Samuel Escue Tillman
Encyclopedia
Samuel Escue Tillman was an astronomer
, engineer
, military educator
, and career officer
in the United States Army
who spent 30 years teaching at the United States Military Academy
at West Point, New York
. In addition to writing for periodicals on a wide range of subjects and authoring several influential textbooks on chemistry
and geology
, in 1917 Tillman was recalled from previous mandatory retirement to serve as superintendent of the United States Military Academy for the duration of conflict which became known as World War I
.
on October 3, 1847, one of several sons of Lewis Tillman and his wife Mary C. Davidson Tillman. The younger Tillman and his brothers were raised on the family plantation in wartime Tennessee during much of the American Civil War
. Tillman left the farm in 1864 to attend Miami University
in Oxford, Ohio
, but left after a year to accept an at-large appointment to the United States Military Academy
in July, 1865, months after the end of the rebellion.
, California
, Idaho
, Montana
, Nevada
, New Mexico
, and Utah
, Tillman was detailed for a year as assistant astronomer on the national expedition to Northern Tasmania
observe the Transit of Venus
. In late 1878, Tillman became the sixtieth of the founding members of Washington, D.C.'s Cosmos Club
, but resigned in 1881, after he was given permanent assignment at West Point as professor of chemistry, mineralogy, and geology.
Lieutenant Tillman sat on the board of inquiry concerning the alleged assault by cadets on Johnson Chesnut Whittaker
. As full professor Tillman was given responsibility for redesigning the physical science curriculum at the academy; U.S. Army
Adjutant General
Richard C. Drum
ordered Tillman and fellow academy instructor George L. Andrews
to visit Harvard
, Yale
, and other American institutions of higher learning to investigate new educational technologies in order to incorporate them into the curriculum.
The next thirty years of Tillman's life were devoted to writing and teaching at the academy. He wrote for popular periodicals like Popular Science
and Cosmopolitan
and literary journals like American Monthly Review of Reviews. Tillman authored several science textbooks for use by academy instructors, notably the physics work Elementary Lessons in Heat (1889), Descriptive General Chemistry (1897), and A text-book of Important Minerals and Rocks (1900). He was responsible for the academy's mineralogical and geological cabinet. Tillman also wrote a series of memoirs which have been featured in the works of Miami University
historian Dwight L. Smith.
Toward the end of his career, Tillman was presented with an honorary degree from Yale University
in 1906. In 1911, after 44 years of active U.S. Army service in the classroom and field, Tillman was retired. He spent some time in Italy, leaving at the outbreak of World War I
; Tillman settled in Princeton, New Jersey
, continuing to write, presenting A Review of West Point's History before the New York Historical Society in October, 1915.
In early 1917, the United States Army was preparing for its involvement in the war raging in Europe, and all academy instructors who could be detailed were assigned to field commands. This left an understrength USMA teaching staff not only doing "double duty," but also teaching in officer training schools during the summer. When Colonel Tillman was recalled from retirement to serve as USMA superintendent in June, 1917, the cadet class of 1917 had already graduated two months early and been assigned to wartime posts. The USMA class of 1918 graduated in the Autumn of 1917, the classes of 1919 and 1920 graduated in June 1918, and the cadet class of 1921 were graduated before the Armistice
was signed. "On November 2, 1918, the Corps of Cadets consisted of members of the Fourth Class only." Tillman had seen the graduation of an entire corps of cadets before he was again retired, this time with promotion to Brigadier General
and the Distinguished Service Medal
for his wartime service. While Superintendent of West Point, Tillman refused repeated requests to add military aviation to the curriculum.
and was buried at West Point Cemetery
. According to his obituary, he was survived by one brother, A.H. Tillman, who served for a time as United States district attorney
in Washington D.C.. Four brothers had preceded him in death.
In 1885, when Henry Tureman Allen
was exploring the Copper River
in the new U.S. territory
of Alaska
, he named a discovered peak after Tillman, his academy professor, but the discovery proved to be one major error in the survey, Allen mistaking either Mount Wrangell
or Mount Sanford for the non-existent Mount Tillman.
