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Home > What's New > The Eisenhowers: Biography: Dwight D. Eisenhower Biography: Dwight David Eisenhower
On December 12, 1941, just five days after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Brigadier General Dwight D. Eisenhower received the phone call that would alter the course of his life forever. At the time, Eisenhower was at the top of his professional form; competent in his work and remarkably self-confident in his demeanor. Since returning from the Philippines in late 1939, he had completed a series of stateside assignments that fulfilled his deep-seated desire to work directly with troops. In June of 1941, he had been transferred here, to Ft. Sam Houston, where it had all begun some 26 years before. On the other end of the line was the voice of Colonel Walter Bedell Smith, secretary of the General Staff, insisting that "The Chief," General George C. Marshall, wanted him in Washington-immediately. With apprehension and dread at the prospect of returning to a staff job and sitting out the war, Eisenhower instructed his aide to pack a small duffel, assuring Mamie he wouldn't be gone long. When Eisenhower arrived at the Army Chief of Staff's office in Washington, D.C., Marshall took him aside and delivered a 20-minute briefing on the status of the United States military situation in the Pacific. When he had finished, General Marshall had just one question: "What should be our general line of action?" Eisenhower, momentarily taken aback, asked for a few hours and a desk; sat down and typed "Steps to Be Taken;" and began to think it through. Dwight David Eisenhower, was the third of seven sons born to David and Ida Stover Eisenhower; the only one born outside of Dickinson County, Kansas. After a failed business venture in Hope, Kansas, the Eisenhowers moved to Denison, Texas, where David found a job cleaning train locomotives. In a tiny house, a few feet from the railroad tracks, "David Dwight" Eisenhower was born on October 14, 1890. When Dwight was about eighteen months old, David moved his family back to Abilene because his brother-in-law, Chris Musser, had offered him a job at the Belle Springs Creamery. David Jacob Eisenhower had homesteaded with his parents in Dickinson County, Kansas, in 1878. Members of a prosperous religious group from the Susquehanna Valley of Pennsylvania, they came to Kansas to buy rich and affordable farmland. A sect of the Mennonites, they called themselves the "Plain People." In Dickinson County, the group was more commonly known as the "River Brethren." Ida Stover and David Eisenhower met, as students, at Lane University in LeCompton, Kansas, where they married. In 1898, six years after returning from Texas, the Eisenhowers and six sons--Paul had died of diphtheria in 1896 at the age of three--moved into the house on Southeast Fourth Street that would become the legendary Eisenhower boyhood home. Life at the turn of the century in small-town Abilene was filled with lessons to be learned and an abundance of adventure for an energetic, fun-loving, and handsome young man named Dwight Eisenhower. The part of Abilene that lay to the south of the Union Pacific tracks had been a wicked cowtown just a generation before, and young Dwight was enthralled with old-timers' stories of its "Wild West" days. Throughout his life, Dwight E. Eisenhower never lost his fascination with the history of the American West. At a time when a high school education was considered a luxury for most, all the Eisenhower boys graduated, and, at their parents' urging, dared to dream of even a college education. Dwight had been working for two years at the Belle Springs Creamery after his high school graduation in 1909--helping support brother Edgar though college at the University of Michigan--when his friend, Swede Hazlett, encouraged him to consider applying for an appointment to the Naval Academy at Annapolis. Eisenhower passed entrance exams for both Annapolis and West Point, but was past the age of admission for the Naval Academy. Kansas Senator Joseph Bristow recommended him for an appointment to West Point in 1911, which he received. The West Point years were formative ones for Eisenhower. He learned to endure the pressures and indignities of the Plebe year; and, in turn, discovered his own acute distaste for the hazing he was expected to inflict upon others in his Yearling year. On the football field, Eisenhower experienced the exultation of stardom and crushing disappointment when a series of knee injuries brought his glory days to an abrupt and painful end. In bitter reaction, Dwight Eisenhower smoked too much, studied too little, and accumulated an impressive list of demerits. Despite this setback, Eisenhower emerged as a natural leader, serving as junior varsity football coach and yell leader. And, even though he did not apply himself academically at West Point, Eisenhower still managed to graduate in the upper half of his class in 1915, the one that would be later known as the class "The Stars Fell On." Following graduation, newly commissioned second lieutenant Eisenhower's first post assignment was Ft. Sam Houston, Texas. On a beautiful October day in 1915, Eisenhower was on duty, assigned to walk the post and inspect the guard. Fellow soldier and new friend, Gee Gerow, recognized Eisenhower from across the street and beckoned him to join the casual lawn party where the Douds of Denver were among the guests. Although he had recently "sworn off women"--once he had met eighteen-year-old Miss Mamie Geneva Doud, he pursued her with singular determination. Nine months later, July 1, 1916, they were married in the Doud home, and set out on a ten-day honeymoon in Colorado and on to Kansas to visit Dwight's parents and brother Milton at Kansas State College. Those
first years took Eisenhower to military posts in Texas, Georgia, Maryland,
Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and, then, back again to Georgia and Maryland.
