William Durward Connor (February 22, 1874 – June 16, 1960) was a career

United States 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, cla ...

officer who became a

superintendent of the United States Military Academy The Superintendent of the United States Military Academy is the academy's commanding officer. This position is roughly equivalent to the chancellor or president of an American civilian university. The officer appointed is, by tradition, a grad ...

after originally serving in the Corps of Engineers. While stationed in the

Philippines 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 ...

, he participated in 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 ...

. He later served with 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 ...

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 ...

Early life and education

Connor was born in

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

on February 22, 1874; according to his 1925 passport application, he was born in the town of Newark, in Rock County. He received an appointment to

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...

from

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

, graduating first in his class in 1897; his Cullum Number is 3742. He received his commission as an

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 l ...

. Connor later graduated from the Army Staff College in 1905 and the Army War College in 1909.

Military career

He began his military career as an officer in the Corps of Engineers. During the

, he served in the

as an engineer and was awarded a

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an e ...

for heroism in combat. From 1909 to 1916, he was with the War Department General Staff and was promoted to

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

and appointed Deputy Chief of Staff of the

in 1917, following the entry of the United States in

. In July 1918, he was promoted brigadier general, and given command of the 63rd Brigade, 32nd Infantry Division. At the Battle of Château-Thierry, he was awarded a second Silver Star. For his World War I service, he 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 ...

. He also received the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...

from Britain and from France, he received the

Croix de guerre The ''Croix de Guerre'' (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awa ...

and was named a

Commander of 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 ...

. After the war he served as Commanding General of American forces in France until 1920. Returning to the United States, Connor served as the Chief of Transportation Service in 1921, Deputy Chief of Staff, US Army, in 1922 and Commanding General of US Army forces in China, 1923 to 1926. 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 ...

in 1925, serving as commander of the 2nd Infantry Division until 1927, and as Commandant of the Army War College until 1932. He served as the Superintendent at West Point from 1932 to 1938.

Later life

Connor retired from the US Army on 28 February 1938 but was recalled for service during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

as Chairman of the Construction Advisory Committee, War Department on May 7, 1941. He remained in that capacity until March 31, 1942, when he reverted to the retired status. He died at Walter Reed Medical Center. and is buried at the

West Point Cemetery West Point Cemetery is a historic cemetery in the eastern United States, on the grounds of the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York. It overlooks the Hudson River, and served as a burial ground for Revolutionary War soldiers and early ...

, section 18, row G, grave 75.. Retrieved on 2009-04-29.

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Connor, William Durward 1874 births 1960 deaths People from Rock County, Wisconsin United States Military Academy alumni Military personnel from Wisconsin United States Army Corps of Engineers personnel American military personnel of the Spanish–American War Recipients of the Silver Star United States Army War College alumni United States Army generals of World War I United States Army generals Superintendents of the United States Military Academy United States Army generals of World War II Burials at West Point Cemetery