Sidney William Souers (March 30, 1892 – January 14, 1973) was an American

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet ...

and intelligence expert. Rear Admiral Souers was appointed as the first

Director of Central Intelligence The director of central intelligence (DCI) was the head of the American Central Intelligence Agency from 1946 to 2005, acting as the principal intelligence advisor to the president of the United States and the United States National Security C ...

on January 23, 1946 by

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Harry S. Truman, where he would be in charge of the new Central Intelligence Group (CIG). Prior to this, as Deputy Director of Naval Intelligence, Souers had been one of the architects of the system that came into being with the President's directive. He had written the intelligence chapter of the

Eberstadt Report The Eberstadt Report, officially known as the Task Force Report on National Security Organization, was a study conducted by the United States government which evaluated the structure and operations of the United States Department of Defense and Un ...

, which advocated a unified intelligence system. Toward the end of 1945, when the competing plans for a national intelligence system were deadlocked, Souers' views had come to the attention of the President, and he seems to have played a role in breaking the impasse. Souers subsequently became executive secretary of the

United States National Security Council The United States National Security Council (NSC) is the principal forum used by the President of the United States for consideration of national security, military, and foreign policy matters. Based in the White House, it is part of the Ex ...

. In this role he saw President Truman daily, and was the person Truman talked to most regarding national security issues. It was through Souers that Truman first learned of the possible existence of the

hydrogen bomb A thermonuclear weapon, fusion weapon or hydrogen bomb (H bomb) is a second-generation nuclear weapon design. Its greater sophistication affords it vastly greater destructive power than first-generation nuclear bombs, a more compact size, a lowe ...

, and Souers coordinated some of the work being done by different departments during the U.S. government's debate regarding whether to go forward with the development of that weapon.

Timeline

: 1911–1912 Student at

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and ...

: 1914 A.B.,

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the ...

, member of the Kappa chapter of

Delta Kappa Epsilon Delta Kappa Epsilon (), commonly known as ''DKE'' or ''Deke'', is one of the oldest fraternities in the United States, with fifty-six active chapters and five active colonies across North America. It was founded at Yale College in 1844 by fiftee ...

: 1920–1925 President, Mortgage & Securities Company,

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

: 1922–1928 President and founder, First Joint Stock Land Bank : 1925–1926 Executive, Piggly Wiggly Stores, Memphis : 1925–1930 Executive vice president, Canal Bank & Trust Company, New Orleans : 1927–1930 Member, New Orleans Port Authority : 1929 (April 29) Appointed

lieutenant commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding ran ...

, U.S. Naval Reserve : 1929–1934 Member, board of directors, Aviation Corporation : 1930–1933 Vice president, Missouri State Life Insurance Company, St. Louis : 1932–1940 U.S. Naval Reserve,

intelligence officer An intelligence officer is a person employed by an organization to collect, compile or analyze information (known as intelligence) which is of use to that organization. The word of ''officer'' is a working title, not a rank, used in the same way ...

, inactive status : 1933–1973 Executive,

General American Life Insurance Company MetLife, Inc. is the holding corporation for the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company (MLIC), better known as MetLife, and its affiliates. MetLife is among the largest global providers of insurance, annuities, and employee benefit programs, wi ...

: 1940 (July 22) Called to active duty : 1944 (July 24) Became assistant director of the Office of Naval Intelligence, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Navy Department : 1945 (November 8) Designated deputy chief of Naval Intelligence, with the rank of

rear admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star " admiral" rank. It is often rega ...

: 1946 (January 23) Appointed

, Central Intelligence Group : 1946 (July 22) Relieved of active duty : 1947–1950 Executive secretary,

National Security Council A national security council (NSC) is usually an executive branch governmental body responsible for coordinating policy on national security issues and advising chief executives on matters related to national security. An NSC is often headed by a n ...

: 1950–1953 Special consultant to the

on military and foreign affairs

References

External links

Biography at Truman Presidential Library

{{DEFAULTSORT:Souers, Sidney 1892 births 1973 deaths Directors of the Central Intelligence Agency Miami University alumni Military personnel from Dayton, Ohio United States Navy admirals