Ridgely Gaither | |
|---|---|
 Ridgely Gaither as commander of the 11th Airborne Division in 1952 | |
| Born | (1903-02-23)23 February 1903 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. |
| Died | 26 October 1992(1992-10-26) (aged 89) Annapolis, Maryland, U.S. |
| Buried | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1924–1962 |
| Rank | Lieutenant General |
| Commands | Army Parachute School 82nd Airborne Division 11th Airborne Division 40th Infantry Division XVIII Airborne Corps U.S. Army Caribbean Command Second United States Army |
| Battles / wars | World War II Korean War |
| Awards | Army Distinguished Service Medal (2) Silver Star (2) Legion of Merit Bronze Star Medal |
| Other work | Police Commissioner,Annapolis, Maryland |
Ridgely Gaither (23 February 1903 – 26 October 1992) was aUnited States Armylieutenant general prominent as commander of the40th Infantry Division during theKorean War, and commander of theXVIII Airborne Corps,U.S. Army Caribbean Command andSecond United States Army.
Gaither was born inBaltimore, Maryland, on 23 February 1903, to a family which included numerousContinental Army andUnited States Army officers since theAmerican Revolutionary War and is the namesake of the suburban town ofGaithersburg inMontgomery County, Maryland, northwest ofWashington, D.C.. His first name, "Ridgely" comes from his mother's maiden name, representing another prominent Maryland family. Gaither graduated fromSt. John's College in the state capital ofAnnapolis, Maryland and received his commission as asecond lieutenant ofInfantry in theUnited States Army in 1924.[1][2]
Gaither served in positions of increasing responsibility and rank, including assignments in thecontinental United States,Alaska,Hawaii andChina.[3] He graduated from the Infantry Officer Course in 1933 and theCommand and General Staff College in 1939.[4]
An early advocate of usingparatroopers in offensive military operations, from 1943 to 1944 Gaither commanded the Army Parachute School, receiving promotion tobrigadier general.[5][6]
While there, he was instrumental in forming the555th Parachute Infantry Battalion ("Triple Nickels"), a segregated unit which was the U.S. Army's first African-American paratrooper unit.[7]
In 1945, Gaither went toEurope to take part in fighting againstNazi Germany, including a combat parachute jump with the17th Airborne Division. He landed east of theRhine River, almost on top of a German anti-aircraft battery. The Americans took the position, and Gaither said later that one group of Germans might have been taken prisoner sooner if he had not shot down their white flag of surrender, which was so dirty he did not immediately recognize it.[8]
Later in 1945, General Gaither was assigned as assistant division commander of the86th Infantry Division in thePhilippines, where he served until the end of the war and immediately afterwards.[9]
Following the Second World War, from 1946 until 1949, Gaither served as assistant division commander of the88th Infantry Division, with duty on the border between the northeast corner ofItaly and the northwest corner ofYugoslavia, along theAdriatic Sea coast. He also served as a member of the Allied commission that established the new international border, and as military governor of the Italian port city ofTrieste, and as president of the War Crimes Court for the Allied Powers inFlorence, Italy.[10][11][12][13][14]
Gaither briefly commanded the famous82nd Airborne Division from July to October 1949.[15][16]
From 1949 to 1951, Gaither served in the Operations Division of the Office of the Army's Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations.[17]
Gaither commanded the11th Airborne Division from 1951 to 1953.[18][19][20]
General Gaither was commander of the40th Infantry Division from 1953 to 1954 and saw combat during theBattle of Heartbreak Ridge.[21][22]
In 1955, Gaither was assigned as commander of theXVIII Airborne Corps.[23]
From 1955 to 1956, Gaither served as the U.S. Army's assistant chief of staff for Intelligence, G-2, and was promoted to lieutenant general.[24]
Gaither was deputy commander of theContinental Army Command from 1957 to 1958, with duty as commander of Army Reserve Forces.[25]
From 1958 to 1960 Gaither was commander of theU.S. Army Caribbean Command.[26][27][28] He became a hereditary member of the MarylandSociety of the Cincinnati in 1960.
Gaither was assigned as commander of theSecond United States Army in 1960, where he remained until his retirement in 1962.[29]
Gaither retired from the Army in 1962. His awards included twoArmy Distinguished Service Medals, twoSilver Stars, theLegion of Merit and theBronze Star Medal.[30][31][32][33]
Gaither lived in semi-retirement inAnnapolis, the state capital of Maryland along theChesapeake Bay where he was commissioner of police for 8 years, from 1966 to 1973.[34][35]
Gaither died of congestive heart failure on 26 October 1992, at the Fairfield Nursing Center in Annapolis, 19 years after retiring a second time from his 8 years leadership of theAnnapolis Police Department as Police Commissioner.[36]
Services were conducted at historicSt. Anne's Episcopal Church, on Church Circle in the heart of Annapolis, followed by burial at theArlington National Cemetery inArlington, Virginia, across thePotomac River fromWashington, D.C. He is interred at Section 2, Site 4888–1.[37][38]
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