Joshua Chamberlain Early life and education Where was Chamberlin born Chamberlain was born in Brewer, Maine, Who was his mother and father Sarah Dupee (nee Brastow) and Joshua Chamberlain What day was he born on September 8, 1828. What was unique about chamberlins family tree Chamberlain was of English ancestry, and could trace his family line back to twelfth century England, during the reign of King Stephen. Did he have any family He was the oldest of five children. It is said that he was his mother's favorite while his father was tough on him.
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Chamberlain was born in Brewer, Maine, the son of Sarah Dupee (nee Brastow) and Joshua Chamberlain on September 8, 1828. Chamberlain was of English ancestry, and could trace his family line back to twelfth century England, during the reign of King Stephen. He was the oldest of five children. It is said that he was his mother's favorite while his father was tough on him. He was very involved in his church, mostly singing in the choir. His mother encouraged him to become a preacher while his father wanted him to join the military, but he felt a reluctance towards both options. He suffered a speech impediment until shortly after graduating from Bowdoin College. He entered Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, in 1848 with the help of a local tutor, professor William Hyde. Chamberlain learned to read Ancient Greek and Latin in order to pass the entrance exam. While at Bowdoin he met many people who would influence his life, including Harriet Beecher Stowe, the wife of Bowdoin professor Calvin Stowe. Chamberlain would often go to listen to her read passages from what would later become her celebrated novel, Uncle Tom's Cabin. He also joined the Peucinian Society, a group of students with Federalist leanings. A member of the Phi Beta Kappa academic honor society and a brother of the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity, Chamberlain graduated in 1852.  He married Fanny Adams, cousin and adopted daughter of a local clergyman, in 1855, and they had five children, one of whom was born too prematurely to survive and two of whom died in infancy. Chamberlain studied for three additional years at Bangor Theological Seminary in Bangor, Maine, returned to Bowdoin, and began a career in education as a professor of rhetoric. He eventually went on to teach every subject in the curriculum with the exception of science and mathematics. In 1861 he was appointed Professor of Modern Languages. He was fluent in nine languages other than English: Greek, Latin, Spanish, German, French, Italian, Arabic, Hebrew, and Syriac.  Chamberlain's great-grandfathers were soldiers in the American Revolutionary War. One, Franklin Chamberlain, was a sergeant at the Siege of Yorktown. His grandfather, also named Joshua Chamberlain, was a colonel in the local militia during the War of 1812 and was court-martialed (but exonerated) for his part in the humiliating Battle of Hampden, which led to the sacking of Bangor and Brewer by British forces. His father also had served during the abortive Aroostook War of 1839. CANNOTANSWER
His mother encouraged him to become a preacher while his father wanted him to join the military, but he felt a reluctance towards both options.
Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain (born Lawrence Joshua Chamberlain, September 8, 1828February 24, 1914) was an American college professor from Maine who volunteered during the American Civil War to join the Union Army. He became a highly respected and decorated Union officer, reaching the rank of brigadier general (and brevet major general). He is best known for his gallantry at the Battle of Gettysburg, for which he was awarded the Medal of Honor.

Chamberlain was commissioned a lieutenant colonel in the 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment in 1862, and fought at the Battle of Fredericksburg. He became commander of the regiment in June 1863 when losses at the Battle of Chancellorsville elevated the original commander, Colonel Adelbert Ames, to brigade command. During the second day's fighting at Gettysburg on July 2, Chamberlain's regiment occupied the extreme left of the Union lines at Little Round Top. Chamberlain's men withstood repeated assaults from the 15th Alabama Infantry Regiment and finally drove the Confederates away with a downhill bayonet charge. Chamberlain was severely wounded while commanding a brigade during the Second Battle of Petersburg in June 1864, and was given what was intended to be a deathbed promotion to brigadier general. In April 1865, he fought at the Battle of Five Forks and was given the honor of commanding the Union troops at the surrender ceremony for the infantry of Robert E. Lee's Army at Appomattox Court House, Virginia.

After the war, he entered politics as a Republican and served four one-year terms of office as the 32nd Governor of Maine from 1867 to 1871. After leaving office, he returned to his alma mater, Bowdoin College, serving as its president until 1883. He died in 1914 at age 85 due to complications from the wound that he received at Petersburg.

Early life and education
Chamberlain was born in Brewer, Maine, the son of Sarah Dupee (née Brastow) and Joshua Chamberlain, on September 8, 1828.  Chamberlain was of English ancestry and could trace his family line back to twelfth-century England, during the reign of King Stephen. Chamberlain's great-grandfather Ebenezer, was a New Hampshire soldier in the French and Indian War, and the American Revolutionary War. Chamberlain's grandfather Joshua, was a ship builder, and colonel during the War of 1812, before moving his family to a Brewer farm in 1817. Chamberlain's father Joshua served as a lieutenant-colonel in the Aroostook War.

Chamberlain was the first of five children.  His father named him after James Lawrence, and favored a military career for his son, while Chamberlain's mother wanted him to become a minister. Chamberlain became a member of the Congregational Church in Brewer in the mid-1840s, and attended Major Whiting's military academy in Ellsworth.  Chamberlain then taught himself Greek so he could be admitted to Bowdoin College in 1848. At college, Chamberlain was a member of the Peucinian Society, Phi Beta Kappa, and the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity. He taught Sunday school in Brunswick during his freshman and sophomore years, and led the choir at the Congregational Church-First Parish Church during his Junior and Senior years. Chamberlain graduated in 1852, then entered the Bangor Theological Seminary for three years of study.  Besides studying in Latin and German, Chamberlain eventually mastered French, Arabic, Hebrew and Syriac.

On 7 December 1855, Chamberlain married Fanny Adams, cousin and adopted daughter of a local clergyman.  Their first child was a girl named Grace Dupee, born on 16 October 1856.  Their son Harold Wylls was born on 10 October 1858.  A second and fourth child died early. In the fall of 1855, Chamberlain returned to Bowdoin, and began a career in education, first as an instructor in logic and natural theology, then as professor of rhetoric and oratory. He eventually went on to teach every subject in the curriculum with the exception of science and mathematics. In 1861 he was appointed professor of modern languages, which he held until 1865.

American Civil War

Early career

At the beginning of the American Civil War, Chamberlain believed the Union needed to be supported against the Confederacy by all those willing. On several occasions, Chamberlain spoke freely of his beliefs during his class, urging students to follow their hearts in regards to the war while maintaining that the cause was just. Of his desire to serve in the War, he wrote to Maine's Governor Israel Washburn, Jr., "I fear, this war, so costly of blood and treasure, will not cease until men of the North are willing to leave good positions, and sacrifice the dearest personal interests, to rescue our country from desolation, and defend the national existence against treachery." Many faculty at Bowdoin did not feel his enthusiasm for various reasons and Chamberlain was subsequently granted a leave of absence (supposedly to study languages for two years in Europe). He then promptly enlisted unbeknownst to those at Bowdoin and his family. Offered the colonelcy of the 20th Maine Regiment, he declined, according to his biographer, John J. Pullen, preferring to "start a little lower and learn the business first." He was appointed lieutenant colonel of the regiment on August 8, 1862, under the command of Col. Adelbert Ames. The 20th was assigned to the 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, V Corps in the Union Army of the Potomac.  One of Chamberlain's younger brothers, Thomas Chamberlain, was also an officer of the 20th Maine, and another, John Chamberlain, visited the regiment at Gettysburg as a member of the U.S. Christian Commission until appointed as a chaplain in another Maine Volunteer regiment.
The 20th Maine fought at the Battle of Fredericksburg, suffering relatively small numbers of casualties in the assaults on Marye's Heights, but were forced to spend a miserable night on the freezing battlefield among the many wounded from other regiments. Chamberlain chronicled this night well in his diary and went to great length discussing his having to use bodies of the fallen for shelter and a pillow while listening to the bullets zip into the corpses.
The 20th missed the Battle of Chancellorsville in May 1863 due to an outbreak of smallpox in their ranks (which was caused by an errant smallpox vaccine), keeping them on guard duty in the rear. Chamberlain was promoted to colonel of the regiment in June 1863 upon the promotion of Ames.

