Goethals, George W. (George Washington), 1858-1928

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Born in 1858 in Brooklyn, New York, Goethals graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1880. Goethals was a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1907 when he was appointed chief engineer for the construction of the Panama Canal.. Under his management construction was completed in 1914, about one year early.

From the guide to the George Washington Goethals Letter MSS. 0575., 1918 March 27, (University Libraries Division of Special Collections, The University of Alabama)

Army engineer and constructor of the Panama Canal Zone.

From the description of Letter, 1918. (Boston Athenaeum). WorldCat record id: 41418136

American Army officer and engineer, who was chief engineer on the construction of the Panama Canal (1907-1914) and later became governor of the Canal Zone (1914-1917). During World War I he worked in the Quartermaster's Dept.

From the description of George Washington Goethals microfilm collection, 1901-1915 [microform]. 1970. (US Army, Mil Hist Institute). WorldCat record id: 22740075

Governor of the Canal Zone, army officer, and engineer.

From the description of Papers of George W. Goethals, circa 1890-1929. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 71067689

Engineer.

Goethals was an alumnus of City College, Class of 1877.

From the description of Papers, 1913-1928. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 155502756

Biographical Note

  • 1858, 29 June: Born, Brooklyn, N.Y.
  • 1880: Graduated, United States Military Academy, West Point, N.Y.
  • 1880 - 1882 : Student officer, Engineering School of Application, Willetts Point, N.Y.
  • 1882 - 1884 : Engineer officer, Department of Columbia
  • 1884: Married Effie Rodman
  • 1884 - 1885 : Engineer officer, improvements on the Ohio River for navigation
  • 1885 - 1889 : Instructor and assistant professor of civil and military engineering, United States Military Academy, West Point, N.Y.
  • 1889 - 1894 : Engineer officer, improvements on the Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers, and in charge of completion of the Muscle Shoals Canal and construction of the Colbert Shoals Lock
  • 1894 - 1898 : Assistant to chief of engineers, United States Army
  • 1898: Chief engineer, First United States Army Corps, and campaign in Puerto Rico
  • 1898 - 1900 : Professor of practical military engineering, United States Military Academy, West Point, N.Y.
  • 1900 - 1905 : Engineer officer in charge of river and harbor works, Bolck Island to Nantucket, and the fortifications of Narragansett Bay and New Bedford, Mass.
  • 1903 - 1907 : Member, General Staff, United States Army
  • 1905: Graduated, United States Army War College Accompanied Secretary of War William H. Taft on an inspection trip to the Isthmus of Panama
  • 1907: Promoted to lieutenant colonel, United States Army Appointed by President Theodore Roosevelt as chairman and chief engineer, Isthmian Canal Commission
  • 1907 - 1914 : Chief engineer, construction of the Panama Canal
  • 1909: Promoted to colonel, United States Army
  • 1911: Appointed member of a Joint Board of Officers of the Army and Navy to make a report upon defenses for the Panama Canal
  • 1914 - 1917 : Governor, Panama Canal Zone
  • 1915: Promoted to major general, United States Army
  • 1916: Chairman of the board appointed to report on the Adamson Eight-Hour Law
  • 1917: General manager, United States Shipping Board Emergency Fleet Corp. Acting quartermaster general, United States Army
  • 1918: Chief, Division of Storage and Traffic of the General Staff, United States Army Chief, Division of Purchase, Storage and Traffic United States Army
  • 1918: Awarded Distinguished Service Medal for meritorious service in reorganizing the Quartermaster Department, United States Army
  • 1919 - 1923 : President and head engineer, George W. Goethals and Co., New York, N.Y.
  • 1923: Fuel administrator of New York during Anthracite coal strike
  • 1923 - 1928 : Consulting engineer on projects such as Inner Harbor Navigation Canal, New Orleans, La.; Columbia Basin Irrigation Project; East Bay Municipal Utility District of Oakland, Calif; and Lake Worth Inlet District in Florida. Served New York-Jersey Port and Harbor Commission (later Port of New York Authority) as chief consulting engineer
  • 1928, Jan. 21: Died, New York, N.Y.

