Philip D. Ginder

Philip D. Ginder 1927
1927 Class Crest
Cullum No. 8193 • Nov 07, 1968 • Died in New York, NY
Interred in West Point Cemetery, West Point, NY


General Mark W. Clark wrote in a national publication: "Korea provided the United States with a bumper crop of leaders...among them Major General P.D. Ginder, Commander of the 45th Division in Korea. General Ginder arrived in Korea a Colonel and by virtue of his leadership qualities, advanced quickly to the two star rank." General Ginder was north of the 38th Parallel for almost seventeen months, longer than any other general officer. He also was the youngest American General to command a division in combat in Korea.

Korea was not his first command in combat. As a Colonel he was among the first to land in Normandy on D-Day and later he took command of task forces in the Hurtgen Forest Campaign and captured the town of Hurtgen, for which he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.

Following this campaign, he became the Commanding Officer of the famous 9th Infantry "Manchu” Regiment of the 2d Division and led his organization across the European battlegrounds until they made contact with the Russian forces at Rokycany, Czechoslovakia. He was decorated by both the Russians and the Czechs.

Besides these decorations and the coveted Distinguished Service Cross, General Ginder has been awarded the Combat Infantryman’s Badge, the Distinguished Service Medal, the Silver Star, the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star Medal with two oak leaf clusters, the Purple Heart, the Distinguished Unit Citation, the Philippine Legion of Honor, the French Legion of Honor (Officier), the Croix de Guerre with Palms of France, the Belgian Fourragere, the Korean Taegu Medal with Gold Star and the Korean Presidential Unit Citation.

Upon termination of hostilities in Europe, General Ginder returned to stateside duties with his “Manchu” regiment, and then attended the newly established National War College in Washington, D.C. Following graduation, he served on General MacArthur’s staff in the Far East and held important posts with the 2d Infantry Division and the Sixth Army in San Francisco.

In 1949 he received the important post of Senior United States Military Attache in Prague, Czechoslovakia, where he saw at close hand the methods by which the Communists wage "cold" war.

He became the Commanding Officer of the 6th Infantry Division (the Defenders of Berlin) in embattled Berlin in 1950, and in 1951 he met Jean Dalrymple, who was masterminding the United States' participation in the first Berlin Arts Festival. After their marriage in Connecticut, he continued his illustrious career in Korea, where he became a Major General, in command of the famous "Thunderbird" Division—the 45th. When he returned to the United States, he commanded Fort Polk, Louisiana; Fort Riley, Kansas; Camp McCoy, Wisconsin; the 5th Army, with headquarters in Chicago; and then was called to the Pentagon to take command of all United States Reserve Forces. His final post was as Deputy Commander of the First U.S. Army, at Governor's Island, New York City.

After his retirement, he became president of the Brazilian-American Export Company, and a director of many important industrial organizations.

Major General Philip DeWitt Ginder, died at 4:35 p.m. on Thursday, 7 November at the Trafalgar Hospital, after suffering a cerebral hemmorage on Tuesday morning. He lived in New York City and in Danbury, Connecticut. He was married to Jean Dalrymple.

General Ginder was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Grant Ginder of Scranton, Pennsylvania, both deceased. The General's great-great-grandfather was the discoverer of anthracite coal in the state of Pennsylvania and has been honored by a monument to “Honest Philip Ginder” in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania, at the site.

Besides his wife, General Ginder is survived by two daughters by his first wife, Martha Calvert. They are Mrs. Alan Caldwell and Mrs. Benjamin Dew, both of San Francisco, also one granddaughter and one grandson the latter born only a few days ago.

General Ginder was a graduate of the U. S. Military Academy and a member of the Brook Club in New York City, the Silver Spring Country Club, in Ridgefield, Connecticut, and was a 32d Degree Mason.


Add Your Testimonial: Lovely man.

Met General Ginder with Jean Dalrymple at their home in Connecticut.