| Sources |
- [S394] Ancestry.com, Public Member Trees, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2006;), Database online., Skinner/Schinzel-Ahlemeyer/Haines Tree J_Ahlemeyer.
Record for Charles Elwood Yeager
- [S1763] www.chuckyeager.org.
Charles Elwood Yeager was born in 1923 in Myra, West Virginia and grew up in the nearby village of Hamlin. Attended the Citizens Military Training Camp at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Ind., in 1939 and 1940. On Sept.12, 1941, enlisted as a private in the Army Air Corps. He married the former Glennis Faye Dickhouse of Grass Valley, Calif. Mrs. Yeager passed away December 1990. He has two sons, Donald, and Michael; and two daughters, Sharon and Susan. Charles "Chuck" E. Yeager was born on February 13, 1923, in Myra, West Virginia. The son of a gas driller, Chuck grew up working with a wide variety of mechanical devices. He could readily take apart an engine and put it back together without difficulty. A few months after his high school graduation, Yeager joined the U.S. Army Air Forces.
Brigadier General Charles E. Yeager, USAF (Ret)
1923
Charles Elwood Yeager was born in 1923 in Myra, West Virginia and grew up in the nearby village of Hamlin.
1940
Attended the Citizens Military Training Camp at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Ind., in 1939 and 1940.
1941
On Sept.12, 1941, enlisted as a private in the Army Air Corps.
DEC. 1941
On Dec. 7, 1941, the United States entered World War II and Yeager was transferred to Victorville Air Base (now George Air Force Base), Calif., where he worked on AT-11 aircraft and received promotions to private first class and to corporal.
1942
Accepted for pilot training under the flying sergeant program in July 1942.
1943
Received his pilot wings and appointment as a flight officer in March 10, 1943, from Luke Field, Phoenix, Ariz. He was promoted from corporal to flight officer. After completing basic training at Ellington Field, Texas, he served for two months at Mather Field, Calif., and later at Moffet Field, Calif.
General Yeager's first assignment was as a P-39 pilot with the 363d Fighter Squadron in Tonopah, Nev. As a member of the 363d he trained at various bases in the United States before going overseas to England in November 1943.
March 5, 1944
While in England he flew P-51s in combat against the Germans, shooting down one ME-109 and an HE-111K before being shot down on his eighth combat mission over German-occupied France. He evaded capture when elements of the French Maquis helped him to make his way across the Pyrenees to neutral Spain.
SPRING, 1944
Yeager remained in Spain until the summer of 1944 when he was released to the British at Gibraltar and returned to England. Although army policy prohibited his return to combat flight, Yeager personally appealed to General Dwight D. Eisenhower and was allowed to fly combat missions again.
Returned to his squadron and flew 56 more combat missions, shooting down 11 more German aircraft.
Between July and October he was promoted from Second Lieutenant to Captain.
--TOTAL---
He flew 64 combat missions in World War II.
On one occasion he shot down a German jet from a prop plane.
By war's end he had downed 13 enemy aircraft, five in a single day.
----
Post WWII
1945
Yeager returned to the United States in 1945 to attend the instructor pilot course and subsequently served as an instructor pilot at Perrin Field, Texas. In July 1945 he went to Wright Field, Ohio, and participated in various test projects including the P-80 "Shooting Star" and the P-84 Thunderjet. He also evaluated all of the German and Japanese fighter aircraft brought back to the United States after the war. This assignment led to his subsequent selection as pilot of the nation's first research rocket aircraft, the Bell X-1.
1946
In January 1946 General Yeager attended the test Pilot School at Wright Field, Ohio.
1947--BREAKING THE SOUND BARRIER
Yeager continued to serve the newly constituted United States Air Force as a flight instructor and test pilot.
August 1947 was sent to Muroc Air Base, Calif., as the project officer on the Bell XS-1.
On Oct. 14, 1947, he flew the XS-1 past the sound barrier, becoming the world's first supersonic pilot.
1948/49
During the next two years, he flew the X-1 more than 40 times, exceeding 1,000 mph and 70,000 feet.
He was the first American to make a ground takeoff in a rocket- powered aircraft.
1952
In 1952 Yeager attended the Air Command and Staff College at Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.
1953
December 1953 he flew the Bell X-1A 1,650 mph, becoming the first man to fly two and one-half times the speed of sound. At Mach 2.4 at 80,000 feet the aircraft spun out of control, spinning on all three axes. G-forces sent Yeager's head into the canopy, cracking it. The G-forces bent the control stick.
He spun down 51,000 feet in 51 seconds, before regaining control at 25,000 feet.
His speed record that day stood for the next three years. HEAR THE AUDIO OF THAT FLIGHT.
