Thomas J. Lewis
Thomas Jefferson Lewis | |
---|---|
Born | New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. | April 6, 1857
Died | January 16, 1920 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. | (aged 62)
Buried | Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia, U.S. |
Branch | United States Army |
Years of service | 1875–1920 |
Rank | Colonel |
Commands held | 2nd Cavalry Regiment |
Battles/wars | Spanish–American War
|
Alma mater | United States Military Academy |
Spouse(s) | Emma Rising |
Thomas Jefferson Lewis (1857–1920) was an American Colonel of the Spanish–American War, the Philippine–American War and World War I. He commanded the 2nd Cavalry Regiment during the Battle of San Juan Hill and was given commands of other cavalry regiments during his career.
Early life
Thomas born on April 6, 1857, at New Orleans as the son of John L. Lewis who was the Mayor of New Orleans at the time of his birth, the grandson of Joshua Lewis who served as a judge at the Superior Court of the Territory of Orleans and the great nephew of Meriwether Lewis. Thomas spent most of his childhood within his father's plantation with himself attending the schools at New Orleans before graduating from Tulane University.[1][2]
Career in the Frontier
After graduating from Tulane University, Lewis enrolled in the
Spanish–American War
During the Spanish–American War, Lewis continued to command the 2nd Cavalry Regiment as part of the Fifth Army Corps. The regiment arrived at Tampa Bay and was sent to Daiquirí, Oriente Province on June 23, 1898. He led the regiment at the Battle of San Juan Hill and the Siege of Santiago and was one of the first to receive news of the Spanish surrender from July 19 to August 16. After the war, he was sent to Montauk, New York, on August 1898 before being transferred to Huntsville, Alabama, and returned to Cuba on February 1899 to command Companies E, F and G of the 2nd Cavalry Regiment.[1][2][3]
Progressive Era and World War I
He was later sent to
Lewis was placed on the United States Army Reserve on December 1, 1913, and was sent to the General Recruiting Service at Oklahoma City and New Orleans from 1913 and 1918. After the announcement of the American entry into World War I, Lewis requested that he had a more active position and was sent to Portland, Oregon, on July 1, 1918, and given colonelcy on July 9, 1918. Lewis died on January 16, 1920, while he was at Baltimore and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery along with his wife, Emma Rising.[1][2][4][5]
References
- ^ a b c d e "Thomas Jefferson Lewis • Obituary Notice (Association of Graduates USMA, 1930)". University of Chicago. Retrieved August 30, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e United States Military Academy. Association of Graduates (1921). Annual Report of the Association of the Graduates of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. Seamann & Peters. pp. 67–68. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
- ^ "War With Spain – The History of the U.S. Second Cavalry". 2nd Cavalry Association. June 30, 2008. Retrieved September 2, 2022.
- ^ Official Army Register. Washington, D.C.: The U.S. Adjutant-General's Office. July 1, 1921. p. 1889. Retrieved September 2, 2022.
- ^ "Lewis, Thomas J". www.ancexplorer.army.mil. Retrieved September 2, 2022.