Philip De Witt Ginder

Template:Short description Template:Template other Philip De Witt Ginder (September 19, 1905 – November 7, 1968) was a career soldier in the United States Army. A highly decorated combat veteran, he rose to the rank of major general during the Korean War, while commanding the 45th Infantry Division. He was a recipient of the Distinguished Service Cross, the United States' second-highest military award.

Early life

File:Philip De Witt Ginder (1905–1968) at West Point in 1927.png

At West Point in 1927

Ginder was born on September 19, 1905, in Plainfield, New Jersey, the son of Grant D. and Emma Edith (Troxell) Ginder.Template:Sfn He was raised in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and graduated from Scranton Central High School in 1923. In high school, Ginder was the senior class president, manager of the football team, and president of the school's athletic association.

Ginder passed a competitive examination for a Congressional appointment to the United States Military Academy offered by Representative Laurence Hawley Watres. He began attendance at West Point in 1923, graduated in 1927, and was ranked 171st of 293. Ginder's graduation was the subject of news headlines because he took his final exams after having undergone an emergency appendectomy just one day prior. At graduation, he received his commission as a second lieutenant of Infantry.

Start of career

Ginder completed the infantry officer qualification course in 1933, and his early career included postings to: Fort Wadsworth, New York; Manila, Philippine Islands; Fort Benning, Georgia; Fort Missoula, Montana; and Schofield Barracks, Hawaii.

World War II

File:Phillip DeWitt Ginder.jpg

Ginder as colonel and commander of the 9th Infantry Regiment circa 1945.

During World War II, Ginder was the assistant chief of staff for personnel (G-1) for the Fourth United States Army. Appointed to command the 357th Infantry Regiment, a unit of the 90th Infantry Division, he was among the first ashore during the Normandy landings on D-Day, June 6, 1944. Ginder developed a reputation for subpar performance in combat, with observers and subordinates calling him "obtuse" and "full of boast and posturing."Template:Sfn 357th veteran William E. DePuy called Ginder "as close to being incompetent as it is possible to be."Template:Sfn Ginder was ultimately relieved of command during combat and escorted to the division command post under armed guard.

Ginder was later appointed commander of the 121st Infantry Regiment, an 8th Infantry Division unit. He was in command of the regiment when it captured the German town of Hürtgen as part of the Battle of Hürtgen Forest. It was for this action that he received the Distinguished Service Cross for actions on November 28, 1944, when he personally led his reserve company through the town in bitter house-to-house fighting while armed only with his pistol and a hand grenade. The citation for the DSC reads:

Ginder was appointed the commanding officer of the 9th Infantry Regiment in the spring of the 1945. Ginder commanded the regiment until the end of the war, taking part in liberating the western part of Czechoslovakia, and ending the war in the town of Rokycany near Pilsen.

In addition to his DSC, Ginder was also awarded the Silver Star, "for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in connection with military operations against the enemy", and the Legion of Merit, "for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services to the Government of the United States" for his service during the war.

Post-war service

From 1946 to 1949, Ginder attended the National War College and served in the Far East on the staff of General Douglas MacArthur. From 1949 to 1951, he served as senior military attaché in Prague, Czechoslovakia.

Korean War and senior commands

Ginder commanded the 6th Infantry Regiment, Berlin (1951–1952), the 45th Infantry Division, Korea (1953), the 37th Infantry Division, Fort Riley (1954), 10th Mountain Division (1954–1955) and Fifth United States Army (1955). He went to Korea as a colonel, and advanced to major general in less than two years, making him the youngest American general to command a combat division in Korea. His service in Korea included nearly 18 months spent north of the 38th parallel. His service there resulted in him being awarded with the Army Distinguished Service Medal, the citation for which reads:

After the Korean War, Ginder commanded Fort Polk, Fort Riley, Camp McCoy, the Fifth United States Army, and served in the office of the Chief of Staff of the United States Army as special assistant for Reserve and National Guard Forces.Template:Sfn His final posting was to Governor's Island as deputy commander of First United States Army.Template:Sfn He retired a major general in 1959, and was granted a Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster to his Legion of Merit, with the citation reading:

Post-military career

After his retirement from the army, Ginder was president of the Brazilian-American Export Company, and joined the boards of directors of several other companies.Template:Sfn

Ginder died at New York City's Trafalgar Hospital on November 7, 1968, after suffering a cerebral hemorrhage. He was buried at West Point Cemetery, Section V, Row A, Site 41.

Family

Ginder's first wife was Martha Calvert, whom he married in 1933, and with whom he had two daughters, Jean and Louise. They divorced in 1945.Template:Sfn Ginder was next married to Jean Dalrymple, the head of the City Center Drama and Light Opera Companies, whom he met in 1951 while she was organizing United States participation at the Berlin Arts Festival on behalf of the United States Department of State.Template:Sfn

Decorations

Here is the ribbon bar of Major General Philip De Witt Ginder:Template:Sfn

File:Combat Infantry Badge.svg
Template:Ribbon devices/alt
Template:Ribbon devices/alt	Template:Ribbon devices/alt	Bronze oak leaf cluster Template:Ribbon devices/alt	Bronze oak leaf cluster Bronze oak leaf cluster File:Bronze Star ribbon.svg	File:Fourragère CG.png
Template:Ribbon devices/alt	File:American Defense Service Medal ribbon.svg	File:American Campaign Medal ribbon.svg	Arrowhead Bronze star Bronze star Bronze star Bronze star File:European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign ribbon.svg
File:World War II Victory Medal ribbon.svg	File:Army of Occupation ribbon.svg	File:National Defense Service Medal ribbon.svg	Bronze star Bronze star File:Korean Service Medal - Ribbon.svg
File:Legion Honneur Officier ribbon.svg	File:Croix de guerre 1939-1945 with palm (France) - ribbon bar.png	File:TCH Rad Bileho Lva 2 tridy (pre1990) BAR.svg	File:Czechoslovak War Cross 1939-1945 Ribbon.png
File:PHL Legion of Honor - Legionnaire BAR.png	File:Chungmu Cordon Medal.png	File:POL Order Wojny Ojczyźnianej 2kl BAR.svg	File:United Nations Service Medal Korea ribbon.svg
File:United States Army and U.S. Air Force Presidential Unit Citation ribbon.svgFile:Korean Presidential Unit Citation.png

Combat Infantryman Badge
1st Row	Distinguished Service Cross
2nd Row	Army Distinguished Service Medal				Silver Star				Legion of Merit with Oak Leaf Cluster				Bronze Star Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters
3rd Row	Purple Heart				American Defense Service Medal				American Campaign Medal				European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with four service stars and Arrowhead device
4th Row	World War II Victory Medal				Army of Occupation Medal				National Defense Service Medal				Korean Service Medal with two service stars
5th Row	French Legion of Honour, Grade Officer				French Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 with Palm				Czechoslovakian Order of the White Lion, 2nd Class				Czechoslovak War Cross 1939-1945
6th Row	Philippine Legion of Honor				Korean Order of Military Merit, 3rd Class				Order of the Patriotic War Second Class (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics)				United Nations Korea Medal
Presidential Unit Citation										Korean Presidential Unit Citation

External links

• Papers of Phillip De Witt Ginder at Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library