James C. Marshall
James Creel Marshall | |
---|---|
Manhattan District Boston Port of Embarkation | |
Battles/wars | World War I World War II:
|
Awards | Army Commendation Medal |
Alma mater | United States Military Academy (BS) |
Brigadier General James Creel Marshall (15 October 1897 – 19 July 1977) was a United States Army Corps of Engineers officer who was initially in charge of the Manhattan Project to build an atomic bomb during World War II.
A member of the June 1918 class of the
In June 1942, Marshall was placed in charge of the Manhattan Project, then known as the Laboratory Development of Substitute Materials. Although superseded as head of the project by Brigadier General
Marshall left the Army in 1947, and moved to
Early life and career
James Creel Marshall was born in
On 24 August 1918, Marshall joined the 8th Engineers at
Like many of his fellow officers, Marshall was reduced to his substantive rank of first lieutenant on 18 November 1922. On 4 August 1923 he took charge of the Engineer Office of the 3rd New York District, located in Fort Hancock, New Jersey. He then served in the Panama Canal Zone as a company commander in the 11th Engineers from 9 April 1926 to 14 June 1928. He became an instructor in the Department of Engineering at West Point on 24 August 1928.[3] He was posted to Fort Belvoir, Virginia, on 10 August 1932, where he was promoted to captain again on 1 June 1933. There followed duty in the Office of the Chief Of Engineers in Washington, DC, as Assistant Chief of the River and Harbor Section from 21 January 1937 to 3 September 1939.[7]
World War II
Marshall attended the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, from 11 September 1939 to 3 February 1940. He then became executive officer of the 1st Engineers.[7] With the outbreak of World War II in Europe, promotion accelerated, and he was promoted to major on 1 March 1940. He became District Engineer of the Binghamton District on 25 May 1940, with the rank of lieutenant colonel in the Army of the United States from 12 June 1941.[8] On 31 January 1942, he became District Engineer of the Syracuse District, which covered New York and part of Pennsylvania, with the rank of colonel from 1 February 1942.[8] At Binghamton and Syracuse was responsible for a number of major projects, including ammunition and explosive plants, and the construction of the Rome Air Depot. He also had to attend to flood control measures on the upper Delaware River.[2]
On 18 June 1942 Marshall was called to Washington to take over the reorganised
I spent the night without sleep trying to figure out what this was all about. I had never heard of nuclear fission, but I did know that you could not build much of a plant, much less four of them, for ninety million dollars. At the moment among other construction projects in the Syracuse district, I had one for a TNT plant in Pennsylvania estimated to cost one hundred twenty eight million dollars.[10]
In a report to Colonel
Marshall and his deputy district engineer, Kenneth Nichols, visited Tennessee on 30 June 1942 to examine the proposed location for the production plants in the Clinch River area, but Marshall chose to delay the actual purchase of the land until it was needed. Nichols felt that Marshall's desire for orderly procedures ultimately told against him.[13] By September, Bush was expressing dissatisfaction with slow progress and the lack of the highest priority for the project, going to the United States Secretary of War, Henry L. Stimson, and then directly to the President, Franklin D. Roosevelt.[14] Groves was appointed to head the project on 17 September 1942. Groves was also a colonel, and ranked below Marshall on the permanent list,[15] although Groves was promoted to brigadier general before assuming command on 23 September.[16] According to Nichols, Groves and Marshall "disagreed in a major way on how to handle personnel",[15] and Nichols "did witness several confrontations".[17]
Groves's account says that:
shortly after, Nichols replaced Marshall as District Engineer ... the Chief of Engineers asked me if I could relieve Marshall for a key overseas assignment, which would mean his promotion to brigadier. Since the project was by that time well organized, I did not feel I should refuse, and appointed Nichols in his stead. This was an excellent choice and one I have never regretted.[20]
Marshall was awarded the
Later life
After leaving the Army, he moved to
When his term as Commissioner of Highways ended in 1965, Marshall returned to Skaneateles, where he became an engineering consultant and a professional engineering arbitrator. He served as mayor of Skaneateles for six years. His contributions included the addition of an ambulance squad to the fire department and the construction of an indoor ice skating rink. His wife Mabel died of cancer in 1976. On 19 July 1977, Marshall also died from cancer. The two are buried together in the West Point Cemetery.[2]
Marshall's son Robert Creel Marshall graduated from West Point with the class of 1943, and served in Europe during World War II.[22] He later served in Vietnam, and became Deputy Chief of Engineers in 1976, with the rank of major general.[23]
Notes
- ^ a b Ancell & Miller 1996, p. 205.
- ^ a b c d e f Marshall, Robert C. "James C. Marshall 1918". West Point Association of Graduates. Archived from the original on 26 August 2014. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
- ^ a b c Cullum 1930, p. 1298.
- ^ Cullum 1930, pp. 1289, 1299.
- ^ a b c Cullum 1920, p. 1978.
- ^ Casey 1993, pp. xi–xiii.
- ^ a b Cullum 1940, p. 366.
- ^ a b c d e f Cullum 1950, p. 258.
- ^ Jones 1985, p. 44.
- ^ Nichols 1987, p. 35.
- ^ Nichols 1987, pp. 40, 60.
- ^ Rhodes 1986, p. 412.
- ^ Nichols 1987, pp. 38–39.
- ^ Nichols 1987, p. 49.
- ^ a b c d Nichols 1987, p. 100.
- ^ Groves 1962, p. 23.
- ^ a b Nichols 1987, p. 102.
- ^ Groves 1962, p. 3.
- ^ a b c d Nichols 1987, p. 101.
- ^ Groves 1962, p. 29.
- ^ "Valor awards for James Creel Marshall". Military Times. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
- ^ Cullum 1950, p. 1210.
- ^ "Major General Robert Creel Marshall". The Akers Historical Uniform Collection. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
References
- Ancell, R. Manning; Miller, Christine (1996). The Biographical Dictionary of World War II Generals and Flag Officers: The US Armed Forces. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. OCLC 33862161.
- Casey, Hugh J., ed. (1993), Major General Hugh J. Casey, Engineer Memoirs, Washington, D.C.: United States Department of the Army
- Cullum, George W. (1920). Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the US Military Academy at West Point New York Since Its Establishment in 1802: Supplement Volume VI 1910–1920. Chicago: R. R. Donnelly and Sons, The Lakeside Press. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
- Cullum, George W. (1930). Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the US Military Academy at West Point New York Since Its Establishment in 1802: Supplement Volume VII 1920–1930. Chicago: R. R. Donnelly and Sons, The Lakeside Press. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
- Cullum, George W. (1940). Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the US Military Academy at West Point New York Since Its Establishment in 1802: Supplement Volume VIII 1930–1940. Chicago: R. R. Donnelly and Sons, The Lakeside Press. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
- Cullum, George W. (1950). Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the US Military Academy at West Point New York Since Its Establishment in 1802: Supplement Volume IX 1940–1950. Chicago: R. R. Donnelly and Sons, The Lakeside Press. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
- OCLC 537684.
- Jones, Vincent (1985). Manhattan: The Army and the Atomic Bomb. Washington, D.C.: OCLC 10913875.
- ISBN 068806910X.
- ISBN 0671441337.