1954
Returned to Europe to serve as commander, 417th Fighter Squadron, Hahn Air Base, West Germany, and at Toul-Rosieres Air Base, France.
Received the Harmon Trophy Award from General Eisenhower for flying the X-1A.
1956
During his tour in Europe, he took first-place honors in the 1956 Weapons Gunnery Meet.
Yeager commanded the Air Force Aerospace Research Pilots School to train pilots for the space program. In this capacity, Yeager supervised development of the space simulator and the introduction of advanced computers to Air force pilots. Although Yeager himself was passed over for service in space, nearly half of the astronauts who served in the Gemini, Mercury and Apollo programs were graduates of Yeager's school.
1957
1957 he returned to the United States and was assigned to the 413th Fighter Wing at George Air Force Base, Calif.
1958
1958 became commander of the 1st Fighter Squadron, flying new F-100 "Super Sabres."
1961
General Yeager graduated from the Air War College, Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala., in June 1961
1962
Became commandant of the Aerospace Research Pilot School (now the USAF Test Pilot School), where all military astronauts were trained.
1963
Dec. 10, 1963, while testing the experimental Lockheed Starfighter NF-104 rocket-augmented aerospace trainer at over twice the speed of sound, he narrowly escaped death when his aircraft went out of control at 108,700 feet (nearly 21 miles up) and crashed. He parachuted to safety at 8,500 feet after vainly battling to gain control of the powerless, rapidly falling craft. In this incident he became the first pilot to make an emergency ejection in the full pressure suit needed for high altitude flights. Yeager's compression suit was set on fire by the burning debris from the ejector seat, which became entangled in his parachute. He survived the fall, but required extensive skin grafts for his burns.
1966
The Air Force space school was closed in 1966, as NASA took over the training of astronauts.
July 1966 he assumed command of the 405th Fighter Wing at Clark Air Base, Republic of the Philippines, and flew 127 missions in South Vietnam.
During the Vietnam War, Yeager -- now a full Colonel -- commanded the 405th fighter wing out of the Philippines, flying 127 air-support missions, and training bomber pilots.
1968
February 1968 he assumed command of the 4th Tactical Fighter Wing at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C., and deployed with the wing to the Republic of Korea during the USS Pueblo crisis.
1969
July 1969 he became vice commander, 7th Air Force, at Ramstein Air Base, West Germany, and in August was promoted to Brigadier General.
1971
Assumed duties as the United States Defense Representative to Pakistan.
1973
March 1973 General Yeager went to the Air Force Inspection and Safety Center, Norton Air Force Base, Calif., and became Director in June 1973.
Elected to the Aviation Hall of Fame.
1975
He retired from active duty in the U.S. Air Force on March 1, 1975, but continued to serve as a consulting test pilot for many years.
1976
Awarded the Special Congressional Silver Medal for bravery.
1985
Presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
1997
Chuck Yeager made his last flight as a military consultant on October 14, 1997, the 50th anniversary of his history-making flight in the X-1. He observed the occasion by once again breaking the sound barrier, this time in an F-15 fighter.
AND BEYOND...
General Yeager has flown 201 types of military aircraft and has more than 14,000 flying hours, with more than 13,000 of these in fighter aircraft. He has most recently flown the SR-71, F-15, F-16, F-18 and the F-20 Tigershark.
General Yeager remains an active aviation enthusiast, acting as advisor for various films, programs and documentaries on aviation. He currently serves on the Boards of Directors of Louisiana Pacific Corp., the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. He was appointed by President Ronald Reagan to serve on the National Commission on Space and the commission to investigate the space shuttle Challenger accident in 1986.
He is a consultant test pilot for the Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards Air Force Base.
He married the former Glennis Faye Dickhouse of Grass Valley, Calif.
Mrs. Yeager passed away December 1990. He has two sons, Donald
and Michael; and two daughters, Sharon and Susan.
AWARDS
He is the only American to be awarded the Congressional Medal for service in peacetime.
His other decorations include:
• The Purple Heart,
• The Bronze Star with V device,
• The Air Force Commendation medal,
• The Silver Star with oak leaf cluster,
• The Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster,
• The Distinguished Service Medal,
• The Distinguished Flying Cross with two clusters,
• Distinguished Unit Citation Emblem with one oak leaf cluster,
• The Air Force Outstanding Unit Award, and
• The Air Medal with ten clusters.
Civilian Awards
• Harmon International Trophy (1954),
• Collier and Mackay Trophies (1948),
• Federation Aeronautique International Gold Medal Award.
• He was selected one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men by the Junior Chamber of Commerce in 1953.
• He was the first and the youngest military pilot to be inducted into the Aviation Hall of Fame (1973).