Battle of Gettysburg

Chamberlain became most famous for his achievements during the Battle of Gettysburg. On July 2, the second day of the battle, Union forces were recovering from initial setbacks and hastily regrouping into defensive positions on a line of hills south of the town. Sensing the momentary vulnerability of the Union forces, the Confederates began an attack against the Union left flank. Chamberlain's brigade, commanded by Col. Strong Vincent, was sent to defend Little Round Top by the army's Chief of Engineers, Brig. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren. Chamberlain found himself and the 20th Maine at the far left end of the entire Union line. He quickly understood the strategic significance of the small hill, and the need for the 20th Maine to hold the Union left at all costs. The men from Maine waited until troops from the 15th Alabama Infantry Regiment, commanded by Col. William C. Oates, charged up the hill, attempting to flank the Union position. Time and time again the Confederates struck, until the 20th Maine was almost doubled back upon itself. With many casualties and ammunition running low, Col. Chamberlain recognized the dire circumstances and ordered his left wing (which was now looking southeast, compared to the rest of the regiment, which was facing west) to initiate a bayonet charge. From his report of the day: "At that crisis, I ordered the bayonet. The word was enough." While battlefield conditions make it unlikely that many men heard Chamberlain's order, most historians believe he initiated the charge.

The 20th Maine charged down the hill, with the left wing wheeling continually to make the charging line swing like a hinge, thus creating a simultaneous frontal assault and flanking maneuver, capturing 101 of the Confederate soldiers and successfully saving the flank. This version of the battle was popularized by the book The Killer Angels and the movie Gettysburg. Chamberlain sustained one slight wound in the battle, one when a shot hit his sword scabbard and bruised his thigh. Chamberlain also personally took a Confederate prisoner with his saber during the charge. After initiating the maneuver, he came upon a Confederate officer wielding a revolver who quickly fired, narrowly missing his face. Chamberlain remained steadfast, and with his sword at the officer's throat accepted the man's arms and surrender. The pistol Chamberlain captured at Gettysburg can still be seen on display in the Civil War exhibit of the Maine State Museum. For his tenacity at defending Little Round Top, he was known by the sobriquet Lion of the Round Top. Prior to the battle, Chamberlain was quite ill, developing malaria and dysentery. Later, due to this illness, he was taken off active duty until he recovered.

For his "daring heroism and great tenacity in holding his position on the Little Round Top against repeated assaults, and carrying the advance position on the Great Round Top", Chamberlain was awarded the Medal of Honor.

Medal of Honor citation

Siege of Petersburg

In April 1864, Chamberlain returned to the Army of the Potomac and was promoted to brigade commander shortly before the Siege of Petersburg and given command of the 1st Brigade, First Division, V Corps. In a major action on June 18, during the Second Battle of Petersburg, Chamberlain was shot through the right hip and groin, the bullet exiting his left hip. Despite the injury, Chamberlain withdrew his sword and stuck it into the ground in order to keep himself upright to dissuade the growing resolve for retreat. He stood upright for several minutes until he collapsed and lay unconscious from loss of blood. The wound was considered mortal by the division's surgeon, who predicted he would perish; Chamberlain's incorrectly recorded death in battle was reported in the Maine newspapers, and Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant gave Chamberlain a battlefield promotion to the rank of brigadier general after receiving an urgent recommendation on June 19 from corps commander Maj. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren: "He has been recommended for promotion for gallant and efficient conduct on previous occasion and yesterday led his brigade against the enemy under most destructive fire. He expresses the wish that he may receive the recognition of his services by promotion before he dies for the gratification of his family and friends." Not expected to live, Chamberlain displayed surprising will and courage, and with the support of his brother Tom, was back in command by November. Although many, including his wife Fanny, urged Chamberlain to resign, he was determined to serve through the end of the war.

In early 1865, Chamberlain regained command of the 1st Brigade of the 1st Division of V Corps, and he continued to act with courage and resolve. On March 29, 1865, his brigade participated in a major skirmish on the Quaker Road during Grant's final advance that would finish the war. Despite losses, another wound (in the left arm and chest that almost caused amputation), and nearly being captured, Chamberlain was successful and brevetted to the rank of major general by President Abraham Lincoln. Chamberlain gained the name "Bloody Chamberlain" at Quaker Road. Chamberlain kept a Bible and framed picture of his wife in his left front "chest" pocket. When a Confederate shot at Chamberlain, the bullet went through his horse's neck, hit the picture frame, entered under Chamberlain's skin in the front of his chest, traveled around his body under the skin along the rib, and exited his back. To all observers Union and Confederate, it appeared that he was shot through his chest. He continued to encourage his men to attack.

Appomattox

On the morning of April 9, 1865, Chamberlain learned of the desire by General Robert E. Lee to surrender the Army of Northern Virginia when a Confederate staff officer approached him under a flag of truce. "Sir," he reported to Chamberlain, "I am from General Gordon. General Lee desires a cessation of hostilities until he can hear from General Grant as to the proposed surrender." The next day, Chamberlain was summoned to Union headquarters where Maj. Gen. Charles Griffin informed him that he had been selected to preside over the parade of the Confederate infantry as part of their formal surrender at Appomattox Court House on April 12.

Chamberlain was thus responsible for one of the most poignant scenes of the American Civil War. As the Confederate soldiers marched down the road to surrender their arms and colors, Chamberlain, on his own initiative, ordered his men to come to attention and "carry arms" as a show of respect. In memoirs written forty years after the event, Chamberlain described what happened next:

Chamberlain stated that his salute to the Confederate soldiers was unpopular with many Unionists, but he defended his action in his posthumously published 1915 memoir The Passing of the Armies. Many years later, Gordon, in his own memoirs, called Chamberlain "one of the knightliest soldiers of the Federal Army." Gordon never mentioned the anecdote until after he read Chamberlain's account, more than 40 years later.

