Fillmore K. Mearns
United States Army general (1915–1997)
Fillmore Kennady "Ken" Mearns (September 20, 1915 – November 18, 1997) was a United States Army lieutenant general who served as commander of the 25th Infantry Division during the Vietnam War and later as commander of VII Corps in West Germany.
Early life
Born into a military family in Utah and raised in Berkeley, California, Mearns started at West Point in July 1934 graduating with a B.S. degree and a second lieutenant's commission in June 1938.
Military career
World War II
Following the United States entry into World War II, Mearns graduated from the Command and General Staff School in 1942 and transferred to III Corps where he served as assistant Operations officer (G-3). He then served in the same capacity with VI Corps. In November 1943, he was appointed commander of the 3rd Battalion, 135th Infantry Regiment and led this unit in the invasion of Sicily and the invasion of Italy.
Mearns was awarded the Silver Star for his actions on 16/17 January 1944 when his unit was trying to cross the Rapido River during the Battle of Monte Cassino.
Postwar
Mearns attended Columbia University studying Russian language and Soviet studies. He then served as G-3 of United States forces in Austria and as United States representative on the four-party Military Committee in Vienna.
In 1950 he graduated from the Artillery and Guided Missile School and then took command of the 75th Artillery Battalion, 17th Artillery Group and then the 77th Artillery Group.
In 1952 he attended the Armed Forces Staff College and was then appointed director, Special Forces Department of the Unconventional Warfare School at Fort Bragg.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Fillmore K. Mearns” is united States Army general (1915–1997). The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Fillmore, Mearns and United, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “united States Army general (1915–1997)” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 19, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q51356207. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1915, 1997, 1934 and 1938.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Fillmore K. Mearns”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Fillmore K. Mearns primary sources, Fillmore K. Mearns archive and Fillmore research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Fillmore K. Mearns”?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Fillmore K. Mearns” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.