Conditions Governing Access

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Preferred Citation

Records of Superintendent William H. Cocke, 1924-1929. [specific series/item/date]

Biographical / Historical

Brigadier General William Horner Cocke (b. 1874 d. 1938) graduated from VMI in 1894, having received the Institute's highest academic award, the Jackson-Hope Medal, First Honor. After graduation he taught at Kemper Military Academy (Missouri), earned a law degree from Washington University and practiced law in St. Louis from 1899-1907. Cocke served as a U. S. Army officer in both the Spanish-American War and World War I. He was the founder and president of Southern Acid & Sulphur Company (St. Louis). He was named VMI's fourth Superintendent on October 1, 1924 and served until ill health forced his retirement on June 30, 1929. The construction of VMI's gymnasium, Cocke Hall, was made possible by Gen. Cocke's significant donation towards the cost of construction. He died on June 9, 1938.

Scope and Contents

Correspondence, memoranda and other records from the administration of William H. Cocke.

Related Material

Additional correspondence from this era is located in the Superintendents' Administrative Subject Files series.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Virginia Military Institute -- Administration
• Virginia Military Institute—Class of 1894
• Virginia Military Institute—History—20th century