In his book Hymns of the Republic: The Story of the Final Year of the American Civil War, S. C. Gwynne states that this particular account is "one of the most cherished of the bogus Appomattox stories", claiming that "there is no convincing evidence that it ever happened" and that "none of the thirty thousand other people who saw the surrender noted any such event" (p. 298). "The source was Chamberlain, a true hero and, also, in subsequent years, one of the great embellishers of the war. His memoirs are an adjectival orgy, often reflecting the world as he wanted it to be instead of the way it was. For one thing, he did not command the troops at the ceremony, as he claimed, and thus couldn’t order the men to salute. His story, moreover, changed significantly over the years." Gwynne also states that "Its staying power was mostly rooted in the fact that Gordon never refuted it. The rebel general apparently liked it, and it reflected well on him, as the time went by Gordon added his own liberal embellishments, including the suggestion that Lee himself had led the Army through town. The two generals would clearly have preferred this distinctly Walter Scott-like sequence, described in countless books and memoirs, to the decidedly less romantic one that actually took place." Gywnne's cited reference for this disclosure is Lee's Last Retreat by William Marvel (pp. 194–95).

In all, Chamberlain served in 20 battles and numerous skirmishes, was cited for bravery four times, had six horses shot from under him, and was wounded six times.

Post-war service

 
Chamberlain left the U.S. Army soon after the war ended, going back to his home state of Maine. Due to his immense popularity, he served as Governor of Maine for four one-year terms after he won election as a Republican. His victory in 1866 set the record for the most votes and the highest percentage for any Maine governor by that time. He would break his own record in 1868. During his time in office, he was attacked by those angered by his support for capital punishment and by his refusal to create a special police force to enforce the prohibition of alcohol.

After leaving political office, he returned to Bowdoin College. He was originally offered the presidency of the new state university in Orono, but declined, hoping for the same position at his alma mater. That came in 1871, he was appointed president of Bowdoin and remained in that position until 1883, when he was forced to resign because of ill health from his war wounds. He also served as an ex-officio trustee of nearby Bates College from 1867 to 1871.

In January 1880, there was a dispute about who was the newly elected governor of Maine, and the Maine State House was occupied by a band of armed men. The outgoing governor, Alonzo Garcelon, summoned Chamberlain, the commander of the Maine Militia, to take charge. Chamberlain sent home the armed men, and arranged for the Augusta police to keep control. He stayed in the State House most of the twelve-day period until the Maine Supreme Judicial Court's decision on the election results was known. During this time, there were threats of assassination and kidnapping, and on one occasion, he went outside to face down a crowd of 25–30 men intending to kill him, and both sides offered bribes to appoint him a United States senator. Having gratified neither side in the dispute, he did not become a senator, and his career in state politics ended.

Later life
After resigning from Bowdoin in 1883, he went to New York City to practice law. Chamberlain served as Surveyor of the Port of Portland, Maine, a federal appointment, and engaged in business activities, including real estate dealings in Florida (1885) and a college of art in New York, as well as hotels. He traveled to the West Coast to work on railroad building and public improvements. From the time of his serious wound in 1864 until his death, he was forced to wear an early form of a catheter with a bag and underwent six operations to try to correct the original wound and stop the fevers and infections that plagued him, without success.

In 1893, 30 years after the battle that made the 20th Maine famous, Chamberlain was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions at Gettysburg. The citation commends him for his "Daring heroism and great tenacity in holding his position on the Little Round Top against repeated assaults, and carrying the advance position on the Great Round Top." As in many other Civil War actions, controversy arose when one of his subordinate officers stated that Chamberlain never actually ordered a charge at Gettysburg. The claim never seriously affected Chamberlain's fame or notability however. This original medal was lost, and later rediscovered in 2013, and donated to the Pejepscot Historical Society in Brunswick, Maine. A second, redesigned medal issued in 1904 is currently housed at Bowdoin College.
[Note: In 1898, Chamberlain at the age of 70 and afflicted with his multiple Civil War wound disabilities, offered his services to the nation again volunteering to command US Army forces in the Spanish American War. Despite persistent efforts with Acting Secretary Alger in the War Department and the President he was denied the opportunity due to his health issues. Ironically, his principal opponent at Gettysburg, former Colonel William C. Oates CSA (15th Alabama Regiment), was appointed in his place as a Brigadier General of US Volunteers.]

In 1905, Chamberlain became a founding member of the Maine Institution for the Blind, in Portland, now called The Iris Network. Chamberlain's wife herself was visually impaired, which led him to serve on the organization's first board of directors.

Beginning with his first election as governor of Maine and continuing to the end of his life, Chamberlain was active in the Grand Army of the Republic. Despite continual pain and discomfort from his wounds of 1864, he made many return visits to Gettysburg and delivered speeches at soldiers' reunions. He made his last known visit on May 16 and 17, 1913, while involved in planning the 50th anniversary reunion. Because of deteriorating health, he was unable to attend the reunion less than two months later.

Death
Chamberlain died of his lingering wartime wounds in 1914 in Portland, Maine, at the age of eighty-five. He is interred at Pine Grove Cemetery in Brunswick, Maine. Beside him as he died was Dr. Abner O. Shaw of Portland, one of the two surgeons who had operated on him in Petersburg 50 years previously. A full study of his medical history strongly suggests that it was complications from the wound suffered at Petersburg that resulted in his death. He was the last Civil War veteran to die as a result of wounds from the war and considered by some the last casualty of the war.

Legacy

Chamberlain's home, located across Maine Street from the Bowdoin College campus, is now the Joshua L. Chamberlain Museum and is owned by the Pejepscot Historical Society, which maintains an extensive research collection on Chamberlain. Memorabilia on display include the minié ball that almost ended his life at Petersburg, his original Medal of Honor, and Don Troiani's original painting of the charge at Little Round Top. Tours of the home are conducted by volunteer docents from late May until mid-October.

US Route 1A is carried across the Penobscot River between Bangor and Brewer, Maine by the Joshua Chamberlain Bridge, a two-lane steel plate girder bridge opened on November 11, 1954.

The village of Chamberlain, Maine, in the town of Bristol, is named for him.

Medal of Honor
In September 2013, the original Medal of Honor awarded to Chamberlain in 1893 was donated to the Pejepscot Historical Society, which owns the Joshua L. Chamberlain Museum in Brunswick, after being authenticated by the Maine State Museum, the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institution, and the Awards and Decorations Branch of the Department of the Army. The donor, who chose to remain anonymous, found it in the back of a book bought during a church sale at the First Parish Church in Duxbury, Massachusetts; Chamberlain's granddaughter Rosamond Allen, his last surviving descendant, had donated her estate to that church upon her death in 2000. Chamberlain's alma mater of Bowdoin College has a 1904 Medal of Honor belonging to Chamberlain in its possession. The original 1893 medal is on display at the Chamberlain Museum.

Bibliography

 Maine, Her Place in History, his speech at the Centennial Exhibition (1877)
 Ethics and Politics of the Spanish War (1898)
 Universities and Their Sons, editor (1898)
 Property: Its Office and Sanction (1900)
 De Monts and Acadia (1904)
 Ruling Powers in History (1905)
 The Passing of the Armies (1915)
A special edition of his Paris report on "Education in Europe" was published by the United States government (Washington, 1879).

