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Walter King Wilson Jr. (August 26, 1906 – December 6, 1985), was an officer of the United States Army with the rank of lieutenant general. He is most noted as a Chief of Engineers during 1961–65. He was the son of Major General Walter K. Wilson Sr.
Biography
He was born at Fort Barrancas, Florida, the son of artillery officer and World War II Major General Walter K. Wilson Sr. (1880–1954). He graduated from West Point in 1929 and was commissioned in the United States Army Corps of Engineers.
Before 1942 he served with troops, continued his military and engineering education, and was an instructor at West Point. From 1942 to 1943, he commanded the 79th Engineer Combat Regiment
From 1943 to 1945, Wilson served as Deputy Engineer-in-Chief with the South East Asia Command at New Delhi, India, and Kandy, Ceylon. He became Commanding General, Advance Section, U.S. Forces, India-Burma Theater, and Chief of Staff of the Chinese Army in India. Later, he commanded Intermediate and Base Sections and consolidated all three, commanding all ground forces remaining in the theater.
After the war he was District Engineer in St. Paul, Minnesota (1946–49), and Mobile, Alabama (1949–52), and then South Atlantic (1952–53) and Mediterranean Division Engineer (1953–55).
He assumed command of the 18th Engineer Brigade at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, in 1955.
He served as Deputy Chief of Engineers for Construction from 1956 to 1960. Wilson was commanding general of the Army Engineer Center and Fort Belvoir and commandant of the Army Engineer School in 1960–61.
Wilson's military honors included a Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit with Oak Leaf Cluster, a Soldier's Medal and membership in the French Legion of Honor.
He retired as Chief of Engineers on June 30, 1965, and died on December 6, 1985, in Mobile, Alabama.
Wilson was part of a military family. His younger brother John Newton Wilson (1913–1944) was a lieutenant colonel who was killed in the Battle of Normandy. His son Walter King Wilson III (1937–2008) also served in the Engineer Corps and reached the rank of colonel.
Dates of rank
| Image | Rank | Temporary | Permanent |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Second Lieutenant | N/A | June 13, 1929 |
 | First Lieutenant | N/A | October 1, 1934 |
 | Captain | N/A | June 13, 1939 |
 | Major | October 16, 1941 | June 19, 1946 |
 | Lieutenant Colonel | May 7, 1942 | July 15, 1948 |
 | Colonel | March 4, 1943 | N/A |
 | Brigadier General | February 13, 1945 | N/A |
| Colonel | May 16, 1946 | April 17, 1952 |
| Brigadier General | March 16, 1953 | April 2, 1957 |
 | Major General | March 25, 1957 | June 22, 1959 |
 | Lieutenant General | May 19, 1961 | N/A |
Decorations
| 1st Row | Army Distinguished Service Medal | Legion of Merit w/ Oak Leaf Cluster | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2nd Row | Soldier's Medal | Army Commendation Medal | American Defense Service Medal with Foreign Service Clasp | |||||||||
| 3rd Row | American Campaign Medal | Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal w/ two Service Stars | European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal | |||||||||
| 4th Row | World War II Victory Medal | National Defense Service Medal w/ Oak Leaf Cluster | Officer of the Legion of Honor (France) | |||||||||