This was a very interesting and challenging time at West Point as well as for Cadet T. N. Gimperling.
Remember, the images on this page are thumbnails. To see the original image click on the thumbnail image.
Let’s start with some information on West Point today. http://www.usma.edu/#
West Point in the Fall
Click here to see what Wikipedia has on the institution. Good over all history of the facility.
The first indication to me that Thomas Gimperling had attended West Point was the following 1900 census entry:
Knowing that a cadets usual stay at the USMC is 4 years I assumed that Cadet Gimperling would have graduated with the class of 1903. After much searching on the internet I wrote the following letter on Sept. 15, 2010.
Hello! An answer to your question: Thomas N. Gimperling is a graduate of the USMA about 1903. His birth year was 1881 or so in Ohio.
I'm trying to pinpoint his class year and if he served as an enlisted man during the Spanish - American war
prior to entry into the academy. His summer cottage in Colorado was two doors east of my place on Grand Lake.
He used to entertain me with stories back in the 1950s. Just wanted to learn more about him now that I'm finally interested in history. Steve Batty 914 Jerico Rd. Grand Lake, CO 80447 is now available. Click on or go to http://www.allexperts.com/user.cgi?m=6&catID=1677&qID=4941568 to see it.
This answer will be available for three days after you receive this message. Thanks for using our service! Please do not respond to this message. The only way to follow up is to click on the above link.
Here is the answer to my question:
Answer: It's good to hear from you, Steve. Thanks for your interest in West Point.
I apologize for the delayed response as I had to be home where my primary references are.
The following information is from the, "Register of Graduates and Former Cadets of the US Military Academy,"
published annually by the West Point Association of Graduates (WPAOG). Thomas Norton Gimperling graduated with the Class of 1904; he was born in Ohio on June 5, 1880.
There is no information regarding his service before entering West Point in 1900. He was 20 years old though,
so there was definitely time after high school for him to have served in the Spanish-American War prior to entering the Academy.
There is also the fact that he was a Military Attaché in Cuba from 1933 to 1937;
that might have been a follow-on assignment to his prior service in Cuba. He died in Denver, CO on October 11, 1959 at age 79. His obituary was published in September 1960.
You might want to contact Sylvia Graham, Managing Editor Register & TAPS at the WPAOG; sylvia.graham@wpaog.org or 845-446-1562.
She should be able to provide you with a copy of his obituary which would have more information about COL Gimperling. Good luck in your quest, Steve. Best Regards, Bill Taylor Gambrills, MD Have any other questions? Try one of our experts at http://www.allexperts.com. This message is sent by autopilot and cannot process replies.
__________
The new question that started weighing on my mind was, “Why did he spend 5 years at the Academy when the usual time there was 4 years?”
My first guess was that he attended the USMC prep-school the first year but I could not find anything on the Internet to indicate that. I soon turned up that he had volunteered for army service in the Spanish American war. See blog 7 https://lakeverna.wordpress.com/2011/09/23/my-col-gimperling-journeypart-7/ and thought he might have acquired a mentor who was able to help him get an appointment. To date I have not located who from Ohio made his appointment.
I decided to learn more about the Spanish American War and those who commanded the Ohio National Guard. One of the first things I learned was that those states east of the Mississippi River sent their troops to Cuba and those west of the river ended up in the Philippine Islands. I also found that President McKinley had appointed Maj. Gen. Fitzhugh Lee USMC class of 1856 to command the Ohio soldiers. I enjoyed reading about this general and felt it was quite possible that Lee had been Gimperling’s mentor. I suggest you follow this link to read about Gen. Lee and his career. Just a note: Fitzhugh Lee was also a confederate general in the War between the States. http://www.spanamwar.com/Leebiop.htm
Lakeverna's Blog 