Cornelius Wendell Wickersham

Cornelius Wendell Wickersham (June 25, 1885 – January 31, 1968)[1] was a United States army officer, a lawyer and an award-winning author of philatelic literature.

Cornelius Wendell Wickersham
Cornelius Wendell Wickersham as a brigadier general
Born	(1885-06-25)June 25, 1885 Greenwich, Connecticut, U.S.
Died	January 31, 1968(1968-01-31) (aged 82) Mineola, New York, U.S.
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/branch	United States Army
Years of service	1915–1948
Rank	Brigadier General (Army) Major General (National Guard) Lieutenant General (Retired list)
Commands held	306th Infantry Regiment, 77th Division 153rd Infantry Brigade, 77th Division School of Military Government 42nd Infantry Division
Battles/wars	Pancho Villa Expedition World War I Battle of Saint-Mihiel World War II
Awards	Distinguished Service Medal (2) Legion of Merit
Relations	George W. Wickersham (father)
Other work	Lawyer Governor of the Collectors Club

Early life

Cornelius Wendell Wickersham was born on June 25, 1885 in Greenwich, Connecticut. His parents were George W. Wickersham, an American lawyer and future United States Attorney General, and Mildred (Wendell) Wickersham.

In 1906 Wickersham graduated from Harvard University. In 1909 he obtained his professional degree from Harvard Law School.[1] In 1914 he joined the Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft law firm in New York City, in which his father was a partner.

He practiced law for a sixty-year career at Cadwalader, Wickersham and Taft in New York where his father worked. He ended a senior partner in that firm.[1]

Military career

Wickersham enlisted in 1915 in the New York Cavalry; he subsequently served with the 12th New York Infantry in the Mexican Border Campaign between 1916 and 1918, during the Mexican Civil War.[1]

During World War I, Wickersham was sent to the Europe with IV Corps as Acting Assistant Chief of Staff. He distinguished himself during the Battle of Saint-Mihiel, when he participated in the preparation and execution of the IV Corps attack. For this service, Major Wickersham was awarded with the Army Distinguished Service Medal.

In the inter-war era, Wickersham commanded 306th Infantry Regiment and the 153rd Infantry Brigade, units of the 77th Division in the Organized Reserve.

During World War II, in 1942, he became the first commandant and director of the School of Military Government, created in the University of Virginia.[1]

Promoted to Brigadier general, he was deputy to Lieutenant General Arthur Edward Grassett, chief of European Allied Contact Section in the SHAEF staff of General Dwight Eisenhower.

After the war, he was appointed an assistant to Lieutenant General Lucius D. Clay, Deputy Military-Governor of the American Zone of Occupation Germany.[2]

Wickersham was the first commander of the 42nd Infantry Division when it was reorganized as a National Guard formation following World War II.[3] He was promoted to major general in the National Guard.

When he retired from the military in 1948, Wickersham was promoted to lieutenant general on the New York National Guard's retired list.[4]

Philately

Thanks to his collection of postage stamps of Venezuela, he published The Early Stamps of Venezuela in 1956. He wrote articles about other countries at well in philatelic publications.[2]

He was awarded the Lichtenstein Medal, which is given to a living individual for outstanding service to philately, by the Collectors Club of New York in 1959.[5]

Governor of the Collectors Club, he was its President in 1956. He presided the Jury of the 1956 New York City international exhibition.[2]

Brigadier General Cornelius W. Wickersham died on January 31, 1968, aged 82 in Mineola, New York.

Honors and awards

For his military services:

1st Row	Army Distinguished Service Medal w/ OLC						Legion of Merit						Mexican Border Service Medal
2nd Row	World War I Victory Medal w/ two battle clasps				American Defense Service Medal				American Campaign Medal				European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal w/ three service stars
3rd Row	World War II Victory Medal				Army of Occupation Medal				Commander of the Order of the British Empire (United Kingdom)[2]				Officer of the Legion of Honour

For his work in the field of philately, Wickersham was provided the following award:

• The Lichtenstein Medal in 1959.[5]

References

1. Note for Cornelius W. Wickersham Papers, Syracuse University Library ; retrieved 21 February 2010.
2. Arthur Ronald Butler, History of the Roll of Distinguished Philatelists, The British Philatelic Federation, December 1990, page 137.
3. Associated Press, Mount Vernon Daily Argus, "National Guard Activates 27th, 42nd Divisions", February 15, 1947
4. "Commander Retired". Kingston Daily Freeman. Kingston, NY. Associated Press. September 4, 1948. p. 12.
5. List of the Lichtenstein Award recipients Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine, Collectors Club of New York ; retrieved 21 February 2010.