Charles W. Raymond
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Charles Walker Raymond (14 January 1842 – 3 May 1913) was a
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 ...
civil engineer and brigadier general. In 1869, he was the first U.S. government representative to visit the
Yukon River The Yukon River is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. From its source in British Columbia, it flows through Canada's territory of Yukon (itself named after the river). The lower half of the river continues westward through the U.S ...
Valley after the 1867
Alaska Purchase The Alaska Purchase was the purchase of Russian colonization of North America, Alaska from the Russian Empire by the United States for a sum of $7.2 million in 1867 (equivalent to $ million in ). On May 15 of that year, the United St ...
. Raymond later supervised the design engineering for the National Harbor of Refuge breakwater near the mouth of the Delaware River and the
New York Tunnel Extension The New York Tunnel Extension (also New York Improvement and Tunnel Extension) is a combination of railroad tunnels and approaches from New Jersey and Long Island to Pennsylvania Station in Midtown Manhattan. It was built by the Pennsylvania R ...
project for the Pennsylvania Railroad.


Early life and education

Raymond was born in
Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...
, and raised in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. Raymond and his older brother Rossiter W. Raymond attended the
Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute The New York University Tandon School of Engineering (commonly referred to as Tandon) is the engineering and applied sciences school of New York University. Tandon is the second oldest private engineering and technology school in the United St ...
where their uncle John H. Raymond was serving as president. After graduating, Charles Raymond entered the
United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...
in July 1861. As a second-year cadet, he was selected along with his classmates Reuben W. Petrikin and William Krause to serve as aides-de-camp to Major General
Darius N. Couch Darius Nash Couch (July 23, 1822 – February 12, 1897) was an American soldier, businessman, and naturalist. He served as a career United States Army, U.S. Army officer during the Mexican–American War, the Second Seminole War, and as a general ...
in June and July 1863. General Couch was supervising the defense of the
Susquehanna River The Susquehanna River ( ; Unami language, Lenape: ) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, crossing three lower Northeastern United States, Northeast states (New York, Pennsylvani ...
Valley and
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Harrisburg ( ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,099 as of 2020, Harrisburg is the ninth-most populous city in Pennsylvania. It is the larger of the two pr ...
, during that summer's Gettysburg campaign. Returning to West Point, he graduated first in his class in June 1865 and was directly commissioned as a first lieutenant in the
United States Army Corps of Engineers The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wo ...
. Among his classmates who attained general officer rank were Alfred E. Bates,
John Patten Story John P. Story (August 25, 1841 – March 25, 1915) was a career officer in the United States Army who attained the rank of major general. An 1865 graduate of the United States Military Academy, he served from shortly after the end of the Ame ...
, and George H. Burton, Samuel Meyers Mills Jr. Among his classmates who did not become general officers was Henry B. Ledyard Jr.


