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Ted B Braden 1928 - 2007

Ted Burdette Braden Jr. of Stroudsburg, Monroe County, PA was born on September 24, 1928 in Toledo, Lucas County, Ohio United States, and died at age 78 years old on June 21, 2007.

Ted Burdette Braden Jr.

Ted Burdette Braden Jr

Stroudsburg, Monroe County, PA 18360

September 24, 1928

Toledo, Lucas County, Ohio, United States

June 21, 2007

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Ted B Braden Ted Braden (1928 - 2007)

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Ted Burdette Braden Jr.'s History: 1928 - 2007

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Introduction

Ted Burdette Braden Jr.'s mother was Mary Helen (Decker) Dearbaugh (1909 - 1997) and his father was Ted Burdette Braden Sr. (1907 - 1961). He had a half-brother Clifford Eugene Dearbaugh (1932 - 2014). Ted Braden married Rosalind Lauer Robinson (1926 - 2011) and served his country in the 101st Airborne during World War II, and again in Vietnam. In the 1950 federal census, Ted was 21, married and living in Columbus Georgia. He was a boarder in the house of Cecil and Breta Jones. Also in the household were Ted and Rosalind's 3 children. Ted stated that he was a gambler in the entertainment industry. A newspaper article from about that time shows his financial circumstances. See Georgia, Muscogee County. It is speculated that Ted may have been the infamous "D.B. Cooper". The 2020 book "Paratrooper of Fortune: The Story of Ted B. Braden - Vietnam Commando, CIA Operative, Congo Mercenary, and just maybe D.B. Cooper" provides an intriguing case. See Paratrooper of Fortune: The Story of Ted B. Braden" for a review and synopsis of the book. A 2012 article from The Mountain News in the Washington State also listed several people who were suspected of being D.B. Cooper, one of whom was Ted Braden Jr.. See Suspects in the DB Cooper skyjacking – sketches, pictures and comparisons for more details. This theory that Ted Braden was the notorious hijacker "D.B. Cooper" continues today. There are plenty of suspicions, but little proof. To see the most recent December 2022 article about Ted, go to WHY TED BRADEN KEEPS COMING UP AS A SUSPECTED D.B. COOPER .
09/24

1928

Birthday

September 24, 1928

Birthdate

Toledo, Lucas County, Ohio United States

Birthplace

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Ethnicity & Family History

Ted was caucasian.
Nationality & Locations

Ted was born in Toledo Ohio in 1928. He joined the Army at age 15 as a member of the 101st Airborne and fought at the Battle of The Bulge in WWII.
Military Service

Ted Braden Jr. served his country in the 101st airborne in World War 2, and again served in Vietnam. He was well known for his sky diving skills and even performed for civilians. See Mid Georgians To See Exhibition By Sky Divers. While in Vietnam it is speculated that he briefly deserted the military to find work as a mercenary in the Congo, and was later arrested and returned home. However, Ted was ultimately honorably discharged from service.
Personal Life & Family

Ted was an Army Veteran serving with the 101st Airborne during World War II. In 1965-1966, Ted was a member of the elite Vietnam Special Forces unit MACVSOG as a Recon Team Leader.
06/21

2007

Death

June 21, 2007

Death date

Unknown
Cause of death

Unknown
Death location

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Ted B Braden lived 5 years longer than the average family member when died at the age of 78.

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10 Memories, Stories & Photos about Ted

Drew Beeson

13 favorites

12/15/2022

Ted B. Braden - Vietnam - 1966

Ted B. Braden - Vietnam - 1966. Ted is already dreaming of hijacking a Boeing 727 and jumping the Aft. stairs.

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

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Kathy Pinna

32.7k+ favorites

07/20/2022

Ted B Braden

Photo of Ted labelled "Vietnam 1966"

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

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Mid Georgians To See Exhibition By Sky Divers

Daniel Pinna

10.4k+ favorites

12/09/2022

Mid Georgians To See Exhibition By Sky Divers

The following appeared in The Macon News on Friday May 20th 1960 on page 8.

Robins Air Force Base - The famed Army paratroopers from Ft. Campbell, Ky., will be the feature attraction of Armed Forces Day Open House here Saturday.

