San
Joaquin County
Biographies
GEN. WILLIAM THOMAS LITTEBRANT
Among the native sons of Stockton
who rose to prominence and influence in the United States Army was the late
Gen. William Thomas Littebrant, who was born in Stockton, March 27, 1865, the
only son of Hartman and Catherine (Cunningham) Littebrant who was represented
on another page in this work. He had two
sisters, Mrs. Katherine McCoy, deceased, and Miss Christene
Littebrant, of Stockton. After completing the grammar school, he
attended the Boys’ High School in San Francisco until he was appointed a cadet
to West Point, at the age of nineteen.
He was graduated from the U. S. Military Academy in 1888. He was at first assigned to the infantry, but
a few months later was transferred to the 10th
Cavalry, where he served with General Pershing, with whom he had been a
schoolmate at the Military Academy. He was promoted to the 7th
Cavalry in 1896, and afterwards served in other cavalry regiments, among then
the 1st, 9th, 11th, 12th, 15th,
and 23rd. His earlier service
was on the frontier, and his training there fitted him physically for the
strenuous army life which he had selected as his calling. Before he had been two years in the service
he had won the first Gold Medal on a tri-departmental revolver team; and from
that time on he excelled in both rifle and pistol shooting, and his name
appeared frequently in departmental teams.
As regimental quartermaster he
equipped his regiment for the strenuous Cuban campaign of 1898. On account of the difficulty of getting
supplies, this proved a hard task; but his regimental commander testified that
the regiment left for foreign service perfectly
equipped in every detail. After service
in Cuba, General Littebrant accompanied his regiment to the Philippines, and on
returning therefrom again went to Cuba with the Army of Pacification for
another tour of two years, in 1908 and 1909.
He was a member of the Cavalry Equipment Board in 1910. In 1911 he became a student of the Army
School of the Line, from which he graduated in 1912. He was assigned to duty in the Yosemite
National Park; where as superintendent he displayed those same able qualities
which had previously served the government so well. On July 10, 1914, the Secretary of the
Interior, the Honorable Franklin K. Lane, stated in his report: “In this connection I desire to express my
sincere appreciation for the very satisfactory success rendered by Major
Littebrant in the administration of the affairs of the Yosemite National Park
during the time that he has been assigned to that duty.”
General Littebrant next served as a
lieutenant-colonel in the recruiting service at St. Louis, Missouri. Shortly after the war with Germany was
declared, he was promoted to a colonelcy and was assigned to the 23rd
Cavalry. The organization of this
regiment was under way when he joined it, and he carried the task to
completion. Later the regiment was
changed into artillery, and General Littebrant asked to be sent to Fort Sill,
Oklahoma, for a special course in artillery instruction. After this, he rejoined his regiment, now the
81st Field Artillery, and took up the strenuous training which he
felt would be needed to fit the regiment for service on the battlefields of
France. On October 1, 1918, he was
appointed a brigadier-general and assigned to the 19th Field
Artillery Brigade. This organization was
scheduled to sail for France in December, 1918, but the armistice put an end to
his hope of leading his brigade in battle.
His failure to get to the front was the greatest disappointment of his
life. He was honorably discharged as a
brigadier-general March 1, 1919, but remained at Camp McClellan, Alabama where
an experienced officer was needed in demobilizing the troops. For the last two years his health had not
been good. He died of heart failure at
this home near the camp July 2, 1919, leaving a widow and two daughters: Laura, the wife of Capt. C. Palmer Clark, of
the air service; and Marian, wife of Frederick M. Kealor,
of St. John, New Brunswick. Thus ended the earthly career of a distinguished soldier who spent
more than thirty-five of the best years of his life in the service of his
country.
General Littebrant was a man of fine
appearance and notable military qualities.
Tall, well proportioned, and of soldierly bearing, he displayed
outwardly those physical attributes which, added to his mental qualities,
united to make him a successful leader of men.
His kindly disposition, his unfailing sense of humor, and his devotion
to his friends and family, were other qualities that made for him many friends. His family, and his native city and state as
well, may justly be proud of his record.
Transcribed by Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: Tinkham, George
H., History of San Joaquin County, California , Pages
1031-1032. Los Angeles, Calif.: Historic
Record Co., 1923.
© 2011 Gerald Iaquinta.
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