George Sabin Gibbs (December 14, 1875 – January 8, 1947) was a United States Army officer. After serving as a brigadier general during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he was promoted to

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

and served as

Chief Signal Officer ) , colors = Orange and white , colors_label = Corps colors , march = , mascot = , equipment = , equipment_label = ...

for the Signal Corps.

Early life

Gibbs was born in

Harlan, Iowa Harlan is a city in Shelby County, Iowa, along the West Nishnabotna River. The population was 4,893 at the time of the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Shelby County. History Harlan was platted in 1858. It was named for one of Iowa's earl ...

, in 1875. He graduated from Harlan High School in 1892, from the

State University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized into 12 coll ...

with a B.S. degree in 1897, and by 1901 had earned a M.S. degree in engineering.

Early military career

In 1898, Gibbs enlisted in the Iowa Volunteer Infantry as a private. During the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (clock ...

and

Philippine Insurrection The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, Gibbs served in the volunteer forces, mainly on Signal Corps duty, in ranks from private to

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a s ...

. While a sergeant, Gibbs was cited for gallantry in action against the Spanish forces at Manila. After being commissioned a first lieutenant in the Signal Corps, Regular Army, Gibbs' various duties included numerous surveys and construction of telegraph lines in Alaska and as chief Army signal officer of the Cuban Pacification.

Later military career

During World War I, Gibbs was the assistant Chief Signal Officer of the

American Expeditionary Forces The American Expeditionary Forces (A. E. F.) was a formation of the United States Army on the Western Front of World War I. The A. E. F. was established on July 5, 1917, in France under the command of General John J. Pershing. It fought alon ...

. He received a temporary promotion to brigadier general on October 15, 1918. Gibbs was awarded the

Distinguished Service Medal Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a high award of a nation. Examples include: *Distinguished Service Medal (Australia) (established 1991), awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force for distinguished leadership in action * Distinguishe ...

for his participation in the Aisne-Marne and Meuse-Argonne offensives. The citation for the medal reads: He also received several foreign awards, including the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...

Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III. ...

Order of the Crown of Belgium The Order of the Crown (french: Ordre de la Couronne, nl, Kroonorde) is a national order of the Kingdom of Belgium. The Order is one of Belgium's highest honors. History The Order was established on October 15, 1897 by King Leopold II in his ...

, and the

Order of the Crown of Italy The Order of the Crown of Italy ( it, Ordine della Corona d'Italia, italic=no or OCI) was founded as a national order in 1868 by King Vittorio Emanuele II, to commemorate the unification of Italy in 1861. It was awarded in five degrees for civi ...

. After the war, Gibbs reverted to his permanent rank of lieutenant colonel on July 14, 1919, and graduated from

United States Army War College The United States Army War College (USAWC) is a U.S. Army educational institution in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on the 500-acre (2 km2) campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks. It provides graduate-level instruction to senior military offic ...

in 1920. His post World War I assignments included duty on the

War Department War Department may refer to: * War Department (United Kingdom) * United States Department of War (1789–1947) See also * War Office, a former department of the British Government * Ministry of defence * Ministry of War * Ministry of Defence * Dep ...

General Staff and executive officer to the Assistant Secretary of War. In 1924, he supervised the completion of the new Washington–Alaska cable. Promoted to major general, Gibbs became

Chief Signal Officer ) , colors = Orange and white , colors_label = Corps colors , march = , mascot = , equipment = , equipment_label = ...

on January 19, 1928. He held this position until his retirement on June 30, 1931.

Civilian career

After retirement, Gibbs was vice president of the International Telephone and Telegraph Company and in October 1931 president of the Postal Telegraph Cable Company. Later, in 1934, he served as vice chairman of the board and a director of the

Federal Telephone and Radio Corporation The Federal Telegraph Company was a United States manufacturing and communications company that played a pivotal role in the 20th century in the development of radio communications. Founded in Palo Alto, California in 1909 by Cyril Frank Elwell, t ...

Death and legacy

Gibbs died on January 8, 1947, at

Coral Gables, Florida Coral Gables, officially City of Coral Gables, is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The city is located southwest of Downtown Miami. As of the 2020 U.S. census, it had a population of 49,248. Coral Gables is known globally as home to the ...

. He was buried with full military honors in Section 3 of

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

. His son

David Parker Gibbs Major General David P. Gibbs (March 11, 1911 – August 30, 1987) was a United States Army General. He graduated from West Point as a second lieutenant in 1933. A career soldier in the Signal Corps, he became Chief of Communications-E ...

was a career army officer who attained the rank of major general and also served as head of the signal corps. Gibbs' papers are at the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...

References

Bibliography

"George Sabin Gibbs, Major General, United States Army". Arlington National Cemetery.
which in turn was sourced from Coker, Kathy R., and Stokes, Carol E
A Concise History of The U.S. Army Signal Corps
p. 69, February 1991 *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gibbs, George Sabin 1875 births 1947 deaths United States Army Signal Corps personnel People from Harlan, Iowa University of Iowa alumni Military personnel from Iowa American military personnel of the Spanish–American War Recipients of the Silver Star American military personnel of the Philippine–American War United States Army generals of World War I Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Officers of the Legion of Honour Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Commanders of the Order of the Crown (Belgium) Recipients of Italian civil awards and decorations United States Army War College alumni United States Army generals Chief Signal Officer, U.S. Army Burials at Arlington National Cemetery