Charles E. Kilbourne personal papers

Access and use

Location of collection:
Virginia Military Institute Archives
Preston Library
Virginia Military Institute
345 Letcher Ave.
Lexington, VA 24450-0304
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Jeffrey S. Kozak
Phone: (540) 464-7516
Phone: (540) 464-7566
Fax: (540) 464-7089
Restrictions:

There are no restrictions

Terms of access:

Manuscript Collections in the VMI Archives are made available for noncommercial educational and research use. The VMI Archives should be cited as the source. The user assumes all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any copyright holders. Materials from our collections may not be redistributed, published or reproduced without permission from the VMI Archives. Contact the VMI Archives for additional information.

Preferred citation:

Charles E. Kilbourne personal papers, 1898-1963. MS 0511. VMI Archives, Virginia Military Institute Archives, Lextington, Virginia.

Summary

Extent:
1 cubic feet
Creator:
Kilbourne, Charles E. (Charles Evans), 1872-1963
Language:
English .
Preferred citation:

Charles E. Kilbourne personal papers, 1898-1963. MS 0511. VMI Archives, Virginia Military Institute Archives, Lextington, Virginia.

Background

Scope and content:

This collection consists of miscellaneous personal papers found in the Kilbourne family home in 2016, including:

  • A file of correspondence and memoranda (1898-1937) dating from Charles E. Kilbourne's career in the United States Army, primarily letters of recommendation
  • Photographs
  • Scrapbooks
  • Newspaper clippings
  • Subject files related to Kilbourne's visit to the Philippines (1954-1955) and the Great Yamen Imperial Order of Dragon (1954-1963)
This collection also includes material relating to Kilbourne's long association with the Philippines.

Biographical / historical:

Major General Charles Evans Kilbourne (1872-1963), an 1894 VMI graduate, had a distinguished career in the United States Army before returning to his alma mater to serve as the sixth Superintendent. He entered the volunteer Signal Corps as a 2nd Lieutenant at the outbreak of the Spanish-American War in 1898, and received the Medal of Honor for gallantry in action in the Philippines in 1899. He received his regular Army commission in 1899 and served in China during the Boxer Rebellion. During World War I he was Chief of Staff of the 89th Division and was wounded in action in France. Kilbourne served multiple tours of duty in the Philippines and was instrumental in the development of the military installations on the island of Corregidor, including the initiation of the tunnel system used during World War II by General Douglas MacArthur's troops. He also served in the War Plans Division in Washington, D.C. from 1932 to 1938.

Kilbourne was promoted to Brigadier General in 1928. He received his promotion to Major General in 1935 and retired from active duty the following year. He was the first person in United States history to hold simultaneously the nation's three highest military awards: The Medal of Honor, the Distinguished Service Cross, and the Distinguished Service Medal. Kilbourne became Superintendent of VMI on October 1, 1937 and guided the Institute through the challenging years of World War II. He retired on June 20, 1946 and was named Superintendent Emeritus. He died on November 12, 1963 and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery, Virginia.

Physical location:
Manuscripts stacks