Command history
Lieutenant Colonel (second in command under Adelbert Ames), 20th Maine (August 8, 1862)
Colonel, commanding 20th Maine (May 20, 1863)
Commanding 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, V Corps (August 26 – November 19, 1863)
Commanding 1st Brigade (June 6–18, 1864)
Brigadier General of Volunteers (June 18, 1864)
Commanding 1st Brigade (November 19, 1864 – January 5, 1865)
Commanding 1st Brigade (February 27 – April 11, 1865)
Brevet Major General of Volunteers (March 29, 1865)
Commanding 1st Division (April 20 – June 28, 1865)
Commanding 1st Brigade, 3rd Division, Wright's Provisional Corps, Middle Department (June 28 – July, 1865)
Mustered out of volunteer service (January 15, 1866)

In popular culture
Chamberlain emerged as a key character in Michael Shaara's Pulitzer Prize–winning historical novel about Gettysburg, The Killer Angels (1974), and in a prequel novel by his son, Jeff Shaara, Gods and Generals (1996). Chamberlain is portrayed by actor Jeff Daniels in the films Gettysburg (1993) and Gods and Generals (2003), based on the books. His portrayal in these books and films significantly enhanced Chamberlain's reputation in the general public, making him into a more popular and well known figure.

Tom Eishen's historical novel Courage on Little Round Top is a detailed look at Chamberlain as well as Robert Wicker, the young Confederate officer who fired his pistol at Chamberlain's head during the 20th Maine's historic charge down Little Round Top.

Ken Burns's 1990 nine-part PBS film The Civil War featured Chamberlain prominently.

Steve Earle's song "Dixieland" from his album The Mountain refers to Chamberlain and the Battle of Gettysburg:

The book The Lost Regiment and the subsequent series by author William R. Forstchen chronicle the adventures of the "35th Maine", a Union regiment from Maine having been transported to an alien planet. The regiment was based on the 20th Maine, with the main character and commander of the regiment, Andrew Lawrence Keane, also being a college professor.

In the alternate history 2003 novel Gettysburg: A Novel of the Civil War, written by Forstchen and Newt Gingrich, Chamberlain is featured as a character.  In the book, an alternate history of the Civil War, Chamberlain makes a heroic stand similar to the real life battle on Little Round Top.  Unlike in real life, Chamberlain is overwhelmed, wounded, and forced to surrender, but he survives and returns in the third book of the series, Never Call Retreat (2005).

A musical, Chamberlain: A Civil War Romance, with book and lyrics by Sarah Knapp and music by Steven M. Alper was commissioned by Maine State Music Theatre in 1993 and received its premiere at that theatre in July, 1996. That production starred Mark Jacoby as Chamberlain and Sarah Knapp as Fannie Chamberlain. It was revived in a revised form by Maine State in 2014. According to its bookwriter, the musical is "an exploration of the perennial conflict between public duty and private devotion. This musical ... not only celebrates a great Civil War hero, but also examines a universal theme: How a person's sense of duty and destiny affect his personal life."

Another Forstchen work, "A Hard Day For Mother", is a short story from the first volume in the variety anthology series Alternate Generals edited by Harry Turtledove. That work is based on the premise of: "what if Chamberlain was on the Confederate side at Gettysburg?" The story assumes that a decade before the outbreak of the Civil War Chamberlain had taken a teaching job at a Virginia military academy and developed a love for the state of Virginia; that with the outbreak of war he joined the Confederate side under Robert E. Lee; that in Gettysburg he gained the Little Round Top for the Confederacy, fighting against his own brother Tom commanding the 20th Maine; that thereby Chamberlain won the battle and the entire war for the Confederacy; that he later remained in the independent Confederacy and was eventually elected its President; and that his reconciliatory attitude towards the North led to Confederacy and the United States eventually holding referendums and freely deciding to re-unite in 1914, following Chamberlain's death.

On the Showtime TV series Homeland, the character Nicholas Brody tells his family the story of Chamberlain, encouraging them to emulate him.

In the song "Ballad of the 20th Maine" by The Ghost of Paul Revere (Maine's official state ballad):
The book Percy Jackson and the Sea Of Monsters by author Rick Riordan hints at Chamberlain being a demigod, stating that he single-handedly changed the course of the civil war.

See also

 List of Medal of Honor recipients for the Battle of Gettysburg
 List of American Civil War Medal of Honor recipients: A–F
 List of American Civil War generals (Union)

References

Citations

General references

Further reading

 Rasbach, Dennis A. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain and the Petersburg Campaign: His Supposed Charge from Fort Hell, his Near-Mortal Wound, and a Civil War Myth Reconsidered. El Dorado Hills, CA: Savas Beatie, 2016. .

External links

 Joshua Chamberlain Seeks Assistance for Jaffa Adams Colonists, 1867 Shapell Manuscript Foundation
 Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain Digital Archive at Bowdoin College
 Chamberlain-Adams Family Papers. Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University.
 www.joshualawrencechamberlain.com A collection of primary resources
 Index to Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain's Pages
 Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain Biography
 Joshua Chamberlain: Maine's Favorite Son
 Tribute to Major General Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain
 Joshua L. Chamberlain, a Biographical Essay
 Medal of Honor recipients on Film
 Joshua L. Chamberlain Museum in Brunswick, Maine Managed by the Pejepscot Historical Society
 The Iris Network (formerly the Maine Institution for the Blind)
 

1828 births
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19th-century American politicians
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Historians of the American Civil War
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Clarence Duncan Chamberlin (November 11, 1893 – October 31, 1976) was an American pioneer of aviation, being the second man to pilot a fixed-wing aircraft across the Atlantic Ocean, from New York to the European mainland, while carrying the first transatlantic passenger.

Early years
Clarence Duncan Chamberlin was born on November 11, 1893, in the small town of Denison, Iowa, to Elzie Clarence and Jessie Duncan Chamberlin. Elzie, or "EC" as he was known around Denison, was the local jeweler and the owner of the first automobile in Denison. This automobile was notorious throughout Crawford County for the racket it emitted while in operation. Indeed, maintenance of the vehicle was a near constant endeavor; however, it was in maintaining the family automobile that Chamberlin first developed an interest in all things mechanical. Additionally, he found great delight in using his mechanical skills to repair the clocks and watches that would be brought into his father's jewelry shop on an almost daily basis. It was also in Denison that Chamberlin would see his first airplane, an early pusher type plane, which had put on a show for a Firemen's Convention that had been held in Denison. From that moment, a desire grew within Chamberlin to one day take to the skies.

Schooling
After completing his education in the Denison Public Schools system in 1912, he enrolled at the Denison Normal and Business College. While at Denison Normal and Business College, Chamberlin took college prep courses to help him in his pursuit of a degree in Electrical Engineering at Iowa State College in Ames, Iowa. During his time at the College, in addition to his classes and in order to pay for those classes, Chamberlin worked nights as a tender for the Ft. Dodge, Des Moines, and Southern Railroad Company in the railroad's electrical power sub-station in Ankeny, Iowa. In order to do this, Chamberlin found himself forced to live on trains, where he would study, eat, and sleep during travel between work and classes. However, in 1914, Chamberlin, as a college sophomore, left Denison Normal and Business College, to run a Harley-Davidson dealership in town.

Before World War I
Under the control of Chamberlin, the Harley-Davidson dealership thrived. As the owner of the dealership, Chamberlin had the opportunity to utilize his mechanical knowledge to both repair and sell the motorcycles. In 1915, Chamberlin was offered a job by Charles W. Tabor, one of Denison's more prominent citizens, to serve as a chauffeur on a six-month trip through the southwest and to San Francisco for the World's Fair.

