Robert S. Wiseman

Ancestry and Early Life
Robert Swern Wiseman was born February 27, 1924, in Robinson, Illinois, to Mary Jean Swern Wiseman and Wallace Paul Wiseman. He was a descendant of John Andrew Wiseman, a prominent nineteenth-century citizen of Cincinnati, Ohio, who had been born into a humble German family in Philadelphia in 1805. John A. Wiseman was indentured at an early age to be a shoemaker, eventually running away to Cincinnati, working his way up from constable to justice of the peace, to judge and attorney. By the time of his death in 1857, he was remembered as being well-known, good-humored, and well liked.

Thomas Jefferson Wiseman, a son of John A. Wiseman, had moved to Willow Hill, in Jasper County, Illinois, after the Civil War. Thomas Jefferson Wiseman's youngest son, Harry Wiseman, was the father of Robert S. Wiseman's father, Wallace Paul Wiseman. Wallace Paul Wiseman, had come to neighboring Robinson, in Crawford County, in 1913, as an auto mechanic. His mother had graduated from Robinson Township High School (now Robinson High School), in 1915. Robert attended Robinson schools, and graduated from Robinson Township High School in 1942.

Education and War Time Service
Robert S. Wiseman attended the University of Illinois, in the Fall of 1942, studying Chemical Engineering. In December 1942, he was in the enlisted reserves. He volunteered during World War II for active duty, in the Army Air Corps, on February 7, 1943, and was trained as a private in Pre-Meteorology at the University of Chicago. Robert S. Wiseman Obituary, Decatur Herald Newspaper, August 27, 2013. In February, 1944, he was transferred to Aviation Cadet Communications Officer Training at Yale University. He was then commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant on November 2, 1944, and sent to the radar officer course at Boca Raton, Florida. In April, 1945, he was transferred to the island of Saipan in the Pacific Theater, and he became the Communications and Electronics officer for the 4th Emergency Rescue Squadron (4th ERS) on Iwo Jima in July 1945. After the surrender in August 1945, he returned to Saipan and was promoted to 1st Lieutenant in April 1946. On June 5, 1945, he departed the 4th ERS and was honorably discharged from active service on August 10, 1946. He was active in the Air Force Reserve for many years. Dr. Wiseman was awarded various medals, including the Bronze Star medal, as a result of his World War II service.

Post-War Education
In 1946 Dr. Wiseman attended the University of Illinois and earned his Bachelor's, Master's and Ph.D. degrees.

Involvement in the History of Night Vision with the Army
Dr. Wiseman went to the Corps of Engineers R & D Laboratories, Fort Belvoir, Virginia, in February, 1954 to become the Chief of the Research and Photometric Section in the Night Vision Equipment Branch and to initiate a Research program to improve Night Vision capability. The research grew and resulted in the laboratory demonstration of Image Intensifiers in 1958 and the budget grew from $600,000 to 1.8 million.Dr. Wiseman became branch chief, and directed further research and the development of the three generation family of Image Intensifier Items. In 1965, the Night Vision Laboratory was formed at Fort Belvoir, and Dr. Wiseman became its Director. At the same time, he was also made Director of the Combat Surveillance & Target Acquisition Laboratory (C.S.& T.A.) at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey. From 1968 to 1978, Dr. Wiseman was director of all Electronic Command Laboratories, which included the Night Vision Lab and C.S. & T. A. plus Communications/ADP, Avionics, Electric Warfare, Atmospheric Sciences, and Electronic Components & Research.

Significance of Dr. Wiseman's Work with Night Vision
As a result of the Army's Night Vision Laboratory research programs, started by Dr. Wiseman with a team of four scientists in 1954, the Army initiated the 1st Generation Image Intensifier equipment development programs in 1962. The 1st Generation Night vision Image Intensifier equipment was made available in the mid-1960s for use defensively in Viet Nam. Subsequent planned R & D resulted in the 2nd Generation Image Intensifier equipment plus Far Infrared Systems which significantly added a most effective offensive capability for use in Desert Storm.

"Taking the Night from Charlie"
In a Time Magazine article dated May 31, 1968, entitled "Taking the Night from Charlie," the story of Lieutenant Robert Hibbs, 25, of Cedar Falls, Iowa, was told. In a jungle firefight that had taken place two years prior to the article's publication, Hibbs won a posthumous Medal of Honor for his performance on a night patrol in the Vietnamese jungle near Lai Khe. Lieutenant Hibbs, using his "Starlight Scope," then a top-secret piece of Army equipment, operating in the dark of the night, lured two separate units of enemy V.C. soldiers, (known by the shorthand term of "Charlie"), to the point where the two units actually fired on each other in the darkness. Lieutenant Hibbs, returning to the battlefield to rescue a fallen comrade, and having been mortally wounded in doing so, and having been previously briefed on the importance and secrecy of the Scope, smashed his Starlight Scope against a tree, before he died, in order to prevent its capture by the enemy. In the article, Dr. Wiseman and his Army researchers are credited with enabling the Army to fight in the darkness at night, and it states that Dr. Wiseman is known as "Mr. Night Vision" to his colleagues.

Award from President Carter
In 1980, President Jimmy Carter awarded Dr. Wiseman the rank of Distinguished Executive in the Senior Executive Service.

Later Life Activities
In 1981, Dr. Wiseman retired from Civil Service and worked for Martin Marietta Aerospace in Orlando, Florida, where he fulfilled various management positions.

Personal Life and Death
Dr. Wiseman was married on February 1, 1947, to Norma Mae Woodard, also of Robinson, Illinois. On August 23, 2013, Dr. Wiseman passed away, survived by his wife of 66 years, Norma Mae Wiseman, and by a daughter, Marnie Wiseman Belling, and by several grandchildren. Funeral services with military graveside rites conducted by the Robinson VFW Post 459 and the American Legion Post, were held, and his remains were interred in Robinson New Cemetery, Robinson, Illinois.