Henry C. Newcomer

Henry C. Newcomer (April 3, 1861 – December 3, 1952) was a career officer in the United States Army. A member of the Corps of Engineers, he served from 1886 until 1925, and specialized in rivers and harbors construction. A veteran of World War I, he attained the rank of brigadier general. During his career, Newcomer commanded Company E, 2nd Engineer Battalion and the 3rd Engineer Battalion, in addition to serving as assistant director of the Chemical Warfare Service during the First World War.

A native of Upton, Pennsylvania, Newcomer was raised in Upton, Martinsburg, West Virginia, and Mount Morris, Illinois. After attending Mount Morris College, in 1882, he was appointed to the United States Military Academy (West Point). He graduated in 1886 ranked first in his class, and was commissioned in the Corps of Engineers. Newcomer's initial assignments included improvement to the harbor defenses of San Francisco Bay and assistant professor of engineering at West Point. From 1896 to 1900, he planned and oversaw execution of improvements to navigation and flood control on the Mississippi River. From 1900 to 1903, he was assistant to the engineering commissioner for Washington, D.C.'s city government, and from 1903 to 1904, he commanded Company E, 2nd Engineer Battalion.

Newcomer's later postings included chief engineer of the Corps of Engineers' Central Division, which was based in Pittsburgh. From 1916 to 1918, Newcomer served in the office of the Chief of Engineers. From August 1918 to January 1919, he performed World War I service as assistant director of the Chemical Warfare Service. After the war, Newcomer was assigned as chief engineer of the Hawaiian Engineer District and commander of the 3rd Engineer Battalion. Newcomer retired in 1925. He died in Washington, D.C. on December 3, 1952. Newcomer was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Early life Henry Clay Newcomer was born in April 1861 Upton, Pennsylvania, a son of Dr. David Newcomer, a Union Army veteran of the American Civil War, and Mary Shelley (Funk) Newcomer. Newcomer was raised and educated in Upton, Martinsburg, West Virginia, and Mount Morris, Illinois as his father moved the family while searching for a permanent place to locate his medical practice. As a teenager, Newcomer clerked in a drug store and taught school.

In July 1886, Newcomer graduated from West Point, ranked first in his class of 77. As with most top-ranking cadets of his day, Newcomer was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Corps of Engineers of the United States Army. More than 30 percent of Newcomer's class attained the rank of brigadier general or higher either before, during, or just after World War I. They included: Mason Patrick, Thomas H. Rees, Lucien G. Berry, Frank McIntyre, John E. McMahon, Avery D. Andrews, Charles T. Menoher, Albert D. Kniskern, Charles C. Wolcutt Jr., John J. Pershing, Peter E. Traub, Benjamin A. Poore, Jesse McI. Carter, Chauncey B. Baker, Malvern Hill Barnum, William H. Hay, James H. McRae, Walter H. Gordon, Arthur Johnson, Frank L. Winn, Charles C. Ballou, George B. Duncan, Lucius L. Durfee, Julius Penn and Edward M. Lewis.

Start of career From September 1886 to August 1889, Newcomer was posted to Fort Totten, New York's Engineer School of Application, where he was an instructor in submarine mining. From 1903 to 1904, he commanded Company E, 2nd Engineer Battalion. Henry Sidney Newcomer, known as Sidney, was a World War I veteran who became a prominent scientist, physician, and inventor. Francis K. Newcomer was a career army officer who attained the rank of brigadier general. David Albert Newcomer was also a career army officer had reached the rank of colonel before being killed in action in 1944.

Henry Crandall Newcomer, the son of H. Sidney Newcomer, was a United States Air Force officer and retired as a brigadier general. Francis Kosier Newcomer Jr. was a career army officer who retired as a colonel.