Oscar Griswold

Oscar Woolverton Griswold (22 October 1886 – 28 September 1959) was a United States Army lieutenant general in the first half of the 20th century. He is best known for his command of the XIV Corps in the South Pacific Area and South West Pacific Area during World War II.

Oscar W. Griswold
Lieutenant General Oscar Griswold
Born(1886-10-22)October 22, 1886
Ruby Valley, Nevada
DiedSeptember 28, 1959(1959-09-28) (aged 72)
AllegianceUnited States
Service/branchUnited States Army
Years of service1910–1947
RankLieutenant General
Commands heldThird United States Army
Seventh United States Army
II Corps
XIV Corps
IV Corps
4th Infantry Division
Battles/warsWorld War I

World War II

AwardsArmy Distinguished Service Medal (2)
Navy Distinguished Service Medal
Silver Star (2)
Legion of Merit
Bronze Star Medal
Purple Heart
Signature

Early life

Oscar Woolverton Griswold was born on 22 October 1886 in Ruby Valley, Nevada. He attended the University of Nevada, Reno from 1905 to 1906, when he received an appointment to the United States Military Academy. On graduation with the West Point Class of 1910, he was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Infantry.[1]

Military career

Griswold's early company grade assignments included three years service in China from 1914 to 1917. During World War I he served as a major and Lieutenant Colonel in the 84th Division, American Expeditionary Forces, from 1918 to 1919, and participated in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive.[1]

Griswold was assigned to the United States Military Academy from 1921 to 1924. He graduated from the Command and General Staff College in 1925, graduating 189th in the class of 258,[2] and the United States Army War College in 1929.[1] From 1929 to 1931 Griswold served with the War Department General Staff. This duty was followed by service with the United States Army Air Corps. He served as a member of the Infantry Board from 1932 to 1936, and from 1936 to 1939 was assigned to the Office, Chief of Infantry.[1]

World War II

Griswold commanded the 29th Infantry Regiment from September 1939 to October 1940. The 29th was the primary training regiment permanently billeted at the Infantry School at Fort Benning, Georgia; under Griswold's command, the first Parachute Test Platoon was organized out of the 29th, as well as its ersatz successor, the original 501st Parachute Battalion. Griswold was promoted to brigadier general in October 1940 and became Commanding General of the Infantry Replacement Training Center at Camp Croft. Promoted to major general in August 1941, he commanded 4th Infantry Division.[1]

From April 1943, Griswold was Commanding General of the XIV Corps, which fought in New Georgia, Bougainville and in the Philippines. He was promoted to lieutenant general in early 1945,[1] and continued to serve in the Pacific theater under Douglas MacArthur during the Battle of Manila in February 1945. Griswold was the top ground commander only under MacArthur and Krueger during that battle, which was the largest urban warfare American troops ever participated in up to that point; Griswold's XIV Corps, in their bitter and bloody fight for Manila, consisted of the 1st Cavalry Division, the 37th Infantry Division, and the 11th Airborne Division. In June 1945, General of the Army MacArthur nominated Griswold to command the Tenth United States Army following the death of Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner, Jr. in the Battle of Okinawa. However, he was passed over in favor of General Joseph Stilwell.[3]

Later life

After World War II, Griswold served as Commanding General of the Seventh United States Army from 11 June 1946 to 15 March 1947,[4] and then the Third United States Army from 15 March to 14 April 1947.[5]

In October 1947, Griswold retired to The Broadmoor resort in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and resided in the Broadmoor Stadium Apartments. In 1948 he was employed by The Broadmoor Hotel Corporation as the Director of Athletic Events. These included ice hockey and figure skating in the Broadmoor Ice Palace. He also appeared in a television segment of This Is Your Life in December 1956 where he lauded the exploits of an army captain who refused to surrender in the Philippines and successfully led a guerilla campaign against the Japanese until he turned himself in to General Griswold. He remained employed by the Broadmoor until health problems caused him to retire. He died on 28 September 1959.[1][6]

Awards

Griswold's awards and decorations include the following:

Army Distinguished Service Medal with one oak leaf cluster
Navy Distinguished Service Medal
Silver Star with one oak leaf clusters
Legion of Merit
Bronze Star Medal
Air Medal
Purple Heart[5]
Victory Medal
American Defense Service Medal
Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with two campaign stars
World War II Victory Medal
Army of Occupation Medal

In 1946 he received a Doctor of Laws from the University of Nevada, Reno.[1]

Dates of rank

InsigniaRankComponentDate
No insignia CadetUSMAJune 15, 1906
No insignia in 1910 Second LieutenantRegular ArmyJune 15, 1910
 First LieutenantRegular ArmyJuly 1, 1916
 CaptainRegular ArmyMay 15, 1917
 MajorNational ArmyJune 7, 1918
 Lieutenant ColonelNational ArmyOctober 1, 1918
 MajorRegular ArmyJuly 1, 1920
 Lieutenant ColonelRegular ArmyMarch 1, 1935
 ColonelRegular ArmyJuly 1, 1939
 Brigadier GeneralArmy of the United StatesOctober 1, 1940
 Major GeneralArmy of the United StatesAugust 5, 1941
 Brigadier GeneralRegular ArmyMarch 1, 1944
 Lieutenant GeneralArmy of the United StatesApril 14, 1945
 Major GeneralRegular ArmyDecember 1, 1946
 Lieutenant GeneralRetired ListOctober 31, 1947

[7]

References

  1. Ancell, R. Manning; Miller, Christine (1996), The Biographical Dictionary of World War II Generals and Flag Officers: The US Armed Forces, Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, pp. 123–124, ISBN 0-313-29546-8
  2. Dr. Robert H. Berlin, U.S. Army World War II Corps Commanders: A Composite Biography Archived 2006-06-11 at the Wayback Machine
  3. James, D. Clayton (1975), The Years of MacArthur, II: 1941–1945, Boston: Houghton Mifflin, pp. 735–736, ISBN 0-395-20446-1
  4. Seventh Army / USAEUR commander bios
  5. Third Army / ARCENT commander bios
  6. Robert "Rusty" Lomax, subordinate to General Griswold from 1948 to 1956.
  7. Official Register of Commissioned Officers of the United States Army, 1948. pg. 2219.
Military offices
Preceded by
Major General Lloyd R. Fredendall
Commanding General of the 4th Infantry Division (Mechanised)
August–October 1941
Succeeded by
Major General Fred C. Wallace
Preceded by
Major General Alexander M. Patch
Commanding General of the XIV Corps
1943–1945
Succeeded by
Disbanded
Preceded by
Geoffrey Keyes
Commanding General of the Seventh United States Army
1946–1947
Succeeded by
Manton S. Eddy
Preceded by
Ernest N. Harmon
Commanding General of the Third United States Army
March–April 1947
Succeeded by
Edward H. Brooks
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