It was on this six-month trip that Chamberlin would discover (and rediscover) two of his lifelong loves. In addition to meeting Wilda Bogert of Independence, Iowa, who would later become his wife; it was in San Francisco that Chamberlin would rediscover his passion for flying. It was in San Francisco that Chamberlin saw his second airplane, an early style flying boat that was carrying passengers at $25.00 per head. When he told Tabor of his intention to take a ride on the plane, Tabor replied "You can risk your fool neck in one of those some other time, but right now I've got a lot more places on the coast that I want to visit, what's more, I don't intend looking around for another driver to get me back home." While the opportunity was lost, the passion was not.

When he returned to Denison in 1916, he expanded the motorcycle business by adding a line of REO automobiles and Diamond tires to his dealership. In addition to hiring two more staff members, Chamberlin added a service station for cars, motorcycles, and tire repair. Tire repair ended up being the most profitable aspect of the business.

World War I
In 1917, Chamberlin decided to finally pursue his dream of flying. On Thanksgiving Day, he traveled to Omaha where he enlisted with the Army Signal Corps as an aviator. However, he was told that aviation was too crowded at that time, and he was encouraged to pursue a career as a military balloonist. Chamberlin declined; he didn't want to float, he wanted to fly. Returning to Denison, he waited for a position to open up at the military's flying school. His dream to become an aviator would finally come true on March 16, 1918, when he received orders to report to the School of Military Aeronautics at Champaign, Illinois, where the Aviation Ground School had been established at the University of Illinois.

Following his time at the Ground School, he reported to Chanute Field, Illinois, where he continued his aviation education. Chamberlin's flying ability progressed rapidly under the tutelage of his military instructors and on July 15, 1918, Chamberlin received a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Army Signal Corps. Soon after his promotion he became an instructor himself until November 1, 1918, when he received orders to proceed to Hoboken, New Jersey, where he would await his deployment overseas. When he arrived in Hoboken on November 11 he was greeted by the news that the Great War had ended.

Return to Denison
On January 2, 1919, Chamberlin married his sweetheart, Wilda Bogert and then later that year on July 2, he was honorably discharged from military service. By the time of his discharge, he had come to the realization that aviation was something he wanted to do for the rest of his life. Acting upon this realization, he ordered a newly designed airplane by famed aviator Giuseppe Mario Bellanca for $4,000. However, this plane would not be completely constructed or delivered for another 14 months, so, upon the urging of his father, Chamberlin returned to Denison to help run the family jewelry store. However, Chamberlin soon grew tired of the jewelry business and expanded the store's inventory to include "talking machines" which he eventually found himself traveling around the county selling. For all intents and purposes, Chamberlin was content until one day he heard an airplane flying overhead. Upon running outside to catch a glimpse of the plane, he decided that his was not a life destined to run a jewelry store or to sell "talking machines;" he could no longer deny that flying was in his blood. That next spring Chamberlin closed his bank account and, along with his wife, moved back east to await the delivery of his long-awaited plane.

Barnstorming
When the Bellanca Model CE airplane finally arrived, Chamberlin discovered that while it had a smaller engine than he had expected, it could fly faster, land slower, and even carry a passenger beside the pilot. It was with this plane that he hoped to make a living "barnstorming" across the country. "Barnstorming" involved flying over towns at low altitudes multiple times to catch the attention of the townsfolk. When the pilot finally landed, usually in an open field near the town, the townsfolk would oftentimes come out to see the pilot who would then give folks the opportunity to go up in his plane, for a price of course. Chamberlin, for straight and easy flying, charged $15 per ride, and for the more daring who wanted "the works" his price was $25.

Eventually, his Bellanca did catch on fire; luckily, he had insurance on the plane and they gave him a standard biplane to replace his burned out Bellanca. To supplement his income from "barnstorming" and to help cover his many expenses, Chamberlin worked as a flight instructor, an air-mail pilot, and an aerial photographer. Additionally, he and a partner would buy surplus Army planes, restore them, and then sell them and split the profits. However, all of these sources of income proved barely enough to keep up with his and his wife's expenses. Yet, fortune would soon smile upon them in the form of aviation success.

The endurance record and the Orteig Prize

During his years as a barnstormer, Chamberlin had earned a reputation across the country as a hot shot pilot due to his superb performances in several air races around the country. Even a rather spectacular incident in the 1925 New York International Air Races, where he had crashed his plane after striking some telephone wires, served only to enhance his credibility with the American public. Yet Chamberlin aspired to even greater heights of public fame; he wanted to win the Orteig Prize, a $25,000 reward offered by New York hotel owner Raymond Orteig to the first aviator(s) to fly non-stop from New York City to Paris. However, before he could attempt such a flight, he needed to show that he could stay up in the air long enough to cover the 3,530 miles from NYC to Paris. Chamberlin would do this by breaking the endurance record for flight, which at that time, was held by Drouhin and Landry of France who had stayed in the air for 45 hours, 11 minutes, and 59 seconds of continual flight.

On Tuesday, April 12, 1927, Chamberlin, along with friend and fellow aviator Bert Acosta, took off from Roosevelt Field in New York at 9:30 a.m. Loaded with 375 gallons of fuel and other necessities, the Bellanca-Wright plane (which would later be renamed the "Miss Columbia") cruised back and forth over Long Island, New York. While the flight was marred with difficulties, including accidentally triggered gasoline cut-off valves and a lack of water for the pilots, it ultimately proved successful. On April 14, 51 hours, 11 minutes, and 25 seconds after takeoff, Chamberlin and Acosta finally landed having exceeded the Frenchmen's record by nearly 6 hours. "The craft had flown approximately 4,100 miles, about 500 miles further than that needed for a New York to Paris flight and the $25,000 Raymond Orteig Prize." However, as Chamberlin so bluntly stated, "Bert and I had won a record, but had not won the right to fly the Bellanca to Paris."

"Miss Columbia"

The "Miss Columbia" was the monoplane Wright-Bellanca WB-2 which Chamberlin would use to break the endurance record for flight in 1927 and later that same year make his famous trans-Atlantic flight. The plane was designed by Giuseppe Bellanca who had been commissioned by the Wright Aeronautical Corporation to produce a plane for their new J-5 "Whirlwind" engine. While the Wright-Bellanca, as it was referred to in its early days, appeared to be "just another straightforward high-wing monoplane with clean if rather angular lines" it, unlike others of its class, was able to lift a huge payload. This was due mainly to two features: "a profiled fuselage and wide aerofoil-section wing struts, both [of which] contribut[ed] considerably to [the plane's] total lift.

Prior to Chamberlin's successful endurance flight, the Wright-Bellanca was purchased by Charles A. Levine, the wealthy, millionaire salvage dealer and the president of the Columbia Aircraft Corporation. However, Charles Lindbergh himself tried to buy the plane before Chamberlin's endurance flight. Levine refused Lindbergh's offer. Soon after its purchase, the "aeroplane was christened Miss Columbia by two little girls who performed the ceremony with ginger ale. Afterwards they were treated to a joy-ride by Clarence Chamberlin."  However, the joy ride almost ended in tragedy when part of the undercarriage tore loose on take-off, but Chamberlin was able to safely and skillfully land the plane.

