Date of Graduation

1976

Document Type

Thesis

Abstract

This dissertation attempts to follow the life and career of General Sylvanus Thayer, from his birth in Braintree, Massachusetts in 1785 to his death there in 1872. By placing Thayer with in the proper historical context, it is possible to draw certain conclusions concerning the significance of his achievements in the fields of technical education and military engineering.

Since this is a chronological study of Thayer’s life, particular emphasis is given in the first four chapters to the men, events , and influences that shaped his life prior to 1817: family background and early home life ; education at Dartmouth and West Point; career and associations as a young officer before and during the War of 1812; and finally, his two years of travel and study in France after the war.

Because Thayer's name is most often associated with the United States military Academy, the next four chapters focus on his activities as Superintendent from 1817 to 1833. Special attention is given to: his reorganization of the curriculum, cadets, and staff; the conflicts and controversies that arose during his sixteen-year tenure; and his relationships with the cadets, his associated, and higher authorities. As a result of his work during this period, Thayer became known as the "Father of the United States Military Academy."

For the next twenty-six years, Thayer was a military engineer in charge of construction of fortifications in Boston harbor and other New England areas. These years are chronicled in the ninth chapter; his activities in requirement, when he endowed the Thayer School of Civil Engineering at Dartmouth and the Thayer Academy in Braintree, in the tenth chapter.

The final chapter is a post mortem look at Thayer, including the honors bestowed on him and a brief evaluation of his life and career. The basic conclusion of this dissertation is that, because of his significant contributions to West Point and Dartmouth, Sylvanus Thayer deserves recognition as an important nineteenth century leader in American technical and military education.

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