Soldier Joker : The Essays

George Derby was a soldier,an engineer,a cartographer,a humorist, and an artist. His life was short. He died when he was 38 years old.He interacted with Robert E. Lee,General Winfield Scott,William Tecumseh Sherman, Jefferson Davis, and Ulysses S. Grant. The last book Abraham Lincoln read was by Derby (aka John Phoenix). His classmates were Stonewall Jackson,George McClellan, and George Pickett.He built 5 lighthouses on the Alabama Gulf Coast. He explored the Gulf of California and the Colorado River. He surveyed the Sacramento Valley and Camp Far West. He was in charge of the first engineering project west of the Mississippi.He was a hero of the Mexican war.He is buried at West Point.His humor influenced Mark Twain.His antics influenced Lillie Coit.