Daniel Bursk Strickler (May 17, 1897 – June 29, 1992) was the 19th

lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania The lieutenant governor is a constitutional officer of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The lieutenant governor is elected for a four-year term in the same year as the governor. Each party picks a candidate for lieutenant governor independently o ...

from 1947 to 1950, under Governor James Duff. He was also a career officer in the

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 ...

, with service on active duty, in the Army Reserve, and in the

Pennsylvania Army National Guard The Pennsylvania Army National Guard, abbreviated PAARNG, is part of the United States Army National Guard and is based in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Together with the Pennsylvania Air National Guard, it is directed by the Pennsylva ...

, and he served as commander of the 28th Infantry Division.

Early life

Strickler was born in

Lancaster, Pennsylvania Lancaster, ( ; pdc, Lengeschder) is a city in and the county seat of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is one of the oldest inland cities in the United States. With a population at the 2020 census of 58,039, it ranks 11th in population amon ...

on May 17, 1897. He attended the public schools of Columbia, Pennsylvania, and graduated from Columbia High School in 1916. He was president of his class in his junior and senior years, captained the track team, and played baseball and basketball.

Start of military career

He enlisted as a private in the 4th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment in January 1916. He was soon promoted to corporal and sergeant, and in April 1917 received his commission as a second lieutenant. In July 1917 his unit was mobilized for participation in the Mexican Border Conflict. In September 1917 Strickler was promoted to first lieutenant. After reorganization for

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 ...

, Strickler's company became Company B of the 109th Machine Gun Battalion, a unit of the 28th Infantry Division. Strickler served in five campaigns, was wounded, and received 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 ...

Post-World War I

After the war Strickler enrolled in

Cornell Law School Cornell Law School is the law school of Cornell University, a private Ivy League university in Ithaca, New York. One of the five Ivy League law schools, it offers four law degree programs, JD, LLM, MSLS and JSD, along with several dual-deg ...

. He served as president of the

Quill and Dagger Quill and Dagger is a senior honor society at Cornell University. It is often recognized as one of the most prominent societies of its type, along with Skull and Bones and Scroll and Key at Yale University. In 1929, ''The New York Times'' stated t ...

society in his senior year, was captain of the track team, and was a member of the Senior Honor Society. Strickler was also president of the senior class, and a member of the Alpha Kappa chapter of the Kappa Sigma fraternity. He received his LL.B. degree in 1922, and returned to Lancaster to practice law. Active in politics as a Republican, in 1930 Strickler won a seat in the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

, and he served one term, 1931 to 1933. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1932. That same year he was appointed Lancaster's police commissioner; he served until 1933, and worked aggressively to combat bootleggers until the end of Prohibition. From 1933 to 1942 he was Lancaster's city solicitor.

World War II

Strickler had continued his military service as a member of the

Organized Reserve The United States Army Reserve (USAR) is a reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the Army element of the reserve components of the United States Armed Forces. Since July 2020, ...

after the first World War, receiving promotion to captain in 1918, major in 1922, lieutenant colonel in 1928, and colonel in 1935. He graduated from the United States Army Command and General Staff College, and from 1935 to 1938 he commanded the 313th Infantry Regiment, a unit of the 79th Infantry Division. From 1938 to 1942 he commanded the division's

158th Infantry Brigade The 158th Infantry Brigade is an infantry brigade of the United States Army. It has subordinate battalions throughout Florida and Puerto Rico. The 158th Infantry Brigade is an AC/RC unit based at Camp Shelby, Mississippi. The unit is responsible ...

. Strickler accepted a reduction in rank to lieutenant colonel in order to command 1st Battalion, 112th Infantry Regiment, a unit of the 28th Infantry Division. He later served as commander of 1st Battalion, 109th Infantry. In September 1944 he became commander of the 109th Infantry, which he led until December, when he was named to command of the 110th Infantry Regiment, which he led until the end of the war, again receiving promotion to colonel. He commanded troops during the Battle of the Hurtgen Forest and the Battle of the Bulge, and 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 ...

for heroism during the Battle of the Bulge.

Post-World War II

In 1946 Strickler was promoted to brigadier general as deputy commander of the 28th Infantry Division. The same year he was elected lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania. He served from 1947 until 1951.

Return to active duty

In the waning days of his term, Strickler resigned as Lieutenant Governor to become commander of the 28th Infantry Division as a major general when it was activated for service in

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

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 ...

. He served with the division until 1952, and remained on active duty after the division was demobilized. Continuing his military service after the war, Strickler served as chief of the

Military Assistance Advisory Group Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG) is a designation for United States military advisors sent to other countries to assist in the training of conventional armed forces and facilitate military aid. Although numerous MAAGs operated around ...

Rome, Italy , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (Romulus and Remus, legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg ...

(1952–1953), a member of the Secretary of the Army's Review Board Council from 1953 to 1956, and assistant chief of staff for civil affairs (J-5) with the Far East Command in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

(1956 to 1957). After retiring from the military in 1957 he returned to Lancaster and resumed the practice of law.

Death and burial

Strickler died in Lancaster on June 29, 1992. He was buried at

Woodward Hill Cemetery Woodward Hill Cemetery is a 32-acre historic rural or garden cemetery in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The cemetery's creation was initiated by the Trinity Lutheran Church of Lancaster in October 1849. Land was subsequently purchased by the church, a ...

in Lancaster.

Awards and honors

In 1960 Strickler received a state promotion to lieutenant general in recognition of his many years of superior service. Strickler Field, a parade ground and physical training site at

Fort Indiantown Gap Fort Indiantown Gap, also referred to as "The Gap" or "FIG", is a census-designated place and National Guard Training Center primarily located in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, United States. A portion of the installation is located in eastern Daup ...

is named in his honor. In 2013 Strickler was named to the Pennsylvania Department of Military and Veterans Affairs Hall of Fame.

Military awards

Strickler's decorations included:

(2);

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 ...

(2);

;

Bronze Star Medal 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 ...

with

"V" Device A "V" device is a metal capital letter "V" with serifs which, when worn on certain decorations awarded by the United States Armed Forces, distinguishes an award for heroism or valor in combat instead of for meritorious service or achievement. ...

for valor;

Order of Leopold Order of Leopold may refer to: * Order of Leopold (Austria), founded in 1808 by emperor Francis I of Austria and discontinued in 1918 * Order of Leopold (Belgium), founded in 1832 by king Leopold I of Belgium * Order of Leopold II, founded in Congo ...

with Palm (Belgium);

Croix de Guerre The ''Croix de Guerre'' (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awa ...

with Palm (Belgium);

with Palm (France);

Order of the Rising Sun The is a Japanese order, established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji. The Order was the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese government, created on 10 April 1875 by decree of the Council of State. The badge features rays of sunlight ...

(Japan);

Combat Infantryman Badge The Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) is a United States Army military decoration. The badge is awarded to infantrymen and Special Forces soldiers in the rank of colonel and below, who fought in active ground combat while assigned as members of ei ...

; and Pennsylvania Distinguished Service Medal.

References

External links

Portrait of Daniel B. Strickler (German)
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Strickler, Daniel B. 1897 births 1992 deaths Politicians from Lancaster, Pennsylvania Military personnel from Pennsylvania Cornell Law School alumni United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni Pennsylvania lawyers Republican Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Lieutenant Governors of Pennsylvania United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army generals Recipients of the Silver Star Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Croix de Guerre (France) Recipients of the Croix de guerre (Belgium) Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun Burials at Woodward Hill Cemetery 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American lawyers United States Army personnel of World War I