• Awarded a peacetime Congressional Medal of Honor by the Congress of the United States (presented by President Gerald Ford in 1976).
• Awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Ronald Reagan in May 1985.
• General Yeager was presented the Golden Plate Award by the American Academy of Achievement in 1974 and the Horatio Alger Award in 1986.
Military Education
General Yeager's professional military education includes Air Command and Staff College in 1952 and the Air War College in 1961. He was awarded honorary doctor of science degrees from West Virginia University in 1948, From Marshall University of Huntington, W.V., in 1969, from Salem College in 1974, and from the University of Charleston in 1983.
MOVIES/PUBLICATIONS
A bestselling nonfiction book The Right Stuff (1979) by Tom Wolfe, and the popular film of the same title (1983) made Yeager's name a household word among Americans too young to remember Yeager's exploits of the 1950s. Yeager's autobiography, "Yeager", enjoyed phenomenal success and he remains much in demand on the lecture circuit and as a corporate spokesman.
He has published many books. Please see the Books section of this site.
CONGRESSIONAL MEDAL TEXT:
:
Presentation
of a
Special Congressional Silver Medal
to
Brigadier General Charles E. Yeager
United States Air Force (Retired)
At The White House
Washington, D.C.
On
Wednesday, 8 December 1976
At
1200 Hours
The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of
Congress, December 23, 1975, has awarded in the name of The Congress, a
Special Congressional Silver Medal to
Brigadier General Charles E. Yeager
United States Air Force (Retired)
for service as set forth in the following
Citation:
For conspicuous gallantry and total disregard for his personal safety on
October 14, 1947 as pilot of the XS-1 research aircraft. On this date,
Brigadier General (then Captain) Yeager advanced aerospace science a
quantum step by proving that an aircraft could be flown at supersonic
speeds. He dispelled for all time the mythical "sound barrier" and set
the stage for unprecedented aviation advancement. Through his selfless
dedication to duty and his heroic challenge of the unknown, General
Yeager performed inestimable service to the Nation far above and beyond
the call of duty and brought great credit upon himself and the United
States of America.
© 1998-2006 klpstudio.com. All rights reserved.
______________________________________
exerpt:
Charles Elwood Yeager was born in 1923 in Myra, West Virginia and grew up in the nearby village of Hamlin.
Attended the Citizens Military Training Camp at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Ind., in 1939 and 1940.
On Sept.12, 1941, enlisted as a private in the Army Air Corps.
He married the former Glennis Faye Dickhouse of Grass Valley, Calif.
Mrs. Yeager passed away December 1990.
He has two sons,
Donald, and
Michael;
and two daughters,
Sharon and
Susan.
___________________
Biography, on website:
Chuck Yeager in flight school during World War II.
Chuck Yeager, fighter pilot.
Chuck Yeager and the X-1 research plane that broke the sound barrier. It can be seen today at the Smithsonian Air Space Museum in Washington, DC.
Chuck Yeager, still flying high in the 1990s.
Chuck Yeager
Courtesy U.S. Centennial of Flight Commission
www.centennialofflight.gov
Reproduced by Permission.
For many people, Chuck Yeager is a true hero in the strictest definition of the word. Throughout his career, Yeager displayed distinguished courage and performed several extraordinarily brave deeds, although he only considered such acts as following his duty. Many people recognize Yeager as the first person to break the sound barrier, but that feat is only one of his many important achievements. Without a doubt, Yeager is the world's most famous test pilot not only because of the records he set, but also because of his determination, his ability to remain calm in difficult situations, and his ability to quickly analyze problems and find a solution. He is one of the "toughest" pilots, both mentally and physically, in aviation history, and few have ever matched his piloting skills.
Charles "Chuck" E. Yeager was born on February 13, 1923, in Myra, West Virginia. The son of a gas driller, Chuck grew up working with a wide variety of mechanical devices. He could readily take apart an engine and put it back together without difficulty. A few months after his high school graduation, Yeager joined the U.S. Army Air Forces.
Yeager had no real interest in learning to fly when he first joined the Air Forces. He simply wanted to be a mechanic. The main reason he enlisted in the Army was because the Army recruiter was more persuasive than the Navy spokesperson. Furthermore, unlike many famous aviators, Chuck's first encounter with an airplane had left him unimpressed. When Yeager was a teenager, a plane made an emergency landing near his house. Although Chuck dashed over to look at the aircraft, he was unmoved by the experience.
When Yeager entered the Army Air Forces, he seemed unlikely to become one of history's legendary pilots. But, in the summer of 1942, he began showing an interest in becoming an aviator, thanks to the Air Forces "Flying Sergeant Program," which trained enlisted men to fly. Yeager enrolled in the program because he wanted a change of pace, not to mention a promotion and a pay raise.
