Townsend F. Dodd

1886–1919 (age 33)

Military Officer

Biography

Townsend F. Dodd was among the early military officers who embraced the new horizons of aviation, helping to lay the groundwork for the air service that would evolve in the decades to come. His peers admired him for the careful optimism with which he encouraged new ideas while honoring the disciplined training that had always defined the Army.

Though his life was cut short, he inspired others to look upward with courage and to trust in the skills that kept both wings and men in balance. Arlington National Cemetery now shelters his memory, commemorating his part in forging a modern branch of the military.