From the guide to the George W. Goethals Papers, 1890-1954, (bulk 1907-1927), (Manuscript Division Library of Congress)

Archival Resources
Role Title Holding Repository
creatorOf Records of the War Department General and Special Staffs. 1860 - 1952. Papers of Colonel John S. Fair and Colonel H. C. Smither, Assistant Directors of the Division National Archives at College Park
referencedIn Judson, William V. (William Voorhees), 1865-1923. William Voorhees Judson papers, 1888-1947. Newberry Library
referencedIn Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel. 1798 - 2007. Moving Images Relating to Naval Activities. 1942 - 1947. PANAMA CANAL, C.Z. [ETC.] National Archives at College Park
referencedIn James Dix Schuyler papers, 1886-1912, 1896-1907 Water Resources Collections and Archives
creatorOf Balfe, Harry. Letters and documents of Harry Balfe, 1837-1935. Huntington Library, Art Collections & Botanical Gardens
referencedIn Vance Criswell McCormick papers, 1907-1946 Yale University. Department of Manuscripts and Archives
referencedIn Houghton Mifflin Company correspondence and records, 1832-1944. Houghton Library
creatorOf Goethals, George W. (George Washington), 1858-1928. George Washington Goethals microfilm collection, 1901-1915 (inclusive), [microform]. Yale University Library
referencedIn John Callan O'Laughlin Papers, 1895-1949 Library of Congress. Manuscript Division
referencedIn Denman, William, 1872-1959. William Denman miscellany, 1917-1959. UC Berkeley Libraries
creatorOf Boand, Nell Holladay,. Logan-Morrill family papers [manuscript], 1906-1966 (bulk 1906-1912). University of Virginia. Library
referencedIn Grosvenor Family Papers, 1827-1981, (bulk 1872-1964) Library of Congress. Manuscript Division
referencedIn Viola Price Franklin letter collection, 1849-1941 Willamette University Archives and Special Collections
creatorOf Goethals, George W. (George Washington), 1858-1928. Letter, 1918. Boston Athenaeum
creatorOf Loud family. Loud family papers, 1882-1942. Bentley Historical Library
creatorOf Lehigh University. President's office. [Records]. Lehigh University Libraries, Lehigh Libraries
referencedIn Records of the Panama Canal. 1848 - 1999. Correspondence and Historical Background Records of the Governors National Archives at College Park
referencedIn Scientists Collection, 1563-1973 American Philosophical Society
creatorOf Goethals, George W. 1858-1928. Office of the Director of Storage and Traffic memorandum, 21 March 1918. U.S. Army Heritage & Education Center
referencedIn McCormick, Cyrus Hall, 1859-1936. Correspondence, 1870-1936. Wisconsin Historical Society, Newspaper Project
creatorOf Goethals, George W. (George Washington), 1858-1928. Papers. Smithsonian Institution. Libraries
referencedIn Price, William Jennings, 1873-1952. William Jennings Price papers, 1851-1952. University of Kentucky Libraries
creatorOf Goethals, George W. (George Washington), 1858-1928. Papers, 1913-1928. Campbell University, Wiggins Memorial Library
creatorOf George W. Goethals Papers, 1890-1954, (bulk 1907-1927) Library of Congress. Manuscript Division
creatorOf Browning, Robert, 1812-1889,. American and English literary and historical papers collected by Atcheson L. Hench [manuscript] 1832-1953. University of Virginia. Library
creatorOf Noble, Alfred, 1844-1914. Alfred Noble papers, 1863-1922. Bentley Historical Library
referencedIn Papers of Thornton family [manuscript] 1869 (1886-1946) 1962. University of Virginia. Library
creatorOf August Belmont Jr. papers, 1827-1965 (bulk 1909-1924). Library of Congress. Manuscript Division
referencedIn McCormick, Vance Criswell, 1872-1946. Vance Criswell McCormick papers, 1907-1946 (inclusive). Yale University Library
