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MEMORIAL ARTICLE
Published Assembly Jan '95
Henry Laurance Ingham, Jr. No.16062 Class of 1946
Died 29 June 1994 in San Anselmo, California, aged 69 years.
Interment: Chapel of the Pines Cemetery, Placerville, California. |
Larry was an authentic Army brat, one of two sons
raised during those two decades of bucolic existence between
the two world wars. One of the Ingham family's assignments was
a tour at West Point in 1934-35 and the boys decided then and
there to someday return as cadets. After graduating from Pacific
Grove High School in June 1941, Larry attended Marion Military
Institute and Millard's Preparatory School in Washington, D.C.
He entered the familiar grounds of West Point on 1 July 1943
with that subtle advantage all service kids have, an awareness
of what to expect.
Larry battled diligently against the natural sciences,
beating two turnout exams in his yearling year (physics and chemistry),
but progressing fairly well through the rest of the curriculum.
Academic tedium was relieved by equestrianship, Howitzer staff
work, 100th Night Shows, Cadet Chapel Choir trips and, of course,
occasional dragging. At graduation, Larry chose the Coast Artillery
Corps.
After basic branch schools, Larry went to occupied
Japan to duty with various battalions of the 138th AAA Group.
Just one month before the tour was up, Larry's only brother,
Howard, June '43, was killed in England when his bomber crashed.
The year 1950 was an eventful one. When the Korean
War erupted in June, Larry's unit was transferred to Fort Winfield
Scott. When MG Frederick A. Irving, April '17 arrived at the
Presidio for duty as the new Deputy Commanding General of Sixth
Army, Larry was selected as his aide-de-camp. When General Irving
became West Point's 42d superintendent, he took Larry with him.
This period encompassed USMA's sesquicentennial, with all the
accompanying pomp and circumstance. Despite his share of good
fortune, Larry remained bitter at having been passed over initially
for promotion to captain. With resignation applications being
denied because of the Korean War, he accepted a Quartermaster
detail, believing this would provide at least some insight into
civilian business operations. But when he arrived at Fort Lee
in July 1952, Larry immediately was assigned as a basic training
company commander.
His initial resentment faded with the early recognition
that the QMC valued his lengthy troop experience more than his
supply/logistics potential, and he became the first commanding
officer in the QM RTC's history to lead a mostly drafted basic
training company through its six week cycle without a single
incident of AWOL. At last, Larry was promoted to captain. With
another tender of resignation denied, Larry was ordered to Germany
in August 1953. Five months later, his third resignation was
accepted.
Larry quickly discovered that an entire lifetime
spent on Army posts was inadequate preparation for the business
world. He wrote a letter, dated 26 September 1954, to the president
of the AOG, stating: "I have, as you know, been one of those
who unfortunately felt that civil life could provide more personally
advantageous substitutes for those rare, basic principles of
Duty, Honor, Country...the profit and loss motive which so characterizes
business life is a very poor substitute indeed for admirable
service to one's country." The letter was used (with permission)
in an attempt to dissuade other young grads from making what
Larry later admitted was his worst mistake.
He joined the Army Reserve upon resigning, and
when a brief opportunity arose in early 1955 for an active duty
tour, Larry was recalled voluntarily. He was sent to Fort Sill
for the Field Artillery advanced course, and orders to Japan
followed. He replaced classmate Carcie Clifford as commander
of the UNCIFEC Honor Guard in Tokyo. Unable to secure a prompt
reintegration into the Regular Army, Larry, now at age 33, reluctantly
opted to enroll at San Francisco College, working on a master's
in American history while earning secondary teaching credentials
in mathematics, one of his worst subjects while a cadet! Larry
was selected to teach math at San Francisco's Lowell High School.
In 1967, he was appointed to the faculty at City College of San
Francisco. He remained there for 13 years, retiring in 1980 at
the age of 55. He authored an extensive, two volume, college
level text in American history, published in 1978. Larry never
married but was somewhat of a foster father to his deceased brother's
two sons. He was the Northern California regional coordinator
for the USMA Admissions Program from 1974-80, a task begun less
than two years after a protracted battle with cancer in 1970.
After a remarkable 23 year remission, Larry again was stricken
in 1993 and he underwent extensive chemotherapy. Unwilling to
undergo further treatment, he died at home on 29 June 1994.
Larry's course on earth as run, encompassed over
30 years of public service in two professions; and if the concepts
of Duty, Honor, Country are as applicable to public education
as they are to military service, then this West Pointer contributed
his share. As a final homage to his beloved alma mater, he bequeathed
the bulk of his estate to the Association of Graduates. Paid
in full, Larry.
A canvas of friends and roommates produced the
following comments:
"I remember Larry Ingham as a warm, cheerful
person who always had a sunny outlook on what the future would
bring He was a generous individual, ever ready to help others."
"Larry was fun loving and considerate His
final bequest to the Association of Graduates may surprise some,
but to me, his devotion to West Point was perfectly in character."
"Larry was kind and gentle and extremely loyal
to those he cared about. I shall miss Larry a lot. I saw him
just a few days before his passing. He was in good humor and
was ready for the final reckoning."
For his gift, Larry was offered a naming opportunity
in the Mezzanine of the new Alumni Center. In his usual modest
fashion, Larry told the AOG "to consecrate the mezzanine
to the memory of those classmates who died in combat or as a
direct result of combat related wounds." He added, "The
fact that the Mezzanine overlooks the Great Hall and its ongoing
functions might very well be an appropriate vantage point for
our fallen comrades to preside indefinitely over the Long Gray
Line below."
The Class of 1946 is indebted to Larry Ingham for
his selfless generosity and is proud to say, "Well Done,
Larry; Be Thou At Peace!"
'46 Memorial Article Project
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