Wilder Metcalf

Major General Wilder Stevens Metcalf (September 10, 1855 – February 1, 1935) was a U.S. Army general, commissioner of pensions in Washington, D.C., and Kansas state senator.

Wilder Stevens Metcalf
Metcalf in 1925
Born(1855-09-10)September 10, 1855
Milo, Maine
DiedFebruary 1, 1935(1935-02-01) (aged 79)
Lawrence, Kansas
Allegiance United States
Service/branch United States Army
Years of service1898–1917
Rank Major General
Unit5th Ohio Infantry
20th Kansas Infantry
Commands held77th Infantry Brigade
Battles/warsSpanish–American War, World War I
Other workCommissioner of Pensions, State Senator
Signature

Early life

Metcalf was born on September 10, 1855 to Isaac Metcalf and Antoinette Brigham Putnam Metcalf in Milo, Maine.[1] He graduated from Oberlin College 1878 with an A.B., and also worked with Crozier and Shelton, cheese and butter manufacturers, that same year. He worked there until 1887, when he practiced law at Russell and Metcalf, Attorneys. He continued to practice law after his Spanish--American War service, and the University of Kansas Law School awarded him an LL.B. in 1897.[2]

Civilian career

After moving to Kansas, he joined Edward Russell in the farm mortgage business, Russell & Metcalf.[1]

Military career

In 1897, he enlisted as a private in the Fifth Ohio Infantry, and then became a second lieutenant. After moving to Kansas, Metcalf enlisted as a private and later became brigadier general, Kansas National Guard, retired. He was a major and colonel with the 20th Kansas Infantry in 1898 and 1899, and served in the Philippines. He was brevetted brigadier general by President McKinley. Metcalf attended the 1900 Republican Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as a delegate-at-large. The Secretary of War appointed him a member of the Militia Board for eight years. He was commissioned a colonel (NA) on August 5, 1917 and was promoted to brigadier general (NA) on August 29, 1917. He also commanded the 77th Infantry Brigade at Camp Beauregarde, Louisiana, and was honorably discharged due to age on August 29, 1917.[2]

Personal life and later years

Metcalf married Mary Eliza Crozier of Wellington, Ohio who died in 1914; he married Alice L. Bullene on January 8, 1916. After being honorably discharged, he served as the president of the Douglas County Building and Loan Association, president of the Lawrence National Bank, and chairman of the board of the Federal Home Loan Bank in Topeka, Kansas. He also was the United States pension agent in Topeka for eight years and commissioner of pensions in Washington, D.C. for four months, after which he resigned. He was state senator for four years and was a member of the Lawrence, Kansas school board for seventeen years.

Death and legacy

On February 1, 1935, Metcalf passed away at the age of seventy-nine.[2] He is buried in Oak Hill Cemetery in Douglas County, Kansas.[3]

References

  1. Connelley, William Else (1918). A Standard History of Kansas and Kansans. Lewis. p. 2443.
  2. Davis, Jr., Henry Blaine (1998). Generals in Khaki. Pentland Press, Inc. p. 268. ISBN 1571970886. OCLC 40298151.
  3. "Wilder Stevens Metcalf (1855 - 1935) - Find A Grave Memorial".
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