Conditions Governing Access

These records contain restricted material. Access to certain categories of archival records is restricted because they contain material protected under federal or state statutes governing privacy and confidentiality. Examples include, but are not limited to, student, personnel, and medical records.

Biographical / Historical

Lieutenant General Richard Logan Irby (b. 1918 d. 2002) graduated from VMI in 1939 and immediately accepted a commission in the U. S. Army. His military career encompassed more than 30 years of active duty and three wars--- including service in China and Burma during World War II; Battalion Commander with the 1st Cavalry Division during the Korean War; and Assistant Division Commander and Division Commander with the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) during the Vietnam War. In 1969 he became Commander of the U. S. Army Training Center, Infantry, at Fort Polk, LA and in 1970 he was named Commanding General at Fort Knox, Kentucky. Irby became VMI's tenth Superintendent on July 1, 1971 and retired on June 30, 1981. He died on March 6, 2002

Scope and Contents

Records from the administration of Richard L. Irby, VMI's 10th Superintendent. Includes correspondence, reports, photographs, orders and memoranda, and other official records.

Related Material

The VMI Archives also holds a collection of personal papers dating from Irby's U. S. Army career, prior to his tenure as VMI Superintendent. See MS 0509.

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 1939
• Virginia Military Institute—History—20th century