In some respects, these were happy years; in others, difficult. He and
Mamie became the proud parents of Doud Dwight "Icky," in 1917,
and then felt their world fall apart when he died, suddenly, of scarlet
fever at age three. Eisenhower had initially balked at being assigned
to coach the post's football team; however, he thoroughly enjoyed his
role as teacher. Too, he felt great satisfaction training World War I
recruits for effective overseas duty. Yet, he was very impatient for his
own chance to ship out for France. Eisenhower applied, reapplied, and
lobbied his superiors for an assignment to combat duty--even to the point
of reprimand--and was resentful at having missed out on "his"
war. For two months in the summer of 1919, Eisenhower volunteered to participate
as a Tank Corps observer in the War Department's First Transcontinental
Motor Convoy. It was often a frustrating journey: a train of trucks moving
little more than six miles an hour across the country, broken down or
mired in mud on a daily basis. While in Fort Benning in 1927, Eisenhower was selected by General John "Black Jack" Pershing to write for the American Battle Monuments Commission in Washington and Paris. It was in this period that Eisenhower was introduced to the geography, cultures, and people of Europe; knowledge that would prove invaluable little more than a decade later. His tour completed in 1929, Eisenhower reported to the War Department. One of his assignments was to develop a plan to mobilize manpower and matériel for the Army should there be another war. It was from this position, that he was transferred to serve as chief military aide--largely to write speeches, reports and policy papers--under Douglas MacArthur, U.S. Army Chief of Staff in 1933. In 1935, Eisenhower accompanied MacArthur to the Philippines as assistant military advisor, and there he remained--less than enthusiastic--until late in 1939. His primary mission, to build a viable Filipino Army, was to prove both frustrating and elusive. As the end of his assignment approached, Europe was, once again, at war. Despite MacArthur's pressure to remain in the Philippines and President Quezon's handsome offer of a blank contract for his services, Eisenhower was never tempted. He was not going to miss this war. Stateside, in early 1940, Eisenhower was briefly stationed at Ft. Ord, California, then, received a more permanent assignment to Ft. Lewis, Washington. For the next two years, through late 1941, Eisenhower's assignments gave him many opportunities to exercise his natural leadership talents. All the experience and skills he had honed over twenty-five years served him very well; it was a happy time for Eisenhower. In June 1941, Colonel Eisenhower was transferred to Ft. Sam Houston. Here he served as Chief of Staff for the Third Army, under General Walter Krueger. Eisenhower received national attention for his bold leadership in the Louisiana Maneuvers in August and September of 1941 when the Third Army decisively routed the Second Army. Only a few months before the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Eisenhower was promoted to brigadier general. As a result of that December 12 summons to Washington, Eisenhower was transferred to the War Plans Division in Washington, DC, where Marshall tested his abilities with an amazing array of responsibilities in rapid succession. The Army Chief of Staff was impressed with Eisenhower's thinking, organizational, and people skills; in turn, Eisenhower was promoted to Major General by March of 1942. Eisenhower's prediction to Mamie-that he would not be gone long, had been ironic at best. In May 1942, Eisenhower arrived in England on a special mission to build cooperation among the Allies as Commanding General, European Theater, and so began his meteoric rise in rank and fame. By November, he was named Commander-in-Chief, Allied Forces, North Africa, and carried out Operation Torch. In 1943, Eisenhower had his second test as Commander of the Allied invasions of Sicily and Italy. Thereafter, the time had come to plan the gargantuan land, sea, and air forces that would become more commonly known as D-Day: the Allied Invasion of the continent. In December 1943, Eisenhower was appointed Supreme Commander Allied Expeditionary Forces, and the planning of Operation Overlord began in earnest. June 6, 1944, D-day, was the beginning of the end for the war in Europe. Eisenhower was promoted to the rank of General of the Army (5 stars) in December of that year. When Germany surrendered in May 1945, Eisenhower was appointed Military Governor, US Occupied Zone. By then, Dwight D. Eisenhower was an international celebrity; he had earned the respect, admiration, and affection of people around the world. Allied victory in Europe culminated in joyous exhaustion. Eisenhower quickly became the centerpiece of speeches, grand parades, and throngs of admirers as grateful nations throughout Europe honored him. In June of 1945, Eisenhower returned to a hometown hero's welcome in Abilene, where her citizens honored him as they had no other. Five months later, November 1945, Eisenhower was selected as Chief of Staff, US Army. Nearly three years later, he was inaugurated as President of Columbia University, where he remained until the end of 1950, never far from the decision making on post-war national security policy. In December of 1950, on leave from Columbia University, Eisenhower was appointed the first Supreme Allied Commander of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Here he