John H. Hinrichs (July 10, 1904 – February 13, 1990) 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 ...

who served as the 20th Chief of Ordnance for the

United States Army Ordnance Corps The United States Army Ordnance Corps, formerly the United States Army Ordnance Department, is a sustainment branch of the United States Army, headquartered at Fort Lee, Virginia. The broad mission of the Ordnance Corps is to supply Army comb ...

Early life

John Honeycutt Hinrichs was born at Sandy Hook Proving Ground in

Sandy Hook, New Jersey Sandy Hook is a barrier spit in Middletown Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. The barrier spit, approximately in length and varying from wide, is located at the north end of the Jersey Shore. It encloses the southern en ...

on July 10, 1904 to Frederic William Hinrichs, Jr and Mary Honeycutt-Hinrichs. He was raised in

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. His father and grandfather, John Thomas Honeycutt, were both graduates of 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 ...

, West Point, New York. His brother, Lieutenant Frederic W. Hinrichs, III, was a pilot in the

United States Navy Reserve The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2005, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called Reservists, are categorized as being in either the Sele ...

and died in an airplane crash during World War II. In 1928 Hinrichs graduated from the United States Military Academy.

Early career

Hinrichs was initially assigned to the Field Artillery branch. In 1932 he received a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree in

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, and ...

from the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...

. In 1935 he transferred from Artillery to the Ordnance Corps and, in 1937, graduated from the Army Industrial College. Hinrichs served in numerous Ordnance assignments in the United States and overseas, including a posting to

Frankford Arsenal The Frankford Arsenal is a former United States Army ammunition plant located adjacent to the Bridesburg neighborhood of Northeast Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, north of the original course of Frankford Creek. History Opened in 1816 on of land pu ...

and command of the Twin Cities Ordnance Plant.

World War II

From 1943 to 1945 Hinrichs was executive officer (second in command) of the Maintenance Division in the Ordnance Department's Field Service Office. In this position he was responsible for improving equipment and weapons readiness by analyzing data to identify systemic causes for breakdowns and repairs, and developing solutions to minimize the time these items were non-mission capable.

Later career

In the late 1940s Hinrichs served as Ordnance Officer for United States Army Forces, Middle Pacific. In 1948 he graduated from the

National War College The National War College (NWC) of the United States is a school in the National Defense University. It is housed in Roosevelt Hall on Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C., the third-oldest Army post still active. History The National War Colle ...

. From the early to mid-1950s Hinrichs was head of the Field Service Division. He was Deputy Chief of Ordnance from 1955 to 1958. From 1958 until his retirement in 1962, Hinrichs was the Army's Chief of Ordnance. He was promoted to lieutenant general in 1959.

Awards and decorations

Hinrichs' decorations included the

Army Distinguished Service Medal The Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a military decoration of the United States Army that is presented to soldiers who have distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious service to the government in a duty of great responsibility. Th ...

for service from September 1955 to May 1962,

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 ...

for service from 1943 to 1945 and the

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 ...

. In 1978, Hinrichs was inducted in the Ordnance Corps Association's Hall of Fame.

Retirement and death

In 1962, Hinrichs had been announced as the first head of a new Supply and Maintenance Command. In April, 1962 he gave Congressional testimony defending Nike Zeus Missile contractors against charges of excessive profiteering on previous projects. As a result of the controversy over whether the contractors were being overpaid, and because he opposed the reorganization, Hinrichs opted to retire. Hinrichs died in

Carmel, California Carmel-by-the-Sea (), often simply called Carmel, is a city in Monterey County, California, United States, founded in 1902 and municipal corporation, incorporated on October 31, 1916. Situated on the Monterey Peninsula, Carmel is known for its n ...

on February 13, 1990.U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850–2010, entry for John H. Hinrichs, accessed November 27, 2011

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hinrichs, John Honeycutt 1904 births 1990 deaths United States Army generals United States Military Academy alumni MIT School of Engineering alumni National War College alumni United States Army personnel of World War II Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Legion of Merit People from Carmel-by-the-Sea, California Military personnel from California