referencedIn Records of the Army Staff. 1903 - 2009. Photographs of U.S. and Foreign Military Personnel, Defense Department and Other Government Officials, Royalty, and Heads of State. 1964-1974. National Archives at College Park
creatorOf Goethals, George W. (George Washington), 1858-1928. George Washington Goethals microfilm collection, 1901-1915 [microform]. U.S. Army Heritage & Education Center
creatorOf Noble, Alfred, 1844-1914. Alfred Noble papers, 1863-1922 [microform]. Bentley Historical Library
creatorOf Jones, William Atkinson, 1849-1918. Papers of William Atkinson Jones [manuscript] 1830-1918. University of Virginia. Library
creatorOf Isthmian Canal Commission (U.S.). Isthmian Canal Commission papers : typescript , 1906-1910. California Digital Library
referencedIn Hewitt, Randall H. (Randall Henry), b. 1840. Manuscripts of Randall H. Hewitt, 1849-1916. Huntington Library, Art Collections & Botanical Gardens
creatorOf Goethals, George W. (George Washington), 1858-1928,. Logan-Morrill family papers, 1906-1934 (bulk 1906-1912). University of Virginia. Library
creatorOf Noble, Alfred, 1844-1914. Alfred Noble papers, 1863-1915. Bentley Historical Library
referencedIn Records of the Office of the Chief Signal Officer. 1860 - 1985. Documentary Films. 1914 - 1944. THE PANAMA CANAL National Archives at College Park
referencedIn August Belmont Jr. papers, 1827-1965 (bulk 1909-1924). Library of Congress. Manuscript Division
creatorOf Records of the War Department General and Special Staffs. 1860 - 1952. Correspondence of Gerard Swope National Archives at College Park
referencedIn Občanské fórum. Letter 1917, Feb 23, New York City [to] Mr. Edwin Markham, Staten Island, N.Y. / Robert Erskine Ely. Wagner College, Horrmann Library
creatorOf Stedman, Henry R. Autograph collection, 1679-1923. Boston Athenaeum
creatorOf Goethals, George W. (George Washington), 1858-1928. Papers. United States Military Academy, USMA Library
creatorOf Wheeler family. Papers, 1809-1943. Alabama Department of Archives and History
referencedIn Alfred Noble Papers, 1863-1922 Bentley Historical Library
creatorOf George Washington Goethals Letter MSS. 0575., 1918 March 27 University Libraries Division of Special Collections, The University of Alabama
referencedIn McCormick, Vance Criswell, 1872-1946. Vance Criswell McCormick papers, 1907-1946 (inclusive). Yale University Library
creatorOf Goethals, George W. (George Washington), 1858-1928. Papers, 1918-19. [microform]. University of Cincinnati - Main Campus, Langsam Library
creatorOf Goethals, George W., 1858-1928. Letter, 1916, February 14, Washington, D.C., to Walter Reid Callender. Brown University Archives, John Hay Library
referencedIn Hench, Philip S., 1896-1965. Philip S. Hench Walter Reed Yellow Fever Collection, 1806-1995, bulk 1863-1974 Historical Collections, Claude Moore Health Sciences Library, University of Virginia
creatorOf Edgerton, Wright Prescott, 1852-1904. Edgerton family papers. United States Military Academy, USMA Library
referencedIn Correspondence and compositions, 1718-1946 (inclusive) 1873-1919 (bulk). Theodore Roosevelt Collection, Harvard College Library, Harvard University
Relation Name
correspondedWith Baker, Newton Diehl, 1871-1937 person
associatedWith Balfe, Harry. person
correspondedWith Barrett, John, 1866-1938 person
associatedWith Belmont, August, 1853-1924. person
correspondedWith Bishop, Joseph Bucklin, 1847-1928 person
correspondedWith Bixby, William Herbert, 1849-1928 person
correspondedWith Bloom, Sol, 1870-1949 person
correspondedWith Bok, Edward William, 1863-1930 person
correspondedWith Borah, William Edgar, 1865-1940 person
associatedWith Bore, C. L. person
associatedWith Burchard, Lewis Sayre. person
associatedWith Callender, Walter Reid, 1872-1932, person
associatedWith Canal Zone. Office of the Governor. corporateBody
associatedWith Carter, Henry Rose, 1852-1925 person
