Kendall Gott

Kendall D. Gott (born July 4, 1960) is an Army veteran of Desert Storm, the Senior Historian at the US Army Combat Studies Institute, and author of several works. He is most noted academically as a Civil War and general military history historian, and is a frequent speaker at various Civil War roundtables and staff rides.

Early life

Professor Gott is a native of Peoria, Illinois, and attended Rolling Acres Grade School (1974) and Richwoods High School (1978). He is an Eagle Scout and was a member of St. Paul Lutheran Church. During high school he was employed as a busboy and dishwasher at local restaurants, a stock boy at a small grocery store, and a greens keeper at Northmoor (now Donovan) Golf Course. He proudly notes though that his first job was “detasseling” corn, which is a traditional rite of passage for young workers in central Illinois.

U.S. Army, 1978-2000

Gott enlisted in the Army and served in Germany with the 3rd Armored Division in Frankfurt as an Intelligence Analyst. He temporarily left the service in 1981, joined ROTC, and attained a BA in history from Western Illinois University in 1983. He returned to the Army and was assigned to Baumholder, Germany as a 2nd Lieutenant in Armor. At the end of this tour Gott reluctantly returned to the Military Intelligence branch after experiencing significant hearing loss.

Gott held a variety of staff and command positions and was stationed stateside at Fort Huachuca, AZ; Picatinny Arsenal, NJ; Fort Polk, LA; Fort Leavenworth, KS; and Fort Gordon, GA. He completed three tours in Germany in Frankfurt, Baumholder, and Nürnberg, and completed a "short tour" at Soto Cano Air Base in Honduras. At Fort Polk he was seriously injured during a parachute jump, with the physical effects plaguing him to this day. He earned a Masters of Military Art and Science (MMAS) from the US Army Command and General Staff College in 1998. Gott retired as a Major(P).

His combat experience consists of the Persian Gulf War (Desert Storm) with the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment and Operation Desert Fox with the 513th Military Intelligence Brigade.

Post army 2000-2002

Like many Army retirees, Gott faced significant challenges in adjusting to civilian life. While living in Martinez, Georgia he worked for a brief time as a defense contractor and as a high school teacher. He was an adjunct professor of history at Augusta State University for four years and concurrently at the Georgia Military College for one. A break-up of the family precipitated his return to his adopted home state of Kansas.

Return to Leavenworth, Kansas 2002-

After a short stint as a contractor with the Battle Command Training Program (BCTP), Gott joined the staff of the Combat Studies Institute (CSI) at Fort Leavenworth as a historian and writer in 2002. He was promoted to Senior Historian in 2006 and serves in the Research and Publications team. In 2012 he was named an Assistant Adjunct Professor of the Command and General Staff College. Gott completed most of the coursework towards a PhD from Kansas State University, but tired of the bureaucratic hurdles. His studies there are currently on indefinite hiatus.

Private life

Gott is now a confirmed bachelor. He participates in various Civil War and World War II events as a re-enactor and participates in Single Action Shooting Society matches. He is a popular speaker with regional Civil War roundtables and has supported a number of staff rides conducted by the Blue and Gray Education Society. He is a Lutheran, and a life member of both the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion. Gott earned a private pilot certificate in May 2012 and purchased a M20C Mooney in June 2013.

He has two sons, one living in Augusta, Georgia and one in Leavenworth, Kansas.

Gott currently resides in Leavenworth, Kansas with his miniature dachshund, Stevie.

Selected publications and media

• Where the South Lost the War: An Analysis of the Fort Henry - Fort Donelson Campaign, February 1862. Stackpole Books, 2003. ISBN 0-8117-0049-6.

• In Glory’s Shadow: The 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment During the Persian Gulf War, 1990-1991. Special Collections, Combined Arms Research Library, Fort Leavenworth, 1997.

• In Search of an Elusive Enemy: The Victorio Campaign, 1880. CSI Press, 2004.

• Mobility, Vigilance, and Justice: The US Army Constabulary in Germany, 1946-1952. CSI Press, 2005.

• Breaking the Mold: Tanks in the Cities. CSI Press, 2006. ISBN 978-0-16-076223-9

• 16 Cases of Mission Command (contributing author). CSI Press, 2013. ISBN 978-0-9891372-1-8

• Eyewitness to War, The US Army in Operation Al Fajr: An Oral History Volumes 1&2 (general editor). CSI Press 2004. ISBN 0-16-077312-1

• Cultivating Army Leaders: 2010 CSI Symposium Proceedings (general editor). CSI Press. ISBN 978-0-983722-2-5

• The US Army and the Media: 2009 CSI Symposium Proceedings (general editor). CSI Press. ISBN 978-0-9841901-1-9

• The US Army and the Interagency Process: 2008 CSI Symposium Proceedings (managing editor). CSI Press. ISBN 978-0-9801236-6-1

• Warfare in the Age of Non-State Actors: 2007 CSI Symposium Proceedings (managing editor). CSI Press. ISBN 978-0-9801236-0-9

• Security Assistance: US and International Historical Perspectives: 2006 CSI Symposium Proceedings (managing editor). CSI Press. ISBN 0-16-077346-6

Documentaries and Films

• Appeared on the History Channel’s Investigating History: The Battle of Mine Creek.

• Consulted and appeared on the documentary film Three Forts in Tennessee, by Aperture Films. This film is shown hourly at the Fort Donelson Visitors Center.

• He appeared on C-SPAN 3 in March 2012, discussing the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Fort Donelson.

External links

• Kendall D. Gott on Amazon.com
• Gott, Kendall D. appearances on C-SPAN