Samuel Hof (October 24, 1870 – March 10, 1937) 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 ...

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 was 13th Chief of Ordnance for the U.S. Army Ordnance Corps.

Biography

Samuel Hof was born on October 24, 1870, in

Boscobel, Wisconsin Boscobel ( ) is a city in Grant County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 3,286 at the 2020 census. Approximately 0.6 mi. (1 km) to the north of the city, across a riparian swamp, is the Wisconsin River. U.S. Route 61 cross ...

, and graduated from

West Point 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 1894. Some of his classmates also became general officers, including Frank Parker, Hamilton S. Hawkins III, Oliver Edwards, George H. Estes, John W. Joyes, Ora E. Hunt, Pegram Whitworth, William E. Welsh,

Briant H. Wells Major General Briant Harris Wells (December 5, 1871 – June 10, 1949) was a highly decorated officer in the United States Army. A veteran of the Spanish–American and Philippine–American Wars, he later distinguished himself as chief of staff ...

, John F. Preston, Francis L. Parker, Paul B. Malone and George Vidmer. He was originally commissioned a second lieutenant of

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

in 1894, but he was later transferred to the Ordnance Corps. For his service as a commanding officer of the

Frankford Arsenal The Frankford Arsenal is a former United States Army ammunition plant located adjacent to the Bridesburg neighborhood of Northeast Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, north of the original course of Frankford Creek. History Opened in 1816 on of lan ...

during World War I, he was later awarded with the

Distinguished Service Medal Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a high award of a nation, state or country. Examples include: *Distinguished Service Medal (Australia) (established 1991), awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force for distinguished leadership in act ...

. Hof graduated from the

United States Army War College The United States Army War College (USAWC) is a U.S. Army staff college in Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, with a Carlisle postal address, on the 500-acre (2 km2) campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks. It provides graduate-level instru ...

in 1921 and earned an MBA from the

Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate school, graduate business school of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university. Located in Allston, Massachusetts, HBS owns Harvard Business Publishing, which p ...

in 1926. He was promoted to brigadier general in 1927 and major general in 1930. He was

Chief of Ordnance The Chief of Ordnance of the United States Army is a general officer who is responsible for the Army Ordnance Corps and serves as the Commandant of the U.S. Army Ordnance School at Fort Gregg-Adams. The Chief of Ordnance is primarily focused on t ...

from 1930 to 1934. His four-year term came at the height of the Depression resulting in a significant decrease in funding for the

Ordnance Department The United States Army Ordnance Corps, formerly the United States Army Ordnance Department, is a sustainment branch of the United States Army, headquartered at Fort Gregg-Adams, Virginia. The broad mission of the Ordnance Corps is to supply A ...

. Despite these difficulties, there was a general advance in the design and manufacturing of ordnance materiel. He made a number of recommendations for improved efficiencies in the department's supply responsibilities. Hof moved to

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 ...

, in 1927 when he became Assistant Chief of Ordnance and retired from the Army in 1934. He died of heart disease on March 10, 1937, in Walter Reed Hospital aged 66. Hof is buried together with his wife Alice Mayo Hof (1873–1962) at

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 ...

Distinguished Service Medal citation

His award citation reads: ''The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Army Distinguished Service Medal to Colonel (Ordnance Corps) Samuel Hof, United States Army, for exceptionally meritorious and distinguished service in positions of great responsibility first as commanding officer, Frankford Arsenal from March 1918 to March 1919, where, by his indefatigable energy, outstanding administrative ability, and thorough technical knowledge, he brought to a successful production, basic tracer, incendiary, and armor-piercing small-arms ammunition, and supplied substantially all that was used by our troops; later as acting chairman of the ordnance claims board, where, by his energy, tact and business ability, he secured the settlement of outstanding obligations and later as chief of field service, ordnance department, where he perfected the organization and controlled the disposition of vast quantities of materials and plants left over from the war.''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hof, Samuel 1870 births 1937 deaths United States Army Ordnance Corps personnel People from Boscobel, Wisconsin United States Military Academy alumni Military personnel from Wisconsin American military personnel of the Spanish–American War United States Army personnel of World War I Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) United States Army War College alumni Harvard Business School alumni United States Army generals Military personnel from Washington, D.C. Burials at West Point Cemetery United States Army Cavalry Branch personnel 19th-century United States Army personnel