The Miss Columbia holds the distinction of not only being the first plane to carry a trans-Atlantic passenger, but it also holds the distinction of being the first plane to make the trans-Atlantic crossing twice. Three years after its record breaking flight with Chamberlin, the newly renamed "Maple Leaf", flown by Canadian Captain J. Errol Boyd and U.S. Naval Air Service Lieutenant Harry P. Connor, flew from Harbour Grace, Newfoundland, to Pentle Bay, Tresco, in the Isles of Scilly.

After many years of superior service, the "Miss Columbia", one of the most significant aircraft in aviation history, was retired to Bellanca Field in New Castle, Delaware, in 1934. That very same year it was scheduled for a well-deserved place in the Smithsonian. However, on January 25, 1934,  the day before the transfer was to take place, a fire leveled the storage barn where the "Miss Columbia", along with six other aircraft, was being stored. An unfortunate end for a plane that accomplished so much during its years of service.

Transatlantic flight
Chamberlin and Acosta's successful endurance flight convinced Levine that an attempt at a crossing of the Atlantic was feasible and that the Orteig Prize was within reach. In Chamberlin and Acosta, Levine had a superb flying team; however, in a move that surprised many, Levine replaced Acosta with Lloyd W. Bertaud, an acclaimed pilot of the east, as the navigator. However, near constant arguments over the choice of crew, the route to be followed, and whether wireless equipment should be installed plagued preparations for the Trans-Atlantic flight. Yet, it still appeared that Chamberlin and Bertaud would beat Charles Lindbergh as the first people to successfully cross the Atlantic.

However, the Orteig Prize was not to be theirs. "In a move never explained, Levine dumped Bertaud, giving up his chance for history as a result. Bertaud was so upset he obtained a temporary restraining order preventing the Columbia from lifting off without him." Indeed, the court injunction against Levine and the "Miss Columbia" allowed Charles Lindbergh and his "Spirit of St. Louis" to take off for his Trans-Atlantic flight before Chamberlin. On May 19, Lindbergh even met with Chamberlin who gave him his weather charts for the Atlantic Ocean and on May 20, Lindbergh took off for Paris and his date with destiny. Chamberlin, on the other hand, was still grounded by the court injunction and bad weather.

When the court injunction was finally dropped, thanks to personal appeals from the plane's creator Giuseppe Bellanca, it was too late for the "Miss Columbia" and Chamberlin to be the first to make the historic Trans-Atlantic flight. Soon after this, Bellanca severed ties with Levine and announced that his "sole concern [had been] to prove that [his] plane, built in America and manned by Americans, could successfully make the New York-to-Paris flight… adding another stage to the experimental development of aviation in this country." However, while the injunction had been dropped, two questions remained to be answered: who would fly with Chamberlin? And what was the purpose of their flight going to be now that Lindbergh had beaten them for the Orteig Prize? Even Chamberlin's participation in the flight seemed uncertain. Levine had started to entertain doubts about Chamberlin, not because of his flying ability, but about his homely appearance, fearing he might not be photogenic enough to get much publicity.

Thankfully, Levine decided to keep Chamberlin, even with his homely looks. It was soon decided by the two men that since they could not achieve the distinction of being the first to cross the Atlantic via airplane, they would instead work to achieve the distance record and blow Lindbergh out of the water… or in this case, the sky. Exactly two weeks after Lindbergh's historic flight, the "Miss Columbia" was ready to take to the skies. The plane was grossly overloaded with 455 gallons of gasoline, food, water, and instrumentation, but in order for Chamberlin to beat the distance record, the overloading was a necessary evil. On June 4, 1927, Chamberlin was ready to begin his historic flight from Roosevelt Field; however, the plane still lacked a navigator. The plane was about to take off and Chamberlin still lacked a co-pilot. Literally minutes before the plane was to take off, the engine was even ticking over, Levine, who had been at the airfield with his wife to send off Chamberlin, made "as if to close the cabin door [but instead] suddenly climbed in to occupy the second seat… and without a single word of explanation either to his wife or to officials on the airfield, Levine gave the order for departure." Thus Chamberlin and the first Trans-Atlantic passenger took off into the history books.

Yet, from the beginning there were difficulties. Fog and strong winds soon caused the "Miss Columbia" to fly southward off course, even though they were able to roughly maintain a flight plan similar to that of Lindbergh's. However, as they were approaching the European continent they had a stroke of good luck in that they spotted the famous Cunard liner . The ship had been on its way from Southampton to New York and utilizing a copy of the New York Times they had on board the plane they were able to ascertain the Mauretanias sailing date and thus calculate their position and realign themselves on a trajectory towards England and within hours, they had land in sight.

However, as soon as they reached Germany, they became lost once again. Urged on by Levine to reach Berlin, Chamberlin pushed the plane to the extreme. When the fuel finally ran out, they were forced to put down at Helfta near Eisleben at 5:35 A.M. (local time) after a non-stop flight of 3,911 miles in 42 hours 45 minutes, having beaten Lindbergh's record by just over 300 miles. Upon landing the locals gave the aviators some fuel and some really bad directions which forced them to take yet another emergency landing which shattered their wooden propeller. "One day and one new airscrew later, the "Miss Columbia" landed in Berlin to the cheers of 150,000 people." After the ceremony, "Chamberlin was informed that his mother was calling him from Omaha, Nebraska. It had been arranged by the American Telegraph Company and the Chicago Daily News… [and while] it was not a direct connection, Chamberlin would talk to the operator in London [who would] relay the message to Mrs. E. C. Chamberlin [and vice versa]. It was believed, at that time, that the call was the longest distance phone call ever completed."

Following their successful landing and reception in Berlin, "they set off on a short tour of European capitals visiting Munich, Vienna, Budapest, Prague, Warsaw, and Zurich. Then they finally left for Paris, reaching the French capital on the last day of June. During the month since leaving New York on the 4th they had covered a grand total of 6,320 miles." In Paris, Levine disclosed his plans to Chamberlin to return by air to New York. "Well aware of the foolhardiness of such a scheme, Clarence Chamberlin wisely elected to return by sea and Levine began to look for another pilot." Levine had no luck in finding anyone foolhardy enough to take up the task, so he decided to do it himself. Levine, who had absolutely no flight experience, went rogue and took his plane into the sky heading for London. His scheme had aerodrome officials on both sides of the English Channel frantic. After several failed attempts and near-misses, Levine was able to put down at the Croydon airfield. He then prudently made the decision to return with the plane to New York via ship.

Flying off the Leviathan
Returning to America by boat, the  of the U.S. Lines, Chamberlin again made history. While on board, U.S. Line officials questioned him "about the feasibility of using airplanes in conjunction [with] ships like the Leviathan, to hop off from the deck with an airplane as the ocean liner neared port, thus speeding up the delivery of mail and possibly passengers who were in a hurry and willing to pay for being ashore even as much as a day before the vessel docked." Chamberlin responded in the affirmative and upon docking in Boston construction began, under the supervision of Chamberlin, on a runway for the Leviathans deck. "On July 31, 1927, a Wright Aeronautical Service airplane with a Wright Whirlwind Engine was loaded aboard the Leviathan. On August 1, the ship headed out to sea accompanied by three Coast Guard destroyers, to be situated in various positions from the ocean liner in case they were needed for rescue."

