Andrew Pick O'Meara (March 23, 1907 – September 30, 2005) was a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

four-star general who served as Commander-in-Chief,

United States Southern Command The United States Southern Command (USSOUTHCOM), located in Doral, Florida in Greater Miami, is one of the eleven unified combatant commands in the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for providing contingency planning, o ...

from 1961 to 1965, and Commander-in-Chief,

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/Commander, Central Army Group from 1965 to 1967.

Military career

O'Meara was born on March 23, 1907, in

West Bend, Wisconsin West Bend is the county seat of Washington County, Wisconsin, Washington County, Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 31,752. History Early history and settlement Northeastern Washington County's earliest known inhabitants wer ...

. He graduated from the

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in 1930 and was commissioned in the field artillery. He began his career in the horse artillery with the 4th Field Artillery from 1931 to 1934. Other early assignments included teaching physics at West Point and various staff assignments. He married the former Ellen Fraser (1906–1995) in 1933. O'Meara served as a battery commander in the 4th Armored Division in 1941, and in 1942 took command of the 94th Field Artillery Battalion. By the end of World War II he was the Assistant Artillery Commander of

VII Corps 7th Corps, Seventh Corps, or VII Corps may refer to: * VII Corps (Grande Armée), a corps of the Imperial French army during the Napoleonic Wars * VII Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army prior to and during World War I * VII ...

. Following the war, he attended the

Command and General Staff College The United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC or, obsolete, USACGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is a graduate school for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military ...

in 1946, and the National War College from 1951 to 1952. During the Korean War O'Meara was the artillery commander for the 7th Infantry Division, and later the artillery commander for

IX Corps 9 Corps, 9th Corps, Ninth Corps, or IX Corps may refer to: France * 9th Army Corps (France) * IX Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars Germany * IX Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial Germ ...

. Promoted to brigadier general in 1952, he earned the Silver Star in 1953 for reconnaissance near Kumhwa. O'Meara spent the years after Korea working in research and development for the army, first with the Research & Development Division of the Army General Staff, then as Deputy Chief of Research & Development for the United States Army from 1955 to 1957. He then took command of the 4th Armored Division in 1957. From 1959 to 1961, he was assigned to France as director of military assistance for the United States European Command followed by command of the United States Southern Command and United States Army Europe. O'Meara was an avid

squash Squash may refer to: Sports * Squash (sport), the high-speed racquet sport also known as squash racquets * Squash (professional wrestling), an extremely one-sided match in professional wrestling * Squash tennis, a game similar to squash but pla ...

player, and during his tenure at both SOUTHCOM and United States Army Europe ordered the installation of squash courts at bases under his command.

Decorations

O'Meara's awards and decorations included the Army Distinguished Service Medal with oak leaf cluster, the Silver Star, the Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster, the Bronze Star Medal, and the

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establish ...

Post-military

O'Meara retired from the army in 1967, settling in the Washington, D.C., area. He died on September 30, 2005, of a stroke at the age of 98 in

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, and was buried in

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

. He was preceded in death by his wife and a daughter, and survived by a son and a daughter, 13 grandchildren and 26 great-grandchildren.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Omeara, Andrew P. 1907 births 2005 deaths United States Army generals United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army personnel of the Korean War Recipients of the Silver Star Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Air Medal Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) United States Military Academy alumni United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni Burials at Arlington National Cemetery People from West Bend, Wisconsin Military personnel from Wisconsin