labored with Allied nations to build an organization around the idea of "concerted, collective, unified action." Eisenhower took a nearly impossible task, and turned his vision for Europe and the United States into a reality. Throughout this time, the "Draft Eisenhower" presidential grassroots effort took shape and swelled to a crescendo that he could no longer ignore. In preparation for what was to come, Eisenhower retired from active service, resigned his commission, and headed home to Abilene, to formally announce his candidacy for the Republican nomination for President of the United States. Dwight David Eisenhower was elected the 34th President* of the United States on November 4, 1952. Four years later, he was reelected to a second term by an even wider margin. "Peace and Prosperity" became the watchwords of the Eisenhower years. Ending the war in Korea was only the first of many foreign policy challenges Eisenhower faced throughout his presidency. Other Cold War crises erupted in Lebanon, Suez, Berlin, Hungary, the Taiwan Straits, and Cuba. When confronted with possible US military intervention in Vietnam after the defeat of the French colonials, Eisenhower declined to involve the United States. Throughout his presidency, he worked hard to contain communism and, at the same time, was vigorous in his efforts to forge improved relations with the Soviet Union. When an American U-2 reconnaissance plane was shot down over Soviet territory, his hopes for détente, during his watch, were dashed. Although criticized by some historians for a lack of leadership on racial issues, President Eisenhower supported and signed the 1957 and 1960 Civil Rights Acts, and ordered federal troops to Little Rock to enforce the desegregation of Central High School. Likewise, his decision to work behind the scenes to defeat Senator Joseph McCarthy, rather than confront his excesses directly, engendered the criticism of many. Eisenhower argued that to lower himself to the same level as McCarthy might confer upon the Senator a significance that would only enhance McCarthy's credibility. Americans enjoyed a strong, expanding economy under Eisenhower, demonstrated by solid economic growth, little inflation, and low unemployment. Balancing the budget was an Eisenhower priority tempered with a sincere concern for the common good. Eisenhower expanded social security, increased the minimum wage, and established the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW). During the Eisenhower years, the Interstate Highway System and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) were created, and space exploration began. Near the end of his presidency, in 1959, Alaska and Hawaii became the 49th and 50th states of the Union. On
January 17, 1961, President Eisenhower bid farewell to the nation in a
speech that is best remembered for his characterization of the "Military-Industrial
Complex," and his warning of dire consequences to our personal freedoms
and self-government should its power go unchecked. January 20, 1961, Dwight
D. Eisenhower left office for a much-anticipated Gettysburg Farm is located not far from the very place his grandfather had left more than eighty years before on a pioneer's journey that took the Eisenhowers to Kansas. Now, Dwight and Mamie--private citizens--returned there, looking forward to spending time together. With John's family living close by, the retirement years promised to be all they had dreamed. The days passed with a variety of leisure activities; golf and painting, highest on the list. Eisenhower derived great satisfaction from raising livestock, gardening, and generally puttering around the farm. Afternoons were often spent with Mamie on the glassed-in porch, reading, painting, playing cards, and watching their favorite television programs. Guests to Gettysburg were often treated to a meal cooked by none other than the former President himself. The Eisenhowers indulged in travel, and each winter found them, surrounded by friends and family, at their Palm Desert, California, home. Eisenhower wrote his memoirs, and carried on a voluminous correspondence with old friends and associates. Frequently, Presidents Kennedy and Johnson sought his counsel, and approval, in his new role as Elder Statesman. Looking back over the extraordinary experiences of his life, Eisenhower enjoyed most reminiscing about his boyhood in Abilene and his West Point years. The last year of Eisenhower's life was spent at Walter Reed Army Hospital as his health rapidly declined. Thirteen years earlier, he had suffered a near-fatal heart attack, and now a weakening heart was slowly ending his life. Mamie remained by his side, living in a small room just off the presidential suite. On March 28, 1969, Dwight D. Eisenhower uttered his last words, "I want to go; God take me." His heart gave up its struggle and he died peacefully. Following a state funeral in Washington, DC, Eisenhower was honored with a full military funeral in his beloved Abilene on April 2. Just as he had planned it, Dwight David Eisenhower was buried in a modest chapel, on the grounds of the Eisenhower Center, where he joined Doud Dwight, the son he and Mamie had lost nearly fifty years before. Dwight D. Eisenhower had returned home to stay. **A 1968 Gallup poll listed Dwight D. Eisenhower as the most admired American that year.
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2000, The Dwight D. Eisenhower Foundation. All Rights Reserved. |
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October
14, 1890 -
