,
Pennsylvania National Guard The Pennsylvania National Guard is one of the oldest and largest National Guards in the United States Department of Defense. It traces its roots to 1747 when Benjamin Franklin established the Associators in Philadelphia. With more than 18,000 pe ...
general, co-founder of
The American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war veterans headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. It is made up of state, U.S. territory, and overseas departments, and these are in turn made up of l ...
and designer of its emblem.


Early years and education

Eric Fisher Wood was born in New York City in 1888 to Frances Fisher Wood and Dr. William Benjamin Wood. As a boy Wood was educated in private schools."Eric Fisher Wood Papers: Biographical History,"
Special Collections Research Center, Syracuse University Library, Syracuse, New York, May 1967.
He later enrolled at
Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...
in
New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134 ...
, from which he graduated with degrees in
Economics Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyzes ...
, English, and a
PhD degree A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...
in
civil engineering Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewa ...
. Wood did additional post-graduate course work studying architecture at
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
in New York City, as well as the
École des Beaux-Arts École des Beaux-Arts (; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth centur ...
in Paris.


World War I

At the time of the eruption of World War I, Wood was an American in Paris. Wood volunteered his services at the American Embassy in France as an
attaché In diplomacy, an attaché is a person who is assigned ("to be attached") to the diplomatic or administrative staff of a higher placed person or another service or agency. Although a loanword from French, in English the word is not modified accord ...
, joining the Embassy staff to help handle the greatly increased workload that was associated with the war. Later Wood would join the American Ambulance Corps, serving in that capacity for a few months.Thomas A. Rumer, ''The American Legion: An Official History, 1919-1989.'' New York: M. Evans & Co., 1990; pg. 104. Wood maintained a journal during his time in Europe which he published in book form in 1915 as ''The Note-book of an Attaché: Seven Months in the War Zone.'' Wood subsequently returned to the United States, where he became Vice-President of the
National Security League The National Security League (NSL) was an American patriotic, nationalistic, nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that supported a greatly-expanded military based upon universal service, the naturalization and Americanization of immigrants, Amer ...
, an organization dedicated to fostering so-called "military preparedness" in the face of the vast and spreading European War. Wood was also involved from a year from 1915 to 1916 as part of the Plattsburgh Training Camp Executive Committee. He found time to publish a second book during this interval dealing with the topic of military preparedness, ''The Writing on the Wall.'' In 1917 Wood returned to Europe, where he served in the British Army with the rank of major. In this capacity he was wounded at Arras on April 9, 1917. In 1917, as an officer at
Camp Sherman, Ohio Camp Sherman is an Ohio Army National Guard training site near Chillicothe, Ohio. It was established in 1917 after the U.S. entered World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars an ...
, he was sent out to raise building funds by Major General Edwin Forbes Glenn, who was responsible for organizing the 83rd Infantry Division. Following American entry into the war in 1917, Wood was commissioned as a major in the
U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
on August 14, 1917 and served as assistant chief of staff for the 88th Infantry Division. Wood was wounded again, this time by
poison gas Many gases have toxic properties, which are often assessed using the LC50 (median lethal dose) measure. In the United States, many of these gases have been assigned an NFPA 704 health rating of 4 (may be fatal) or 3 (may cause serious or perman ...
during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive that same fall. By the end of the hostilities in November 1918 Wood had risen to the rank of lieutenant colonel.Marquis James, ''A History of the American Legion.'' New York: William Green, 1923; pg. 17.


The American Legion

On February 15, 1919, Wood was ordered by Gen. John J. Pershing to join with 19 of his fellows in a special committee headed by Theodore Roosevelt Jr. given the task of providing a set of recommendations aimed at curbing the serious problem of declining morale. A series of proposals resulted from the day-long session, including elimination of restrictive regulations, organization of additional athletic events and recreational opportunities, and the expansion of leave time and entertainment programs. Lt. Col. Roosevelt had an additional purpose unbeknownst to Wood, however, and in the evening the group retired to an Allied Officers Club, where the eldest son of the former President unveiled his proposal for a new veterans' society — a group which would ultimately emerge as the American Legion. A provisional executive committee of four people emerged from the February 15 "Roosevelt dinner", headed by Roosevelt himself, who was to return to the United States and obtain his
military discharge A military discharge is given when a member of the armed forces is released from their obligation to serve. Each country's military has different types of discharge. They are generally based on whether the persons completed their training and the ...
when able, and then to gather assistants and promote the idea of the new veterans' organization among demobilized troops there.James, ''A History of the American Legion'', pg. 20. Roosevelt's close associate in the project George A. White, who was to travel France touring the camps of the AEF explaining the idea in person. The European center of operations was to be manned by Wood, together with former
Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
Congressman
Ralph D. Cole Ralph Dayton Cole (November 30, 1873 – October 15, 1932) was an American lawyer and politician who served three terms as a U.S. Representative from Ohio from 1905 to 1911. He was the brother of Raymond Clinton Cole, who also served in Congr ...
. The pair were to establish a central office and to maintain contact by mail and telegram with the various combat divisions and headquarters staffs, as well as to publicize activities to the press. Wood also served as the first temporary chairman of the April 1919 Paris Caucus of the American Legion, as well as the Secretary of the two subsequent gatherings which formally established the organization, the St. Louis Caucus and the Minneapolis National Convention.


