Charles Egbert Stanton (November 22, 1858 – May 8, 1933) was an officer in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

, and attained the rank of colonel. A veteran of the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

, he served as chief disbursing officer and aide to

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

John J. Pershing during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. He is best known for having included the memorable expression " Lafayette, we are here!" in a speech he gave in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

during the First World War.

Early life

Charles E. Stanton was born in Monticello, Illinois on November 22, 1858, a son of Egbert Stanton and Adeline (Morgan) Stanton. As a boy he was raised in part along the roadbed of the

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United Stat ...

during its construction as part of the

First transcontinental railroad America's first transcontinental railroad (known originally as the "Pacific Railroad" and later as the "Overland Route (Union Pacific Railroad), Overland Route") was a continuous railroad line built between 1863 and 1869 that connected the exis ...

; his father ran businesses that catered to the construction crews, and was operating the railroad hotel at

Promontory, Utah Promontory is an area of high ground in Box Elder County, Utah, United States, 32 mi (51 km) west of Brigham City and 66 mi (106 km) northwest of Salt Lake City. Rising to an elevation of 4,902 feet (1,494 m) above s ...

when the railroad was completed in 1869. At the ceremony on Promontory Summit where engines of the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific Railroad touched

cowcatcher A cowcatcher, also known as a pilot, is the device mounted at the front of a locomotive to deflect obstacles on the track that might otherwise damage or Derailment, derail it or the train. In the UK, small metal bars called ''life-guards'', ...

s to symbolize the opening of the transcontinental route, Stanton rode in the UP's engine and rang the engine's bell. Stanton was educated in

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

, and then attended

Santa Clara University Santa Clara University is a private university, private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California, United States. Established in 1851, Santa Clara University is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. The university' ...

and

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

. He worked at silver mines in

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

, farmed in

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

, sold mineral water for a company in

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

, and sold fire extinguishers in San Francisco. He served as Chief Clerk of the Utah Territorial Assembly, and Salt Lake County Clerk. He was a delegate to the Utah constitutional convention which resulted in statehood in 1895.

Army career

In 1898 Stanton was appointed a paymaster of volunteers in the

with the rank of

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

. He served in the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

during the

, and after his 1901 discharge accepted a regular Army commission as a captain in the paymaster corps. He continued to serve in the army, and at the start of

he was a lieutenant colonel on the staff of John J. Pershing. He served as chief disbursing officer for the

American Expeditionary Forces The American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) was a formation of the United States Armed Forces on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front during World War I, composed mostly of units from the United States Army, U.S. Army. The AEF was establis ...

, and received the Distinguished Service Medal and the French

Legion of Honor The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and civil. Currently consisting of five classes, it was ...

. Stanton retired as a colonel on December 1, 1920.

Army Distinguished Service Medal citation

The citation for Stanton's Army Distinguished Service Medal read:

Later career

After retiring from the army, Stanton served as a member of San Francisco's Board of Public Works. In 1931 he was enrolled in the

American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is an Voluntary association, organization of United States, U.S. war veterans headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. It comprises U.S. state, state, Territories of the United States, U.S. terr ...

as its one millionth member. Stanton died in San Francisco on May 8, 1933. He was cremated at Cypress Lawn Memorial Park in Colma, California.

Lafayette quote

On July 4, 1917, Stanton visited the tomb of French Revolution and

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

hero

Marquis de Lafayette Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier de La Fayette, Marquis de La Fayette (; 6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (), was a French military officer and politician who volunteered to join the Conti ...

and (according to Pershing) said, "Lafayette, we are here!" to honor the nobleman's assistance during the Revolutionary War and assure the French people that the people of the United States would aid them in

. The famous quote is often misattributed to Pershing, but Pershing himself attributed it to Stanton. In context, Stanton said:

America has joined forces with the Allied Powers, and what we have of blood and treasure are yours. Therefore it is that with loving pride we drape the colors in tribute of respect to this citizen of your great republic. And here and now, in the presence of the illustrious dead, we pledge our hearts and our honor in carrying this war to a successful issue. Lafayette, we are here!

References

Sources

* McHenry, Robert and Charles Van Doren (1971). ''Webster's Guide to American History''. New York: Merriam. * (1917). "Record Crowd in Paris." ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. July 6. * Unger, Harlow Giles (2002). ''Lafayette''. New York: Wiley. {{DEFAULTSORT:Stanton, Charles E. 1858 births 1933 deaths United States Army personnel of World War I United States Army colonels Santa Clara University alumni People from Monticello, Illinois Military personnel from Illinois Burials at Cypress Lawn Memorial Park 19th-century United States Army personnel