Researching William Tate

In 1793, French Consul Michel Ange Bernard Mangourit wanted to capture Florida from Spain. He commissioned William Tate as a French Colonel to raise and lead a force of Americans. Tate was instructed to recruit from outside the United States, but he recruited from the region of the Carolinas, especially rural settlers. In February 1794, Jean Antoine Joseph Fauchet, arrived in Philadelphia as the new French ambassador, and rescinded Tate's commission.

South Carolina threatened to arrest Tate for treason, and he fled to France in 1795, where he was given command of the Légion Noire during the 1797 invasion of Britain. The 1,200 to 1,400-strong Légion Noire landed at Carregwastad Point, near the Welsh port of Fishguard, on February 22 but surrendered three days later at the Battle of Fishguard. After brief imprisonment, Tate was returned to France in a prisoner exchange in 1798, along with most of his invasion force. This was the last invasion of the British mainland by foreign forces.

Tate reportedly held a grudge against the British because his family had been killed by pro-British Native Americans in the American War of Independence, and he advocated Irish republicanism.

Many historians, following E. H. Stuart Jones, the author of The Last Invasion of Britain (1950), have suggested that William Tate was about 70 years old in 1797; he was in fact 44.

Tate was born in 1903 in Calhoun, Georgia. His father, Philip May Tate, was a member of the Tate family that had developed the Georgia Marble Company in Pickens County, Georgia, but Mr. Tate himself was a banker and farmer, having established the Calhoun National Bank. Upon his death in 1911 his widow, Mrs. Edna F. Tate, became president of the bank and managed the farm. William attended Fairmount High School and the Georgia Military Academy, from which he graduated in 1920. He entered the University of Georgia, securing his A.B. degree in 1924 and his M.A. in 1927. He did graduate work at Columbia University, Harvard University and the University of Chicago.

As an undergraduate, Tate was a member of the track team and a distance runner, holding the A.A.U. Cross Country Championship. He was president of the Phi Kappa Literary Society and a holder of its speaking key. He was a member of the Phi Beta Kappa, Phi Kappa Phi, Sphinx, Delta Tau Delta fraternity, and Omicron Delta Kappa.

From 1924 to 1929 he was an instructor in English and debate coach at the University of Georgia. From 1929 to 1936 he was head of the English Department and track coach at The McCallie School in Chattanooga, Tennessee. In 1932 Tate married Susan Frances Barrow, a granddaughter of university chancellor David Barrow. They had two sons, Ben and Jeff. In 1936 he returned to the University of Georgia as dean of freshmen and assistant professor of English. He was dean of students, assistant to the president, and in 1946 became dean of men, a position he held for two decades.

Tate was described as one of the university's ablest and most popular staff members since he served as the communication bridge between the university administration and the students. During his tenure as dean of men, Tate had nearly unlimited authority over student conduct. He devoted much of his time to personal conferences with students, individually and in groups. A favorite quotation of Dean Tate, in reference to his work with young men at the university, was: "Working with a sorry boy who won't try ... is like going bird hunting and having to 'tote the dogs!".

Tate was instrumental in the peaceful integration of the campus in 1961 by maintaining close supervision of student protesters. The university's first two African-American students were Charlayne Hunter and Hamilton Holmes.

Upon his retirement in 1971, Tate joined the university's alumni office and embarked on an intensive public speaking career. His goal, in addition to raising money for the university, was to enhance citizens' understanding of the profound social changes that were occurring throughout the state and on the university campus in particular. Dean Tate brought his deep understanding of human nature to his narrations. He was a gifted storyteller drawing upon a rich memory of events. In 1975 he published the volume Strolls Around Athens.

The Tate Student Center on the UGA campus was named in honor of Tate, as well the Tate Academic Building at the McCallie School.In 1990, the Dean William Tate Honor Society was formed as a lasting legacy to Tate and his impact on students at the University of Georgia. It annually inducts the top twelve freshmen men and top twelve freshmen women at the university, determined through a comprehensive application and interview process.

Tate was responsible for keeping lit a string of 42 lights stretching over 65 miles of waterway. In addition, William was also responsible for maintaining his keepers quarters. During his years of service, William J. Tate was cited frequently in the Report of the Commissioner of Lighthouses for saving lives and property, which is no small feat. In fact, he is cited so often that Coast Guard Historian Dr. Robert Browning remarked, "it is truly amazing that any one man would be cited so many times."

The citations from just his 1917 rescues read as follows:* Tate assisted in floating the gasoline freighter that had gone ashore near his station.* Tate saved from stranding a raft of 25,000 feet of timber, which had broken from its moorings.* Tate floated the gasoline freighter R. C. Beaman, which had stranded near the light station."* Tate floated the boat Muriel Dean and assisted in repairing a disabled motor boat.* Tate floated the R. C. Beaman, which had again gone aground near the station.* Tate piloted the yacht to harbor after it had gotten out of the channel during thick weather.* Tate floated a yacht which had stranded in North River, and put the engine of the yacht Abeola, which had stopped at the light station, in working order.* Tate rendered assistance to the occupants of a disabled motor boat and assisted in its repair.* Tate rendered assistance to a party of flyers and made repairs to the aircraft.* Tate towed to harbor a disabled motor boat.* Tate went to the assistance of a boat that had grounded near the Light.* Tate rendered assistance to a vessel which ran aground near North Landing River Light Station.

William's hard work did not go unnoticed. He was given over $400 in raises between 1917 and 1921 to make him one of the best-paid keepers in the United States Lighthouse Service.

William's interest in aviation continued throughout his life. Coupling his interest in flight with his duty as a lighthouse keeper, William Tate realized his dream of flying and became the first member of the Lighthouse Service to inspect lighted Aids to Navigation from an airplane. The flight was made in April, 1920. His report states: "This keeper made the trip along the river in an airplane, flying, about on a level with the lights and within 50 feet of the same, and it was easily seen whether they were burning." This eventually led to the formation of the Lighthouse Service Air Arm, which checked Aids to Navigation from the air.

He helped raise money for a flight monument in Kitty Hawk.

A USCG coastal buoy tender WLM-560 based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is named after him.