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William J. Worth | |
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| Birth name | William Jenkins Worth |
| Born | (1794-03-01)March 1, 1794 Hudson, New York, U.S. |
| Died | May 7, 1849(1849-05-07) (aged 55) San Antonio, Texas, U.S. |
| Buried | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Service | US Army |
| Years of service | 1813–1849 |
| Rank | Colonel BrevetMajor General |
| Commands | 8th Infantry Regiment |
| Battles / wars | War of 1812 |
William Jenkins Worth (March 1, 1794 – May 7, 1849) was an American officer during theWar of 1812, theSecond Seminole War, and theMexican–American War.
Worth was commissioned as afirst lieutenant in March 1813,[1] serving as an aide to (then brigadier general)Winfield Scott during the war, and developing a friendship with him. He later named his son Winfield Scott Worth. He distinguished himself at the battles ofChippewa andLundy's Lane during theNiagara campaign. In the latter battle, he was seriously wounded by grapeshot in the thigh. He was not expected to survive, but after a year's confinement, he emerged with the breveted rank of Major—though he would remain lame for the rest of his life. Also as a brevet Major Worth uttered his most famous words that are now inscribed in West Point's "Bugle Notes", a book of knowledge all cadets must know by heart. They are as follows:
But an officer on duty knows no one—to be partial is to dishonor both himself and the object of his ill-advised favor. What will be thought of him who exacts of his friends that which disgraces him? Look at him who winks at and overlooks offences in one, which he causes to be punished in another, and contrast him with the inflexible soldier who does his duty faithfully, notwithstanding it occasionally wars with his private feelings. The conduct of one will be venerated and emulated, the other detested as a satire upon soldiership and honor.
— Brevet Major General William Jenkins Worth
After the war he wasCommandant of Cadets atWest Point and would rise to the rank ofcolonel in 1838 when he was put in command of the newly created Eighth Infantry Regiment. Using his own tactics he successfully prosecuted theSecond Seminole War inFlorida and was made a brevetbrigadier general in 1842. Eventually, he convincedSecretary of WarJohn C. Spencer to allow the remaining Indians in the territory to confine themselves to an unofficial reservation in southwest Florida, and declared an official end to the war in August of that year.[2]
When theMexican–American War began, Worth was serving underZachary Taylor inTexas and negotiated the surrender of the Mexican city ofMatamoros. He next commanded the 2nd Regular Division, Army of Occupation at theBattle of Monterrey in September 1846, for which he was later brevetted to major general.[3] In 1847, Worth was transferred to his old friend Winfield Scott's army and placed in command of the 1st Division.
He took part in thesiege of Veracruz and engaged in theBattles of Cerro Gordo,Contreras, andChurubusco. InMexico City, Scott ordered Worth to seize the Mexican works at theMolino del Rey. Worth and Scott's friendship came to a head when Scott refused to allow Worth to modify the attack and the battle caused the 1st Division severe casualties, much to Worth's dismay. Worth later renamed his son Winfield Scott to William. He next led his division against the San Cosme Gate at Mexico City. When U.S. forces entered Mexico City, Worth personally climbed to the roof of the National Palace and took down the Mexican flag replacing it with theStars and Stripes.
For his service at theBattle of Chapultepec, theUnited States Congress awarded him with a sword of honor.
In 1847, Worth became an Original Member of theAztec Club of 1847 and was admitted as an honorary member of the New YorkSociety of the Cincinnati.
In 1848, Worth was approached by a group of CubanFreemasons known as the Havana Club, composed of sugar plantation owners and aristocrats, who advocated the overthrow of the Spanish colonial government in Cuba. The Havana Club sent a college professorAmbrosio José Gonzales to entreat Worth to lead an invasion of Cuba.
Knowing Worth was also a Freemason,[4] Gonzales greeted the war hero with the Masonic secret handshake, and subsequently offered him three million dollars to lead an invasion force of five thousand American veterans of the Mexican-American War against the Spanish in Cuba. Worth accepted the offer, but before the plot could be concluded, he was transferred by the War Department to Texas.[5]
Worth was in command of the Department of Texas when he died in 1849 inSan Antonio[6] of cholera.
Worth's remains were originally deposited inGreen-Wood Cemetery where they sat unburied for four years. In January 1855, a committee was established to design a suitable monument for General Worth. The monument was designed and built byJames G. Batterson in 1857.[7] On November 25, 1857, Worth's remains were reinterred in the 51-foot granite monument onWorth Square on a traffic island betweenFifth Avenue andBroadway at 25th Street inNew York City'sborough ofManhattan.[8] The Worth Monument is the second oldest monument in New York.[citation needed]
The monument's central decorative bands are inscribed with battle sites significant in Worth's career and attached to its front is a bronze equestrian relief of Worth.[9]
Each spike of the cast-iron fence surrounding the memorial is topped with a plumed helmet, reflective of the plumed helmet Worth is shown wearing in the memorial. The American painter Thomas Hart Benton depicted the obelisk inNew York, Early Twenties. The north side fence was removed around 1940 to accommodate an above-ground utility shed which services the water supply system pipes beneath the monument.[citation needed]
The cities ofFort Worth andLake Worth in Texas, the villages ofWorth in Illinois andWorthville in Kentucky,[10] and the Worth Counties inGeorgia,Missouri, andIowa are all named in his honor.[11]
In Florida theLake Worth Lagoon, the city ofLake Worth Beach, andWorth Avenue inPalm Beach are also named after him.[12]
Additionally,Worth Street in the LowerManhattan district ofNew York City was named in his honor.
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| Preceded by | Commandants of Cadets of the United States Military Academy 1820–1828 | Succeeded by |
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