Charles Brewster Wheeler
Charles Brewster Wheeler (May 3, 1865 – April 11, 1946) was a United States Army officer who became a brigadier general and a key figure in Army ordnance during World War I. He was born in Matteson, Illinois, and later lived in Hyde Park and Fergus Falls before attending the United States Military Academy at West Point, where he graduated in 1887 with the nickname “Sam.”
Wheeler began his career in the Field Artillery but soon moved to the Ordnance Department, becoming an expert in the design and production of artillery weapons and equipment. He worked at Sandy Hook Proving Ground, the Watertown Arsenal, and in the Office of the Chief of Ordnance. During the Spanish–American War and the Philippine–American War, he oversaw the procurement and deployment of artillery materiel in Cuba, the Philippines, and other battle areas. He spent several years as commander of the Watertown Arsenal and, while there, introduced the Taylor System of Scientific Management to improve efficiency in weapons design and production.
In World War I, Wheeler rose to high command in ordnance. He was promoted to brigadier general in August 1917, served as acting Chief of Ordnance in December 1917, and then became Chief of Ordnance for the American Expeditionary Forces in March 1918. He also commanded Base Section Number 3 in the Services of Supply, served as Chief Ordnance Officer for U.S. Forces in Great Britain, and chaired the U.S. Military Commission for Czechoslovakia in 1919. He retired from active duty in 1919 with the permanent rank of colonel, and in 1930 was posthumously advanced to brigadier general on the retired list. Wheeler received the Army Distinguished Service Medal, the French Legion of Honour (Commander), and the British Order of the Bath (Companion) for his World War I service.
After leaving the Army, Wheeler settled in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, where he was vice president of manufacturing for Eaton, Crane and Pike from 1919 to 1933. He helped lead the Pittsfield Community Fund and was involved in state affairs, including serving as the Massachusetts War Memorial Investigating Committee’s chairman in 1930. He moved to Wayland, Massachusetts, in 1943 to live with his daughter and son-in-law. Wheeler died there on April 11, 1946, and was buried in Pittsfield Cemetery.
Family life: He married Zella Lentilhon in 1893; they had two children, Lentilhon Wheeler and Zella. After Zella’s death in 1916, he married Ruth Whitmore Parker in 1921; he became stepfather to her sons Whitmore, William, and Robert Parker.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 12:05 (CET).