After the rains slackened, the seas calmed down, and all of the reporters were seasick, Chamberlin attempted takeoff. "The Leviathan's 19 knot speed and the wind blowing gave a component air flow straight up the runway, down which the takeoff would be attempted. Chamberlin had expected to use the entire runway, but at about three-fourths of the way the plane was flung into the air by up-thrusting winds turned skyward by the sides of the big ocean liner." Chamberlin's original destination was Teterboro Airport in Teterboro, New Jersey. Unfortunately, thick fog forced him to take a detour to Curtiss Field where he waited an hour for the fog to lift. He then took off for Teterboro Airport to deliver the "first ship-to-shore mail." He was greeted at the airfield by all 17 inhabitants of Teterboro and 15,000 others.

After 1927
Following his extremely active aviation exploits in 1927, Chamberlin was considered one of the seven greatest flyers in the world. However, his days of breaking records were behind him; now, he was in the business of designing and selling planes. "Clarence Chamberlin's Aircraft Plant produced a line of aircraft that he'd intended airlines to use to transport passengers to all parts of the United States." The Chamberlin Eight-Seater, or the Crescent Aircraft as it was more commonly known, "was an improved airplane incorporating designs that his ample flying experience had shown him were needed for a better aircraft." The plane could carry eight passengers in addition to the pilot and it even featured "rest room facilities for the comfort of the passengers."

During the 1930s, Chamberlin traveled around the United States in his 26-passenger Curtiss Condor CO plane giving rides to people, not so much as a "barnstormer" but as more of a hobbyist. His Curtiss Condor at the time was the largest passenger carrying airship in the United States which landed on earth. Only the China Clipper, which could only land on water, and the Army bomber, which could not carry passengers, exceeded the Curtiss Condor in size. "His purpose for [traveling around the United States was] to take passengers for short flights at a nominal fee as a means of popularizing travel in passenger ships." In 1936, Clarence and Wilda were divorced. Later that year, Chamberlin "brought [one of his Curtiss Condors] to Maine to display it at an air show where he held a contest to find a young lady to use for promotional purposes and to be a stewardess." Louise Ashby, daughter of the Maine Governor at the time, entered the contest and, for the both of them, it was love at first sight. Clarence asked Louise to marry him the very next day.

Chamberlin Day
"On August 24, 1930, a Chamberlin Day took place at the Weberg brothers' airport [in Denison], which at that time was known as ‘Weberg Airways Inc.'" Around 18,000 people came out to airfield to wish Chamberlin well and to celebrate the airfield's renaming as Chamberlin Field. Entertainment consisted of around 46 planes taking part in aerial maneuvers and races accompanied by several town bands, bugle corps, and drum lines providing musical accompaniment.

Later years and death
Over the course of the next few decades, Chamberlin remained busy with a diverse array of projects. In addition to taking time to write a semi-autobiographical book entitled in Record Flights, he also "trained workers in his aircraft factory to work in defense plants during World War II, giving the plants skilled workers. He trained several thousand such workers, [which greatly] assist[ed] the war effort." Chamberlin continued to fly, sell, and tinker with airplanes after WWII. However, age eventually grounded him and forced him into retirement.

In 1970, the town of Denison hosted a Flight Fair at the new Denison Municipal Airport to honor native aviators Clarence Chamberlin and Charles Fink and to celebrate the airfield's new designation as Chamberlin-Fink Field (Fink was a resident of the Denison-Deloit area that served as an airplane commander on one of the three B-52s to make the first jet-powered non-stop round the globe flight in 1957). Chamberlin was unable to attend. In the years prior to 1977, Denison had planned to invite Chamberlin to return to Denison for the celebration of the 50th anniversary of his Trans-Atlantic flight, but on October 31, 1976, Chamberlin died due to complications from a routine flu shot. He was buried at Lawn Cemetery in Huntington, Connecticut.

Family life
Chamberlin married Wilda Bogert of Independence, Iowa on January 3, 1919. They would remain married until 1936. Later that same year, Chamberlin married Louise Ashby (1907–2000), a young teacher, who he had met during a barnstorming trip up to Maine. He'd go on to adopt her son, Philip (1925–2011), and the family welcomed two new additions with the births of Clarisse (b. 1940) and Kathy (b. 1942).

Aviation records (selected)
April 14, 1927 - Endurance Flight...51 hours, 11 minutes, and 25 seconds
June 4–6, 1927 - First Transatlantic Passenger Flight (Charles A. Levine, passenger)
June 4–6, 1927 - Distance Flight...3,905 miles
Summer 1927 - First Ship-to-Shore Flight off of the

Record Flights
Record Flights was written shortly after his Trans-Atlantic flight and published in 1928. The book was generally well received by the public and well-reviewed by critics. The book covered a diversity of topics other than the Trans-Atlantic flight including his hopes, accomplishments, failures, and even some speculation as to what had happened to pilots who had disappeared over the ocean. In the 1940s, he published a revised version of the book that included information about his adventures after the trans-Atlantic flight and his efforts during World War II. On the cover, the newly revised book read Record Flights Book One, and below it, a second title was Give ‘em Hell Book Two.

Documentary
Clarence Chamberlin: Fly First & Fight Afterward, a documentary by independent filmmaker Billy Tooma, covers, in great depth, Chamberlin's life and historic transatlantic flight. The film saw its world première on April 21, 2011 at the Myrtle Beach International Film Festival and was nominated for the National Aviation Hall of Fame's 2011 Combs-Gates Award. The documentary was recut in 2017, in honor of the 90th anniversary of Chamberlin's flight, and re-released under its new title.

Legacy
Honored in the Aviation Hall of Fame at Dayton, Ohio.

Honored in the Iowa Aviation Hall of Fame.

The Clarence D. Chamberlin House is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Notes

External links

Clarence Chamberlin bibliography
Air Racing History: Clarence Chamberlin
Early Aviators: Clarence Chamberlin
Des Moines Register: Clarence Chamberlin
 

Aviators from Iowa
National Aviation Hall of Fame inductees
People from Denison, Iowa
1893 births
1976 deaths
Flight endurance record holders
American aviation record holders Harry Dwight Chamberlin (May 19, 1887 – September 29, 1944) was a career officer in the United States Army. A veteran of the Moro Rebellion, Pancho Villa Expedition, World War I, and World War II, he attained the rank of brigadier general, and was most notable for his command of several Cavalry units, including 1st Squadron, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, the Cavalry Replacement Center at Fort Riley, and 4th Cavalry Brigade, 2nd Cavalry Division. During World War II, he commanded the New Hebrides Task Force, Southwestern Security District, and Fort Ord.

Chamberlin was also a notable equestrian, and participated in several Olympic games. His most noteworthy success came in 1932, when the U.S. contingent won the gold medal in Team eventing and Chamberlin won the silver medal in Individual show jumping.

Early life
Harry D. Chamberlin was born in Elgin, Illinois on May 19, 1887, the son of Cora L. (Orth) Chamberlin and Dwight A. Chamberlin, a longtime member of the Kane County Board of Supervisors. He attended the schools of Elgin and graduated from Elgin High School in 1905. From 1905 to 1906, Chamberlin was a student at Elgin Academy.