In 2008, Kent Biffle of the Dallas Morning News reported receiving newspaper clippings from a local lawyer and historian on the subject of UFO sightings in Stephenville, Texas
. Apparently in 1897, widespread newspaper reports of a cigar-shaped flying object started to circulate in the Midwest and Southwest. Responding to sightings previously reported in the Morning News, on April 17, 1897, one respected Erath County
farmer, C.L. McIlhany discovered such a craft had landed on his property, and reported two human operators, a pilot and an engineer, who gave their names as "S.E. Tilman" and "A.E. Dolbear
." The two operators performed minor repairs on their electrically powered lighter-than-air craft, then again flew away.
Astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
, engineer
Engineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
, military educator
Military education and training
Military education and training is a process which intends to establish and improve the capabilities of military personnel in their respective roles....
, and career officer
Officer (armed forces)
An officer is a member of an armed force or uniformed service who holds a position of authority. Commissioned officers derive authority directly from a sovereign power and, as such, hold a commission charging them with the duties and responsibilities of a specific office or position...
in the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
who spent 30 years teaching at the United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
at West Point, New York
West Point, New York
West Point is a federal military reservation established by President of the United States Thomas Jefferson in 1802. It is a census-designated place located in Town of Highlands in Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 7,138 at the 2000 census...
. In addition to writing for periodicals on a wide range of subjects and authoring several influential textbooks on chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
and geology
Geology
Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
, in 1917 Tillman was recalled from previous mandatory retirement to serve as superintendent of the United States Military Academy for the duration of conflict which became known as World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
Early life
Samuel Tillman was born in Bedford County, Tennessee, near modern ShelbyvilleShelbyville, Tennessee
Shelbyville is a city in Bedford County, Tennessee, United States. It had a local population of 16,105 residents at the 2000 census. Shelbyville, the county seat of Bedford County, was laid out in 1810 and incorporated in 1819...
on October 3, 1847, one of several sons of Lewis Tillman and his wife Mary C. Davidson Tillman. The younger Tillman and his brothers were raised on the family plantation in wartime Tennessee during much of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. Tillman left the farm in 1864 to attend Miami University
Miami University
Miami University is a coeducational public research university located in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1809, it is the 10th oldest public university in the United States and the second oldest university in Ohio, founded four years after Ohio University. In its 2012 edition, U.S...
in Oxford, Ohio
Oxford, Ohio
Oxford is a city in northwestern Butler County, Ohio, United States, in the southwestern portion of the state. It lies in Oxford Township, originally called the College Township. The population was 21,943 at the 2000 census. This college town was founded as a home for Miami University. Oxford...
, but left after a year to accept an at-large appointment to the United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
in July, 1865, months after the end of the rebellion.
Military career
Tillman proved an excellent cadet, graduating 3rd out of 39 in the USMA graduating class of 1869. Tillman spent fifteen months on the frontier at Fort Riley, Kansas, then returned to the academy for a period as assistant professor of mathematics. The following years would see Tillman alternating tours between teaching assignments at the academy and surveying the last unexplored portions of the American West. In addition to involvement in expeditions to explore and map parts of the western states of ArizonaArizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
, Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
, Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
, New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, and Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, Tillman was detailed for a year as assistant astronomer on the national expedition to Northern Tasmania
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
observe the Transit of Venus
Transit of Venus
A transit of Venus across the Sun takes place when the planet Venus passes directly between the Sun and Earth, becoming visible against the solar disk. During a transit, Venus can be seen from Earth as a small black disk moving across the face of the Sun...
. In late 1878, Tillman became the sixtieth of the founding members of Washington, D.C.'s Cosmos Club
Cosmos Club
The Cosmos Club is a private social club in Washington, D.C., founded by John Wesley Powell in 1878. In addition to Powell, original members included Clarence Edward Dutton, Henry Smith Pritchett, William Harkness, and John Shaw Billings. Among its stated goals is "The advancement of its members in...
, but resigned in 1881, after he was given permanent assignment at West Point as professor of chemistry, mineralogy, and geology.
