Claude Birkett Ferenbaugh (1899–1975) was a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

. He served as the operations officer of the

U.S. II Corps The II Corps was a corps-sized formation of the United States Army that was active in both World War I and World War II. It was originally formed and fought on the Western Front during World War I and was also the first American formation of ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and commanded the 7th Infantry Division during the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

Early life and start of military career

Claude Birkett Ferenbaugh (1899–1975) in the 1921 West Point yearbook

Ferenbaugh was born in Dresden, New York, on March 16, 1899. He attended the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

, graduating in 1918 and receiving his commission as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

World War I

Having graduated from West Point in November, Ferenbaugh arrived in Europe too late to take part in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

combat. Like many other junior officers in the same circumstances, he carried out an observation tour of European battlefields, including visits to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

and

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Post-World War I

Ferenbaugh remained in the Army after the war ended. He was a 1920 graduate of the Infantry Officer Basic Course, afterwards serving throughout the United States and overseas, including assignments at

Fort Benning Fort Benning is a United States Army post near Columbus, Georgia, adjacent to the Alabama–Georgia border. Fort Benning supports more than 120,000 active-duty military, family members, reserve component soldiers, retirees and civilian employees ...

, Georgia, Vancouver, Washington, and in

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

and the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

."War: New Command Team in Korea"
''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

''. March 5, 1951. In 1932, Ferenbaugh graduated from the Signal School Command Officer Course. Ferenbaugh graduated from 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 1937, and from the Army War College in 1940.Official U.S. Army Register, published by U.S. Army Adjutant General
1954, page 234

World War II

After service on the General Staff at the War Department, in 1943 Ferenbaugh was assigned as operations officer, G-3 of the

, and was responsible for planning and overseeing execution of combat actions during the North African Campaign. After his assignment with II Corps, Ferenbaugh served as assistant division commander of the 83rd Infantry Division.

Post-World War II

Ferenbaugh's service continued after

, including assignment as commander, of the

Military District of Washington The United States Army Military District of Washington (MDW) is one of nineteen major commands of the United States Army. Its headquarters are located at Fort Lesley J. McNair in Washington, D.C. The missions of the units in the Military Distri ...

, chief of staff for the Operation Sandstone atomic tests, and commander at Schofield Barracks,

. He also served as president of the

National Infantry Association The National Infantry Association (NIA) was established in April 1982 at Fort Benning, Georgia as the Infantry Association, operating as a titular organization for the subscribers of “Infantry” magazine. In 1994, it was incorporated as the ...

in the late 1940s.

Korean War

In 1951, Ferenbaugh was named commander of the 7th Infantry Division. His assignment also included membership on the Allied Negotiating Team that negotiated peace terms with

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...

Post-Korean War

From July 1953 to December 1954, Ferenbaugh served as chief of staff for U.S. Army, Europe. In 1955, he returned to

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

as deputy commander of the Eighth United States Army, remaining in this assignment until his 1958 retirement.

Awards and decorations

Ferenbaugh received multiple awards of the

Distinguished Service Medal Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a high award of a nation. Examples include: *Distinguished Service Medal (Australia) (established 1991), awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force for distinguished leadership in action * Distinguishe ...

. He also received the

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an e ...

twice, the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

three times, the

Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

twice, two awards of 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 ...

and the

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, w ...

Retirement and death

In retirement, General Ferenbaugh resided in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

He died at his home on September 10, 1975, and was buried at

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 ...

, Section 7, Site 8083 A, RH.U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Online National Cemetery Gravesite Locator
/ref>

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferenbaugh, Claude Birkett 1899 births 1975 deaths United States Army Infantry Branch personnel United States Army personnel of World War I United States Army personnel of the Korean War United States Military Academy alumni United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Silver Star Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Air Medal People from Dresden, Yates County, New York People from Washington, D.C. Burials at Arlington National Cemetery United States Army generals of World War II United States Army generals