Chamberlin was appointed to the United States Military Academy in 1906. While at West Point, Chamberlin was a member of the track and boxing teams, played halfback on the football team, and was his class representative to the student athletic council. A highlight of Chamberlin's football career was his pickup of a fumbled Navy punt and 92 yard return during the 1908 Army-Navy game, which set up his three-yard run for the touchdown that enabled Army's 6-4 victory.

In 1910, Chamberlin graduated and was ranked 29th of 83. He received his commission as a second lieutenant of Cavalry and was assigned to the 7th Cavalry Regiment.

Start of career
Chamberlin served with the 7th Cavalry at Fort Riley, Kansas until 1911, when the regiment was posted to Fort William McKinley, Philippines during the Moro Rebellion. In 1914, Chamberlin returned to the United States and was assigned to the 5th Cavalry Regiment at Fort Sheridan, Illinois. Later that year, he was posted to Fort Riley's Mounted Service School. Chamberlin completed the school's first and second year courses, and remained at Fort Riley until March 1916.

After graduating from the Mounted Service School, Chamberlin returned to the 5th Cavalry, which he joined in Columbus, New Mexico. He remained in the Columbus area until August as part of the U.S. military's Pancho Villa Expedition. He was promoted to first lieutenant in July 1916. In October 1916, Chamberlin was assigned to West Point as an instructor in the Department of Tactics. In May 1917, he received promotion to captain.

World War I
In June 1918, Chamberlin was assigned to the 152d Depot Brigade at Camp Upton, New York and promoted to temporary major. In July, he was appointed adjutant of the 161st Infantry Brigade, a unit of the 81st Division. After training in France during the summer of 1918, the 81st Division was assigned to the front lines near Saint-Dié-des-Vosges in September 1918. In November, Chamberlin's brigade was assigned to the front lines in the Sommedieue sector, where it remained until the end of the war.

After the war, Chamberlin remained in France as an instructor at First United States Army's School for the Care of Animals. From February to March 1919, he was inspector of animal transportation on the First Army staff. In March and April, Chamberlin carried out an inspection trip in England, France, Belgium, and Germany, on which he visited British cavalry regiments and remount depots to learn their animal care techniques. He was promoted to temporary lieutenant colonel in April 1919.

Post-World War I
During the spring of 1919, Chamberlin trained in Koblenz prior to participating in the Inter-Allied Games, which took place in Paris that summer. Chamberlin was a member of the U.S. equestrian team, and placed second in the individual championship. In August 1919, he was assigned as an instructor at the Cavalry School and posted to Fort Riley. In September, he was returned to his permanent rank of captain.

In 1920, Chamberlin was a member of the U.S. equestrian team that took part in the Olympic games which were held in Antwerp, Belgium. He participated in both the Three Day Event, a military competition and the Prix de Nations (Prize of Nations), an individual show jumping contest. In July 1920, Chamberlin was promoted to major.

Continued career
After the 1920 Olympics, Chamberlin continued on the staff of the Cavalry School until 1922, when he was selected to attend the French Cavalry School in Saumur. After graduating in early 1923, he enrolled in the Italian Cavalry School at Tor di Quinto, where he completed the program of instruction in late 1923. While in Italy, he was introduced to the forward seat, which became knows as the 'Chamberlin seat' in America and which now dominates hunter and jumper equestrian events. During his return to the United States, Chamberlin spent time in England during 1924 as an observer at the Army School of Equitation in Weedon Bec.

From 1925 to 1926, Chamberlin commanded 1st Squadron, 8th Cavalry Regiment at Fort Bliss, Texas. Chamberlin was an accomplished polo player and was captain of the Army team that won the U.S. Junior Championship in 1926. From 1926 to 1927, Chamberlin attended the United States Army Command and General Staff College, and he completed the course as an honor graduate. After graduating, he was assigned to the 9th Cavalry Regiment at Fort Riley. In 1927, he trained the 1928 Olympic Team, which he captained. Chamberlin finished 21st in the event competition and 18th individually in the jumping competition. Overall, the U.S. team placed 8th of 16.

From 1929 to 1932, Chamberlin was captain of the U.S. Equestrian Team. He competed at the 1932 Olympic Games, again as a member of the event and jumping teams. In the eventing competition, he finished fourth, while the U.S. team was first overall and won its first-ever gold medal. Chamberlin finished second in the individual jumping event and won the silver medal.

Later career
Chamberlin attended the United States Army War College from 1932 to 1933. After graduating, he was assigned to command 1st Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment at Fort Sheridan, Illinois and the Civilian Conservation Corps' Wisconsin-based 10th Forestry District. In November 1934, Chamberlin was promoted to lieutenant colonel. From 1936 to 1938, he was assistant chief of staff for operations, plans, and training (G-3) on the staff of the 1st Cavalry Division. From 1938 to 1939, he was the division's chief of staff, and in 1939, Chamberlin received promotion to colonel.

As the United States prepared for entry into World War II, Chamberlin commanded the 2nd Cavalry Regiment at Fort Riley from 1939 to 1941. In April 1941, he was promoted to brigadier general. From 1941 to 1942, Chamberlin commanded the 4th Cavalry Brigade at Fort Riley.

In 1942, Chamberlin commanded the combined services task force which occupied New Hebrides and defended the islands against attack from Japan. While serving in the Pacific theater, Chamberlin was taken ill and returned to California. Doctors attempted to treat Chamberlin as he commanded first the Southwestern Security District and later Fort Ord, but his illness proved to be terminal.

Death and burial
Chamberlin died at the Presidio of San Francisco's Letterman Army Hospital on September 29, 1944. He was buried at the Presidio of Monterey, California's post cemetery.

Career as author
Chamberlin was the author of several books on horsemanship and horse training, including: Riding and Schooling Horses (1934); Training Hunters, Jumpers, and Hacks (1939); and Breaking, Training and Reclaiming Cavalry Horses (1941).

Family
In 1912, Chamberlin married Sally Garlington, the daughter of Ernest Albert Garlington. They divorced in 1933, and later that year Chamberlin married Helen Elena Bradman, the daughter of United States Marine Corps Brigadier General Frederic L. Bradman. With his second wife, Chamberlin was the father of two children, Lydia and Frederika.

During World War II, Sally Garlington Chamberlin was employed as General George C. Marshall's private secretary. Chamberlin's sister Marie E. Chamberlin was the wife of Army officer John Gray Thornell, who was killed while piloting the dirigible Roma in 1922 when it crashed in Norfolk, Virginia.

Legacy
Fort Ord's Chamberlin Library, which was opened in 1970, is named for Harry Chamberlin and continues to serve as the library of the Monterey Peninsula's military community. Chamberlin was inducted into the United States Show Jumping Hall of Fame in 1990. In 2006, he was inducted into the Elgin Sports Hall of Fame.

References

External links
Generals of World War II

1887 births
1944 deaths
Equestrians at the 1920 Summer Olympics
Equestrians at the 1928 Summer Olympics
Equestrians at the 1932 Summer Olympics
American male equestrians
Olympic silver medalists for the United States in equestrian
Olympic gold medalists for the United States in equestrian
American event riders
American show jumping riders
American polo players
Medalists at the 1932 Summer Olympics
United States Army generals of World War II
United States Army generals
United States Military Academy alumni
United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni
United States Army War College alumni
People from Elgin, Illinois
Military personnel from Illinois