One of the three sky divers is a Ft. Valley native, Sgt. Frist Class Alva J. English. He is a member of the 101st Airborne Division and the Parachute Club of America, a nationwide organization devoted to parachuting as a sport.

His parents, Mr. and Mrs. R. M. English, watched their son make a parachute jump for the first time at last year's Open House observance. Sgt. English, a 12-year paratroop veteran, now has over 300 jumps to his credit.

Other members of the Ft. Campbell Sport Parachute Club to jump Saturday are SFC Robert R. Wightman and Sgt. Ted B. Braden.

There are now more than 10 military clubs engaged in sport parachuting, or sky diving, the Army's newest sport. Sky diving is body control during free fall, during which the jumper reaches a speed of 120 miles per hour. By means of exact co-ordination, the diver can manipulate his body into patterns such as the figure eight. After his steerable parachute opens, the sky diver guides himself toward a ground target.

Date & Place: 1960 in Macon, Bibb County, Georgia United States

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Kathy Pinna

32.7k+ favorites

07/20/2022

Ted B Braden

A photo taken of Ted Braden when he was a child.

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

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Daniel Pinna

10.4k+ favorites

12/09/2022

Georgia, Muscogee County

The following appeared in The Columbus Ledger on January 17th 1950 on page 17:

There will be sold at public outcry to the highest and best bidder for cash before the Court House door of Muscogee County between the legal hours of sale. on the first Tuesday in February, 1950, the following property to-wit:

One 1946 Club Coupe Mercury automobile, Motor No 96A1318394 Said property was found in possession of Hardaway Motor Co. and levied on as the property of Ted B. Braden Jr. to satisfy a foreclosure on conditional bill of sale against him in favor of Federal Services Finance Corporation from the Superior Court of Muscogee County, Ga.

This the 30th day of December, 1949. E. F. Howell, Sheriff, Muscogee Co., Georgia January 16, 17, 24, 31, 1950.

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Daniel Pinna

10.4k+ favorites

12/09/2022

Staff Sergeant Ted B. Braden

The following appeared in The Leaf-Chronicle on Thursday February 6th 1964 on page 18. It reads:

STAFF SERGEANT James F. Fowler Jr., in a free fall at 8,000 feet above Fort Campbell's Yamoto Drop zone, calls to his teammate, Staff Sergeant Ted B. Braden: "Hey, Ted - you forgot to brush your teeth. And this is National Dental Health Week! Cut over this way - I'm bringing your toothbrush.

Date & Place: 1964 in Fort Campbell, Christian County, Kentucky United States

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Kathy Pinna

32.7k+ favorites

12/09/2022

Ted Braden Jr.

From "Ramparts" magazine in an article the magazine published about Sgt. Bradens exploits in Africa. Ramparts ceased publication in 1975.

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

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Kathy Pinna

32.7k+ favorites

12/09/2022

Paratrooper of Fortune: The Story of Ted B. Braden"

The following is a description of the book about Ted B. Braden Jr., beginning with a review:

"You make a strong argument based on good circumstantial evidence. Ted Braden looks to be a strong suspect" - Michael E. Anderson, Former F.B.I. Assistant Special Agent in Charge - Enron Investigation

Ted B. Braden was “the perfect combination of high intelligence and criminality.” - Jo Ann, Ted Braden’s sister-in-law

November 24th, 2021 will mark the 50th Anniversary of the only unsolved skyjacking case in American history. The case, nicknamed “Norjack” by the FBI as it involved the hijacking of a Northwest Orient 727 Airliner, would create a folk hero, if not a legend, of a mysterious man who would be immortalized by the name D.B. Cooper. This fascinating case has garnered a myriad of colorful and interesting suspects. One of the “dark horse” suspects who emerged over the years was a member of the most elite Special Forces unit created by the United States Government to serve during the war in Vietnam: a secret and covert unit called the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam – Studies and Observations Group (MACV-SOG). This rather benign-sounding name served as a thin veil, masking what was known to a few as the “black ops” unit in Vietnam. Many of the soldiers who served in this elite unit consider one of their own to be the infamous D.B. Cooper who hijacked Northwest Orient Flight 305; demanded a ransom of $200,000 in cash; and jumped out of the lowered aft staircase of the plane into the stormy night, never to be seen again.