Interwar career

During the 1920s Wood moved to
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...
, where he established himself as a prominent architect. He also continued his military career as commander of the
Pennsylvania National Guard The Pennsylvania National Guard is one of the oldest and largest National Guards in the United States Department of Defense. It traces its roots to 1747 when Benjamin Franklin established the Associators in Philadelphia. With more than 18,000 pe ...
. With the outbreak of World War II, Wood was recalled to active duty. He served for the duration of the war, rising to the rank of
brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...
. During the course of his military career Wood would earn the Legion of Merit, the Purple Heart with oak leaf, and the Croix de Guerre, in addition to 20
ribbons A ribbon or riband is a thin band of material, typically cloth but also plastic or sometimes metal, used primarily as decorative binding and tying. Cloth ribbons are made of natural materials such as silk, cotton, and jute and of synthetic mate ...
and 10
battle stars A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star inch (4.8 mm) in diameter that is authorized to be worn by members of the eight uniformed services of the United States on medals and ribbons to denote an additional award or ser ...
.


Death and legacy

Eric Fisher Wood Sr. died in 1962, preceded in death by his eldest son, Eric Fisher Wood, Jr., who was killed during World War II at the
Battle of the Bulge The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted from 16 December 1944 to 28 January 1945, towards the end of the war in ...
. His papers, consisting of 8 linear feet of correspondence, manuscripts, diaries, and photographs, are housed at the Special Collections Research Center of Syracuse University Library in Syracuse, New York."Eric Fisher Wood Papers: An inventory of his papers at Syracuse University,"
Special Collections Research Center, Syracuse University Library, Syracuse, New York, May 1967.
A finding aid is available on-line. Wood's best-known architectural work is the Harding Tomb in the former President's hometown of
Marion, Ohio Marion is a city in and the county seat of Marion County, Ohio, United States. The municipality is located in north-central Ohio, approximately north of Columbus. The population was 35,999 at the 2020 census, slightly down from 36,837 at the ...
."Harding Memorial,"
Grave Addiction, www.graveaddiction.com/
Wood was co-designer of this massive classical
white marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorphosed ...
structure.


Footnotes


Works

* ''The Note-book of an Attaché: Seven Months in the War Zone.'' New York: Century Co., 1915.
''The Writing on the Wall: The Nation on Trial.''
New York: Century Co., 1916. *
The Note-Book of an Intelligence Officer
'' New York: The Century Co., 1917. * ''Officers and Executive Committee, List of Members, Constitution: Addresses by Major Eric Fisher Wood, Rt. Hon. Sir George H. Reid, Milton M. Brown, Sir John Foster Fraser, D. Thomas Curtin.'' Contributor. Cincinnati, Ohio: Commonwealth Club, 1918. * ''The Swiss System.'' New York: National Security League, n.d. 919 —Excerpt from ''The Writing on the Wall.''
''Leonard Wood: Conservator of Americanism.''
New York: George H. Doran, 1920. * ''The ROTC Manual: Field Artillery: A Textbook for the Reserve Officers Training Corps: Basic Course.'' Washington, D.C.: Military Service Publishing Co., 1934. * ''Lectures on Troop Leading and Staff Procedure: Spoken Extemporaneously between 8th April and 1st May, 1941, to the 28th Division's Command and General Staff School, which Included All Field Officers and Acting Field Officers of the Division, at Indiantown Gap Military Reservation, Penna.'' Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Telegraph Press, 1942.


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wood, Eric Fisher, Sr. 1888 births 1962 deaths Architects from New York City Columbia Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation alumni British Army personnel of World War I British Army officers National Guard (United States) generals Organization founders Pennsylvania National Guard personnel Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Army personnel of World War I United States Army generals of World War II Yale School of Engineering & Applied Science alumni