Military career

In December 1866, Raymond was sent to the
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 ...
area as an assistant engineer. He was promoted to captain on 21 March 1867. In March 1869, Raymond and an assistant were assigned to accompany an American fur company steamship on its 1,040-mile trip from the mouth of the Yukon River to
Fort Yukon Fort Yukon (''Gwichyaa Zheh'' in Gwich'in language, Gwich'in) is a city in the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area in the U.S. state of Alaska, straddling the Arctic Circle. The population, predominantly Gwich'in Alaska ...
near the border of American territory. He mapped the river and surrounding valley and, upon arriving at Fort Yukon, conducted astronomical observations to determine the latitude and longitude of the fort. When Raymond determined that it had been built on what was now United States territory, he raised the American flag and ordered the
Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), originally the Governor and Company of Adventurers of England Trading Into Hudson’s Bay, is a Canadian holding company of department stores, and the oldest corporation in North America. It was the owner of the ...
personnel to withdraw eastward to Canadian territory. Since the steamship had already left, Raymond and his assistant then had to undertake the dangerous journey back downriver by themselves. From August 1872 to July 1878, Raymond was assigned to teach natural and experimental philosophy at West Point. In March 1874, he was placed in charge of a U.S. expedition to Northern
Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...
to observe the December 1874
transit of Venus A transit of Venus takes place when Venus passes directly between the Sun and the Earth (or any other superior planet), becoming visible against (and hence obscuring a small portion of) the solar disk. During a transit, Venus is visible as ...
. After his return to the United States, Raymond was conferred an honorary Ph.D. degree by
Lafayette College Lafayette College is a private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter and other citizens in Easton, the college first held classes in 18 ...
in 1875. He served as superintending engineer of construction at the Military Academy from August 1878 to August 1881. From January 1883 to February 1886, Raymond supervised Corps of Engineers activities in Massachusetts. He was promoted to major on 20 February 1883. From January 1888 to February 1890, Raymond served as Engineer Commissioner for the District of Columbia. On 13 February 1890, Raymond was placed in charge of all Corps of Engineers activities in Philadelphia and the
Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is the longest free-flowing (undammed) river in the Eastern United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for a ...
. His largest project during the twelve years that he held this position was construction of the National Harbor of Refuge breakwater at
Cape Henlopen Cape Henlopen is the southern cape of the Delaware Bay along the Atlantic coast of the United States. It lies in the state of Delaware, near the town of Lewes, where the Delaware Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean. Off the coast on the bay side are two ...
. Raymond was promoted to lieutenant colonel on 18 May 1898. On 11 January 1902, Raymond was appointed chairman of the Board of Engineers for the New York Tunnel Extension project by Pennsylvania Railroad president Alexander J. Cassatt. He supervised Corps of Engineers activities in northeastern New Jersey from February to June 1902 and then again from August 1902 to June 1904. Raymond also supervised Corps activities on the southern shore of Long Island from February to June 1902. He was relieved of responsibility for the Philadelphia District in September 1902. On 23 January 1904, Raymond was promoted to colonel. Having received written commendation from General Couch for his brief
Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
service, Raymond was promoted to brigadier general at the time of his retirement from active duty on 11 June 1904. Raymond was a member of the
American Society of Civil Engineers The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) is a tax-exempt professional body founded in 1852 to represent members of the civil engineering profession worldwide. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, it is the oldest national engineering soci ...
and the Washington Academy of Sciences.


Family and later life

Raymond married Clara Wise (9 February 1842 – 30 November 1901) in Brooklyn in November 1866. They had fives sons and a daughter. After his wife's death, he remarried with Alice Denniston (Higgins) Krause (26 October 1853 – 12 May 1924), the widow of his West Point classmate William Krause, in Philadelphia in February 1904. After his retirement, Raymond continued to serve as chairman of the Board of Engineers for the New York Tunnel Extension project. He lost his sight in 1912 and died in
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, after going there for various medical treatments. He was buried at the
West Point Cemetery West Point Cemetery is a historic cemetery on the grounds of the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York, West Point, New York (state), New York. It overlooks the Hudson River, and served as a burial ground for Continental Army s ...
on 5 May 1913.


Legacy

His name is listed on the memorial plaque at the Seventh Avenue entrance to
Pennsylvania Station Pennsylvania Station or Penn Station may refer to: Current train stations * Baltimore Penn Station * New York Penn Station ** Pennsylvania Station (1910–1963), the predecessor to the present New York City station * Newark Penn Station Trai ...
in Manhattan.
Fort Raymond Fort Raymond was an outpost established by fur trader Manuel Lisa. Alternatively it was called either Manuel's Fort or Fort Manuel. It was the first trading post maintained by European descendants in the modern state of Montana. Construction In N ...
(1942–1945) in Seward, Alaska was named in his honor. His great great grandson General
John W. Raymond John William Raymond (born April 30, 1962) is a retired United States Space Force General (United States), general who served as the first chief of space operations from 2019 to 2022. The first Guardian (U.S. Space Force), guardian, he served a ...
was the first commander of the
United States Space Force The United States Space Force (USSF) is the space force branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces, armed forces of the United States and one of the eight uniformed services of the Unite ...
.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Raymond, Charles Walker 1842 births 1913 deaths Military personnel from Hartford, Connecticut Polytechnic Institute of New York University alumni People of New York (state) in the American Civil War Military personnel from New York City United States Military Academy alumni United States Army Corps of Engineers personnel United States Military Academy faculty American civil engineers Members of the Board of Commissioners for the District of Columbia United States Army generals Engineers from New York City Burials at West Point Cemetery 19th-century United States Army personnel 20th-century United States Army personnel