George Henry Decker  

George Henry Decker was born in Catskill, New York, on 16 February 1902; graduated from Lafayette College, Easton, Pennsylvania, with a degree in economics, 1924; was commissioned a second lieutenant, June 1924, and served with the 26th Infantry at Plattsburg Barracks, 1924–1928; married Helen E. Inman, 1926; served with the 35th Infantry in Hawaii, 1928–1931; was promoted to first lieutenant, April 1930; graduated from the Infantry School at Fort Benning, 1932, and then served at Fort Benning with the 29th Infantry, 1932–1935, and at Fort Vancouver with the 7th Infantry 1935–1936; was promoted to captain, August 1935; graduated from the Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth, 1937; served with the 10th Infantry at Forts Thomas and McClellan and the 9th Infantry at Fort Bragg, 1937–1940; established and commanded Headquarters Company, I Corps, at Fort Jackson and was assistant supply and logistics officer, 1940–1941; was promoted to temporary major (January), permanent major (June), and temporary lieutenant colonel (December), 1941; served on the War Department General Staff in the Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff for Supply, 1941–1942; was promoted to temporary colonel, October 1942; was deputy chief of staff of the Third Army, Fort Sam Houston, 1942–1944; served in the Southwest Pacific as deputy chief of staff (1943–1944) and chief of staff (1944–1946) of the Sixth Army; participated in operations from New Guinea to the Philippines and in the early occupation of Japan; was promoted to temporary ranks of brigadier general, August 1944, and major general, June 1945; served in Washington successively in Army Ground Forces and Army Service Forces headquarters, 1946; was deputy commander and chief of staff of United States Forces, Middle Pacific, Hawaii, 1946–1948; was promoted to the permanent ranks of lieutenant colonel, June 1947, and colonel, June 1948; commanded the 5th Infantry Division at Fort Jackson, 1948–1950; served in the Office of the Comptroller of the Army as chief of the Budget Division, 1950–1952; was promoted to temporary lieutenant general, June 1952; was comptroller of the Army 1952–1955; was promoted to the permanent ranks of brigadier general, April 1953, and major general, July 1954; commanded VII Corps at Stuttgart, Germany, 1955–1956; was promoted to temporary general, May 1956; was deputy commander in chief of the United States European Command, France, 1956–1957; was concurrently commander in chief of the United Nations Command and commander of United States Forces and Eighth Army, Korea, 1957–1959; was vice chief of staff of the Army, 1959–1960; was chief of staff of the United States Army, 1 October 1960–30 September 1962; supervised augmentations to meet a crisis in Berlin, an increase in special warfare forces, initiation of new divisional (ROAD) and forward depot concepts, and expansion of the Army to sixteen divisions; retired from active service, September 1962; died in Washington, D.C., on 6 February 1980.