It was even stated by some of the most highly-decorated members of MACV-SOG, legends such as Major John Plaster and Sergeant Billy Waugh, that one man in SOG had the parachuting expertise, the know-how, and, most of all, the “balls of steel” to pull off the D.B. Cooper skyjacking. This man was Ted B. Braden.

Raised in the Mid-West during the Great Depression, young Ted could not have foreseen that the trajectory of his life would be set by events happening thousands of miles from his boyhood home. At age 16, Braden joined the army to fight in World War II, a decision that led to a twenty-year on-again/off-again military career marked by dangerous covert operations; C.I.A. intrigue; desertion, arrest, and incarceration (only for him to be freed without trial under mysterious circumstances); Cold War mercenarism; and ultimately, distrust in a government for whom he could have surrendered his life.

The story of Ted B. Braden, master parachutist and soldier of fortune, trained by Uncle Sam in the art of war but not in the art of peace, is the quintessential American story - the story of the men of his generation and of a war that defined that generation. Ted Braden was an enigma as a person, driven by a brilliant, unorthodox mind that struggled to adapt to a society based on law and order and routine. He was a true super soldier who was suspected of having mental illness, most likely from post-traumatic stress disorder. He was a tortured soul with the burning frustration that he could never parlay his soldiering skills into big financial gains. He was fearless in his military endeavors to the point of risking lives but was endowed with natural instincts of survival that kept him and the men under his command alive.

It is tragic that a man like this is no longer alive to share his story. It is tragic that a man like this never will be fully understood. He had an ability to be very kind and very cruel, an ability to be very forthright and very cunning, an ability to be very committed as a soldier and very adrift as a civilian. Was he the man who fearlessly leapt out of a Boeing 727 with $200,000 strapped around his body on a rainy Thanksgiving Eve in 1971? We may never know, but even if Ted Braden is not D.B. Cooper, he is one of the most fascinating people whose story you never knew - until now.

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Kathy Pinna

32.7k+ favorites

12/09/2022

Suspects in the DB Cooper skyjacking – sketches, pictures and comparisons

Posted on February 23, 2012 on The Mountain News - WA

Ted Braden

One of the most intriguing aspects of the resurgent investigation of DB Cooper in recent years is the information provided by commandos from Vietnam, now that their covert activities have been de-classified.

Plenty of troopers from the Special Operations Group of the Materials Assistance Command-Vietnam are talking to journalists and writing their own accounts of the illegal wars fought in Laos, Cambodia and North Vietnam during the larger conflict in South Vietnam from 1962-1975.

Two topics come blaring forward. First, the DB Cooper skyjacking has all the hallmarks of a SOG operation in terms of the planning, equipment and execution. Secondly, two leading commanders of SOG units, SgtM Billy Waugh and Major John Plaster say that within their ranks a rogue SOG trooper by the name of Ted Braden is widely thought to be DB Cooper.

Braden’s military career is filled with mystery and intrigue, including the assertions by some in his command that he was a professional intimate of General John Singlaub, one of the founders of the CIA and a leading figure in the Iran-Contra affair during the 1980s. Further, after Braden went AWOL in Vietnam in 1966 and was caught by the CIA trying to join the commando forces in the Congo civil war, he was incarcerated at Fort Dix, NJ. According to the officer responsible for inmates at Dix, Braden was later released by the personal intercession of the Army Chief of Staff, General Harold Johnson.

Braden’s whereabouts afterward are still hotly debated.

This picture of Ted Braden Jr. is from Ramparts magazine and was in an article the magazine published about Sgt Braden’s exploits in Africa. Sadly, Ramparts ceased publication in 1975.

Comments

Kathy Pinna

32.7k+ favorites

01/09/2023

WHY TED BRADEN KEEPS COMING UP AS A SUSPECTED D.B. COOPER

Written by William Kennedy on December 8, 2022

The identity of D.B. Cooper has now been revealed, according to the new true-crime documentary "I am DB Cooper," via the film's official website. It remains to be seen whether the film's assertion is correct that Washington state resident, Rodney Lewis Bonnifield, is in fact responsible for the unsolved skyjacking, based on his own admission, per GoSkagit.com. In 1971, a man traveling as Dan "D.B." Cooper hijacked a plane, then jumped with a parachute and a bag of ransom money from a Boeing 727 over the Pacific Northwest wilderness, never to be seen again, according to The Oregonian/OregonLive. Since then, a number of suspects have been considered the real Cooper, with Bonnifield's name now on that list. One person that's long been of interest to serious "Cooperites" is Ted Braden. Based on Braden's military background and criminal past, in the opinion of some Cooper experts, he could have pulled off the heist

