JOHN S. SEYBOLD

John S. Seybold was born in Topeka, Kansas, on July 2, 1897, son of John Henry and Emma Seybold States. He graduated from the Military Academy at West Point United States in 1920 and was later promoted to second lieutenant in the Coast Artillery Corps. Seybold was transferred to the Corps of Engineers of the Army of the United States (USACE) on September 4, 1920, and graduated from the School of Engineering of the Academy of the United States in 1921 and Polytechnic Institute Rensselaer Institute in 1922, the same year he married Mary C. Christman.

Seybold was assigned to Panama from 1922 to 1925 in order to conduct military research. From 1928 to 1933 he was Assistant Professor of Military Science and Tactics at the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas. He becomes Chief of the Engineering Division of the Army. During World War II, from 1938 to 1943 Seybold was promoted to Chief of the Procurement Division of the Office of the Chief of Engineers and was responsible for the acquisitions of engineering and construction supplies to all areas of operations. He served as Chief Executive Officer and Supplies engineering operations to North Africa and Europe from 1943 to 1945.

At the end of 1945 Seybold was appointed District Engineer, USACE in Syracuse, New York, in charge of work control of the upper Susquehanna and New York Central floods until 1946 then was appointed as District Engineer in Baltimore, Maryland, manager improvement of rivers and harbors of Chesapeake Bay, including the Bay of Baltimore and flood control works on the Susquehanna Riviera from 1946-1947.

Seyblod was also District Engineer in Garrison, District of Bismark, North Dakota, where he was responsible for the construction of the Garrison Dam and hydroelectric plant, which was the world's largest dam from 1947 to 1950 he was promoted to Division Engineer of the Pacific Division in San Francisco, California, in charge of the improvements of rivers and harbors of San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego and Hawaii, and supervising the work of flood control in California, Nevada, Utah and Arizona, all this alongside the work of supervising military construction and Aéras Army bases in these states from 1950-1951.

John Seybold returns to the Office of the Chief of Engineers USACE in Washington DC in 1951 and 1952 he was Assistant Chief of Staff of Engineers. The May 27, 1952 is promoted as Governor of the Panama Canal Zone and worked in that position until 1956 As Governor, Seybold completed the stabilization program of the slope of Contractors Hill in the Gaillard Cut, thereby reducing the danger of landslides in the Canal; completed a plan that made possible the operation of a double duct Canal locks during maintenance work; completed the Canal comversion the electrical system 25 to 60 cycles. Seybold retired as a Major General in 1955, died on February 28, 1984.