Lieutenant Tillman sat on the board of inquiry concerning the alleged assault by cadets on Johnson Chesnut Whittaker
Johnson Chesnut Whittaker
Johnson Chesnut Whittaker was one of the first black men to win an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point. When at the academy, he was brutally assaulted and then expelled after being falsely accused and convicted of faking the incident...
. As full professor Tillman was given responsibility for redesigning the physical science curriculum at the academy; U.S. Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
Adjutant General
Adjutant general
An Adjutant General is a military chief administrative officer.-Imperial Russia:In Imperial Russia, the General-Adjutant was a Court officer, who was usually an army general. He served as a personal aide to the Tsar and hence was a member of the H. I. M. Retinue...
Richard C. Drum
Richard C. Drum
Richard Coulter Drum was Adjutant General of the United States Army from 1880 to 1889. He was born in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, and graduated from Jefferson College before entering the printing business...
ordered Tillman and fellow academy instructor George L. Andrews
George Leonard Andrews
George Leonard Andrews was an American professor, civil engineer, and soldier. He was a brigadier general in the Union Army during the American Civil War and was awarded the honorary grade of brevet major general....
to visit Harvard
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, Yale
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, and other American institutions of higher learning to investigate new educational technologies in order to incorporate them into the curriculum.
The next thirty years of Tillman's life were devoted to writing and teaching at the academy. He wrote for popular periodicals like Popular Science
Popular Science
Popular Science is an American monthly magazine founded in 1872 carrying articles for the general reader on science and technology subjects. Popular Science has won over 58 awards, including the ASME awards for its journalistic excellence in both 2003 and 2004...
and Cosmopolitan
Cosmopolitan (magazine)
Cosmopolitan is an international magazine for women. It was first published in 1886 in the United States as a family magazine, was later transformed into a literary magazine and eventually became a women's magazine in the late 1960s...
and literary journals like American Monthly Review of Reviews. Tillman authored several science textbooks for use by academy instructors, notably the physics work Elementary Lessons in Heat (1889), Descriptive General Chemistry (1897), and A text-book of Important Minerals and Rocks (1900). He was responsible for the academy's mineralogical and geological cabinet. Tillman also wrote a series of memoirs which have been featured in the works of Miami University
Miami University
Miami University is a coeducational public research university located in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1809, it is the 10th oldest public university in the United States and the second oldest university in Ohio, founded four years after Ohio University. In its 2012 edition, U.S...
historian Dwight L. Smith.
Toward the end of his career, Tillman was presented with an honorary degree from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
in 1906. In 1911, after 44 years of active U.S. Army service in the classroom and field, Tillman was retired. He spent some time in Italy, leaving at the outbreak of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
; Tillman settled in Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton is a community located in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It is best known as the location of Princeton University, which has been sited in the community since 1756...
, continuing to write, presenting A Review of West Point's History before the New York Historical Society in October, 1915.
In early 1917, the United States Army was preparing for its involvement in the war raging in Europe, and all academy instructors who could be detailed were assigned to field commands. This left an understrength USMA teaching staff not only doing "double duty," but also teaching in officer training schools during the summer. When Colonel Tillman was recalled from retirement to serve as USMA superintendent in June, 1917, the cadet class of 1917 had already graduated two months early and been assigned to wartime posts. The USMA class of 1918 graduated in the Autumn of 1917, the classes of 1919 and 1920 graduated in June 1918, and the cadet class of 1921 were graduated before the Armistice
Armistice with Germany (Compiègne)
The armistice between the Allies and Germany was an agreement that ended the fighting in the First World War. It was signed in a railway carriage in Compiègne Forest on 11 November 1918 and marked a victory for the Allies and a complete defeat for Germany, although not technically a surrender...
was signed. "On November 2, 1918, the Corps of Cadets consisted of members of the Fourth Class only." Tillman had seen the graduation of an entire corps of cadets before he was again retired, this time with promotion to Brigadier General
Brigadier general (United States)
A brigadier general in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, is a one-star general officer, with the pay grade of O-7. Brigadier general ranks above a colonel and below major general. Brigadier general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the other uniformed...
and the Distinguished Service Medal
Distinguished Service Medal (United States)
The Distinguished Service Medal is the highest non-valorous military and civilian decoration of the United States military which is issued for exceptionally meritorious service to the government of the United States in either a senior government service position or as a senior officer of the United...
for his wartime service. While Superintendent of West Point, Tillman refused repeated requests to add military aviation to the curriculum.
