ESTABLISHED: NOVEMBER 27, 1967
He led an amazing life, hard to believe all of these accomplishments were by one man. A life well lived.
- Early Life & Military Rise
- October 14, 1890: Born in Denison, Texas; his family moved to Abilene, Kansas in 1892.
- June 14, 1911 – June 12, 1915: Attended the United States Military Academy at West Point; graduated and commissioned as a Second Lieutenant.
- 1918–1922: Served in the Tank Corps during and after World War I at various U.S. camps.
- 1925–1926: Graduated first in his class at the Command and General Staff School in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
- 1933–1939: Served as chief military aide to General Douglas MacArthur in Washington, D.C., and as assistant military advisor to the Philippine Government
- World War II Command
- June 1942: Appointed Commanding General of the European Theater of Operations.
- November 1942: Named Commander-in-Chief of Allied Forces for the North African invasion (Operation Torch).
- December 1943: Appointed Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Forces for Europe.
- June 6, 1944: Directed the D-Day invasion of Normandy, France.
- 1945: Accepted the German surrender and served as military governor of the American-occupied zone of Germany
- Post-War Leadership & Academic Life
- 1945–1948: Served as the Chief of Staff of the United States Army.
- 1948–1953: Served as president of Columbia University.
- 1951–1952: Took a leave of absence to serve as the first Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) for NATO
- Presidency (1953–1961)
- November 1952: Elected the 34th President of the United States as a Republican.
- January 20, 1953: Inaugurated for his first term (re-elected in 1956).
- July 1953: Signed the Korean Armistice, ending active combat in the Korean War.
- 1956: Signed the Federal-Aid Highway Act, launching the Interstate Highway System.
- 1957: Enforced desegregation by sending federal troops to Little Rock, Arkansas.
- 1958: Established the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
- Retirement & Later Years
- January 1961: Retired to his farm in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, following his farewell address warning against the military-industrial complex.
- March 28, 1969: Died in Washington, D.C. at age 78
Ike was well know for his consumption of coffee and cigarettes. He regularly drank 15 to 20 cups of coffee daily, and up to 24 cups during peak stress points. He smoked 3 to 4 packs (4 to 6 packs around D-Day) of unfiltered Camel cigarettes per day before eventually quitting smoking entirely in 1948.
He visited Gettysburg when he was at West Point. After living a move all the time military lifestyle and never owning a home, he and his wife Mamie wanted a quiet country farm to settle down. In 1950, they bought a 189-acre farm adjacent to the battlefield, though full-time retirement was delayed by his service as NATO commander and his two terms as U.S. President. He finally retired there in 1961
The farm was peaceful, all we heard was nature.
Final note: President Eisenhower renamed the presidential retreat previously named “Shangri-La” by Franklin D. Roosevelt. In 1953 he changed the name to Camp David to honor his grandson
THANKS FOR VISITING, STEVE