George W. Dunaway

George W. Dunaway (July 24, 1922 – February 6, 2008) was a United States Army soldier who served as the second Sergeant Major of the Army. He was sworn in on September 1, 1968, and served until his term ended in September 1970.

George W. Dunaway
Sergeant Major of the Army George W. Dunaway
Born(1922-07-24)July 24, 1922
Richmond, Virginia
DiedFebruary 6, 2008(2008-02-06) (aged 85)
Las Vegas, Nevada
Buried
AllegianceUnited States
Service/branchUnited States Army
Years of service1943–1970
RankSergeant Major of the Army
Battles/warsWorld War II
Vietnam War
AwardsArmy Distinguished Service Medal
Silver Star
Legion of Merit
Bronze Star Medal (4)
Air Medal (11)
Army Commendation Medal (2)
Purple Heart

Early life

Dunaway was born in Richmond, Virginia, on July 24, 1922.

Military career

After attending the Airborne Course in August 1943, Dunaway remained at Fort Benning, Georgia, as an Airborne School Instructor until January 1945 when he joined the 517th Parachute Regimental Combat Team in France as a platoon sergeant. He returned to Fort Benning in December 1945 with assignment to the 501st Parachute Infantry Battalion, where he served as first sergeant of Company A. (Inactivated in Germany on 20 August 1945, the 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment was reactivated at Fort Benning from 1 August 1946 to 23 November 1948 as the 501st Parachute Infantry Battalion.)[1] In March 1948, Dunaway was reassigned to the 82d Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. There he became a member of the 505th Airborne Infantry Regiment as Operations Sergeant, ascending to the regimental sergeant major position in 1952.[2]

In early 1954 Dunaway transferred to the 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team as the Combat Team Sergeant Major. He continued in that position for seven years, during which he saw the lineage of the unit reorganized and redesignated as the 187th Infantry, when the 101st Airborne Division was reactivated on September 21, 1956, at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, which included the 2d Airborne Battle Group, 187th Infantry as one of the division's five battle groups.[3] Departing Fort Campbell in 1961, he reported to the 1st Special Forces Group, 1st Special Forces in United States Army Pacific and later moved to the 5th Special Forces Group in Vietnam, where he remained until June 1967.

Returning to the United States, Dunaway re-joined the 101st Airborne Division as it prepared to move to Vietnam in the largest unit deployment by air in the history of the Vietnam War. Dunaway arrived in Vietnam with the commanding general's command group on December 13, 1967. In February 1968, he moved to Camp Eagle in the I Corps Tactical Zone with the division, where he remained until July 1968 when he was selected as the second Sergeant Major of the Army.

Later life

Dunaway died on February 6, 2008, in Las Vegas, Nevada.[4] He was buried in Arlington National Cemetery on March 19, 2008 with full military honors.

Awards and decorations

Combat Infantry Badge, 2 awards
Master Parachutist Badge
Vietnam Parachutist Badge
Army Distinguished Service Medal
Silver Star[5]
Legion of Merit
Bronze Star Medal with Valor device and three oak leaf clusters
Air Medal with Valor device and two silver oak leaf clusters
Army Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster
Purple Heart
Presidential Unit Citation
Meritorious Unit Commendation
Army Good Conduct Medal (nine awards)
American Defense Service Medal
American Campaign Medal
European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal
World War II Victory Medal
National Defense Service Medal with oak leaf cluster
Vietnam Service Medal with four service stars
Vietnam Gallantry Cross with bronze star
Vietnam Armed Forces Honor Medal, 2nd class
Vietnam Campaign Medal
9 Service stripes.

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Army document: "George W. Dunaway".

  • The Sergeants Major of the Army, Daniel K. Elder, Center of Military History, 2003
Military offices
Preceded by
William O. Wooldridge
Sergeant Major of the Army
1968–1970
Succeeded by
Silas L. Copeland
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