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"West Point Bicentennial"
A Pictorial History of the First Two Hundred Years of the United States Military Academy
Preface |
1776-1817 |
1817-1833 |
1833-1848 |
1848-1865 |
1865-1890 |
1890-1919 |
1919-1939 |
1939-1950 |
1950-1970 |
1970-1980 |
1980-2002 |
Bicentennial and Beyond
"West Point: Bicentennial and Beyond"
Today’s Military Academy continues to evolve, constantly
reassessing itself and striving to improve. Over the years,
West Point has tried to balance cherished traditions with
the need to educate officers for an increasingly complex
world. The success of the aca-demic program is only
partially reflected in the academy’s top-five ranking in
numbers of Rhodes, Marshall and Hertz scholars. (West Point
and Princeton are the only institutions in the nation that
rank in the top four for both Rhodes and Hertz
scholarships.)
The Military Academy’s success is reflected in the quality
of the leaders it has produced for the nation. Military
leaders like Ulysses S. Grant, William T. Sherman, Emory
Upton, Philip H. Sheridan, Robert E. Lee, John J. Pershing,
Joseph W. Stilwell, George S. Patton, Omar N. Bradley,
Dwight D. Eisenhower, J. Lawton Collins, Matthew B. Ridgway,
Douglas C. MacArthur, Henry H. Arnold, Creighton W. Abrams,
James M. Gavin, Maxwell D. Taylor, Benjamin O. Davis,
William C. Westmoreland, H. Norman Schwarzkopf, Wesley K.
Clark and current Army Chief of Staff General Eric K.
Shinseki are only some of the thousands who have claimed
West Point as the well-spring of their professional
development.
The academy has also developed leaders whose contributions
have extended beyond the military arena. They include
individuals such as Benjamin L.E. Bonneville (explorer and
cartographer of the American West), Oliver O. Howard (head
of the Freedmen’s Bureau and founder of Howard University),
George Washington Goethals (architect and builder of the
Panama Canal), Leslie R. Groves (director of the Manhattan
Project), Frank Borman and Edwin E. "Buzz" Aldrin
(astronauts) and Thoralf M. Sundt (pioneering neurosurgeon
at the Mayo Clinic).
Although many things have changed at West Point in 200
years, the traditions that have inspired the Military
Academy and her graduates to greatness have not. West Point
continues to provide a solid foundation, mentally,
physically and ethically, upon which each graduate can build
a lifetime of distinction and value. The United States
Military Academy’s timeless mission is expressed today as:
"to educate, train and inspire the Corps of Cadets so that
each graduate is a commissioned leader of character
committed to the values of Duty, Honor, Country;
professional growth throughout a career as an officer in the
United States Army; and a lifetime of selfless service to
the nation." With the continued support of the nation and
the willingness of young men and women to face the
challenges of the next century, we will continue to meet our
great national purpose. West Point, that hallowed ground
where George Washington walked and so many of our national
leaders were educated and inspired, will continue to be that
special place where America develops her leaders of
character for her Army and nation. It is often stated that
at West Point, much of the history we teach was made by
people we taught.
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