Phinney, Ralph McCullough

Phinney, Ralph McCullough

Phinney

Ralph McCullough

First Lieutenant Ralph McCullough Phinney was born in Tennessee in 1895. He would grow up there before traveling to Blacksburg Virginia to enroll in VPI. After just three years he graduated and was sent to France as a Second Lieutenant in the US Army Signal Corps, hoping to gain some knowledge that he could use in the private industry later in life. Upon returning to his native Tennessee in 1919 he did exactly that, and ran an electrical company for almost sixty years. After retiring he devoted the remainder of his life to preserving and protecting the legacy of President Andrew Johnson, and his efforts ultimately resulted in the erection of a statue and small museum. He attended a VPI reunion in 1986, and was the oldest alumni in attendance. He passed away peacefully in 1998 surrounded by friends and his funeral was heavily attended.

Ralph

Richmond, Virginia

Henriico

June 1st, 1895

Jonesboro, Tennessee

October 14th, 1998

Age

Greene County, Tennessee

Robert and Minnie Phinney

Robert Phinney Jr.

Lieutenant Phinney never married, and died a life long bachelor.

Lieutenant Phinney had no children.

1916

Electrical Engineering

Yes

U.S. Army

American Telephone and Telegraph Company U.S. Signal Corps Service

Second Lieutenant

First Lieutenant

Was a member of the US Army Signal Corps, which would later grow to become a massive part of the US Army structure, which now operates communications for the entirety of the US Army. It was founded in 1860, and at the time of First Lieutenant Phinney’s enlistment was relatively small. He joined hoping to gain knowledge on telephone lines, and he would later use that knowledge to found his own company.

Lieutenant Phinney was made Honorable Mayor of Greeneville, Tennessee. The Ralph Phinney scholarship was also made in his name at Tusculum College.

Helped to secure and preserve the legacy of President Andrew Johnson by helping create a museum and erect a statue.

Lieutenant Phinney founded an electric engineering company and pioneered the creation of an electric grid in east Tennessee in the 1920s.

Owner and manager of Greeneville Engineering Company

No

Lieutenant Phinney was a sophomore Rat, or someone who started out as an academic sophomore in the Corps.

Aidan Kuester

Ancestry®. Accessed November 03, 2016. http://www.ancestry.com/.
"Ralph M. Phinney Dies At 103; Helped Preserve Andrew Johnson Legacy." Greeneville Sun, October 15, 1998. Accessed November 3, 2016. www.greenevillesun.com.
Swenson, H. O. The Bugle (1916). 1916. College yearbook, Virginia, Blacksburg.