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National Geographic : 1960 Jan
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188ss George Catlett Marshall 1959 / S SOLDIER and statesman," wrote Presi Sdent Dwight D. Eisenhower, "General Marshall devoted his entire life to selfless service to his Nation. To his resolu tion and strength of purpose, his steadfast courage and wise decision, this Nation, and indeed the Free World, are deeply indebted for survival at a time of great peril. .. ." Amid the press of his many governmental duties, General of the Army George Catlett Marshall gave generously of his time and talents to the National Geographic Society, of which he was a Trustee. He initiated a National Geographic-Smithsonian Institution expedition to study giant effigies outlined on desert mesas of the West, and, in the June, 1957, issue of the magazine, he wrote a mov ing tribute to the Nation's fallen sons, "Our War Memorials Abroad: A Faith Kept." Born on December 31, 1880, in Uniontown, Pennsylvania, General Marshall graduated from the Virginia Military Institute in 1901. He served as a colonel in France in World War I. As Chief of Staff of the United States Army in World War II, General Marshall was the architect of Axis defeat. To Winston Churchill, he was "the true organizer of victory." In 1947 General Marshall became Secretary of State. The European Recovery Program that bears his name-the Marshall Plan saved postwar Europe from chaos and brought him the Nobel Peace Prize in 1953. During the Korean War the Nation called again, and he returned as Secretary of Defense. On May 18, 1949, General Marshall suc ceeded his old friend John J. Pershing, Gen eral of the Armies of the United States, on the Board of Trustees of the National Geographic Society. With deep sorrow, The Society re cords General Marshall's death on October 16, 1959. His country has lost a great statesman and The Society a loyal friend. General Marshall Honors a Colleague Before The Society's Board of Trustees On the retirement of Gilbert Grosvenor (right) in 1954 as President of the National Geographic Society and Editor of its magazine, General Marshall read the Board's tribute to his fellow trustee. At the far left is Dr. John Oliver LaGorce, who succeeded as President and Editor. In the foreground, Thomas W. McKnew, Executive Vice President and Secretary, and Robert V. Fleming, Vice President and Treasurer. On the General's right are Lyman J. Briggs, Chairman, Research Committee, Melville Bell Grosvenor, H. Randolph Maddox, Vice Adm. Emory S. Land, and William E. Wrather.
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