Legacy
Samuel Escue Tillman died June 24, 1942 at the home of his daughter, Katherine Tillman Martin, in Southampton, New YorkSouthampton (town), New York
The Town of Southampton is located in southeastern Suffolk County, New York, U.S., partly on the South Fork of Long Island. As of the United States 2000 Census, the town had a total population of 54,712...
and was buried at West Point Cemetery
West Point Cemetery
West Point Cemetery is a historic cemetery on the grounds of the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York. It overlooks the Hudson River, and served as a burial ground for American Revolutionary War soldiers and early West Point inhabitants long before 1817 when it was officially...
. According to his obituary, he was survived by one brother, A.H. Tillman, who served for a time as United States district attorney
United States Attorney
United States Attorneys represent the United States federal government in United States district court and United States court of appeals. There are 93 U.S. Attorneys stationed throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands...
in Washington D.C.. Four brothers had preceded him in death.
In 1885, when Henry Tureman Allen
Henry Tureman Allen
Henry Tureman Allen was a United States Army officer known for exploring the Copper River in Alaska in 1885 along with the Tanana and Koyukuk rivers by transversing 1,500 miles of wilderness. His trek was been compared by General Nelson A. Miles to that of Lewis and Clark.Henry was born in...
was exploring the Copper River
Copper River (Alaska)
The Copper River or Ahtna River is a 300-mile river in south-central Alaska in the United States. It drains a large region of the Wrangell Mountains and Chugach Mountains into the Gulf of Alaska...
in the new U.S. territory
United States territory
United States territory is any extent of region under the jurisdiction of the federal government of the United States, including all waters including all U.S. Naval carriers. The United States has traditionally proclaimed the sovereign rights for exploring, exploiting, conserving, and managing its...
of Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
, he named a discovered peak after Tillman, his academy professor, but the discovery proved to be one major error in the survey, Allen mistaking either Mount Wrangell
Mount Wrangell
Mount Wrangell is a massive shield volcano located in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve in southeastern Alaska, United States. The shield rises over above the Copper River to its southwest. Its volume is over , making it more than twice as massive as Mount Shasta in California, the...
or Mount Sanford for the non-existent Mount Tillman.
In 2008, Kent Biffle of the Dallas Morning News reported receiving newspaper clippings from a local lawyer and historian on the subject of UFO sightings in Stephenville, Texas
Stephenville, Texas
Stephenville is a city in and the county seat of Erath County, Texas, United States. The population was 14,921 at the 2000 census. Founded in 1856, it is home to Tarleton State University. Stephenville is among several communities that calls itself the "Cowboy Capital of the...
. Apparently in 1897, widespread newspaper reports of a cigar-shaped flying object started to circulate in the Midwest and Southwest. Responding to sightings previously reported in the Morning News, on April 17, 1897, one respected Erath County
Erath County, Texas
Erath County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 33,001. It is named for George Bernard Erath, an early surveyor and a soldier at the Battle of San Jacinto. The seat of the county is Stephenville....
farmer, C.L. McIlhany discovered such a craft had landed on his property, and reported two human operators, a pilot and an engineer, who gave their names as "S.E. Tilman" and "A.E. Dolbear
Amos Dolbear
Amos Emerson Dolbear was an American physicist and inventor. His patents interfered with Guglielmo Marconi's planned activities in the U.S. Dolbear researched electrical spark conversion into sound waves and electrical impulses. He was a professor at University of Kentucky in Lexington from 1868...
." The two operators performed minor repairs on their electrically powered lighter-than-air craft, then again flew away.