Orlando Poe

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Orlando M. Poe, taken at the end of the Civil War.

Orlando Metcalfe Poe (March 7, 1832 – October 2, 1895) was an United States Army officer and engineer. He was responsible for much of the early lighthouse construction on the Great Lakes.

Poe was born in Navarre, Ohio. He attended the United States Military Academy, graduating sixth in his class in 1856. From then until 1861 he served as assistant topographical engineer on the survey of the northern Great Lakes; during this time he was promoted to First Lieutenant.

At the start of the American Civil War, Poe assisted in organizing the volunteers from Ohio; later, he was made a member of Maj. Gen. George McClellan's staff. He assisted by organizing the defense of Washington D.C., and was promoted to colonel that September, when he was placed in charge of the 2nd Michigan Volunteers. He commanded them successfully through various campaigns, after which he was commissioned a brigadier general. In his capacity as chief engineer of the XXIII Corps, he aided in the capture of Knoxville, Tennessee. This city he successfully defended against a siege led by Confederate Lt. Gen. James Longstreet, which culminated in the November 29, 1863, Battle of Fort Sanders. For essentially this action, William T. Sherman selected Poe as his chief engineer in 1864. Poe oversaw the burning of Atlanta, for which action he was honored by Sherman.

In 1865 Poe became the Lighthouse Board's chief engineer; in 1870 he was promoted to the position of Chief Engineer of the Upper Great Lakes Lighthouse District. In this capacity he designed and oversaw the construction of a number of lighthouses throughout the region, many of which still stand. From 1873 through 1883 Poe served as engineering aide-de-camp on the staff of William T. Sherman, who was then commanding general of the U.S. Army. In 1883 he was made Superintending Engineer of improvement of rivers and harbors on Lakes Superior and Huron, where he helped to develop the St. Mary's Falls Canal. Many consider his crowning achievement to be the design and implementation of the Poe Lock in Sault Ste. Marie.

Poe died in Detroit, and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery. Poe Reef in Lake Huron bears his name.