'Battles Of Sailor's Creek' Lectures At H-SC
Published 5:58 pm Thursday, March 26, 2015
On Thursday, April 2, at 7:30 p.m., Hampden-Sydney College will host Lt. Col. Samuel V. Wilson, Jr. as he gives a lecture entitled “The Battles of Sailor’s Creek: Pursuit to Victory.”
Samuel V. Wilson, Jr., 68, is a life-long student of the American Civil War in Virginia and a direct descendent and namesake of a Confederate soldier who fought in and survived the Battles of Sailor’s Creek.
He capped a nearly forty-year career in military and public education as Chief Ranger Interpreter at the Sailor’s Creek Battlefield Historical State Park. During his tenure there he planned, developed, and produced over 40 different programs exploring related topics and themes on the pivotal moment of the final Civil War campaign in Virginia. These programs were designed to educate the public at all ages and levels of interest.
Wilson is a retired army lieutenant colonel and a Governor’s School educator. He received his B.A. and regular army infantry commission from the University of Alabama, M.A. in journalism from the University of Georgia, and M.S. in English Education from Longwood University. He also holds a diploma from the University of the South’s school of theology’s four-year program in theological education. A graduate of the Army’s Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, KS, he simultaneously served as the Associate Editor of the Army’s Military Review professional journal during his matriculation.
His army awards and decorations include the Bronze Star, the Air Medal, five awards of the Meritorious Service Medal, the Army Commendation Medal, and two awards of the Army Achievement Medal. He earned the army’s Combat Infantry Badge for combat service in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta and holds the army’s parachutist badge, army ranger, and special forces tabs. His foreign service includes Vietnam, the Republic of Korea, and Honduras. In addition to serving in the army’s Special Forces, he held command and staff assignments in three different infantry divisions: the 2nd in Korea, the 6th Light Infantry in Alaska, and the 7th Light Infantry in California.
Wilson was inducted into the National Journalism Academic Honor Society, Kappa Tau Alpha, and the National Honor Society, Phi Kappa Phi, at the conclusion of his graduate degree work at the Henry Grady School of Journalism, University of Georgia, in 1979.
This program at Crawley Forum is free and open to the community. The discussion is sponsored by the Wilson Center for Leadership in the Public Interest.
