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Alva R. Fitch

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Alva R. Fitch
Fitch in 1966
Birth nameAlva Revista Fitch
Born(1907-09-10)September 10, 1907
Amherst, Nebraska, US
DiedNovember 25, 1989(1989-11-25) (aged 82)
Washington, D.C., US
Place of burial
Arlington National Cemetery
Service/branchUnited States Army
Years of service1930–1966
RankLieutenant general
Commands3rd Armored Division
Battles/warsBattle of Bataan
Korean War
AwardsDistinguished Service Cross
Distinguished Service Medal
Legion of Merit
Silver Star
Bronze Star

Alva Revista Fitch (September 10, 1907 – November 25, 1989) was a lieutenant general in the United States Army and was deputy director of Defense Intelligence Agency from 1964 to 1966.[1] He commanded an artillery battalion during the Battle of Bataan and was a prisoner of war from 1942 to 1945. From October 16, 1961, to January 5, 1964, Fitch served as the assistant chief of staff for intelligence, Headquarters, Department of the Army.[2]

Early life

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Born in Amherst, Nebraska, on September 10, 1907, son of Gertrude De La Barre and John Albert Fitch.[3] Fitch was the first Eagle Scout in Nebraska, and one of the very earliest west of the Mississippi River. He graduated from Kearney High School and received an appointment to West Point, having been nominated by Nebraska senator Robert B. Howell.[2]

Junior officer

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Fitch graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in June 1930 and became a second lieutenant in the Field Artillery.[4] He was promoted to first lieutenant in September 1935 and served as aide-de-camp to Gen. Lesley J. McNair from 1937 to 1939.[5]

World War II

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Fitch received the Distinguished Service Cross for using his 23rd Field Artillery troops to clear a coastal escape route for 1st Division forces cut off by a Japanese roadblock.

Fitch was sent to Fort Stotsenburg in the Philippines in February 1940 and He commanded Battery A of the 23rd Field Artillery Regiment, which was armed with horse and mule drawn QF 2.95-inch Mountain Guns.[6] He was promoted to captain in June 1940.

After the invasion of the Philippines began on 8 December 1941, the 23rd Field Artillery was attached to the 26th Cavalry Regiment on December 13[6] and retreated with other units of I Corps to Bataan.[7] Fitch was promoted to major in January 1942 and was put in command of the 71st Field Artillery when Colonel Halstead C. Fowler was wounded. Fitch received the Distinguished Service Cross for leading a battalion of artillery cut off by Japanese encirclement to remaining I Corp units south of Mauban.[8][9] He was captured in May 1942 a few days after surrender and taken prisoner.

A survivor of the Bataan Death March, he was held at Luzon at Camp O'Donnell.[10][11] In December 1944 he was transferred with other Bataan survivors aboard the Ōryoku Maru to the Fukuoka prison camps.[12] He was released in September 1945. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and the Silver Star for heroism and courage in combat and while a captive of the Japanese.[13]

Post-war

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From February to July 1946, he attended the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and remained as an instructor until August 1947.[4]

In the Korean War, Fitch was an artillery commander and then commanded the 3rd Armored Division. He later served as Chief of Staff of Army Intelligence before being named to the Defense Intelligence Agency post in 1964.

Military intelligence

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He served on the Army Aircraft Requirements Review Board, also known as the Rogers Board, which was established on January 15, 1960, by the Army Chief of Staff to review the Army Aircraft Development Plan and the related industry proposals. The Rogers Board's members included Major Generals Hamilton H. Howze, Thomas F. Van Natta, Robert J. Wood, Richard D. Meyer, Ernest F. Easterbrook, and chairman Lieutenant General Gordon B. Rogers; and its results prefigured the more influential Howze Board on airmobility.[14]

Retirement and death

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Fitch retired from active duty in 1966 and was military editor of the Kiplinger Newsletter from 1966 to 1975.

