SWD Commanders

Col. Eugene Reybold 
1937-1940   

Col. Stanley L. Scott 
1940-1942 

Col. Robert R. Neyland, Jr. 
1942-1944

Brig. Gen. Edwin H. Marks
1944-1946

Col. Henry Hutchings, Jr.
1946-1949

Col. Louis W. Prentiss
1949-1952

Brig. Gen. Herbert D. Vogel
1952-1954

Brig. Gen. Lyle E. Seeman
1954-1958

Brig. Gen. William Whipple
1958-1960

Col. Stanlely G. Reiff
1960-1960

Maj. Gen. Robert J. Fleming, Jr
1960-1962

Brig. Gen. Carroll H. Dunn
1962-1964

Brig. Gen. Richard H. Free
1964-1966

Brig. Gen. William T. Bradley
1966-1968

Maj. Gen. Clarence  C. Haug
1968-1969

Maj. Gen. Harold R. Parfitt
1969-1973

Brig. Gen. Harry A. Griffith
1973-1974

Maj. Gen. Charles I. McGinnis
1974-1977

Brig. Gen. James C. Donovan
1977-1980

Maj. Gen. Hugh G. Robinson
1980-1983

Maj. Gen. Robert J. Dacey
1983-1985

Maj. Gen. J.B. Hilmes
1985-1988

Brig. Gen. Robert C. Lee
1988-1990

Brig. Gen. Stanley G. Genega
1990-1992

Brig. Gen. Robert L. Herndon
1992-1993

Col. James Paul King
1993-1995

Brig. Gen. Henry S. Miller, Jr.
1995-1997

Col. Donald R. Holzwarth
1997-1998

Brig. Gen. Edwin J. Arnold, Jr.
1998-2000

Brig. Gen. David F. Melcher
2000-2002

Brig. Gen. Robert Crear
2002-2004

Brig. Gen. Jeffrey J. Dorko
2004-2007

Brig. Gen. Kendall P. Cox
2007-2009

Col. Anthony C. Funkhouser
2009-2010

Brig. Gen. Thomas W. Kula
2010-2014

Brig. Gen. David C. Hill
2014-2017

Brig. Gen. Paul E. Owen
2017-2020

Brig. Gen. Christopher G. Beck
2020-2022

Col. Kenneth N. Reed
2022-

The Origins of SWD

The Southwestern Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, was created in 1937, as a result of large and catastrophic flood events that led up to Congress passing the Flood Control Act of 1936.  That Act recognized that flood control was a federal responsibility and authorized 211 flood control projects in 31 states.  It authorized five reservoirs and a variety of levee construction and improvement projects on the Arkansas River Drainage Basin.  To oversee these projects, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers established two offices on July 1, 1937:  the Little Rock District and the Southwestern Division.  SWD also took over areas in the watershed of the Canadian River and its tributaries west of the Texas-New Mexico border.

In 1939, SWD’s workload increased with the addition of two new Districts:  the Denison District (sponsored by House Majority Leader Sam Rayburn to build Texoma Reservoir on the Red River in Texas for both flood control and hydropower) and the Tulsa District (for flood control, hydropower, and navigation).

Nearly doubling SWD’s territorial area was the addition of the Galveston District on Jan. 15, 1941. With the addition of the Galveston District, the geography and the topography of SWD ranged from wetlands on the eastern portion to desert on the west.   Galveston District was transferred to SWD due organizational changes in the Corps brought on by new military requirements for World War II.  For that same reason, SWD moved from Little Rock to Dallas on Feb 1, 1941, ensuring a more centralized and accessible location from which to oversee the Districts. 

Post World War II, renewed economic growth in America led to the creation of SWD’s Fort Worth District in March 1950. This development was a result of the increased construction of reservoirs in north Texas on the Brazos and Trinity Rivers.  A sub-office in Fort Worth faced closure because of budgetary constraints, but local officials, including the Trinity Improvement Association, fought for a District Office in Fort Worth.  A major flood event on the Clear Fork of the Trinity River added urgency to the cause, and the Fort Worth District was created.

(Source:  The Southwestern Division, 50 Years of Service, by D.  Clayton Brown, PhD)

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SWD Over the Years