James Woodruff

James Albert Woodruff (19 June 1877 – 20 August 1969) was a military engineer and United States Army major general. During World War I, he supervised the harvesting, milling and shipping of lumber for the allied forces in France. As colonel of the 20th Engineers and Attached Service Troops, he had direct command of over 20,000 officers and men in fourteen battalions harvesting French timber and operating 282 sawmills. A skilled leader and educator, he held many other commands over the course of his 44-year military career. Early life and education Woodruff was born at Fort Shaw, Montana, the son of 1871 West Point graduate Charles A. Woodruff. As a military dependent, his family soon moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico. He lived in several more places before settling in San Francisco, where he began high school. Woodruff completed high school in Washington, D.C. and then attended St. Luke's Preparatory School in Wayne, Pennsylvania. He entered the United States Military Academy in June 1895 with an appointment from his father's home state of Vermont, eventually becoming Cadet First Captain. Woodruff graduated first in his class in February 1899 and was commissioned in the Army Corps of Engineers. He later graduated from the Army Engineer School in March 1901, the Army Staff College in July 1906 and the Army War College in May 1917. Military career From March 1899 to September 1900, Woodruff was assigned to Rosebank, Staten Island in support of New York City harbor projects. From March 1901 to July 1903, he served with the 2nd Battalion of Engineers at Fort Totten, Queens and in the Philippines. From August 1903 to August 1905 and again from August 1906 to August 1907, Woodruff taught civil and military engineering at West Point. He was promoted to captain in July 1904. From August 1907 to September 1910, Woodruff taught engineering at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.