Erasmus Morgan Weaver Jr. (May 23, 1854 – November 13, 1920) 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 ...

major general who served as the first chief of the Militia Bureau and the Chief of the Army's

Coast Artillery Corps The U.S. Army Coast Artillery Corps (CAC) was an Corps#Administrative corps, administrative corps responsible for coastal defence and fortification, coastal, harbor, and anti-aircraft Seacoast defense in the United States, defense of the United ...

Biography

The son of Erasmus M. Weaver, is a prominent businessman of

Lafayette, Indiana Lafayette ( ) is a city in and is the county seat of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States, located northwest of Indianapolis and southeast of Chicago. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of Lafayette ...

, Erasmus Morgan Weaver Jr. was born in Lafayette on 23 May 1854. He graduated from 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 1875 and received his commission as a second lieutenant of

Artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

. Weaver's subsequent assignments included Professor of Military Science at

Western Reserve University Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US * Western, New York, a town in the US * Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia * Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that ...

and

The Citadel The Citadel Military College of South Carolina (simply known as The Citadel) is a public senior military college in Charleston, South Carolina, United States. Established in 1842, it is the third oldest of the six senior military colleges ...

(1883–1885), and Instructor in Chemistry and Electricity at the United States Military Academy (1888–1891). From 1895 to 1896, Weaver studied at the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

. In 1898, Weaver was appointed to the temporary grade of lieutenant colonel of the 5th Massachusetts Infantry, a volunteer regiment raised during 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 ...

. Initially the organization's mustering officer, he subsequently commanded its 1st Battalion. From 1908 to 1911, Weaver served as a head of the Army's Militia Bureau, he was the first person to hold the position. In this assignment, he was responsible for overseeing the training and readiness of the

National Guard National guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. ...

. Weaver was the Chief of the Coast Artillery Corps from 1911 until his retirement in 1918, when he was succeeded by Frank W. Coe. He was promoted to brigadier general in 1911 and major general in 1916. From 1917 until his retirement, he also served as a member of the War Council that the

War Department War Department may refer to: * War Department (United Kingdom) * United States Department of War The United States Department of War, also called the War Department (and occasionally War Office in the early years), was the United States Cabinet ...

created to oversee planning for

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 ...

. Weaver 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 ...

, on November 13, 1920. He is buried in

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

, Section SE, Site 1800. General Weaver was the father of Major General Walter Reed Weaver (1885–1944). Hawaii's Fort Weaver and Fort Weaver Road were named for him.''Prescott Evening Courier''
"Forts Named in Honor of Dead in War"
Associated Press, May 30, 1922

References

Sources

''The New York Times'', May 22, 1918 {{DEFAULTSORT:Weaver, Erasmus M. Jr. 1854 births 1920 deaths The Citadel faculty Case Western Reserve University faculty Military personnel from Indiana United States Army Field Artillery Branch personnel People from Lafayette, Indiana 19th-century United States Army personnel United States Military Academy alumni United States Army Coast Artillery Corps personnel Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni Chiefs of the National Guard Bureau American military personnel of the Spanish–American War United States Army generals of World War I United States Army generals Burials at Arlington National Cemetery