What keeps some D.B. Cooper investigators returning to Ted Braden is that his experience in the military and his service in two wars could have trained him to both make and survive the difficult parachute jump Cooper is known to have made. According to Epik Fails of History, Braden was part of the 101st airborne in World War II, and later served in Vietnam. Whether the real Cooper survived the jump in the dark over a remote area of the Pacific Northwest wilderness is another matter. According to Epik Fails of History, based on his apparent experience, Braden was an expert skydiver. While in Vietnam, Braden reportedly deserted the military and tried to find work as a mercenary in the Congo. Eventually, Braden was arrested and returned to the U.S. where he was honorably discharged from the military. Darren Schaefer of the Cooper-themed podcast "The Cooper Vortex" said that Braden was one of his top Cooper suspects.

In his lifetime, Ted Braden also had a lengthy criminal record, which landed him in jail by the late 1980s, according to Epik Fails of History. Another unconfirmed aspect of the Ted Braden-D.B. Cooper theory is that Braden may have even been a CIA operative, per The Oregonian/OregonLive. According to What Culture, around the same time the real D.B. Cooper stole the money and disappeared, Braden himself stole $250,000 in an unrelated crime. Did Braden commit the hijacking or was it instead Rodney Lewis Bonnifield, as the 2022 film "I am DB Cooper" claims, based on his own confession (via GoSkagit.com)? According to Eric Ulis, a high-profile Cooper researcher, odds are it was neither, nor is it likely that any other leading Cooper suspects were guilty. "Honestly, I believe it's a guy who's a complete unknown … I've seen nobody who checks all the boxes. It's somebody who's flown under the radar for 50 years," Ulis said (via The Oregonian/OregonLive). According to Ancient Faces, Braden died in 2007 at the age of 78.

In 2016, the FBI announced on its official website: "Following one of the longest and most exhaustive investigations in our history, on July 8, 2016, the FBI redirected resources allocated to the D.B. Cooper case in order to focus on other investigative priorities."

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Ted Braden's Family Tree & Friends

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Ted B Braden Sep 24, 1928 - Jun 21, 2007

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Other Biographies

Other Braden Family Biographies

Lewis, Rebecca (Born 1799) Fields, Alma Braden, Thomas (Feb 22, 1918 - Apr 3, 2009) Braden, Natalie (Apr 30, 1916 - Feb 8, 1991) Braden, Adelaide (Jun 24, 1920 - Jan 11, 2003) Braden, Paul (Apr 17, 1918 - Sep 1966) Braden, Lora (Jan 2, 1899 - Jul 1983) Braden, Frederick (Aug 23, 1926 - Jul 25, 1995) Braden, Theresa (Mar 15, 1919 - Jun 1986) Braden, Carl (May 7, 1921 - May 2, 2002)

Braden, W John (Sep 15, 1916 - Feb 1986) Braden, Zigmund (Dec 27, 1922 - Sep 24, 2009) Braden, Norman (Sep 3, 1925 - Jan 6, 2007) Braden, Joseph (Sep 10, 1894 - Feb 1970) Braden, Robert (Dec 24, 1892 - Oct 1963) Braden, Helen (Oct 28, 1919 - Sep 1, 1993) Braden, Yvonne (Dec 13, 1921 - Aug 11, 1987) Braden, Helen (Feb 27, 1914 - Feb 24, 1990) Braden, William (Jun 8, 1887 - Nov 1963) Braden, Annie (Oct 2, 1888 - May 1963)

About the AncientFaces Community

Ted B Braden 1928 - 2007

Ted Burdette Braden Jr.'s History: 1928 - 2007

Introduction

Birthday

Ethnicity & Family History

Nationality & Locations

Military Service

Personal Life & Family

Death

10 Memories, Stories & Photos about Ted

Ted Braden's Family Tree & Friends

Ted Braden's Family Tree

Ted's Friends

Other Braden Family Biographies