Charles S. Kilburn

Charles S. Kilburn (January 2, 1895 – December 28, 1978) was a career officer in the United States Army who attained the rank of brigadier general and was most notable for his World War II command of the 11th Armored Division from 1944 to 1945.

Early life Charles Solomon Kilburn was born in Silver City, New Mexico on January 2, 1895, the son of John Franklin Kilburn and Harriet M. (Randall) Kilburn. He was raised and educated in El Paso, Texas, where his parents operated a ranch. After graduation, Kilburn competed for an appointment from William Robert Smith to the United States Military Academy (USMA) at West Point, New York. Kilburn obtained the appointment and attended West Point from 1913 to 1917. Because of his ranching background, during his West Point career his classmates nicknamed him "Rattlesnake Pete", the nickname of Peter Gruber, a Rochester, New York folk figure who operated a snake-themed museum and saloon in the early 1900s.

Early military career Kilburn was initially assigned to the 17th Cavalry Regiment and posted to Camp Harry J. Jones in Douglas, Arizona, where he took part in defense of the Mexico–United States border during the Mexican Border War. In August, Kilburn was promoted again, thus time to temporary captain as the army underwent expansion during U.S. participation in World War I. He graduated from the Infantry Officers' Course in 1924. Kilburn was a 1932 graduate of the Cavalry Officers' Advanced Course. They were identified as a private in the 9th Cavalry Regiment and a woman employed as a maid at Fort Riley. and from April until August 1941 he was assigned to the War Plans Section of the War Department General Staff. During the Battle of the Bulge, the 11th Armored Division executed a forced march to the Meuse and took up the defense of a 30-mile sector from Givet to Sedan. Kilburn lost communications with his subordinate units during the attack, and his superiors, Troy H. Middleton and George S. Patton decided to replace him

Post-World War II In June 1945, a month after the end of World War II in Europe, Kilburn, relinquished his wartime rank of brigadier general and reverted to the permanent rank of colonel. In addition, they elected him the honorary president of the 11th Division Veterans Association. In the 1950s he served as Larkspur's civil defense director. At an August 1954 meeting of the 11th Armored Division Veterans Association, Kilburn and Willard Ames Holbrook Jr., who had succeeded Kilburn as wartime commander of the 11th Armored's Combat Command A, received commissions as Kentucky Colonels from Lieutenant Governor Emerson Beauchamp.

In addition to his civil defense work, Kilburn was also involved in civic and charitable efforts, including raising funds for The Salvation Army in Marin County, California. Kilburn died in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California on December 31, 1978, at the age of 83. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.