correspondedWith Daniels, Josephus, 1862-1948 person
associatedWith Davis, William Morris, 1850-1934. person
correspondedWith Denby, Edwin, 1870-1929 person
associatedWith Denman, William, 1872-1959. person
associatedWith Dibner, Bern, person
associatedWith Edgerton, Wright Prescott, 1852-1904. person
associatedWith Franklin, Viola Price person
correspondedWith Garrison, Lindley M. (Lindley Miller), 1864-1932 person
correspondedWith Gorgas, William Crawford, 1854-1920 person
correspondedWith Greely, A. W. (Adolphus Washington), 1844-1935 person
associatedWith Greenough, Charles P. person
associatedWith Grosvenor family family
correspondedWith Harding, Chester, 1866-1936 person
associatedWith Hench, Philip S. (Philip Showalter), 1896-1965 person
associatedWith Hewitt, Randall H. (Randall Henry), b. 1840. person
correspondedWith Hodges, Harry F. (Harry Foot), 1860- person
correspondedWith Houghton Mifflin Company. corporateBody
associatedWith Isthmian Canal Commission (U.S.) corporateBody
associatedWith Jones, William Atkinson, 1849-1918. person
correspondedWith Judson, William V. (William Voorhees), 1865-1923. person
associatedWith Kean, Jefferson Randolph, 1860-1950 person
associatedWith Kent, William, 1864-1928. person
correspondedWith Lansing, Robert, 1864-1928 person
associatedWith Lazear, Jesse William, 1866-1900 person
associatedWith Lehigh University. President's office. corporateBody
correspondedWith Lodge, Henry Cabot, 1850-1924 person
correspondedWith Loeb, William, 1866-1937 person
correspondedWith Lorenze, M. O. person
associatedWith Loud family. family
correspondedWith Mahan, A. T. (Alfred Thayer), 1840-1914 person
associatedWith McCormick, Cyrus Hall, 1859-1936. person
associatedWith McCormick, Vance Criswell, 1872-1946. person
associatedWith Noble, Alfred, 1844-1914. person
associatedWith Občanské fórum. corporateBody
correspondedWith O'Laughlin, John Callan, 1873-1949. person
correspondedWith Pershing, John J. (John Joseph), 1860-1948 person
associatedWith Price, William Jennings, 1873-1952. person
associatedWith Reed, Walter, 1851-1902 person
associatedWith Roberts, Donald A. (Donald Alfred), 1897- person
correspondedWith Roosevelt, Franklin D. (Franklin Delano), 1882-1945 person
correspondedWith Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919 person
correspondedWith Sayre, Francis Bowes, 1885-1972 person
associatedWith Schuyler, James D. (James Dix), 1848-1912 person
associatedWith Sheffield, James Rockwell, 1864-1938. person
correspondedWith Sibert, William L. (William Luther), 1860-1935 person
associatedWith Stedman, Henry R. person
associatedWith Stimson, Henry L. (Henry Lewis), 1867-1950. person
correspondedWith Taft, William H. (William Howard), 1857-1930 person
correspondedWith Tumulty, Joseph P. (Joseph Patrick), 1879-1954 person
associatedWith United States. Army corporateBody
associatedWith United States Shipping Board Emergency Fleet Corporation. corporateBody
associatedWith Westmore family. family
associatedWith Wheeler family. family
associatedWith Whitmore family. family
correspondedWith Wilson, Woodrow, 1856-1924 person
Place Name Admin Code Country
Panama Canal (Panama)
Canal Zone
Panama Canal (Panama)
Panama
Panama Canal (Panama)
Panama Canal (Panama)
Panama Canal (Panama)
Panama Canal (Panama)
Canal Zone
Latin America
Panama Canal (Panama)
Subject
Anthracite Coal Strike, Pa., 1922
Canals
Canals
Eight-hour movement
Fuel trade
Politics and government
Government, Law and Politics
Immigration and American Expansion
Labor laws and legislation
Merchant marine
Railroads
Strikes and lockouts
War and Military
Occupation
Army officers
Engineers
Governors
Activity

Person

Birth 1858-06-29

Death 1928-01-21

Americans

English

Information

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