Lieutenant Davis

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Lore & Background

After the Civil War, Davis joined the 14th Infantry Regiment in January 1867. As a captain, he served as an assistant engineer on the Washington Monument construction project, where he arranged and perfected the elevating machinery that carried stones from the ground to the sky. His skill and rare ingenuity invented the machinery vital to the rapid prosecution of the work, and his suggestions were invaluable in strengthening and perfecting the monument's foundation. He was among the featured guests at the dedication ceremony in 1885. Later, Davis became vice-president of the construction company for the Nicaragua Canal and chairman of the international board of consulting engineers on the Panama Canal. In 1895, he joined the Antietam Battlefield Board, helping oversee preservation and monumentation that led to the establishment of the Antietam National Battlefield. During the Spanish–American War, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel of regulars and brigadier general of Volunteers, commanding the 2nd Division of the Second Army Corps at Camp Alger, Thoroughfare Gap, Camp Meade, and Camp Fornance. He was elected a Veteran Companion of the Pennsylvania Commander of the Military Order of Foreign Wars in 1899. He served as United States Governor of Puerto Rico and later as United States Governor of the Panama Canal Zone. Promoted to major general in July 1902, he retired on his 64th birthday in 1903. Davis chaired the central committee of the American Red Cross from 1907 to 1915. He died on July 12, 1918, in Washington, D.C.

In Their Own Story

Captain Davis stood at the base of the Washington Monument, looking up at the towering obelisk. The elevating machinery he had perfected—his own invention—had carried every stone from the earth to the sky. At the dedication ceremony in 1885, he was among the featured guests, a quiet engineer whose skill made the monument possible. Years later, as chairman of the international board of consulting engineers on the Panama Canal, he faced a different kind of challenge: cutting a waterway through a continent. In 1895, he walked the fields of Antietam, where he had fought as a young soldier, now helping to preserve the battlefield for future generations.

Reader's Guide

George Whitefield Davis's career offers a model of military engineering and leadership. Key turning points include: joining the 11th Connecticut Infantry in November 1861 as a Company Quartermaster Sergeant; fighting at Antietam and rising to major; joining the 14th Infantry Regiment in January 1867; serving as assistant engineer on the Washington Monument, where he invented the elevating machinery and attended the 1885 dedication; becoming vice-president of the Nicaragua Canal construction company and chairman of the international board of consulting engineers on the Panama Canal; joining the Antietam Battlefield Board in 1895; commanding the 2nd Division of the Second Army Corps during the Spanish–American War; serving as Governor of Puerto Rico and later as Governor of the Panama Canal Zone; being promoted to major general in July 1902; retiring on his 64th birthday in 1903; and chairing the American Red Cross central committee from 1907 to 1915.

Did You Know?

• Davis entered the Civil War as a Company Quartermaster Sergeant, the same position his grandfather held during the American Revolution.
• As a captain, he invented the elevating machinery that carried stones to the top of the Washington Monument.
• He was among the featured guests at the Washington Monument dedication ceremony in 1885.
• Davis served as chairman of the international board of consulting engineers on the Panama Canal.
• He chaired the central committee of the American Red Cross from 1907 to 1915.