He died at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, D.C., on November 25, 1989, and was buried in Section 30 of Arlington National Cemetery.[3] General Fitch is a member of the Military Intelligence Hall of Fame.

Notable subordinates

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General Fitch was Elvis Presley's commanding officer during the singer's stint in the army from 1958 to 1960.

Future U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell was a lieutenant with the 3rd Armored Division under General Fitch.

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  • Grave site of Alva R. Fitch at Arlington National Cemetery
    Grave site of Alva R. Fitch at Arlington National Cemetery
  • Brigadier General Alva R. Fitch, Division Artillery Commander of the 3rd Armored Division.
    Brigadier General Alva R. Fitch, Division Artillery Commander of the 3rd Armored Division.
  • Fitch being sworn in as Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence by Maj. Gen. Joe C. Lambert at The Pentagon in 1961
    Fitch being sworn in as Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence by Maj. Gen. Joe C. Lambert at The Pentagon in 1961

See also

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References

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  1. ^ May, Eric Charles (November 28, 1989). "Lt. Gen. Alva R. Fitch Dies". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 12, 2016.
  2. ^ a b "Faces of Defense Intelligence: Lt. Gen. Alva R. Fitch". DIA News. Washington, D.C.: Defense Intelligence Agency. June 13, 2016. Archived from the original on November 30, 2016. Retrieved October 12, 2016.
  3. ^ a b "Memorial for LTG Alva R. Fitch". Cullum No. 8879. Arlington, VA: Arlington National Cemetery. November 25, 1989. Archived from the original on November 30, 2016. Retrieved October 12, 2016.
  4. ^ a b "Briefing of Major General Alva R. Fitch". CIA FOIA Electronic Reading Room. Central Intelligence Agency. October 1, 1959. Archived from the original on November 3, 2016. Retrieved November 1, 2016.
  5. ^ Convention Speaker Lieutenant General Alva Revista Fitch (PDF). Vol. 20. April 1966. p. 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 20, 2015. Retrieved April 21, 2017. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  6. ^ a b Raymond G. Woolfe Jr. (May 26, 2016). The Doomed Horse Soldiers of Bataan: The Incredible Stand of the 26th Cavalry. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. ISBN 978-1-4422-4535-8.
  7. ^ Stevens, Peter (April 1, 2011). Twilight Riders: The Last Charge of the 26th Cavalry. Lyons Press. pp. 283–. ISBN 978-0-7627-6939-1.
  8. ^ "Alva Restiva Fitch". Hall of Valor Database. Military Times. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
  9. ^ The Times When Men Must Die: The Story of the Destruction of the Philippine Army During the Early Months of World War II in the Pacific, December 1941-May 1942. Dorrance Publishing. pp. 66–67. ISBN 978-1-4349-5563-0.
  10. ^ Gregory J. W. Urwin (November 15, 2010). Victory in Defeat: The Wake Island Defenders in Captivity, 1941-1945. Naval Institute Press. pp. 440–. ISBN 978-1-59114-899-9. Retrieved January 1, 2013.
  11. ^ Kenneth B. Murphy; James T. Murphy (May 15, 2009). When Men Must Live: An Inspirational True Story of Courage, Hope, and Freedom. BookBaby. ISBN 978-0-9823258-1-0.
  12. ^ "American Affidavits". Prisoner of War Camp #1 Fukuoka, Japan. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
  13. ^ Alexander, Irvin (July 10, 2005). Surviving Bataan And Beyond: Colonel Irvin Alexander's Odyssey As A Japanese Prisoner Of War. Stackpole Books. pp. 266–. ISBN 978-0-8117-3248-2. Retrieved January 1, 2013.
  14. ^ "Chapter 1 The Growth of the Airmobile Concept". Airmobility 1961-1971. Vietnam Studies. United States Army Center of Military History. 1989. CMH Pub=1989. Archived from the original on June 12, 2010. Retrieved July 22, 2010.

Bibliography

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