Yeager earned his wings in early 1943. After a brief assignment stateside, he transferred to England and began working with the 363rd Fighter Squadron. In early 1944, on his seventh mission, Yeager shot down his first enemy plane. However, his next sortie did not go as well.
On March 5, 1944, his eighth mission, Yeager had to bail out over occupied France after his plane took an enemy hit. Despite being wounded, Yeager still evaded the Germans, with the help of the French Resistance, and made it into neutral Spain. Soon after, he returned to England. Although military rules prohibited him from returning to his unit, he appealed his case all the way up to General Dwight D. Eisenhower, who allowed him to return to his squadron.
If Eisenhower had any doubts about his decision, Yeager quickly put them to rest. After returning to his unit, Yeager shot down five enemy planes in a single day and became an "ace-in-a-day." Later, he even downed a German Messerschmitt Me-262 jet while flying his propeller-driven P-51 Mustang. Throughout his 64 World War II missions, Yeager scored a total of 11-1/2 victories. (Pilots were credited with a "half" victory if pilots from two planes both hit an enemy aircraft.)
In July 1945, Yeager entered a new phase of his aviation career when he became a maintenance officer at Wright Field, Ohio, a job that entailed flight-testing all of the field's different planes. Due to his growing experience with a wide variety of aircraft, and his outstanding piloting skills, Yeager caught the attention of Colonel Albert Boyd, the man in charge of the Air Force's aircraft testing program. Boyd invited Yeager to become a test pilot, and the West Virginian accepted the offer.
In August 1947, Yeager transferred to Muroc Air Base, California (which would later become Edwards Air Force Base), the premier proving ground for the day's most technologically advanced aircraft. Soon after arriving at Muroc, Yeager received orders to test the X-1, an experimental aircraft that some believed might exceed Mach One. On October 14, Yeager flew the X-1, which he had renamed the Glamorous Glennis in honor of his wife, faster than the speed of sound. With that flight, he traveled faster than any human being ever had, a remarkable feat considering the fact that he had broken several ribs during a horseback riding accident only a few days before. Revealing his characteristic sense of humor, Yeager radioed to one of colleagues: "I'm still wearing my ears and nothing else fell off, neither."
Yeager's next noteworthy flight occurred in 1953 while he was checking out the X1-A, a longer and more powerful version of the X-1. On December 12, Yeager piloted the X1-A to Mach 2.4, another record, although a short-lived one. Even though most of the flight went according to plan, near the end, the aircraft unexpectedly started spinning out of control and began rotating on all three axes. In the process, Yeager smashed his head on the cockpit's canopy. After spinning for more than 50 seconds, Yeager finally regained control of the aircraft and landed it safely, a fine example of his outstanding piloting skills.
In 1954, Yeager left Edwards and accepted a series of command positions. His first stop was West Germany where he headed the 417th Fighter Squadron. Three years later, he returned to California as the commander of the 1st Fighter Squadron. After graduating from the Air War College in June 1961, he received a promotion to full colonel. The following summer he returned to Edwards to head the new Aerospace Research Pilot School, an institution that trained several of the Apollo and Space Shuttle astronauts. And notably, during this period, Yeager continued to help Jackie Cochran, the well known female flyer, learn the intricacies of various jets and support her quest to better several speed records, a mission he had begun in the early 1950s.
Despite his workload as the commander of the Aerospace Research Pilot School, Yeager continued to test most of the experimental planes that came through Edwards. Although many of his flights went according to plan, one mission quite literally blew up in his face. In December 1963, Yeager was testing a Lockheed Starfighter F-104 when it unexpectedly spun out of control at well over 100,000 feet (30,480 meters). Although Yeager fought to regain control, he could not and had to eject at about 8,500 feet (2,591 meters). While ejecting, his pilot's seat smashed into his helmet, tore open his visor, and the flame from his seat's ejector rocket severely burned him. Although Yeager parachuted to safety, he required several skin grafts. The incident undoubtedly helped bolster his tough and determined reputation.
Yeager returned to military combat in July 1966 when he assumed command of the 405th Fighter Wing at Clark Air Base in the Philippines, which fought in the Vietnam War. During the conflict, Yeager flew a total of 127 combat missions.
In February 1968, Yeager entered the final phase of his military career when he began commanding the 4th Tactical Fighter Wing. The following year, he received a promotion to brigadier general and became the vice commander of the 17th Air Force. Yeager had become one of only a handful of men who had started as an enlisted man and risen all the way to the rank of an Air Force general.
Yeager formally retired from the Air Force in March 1975. During the 1970s and 1980s, he received a string of honors. In 1976, he received the Congressional Medal of Honor for his first supersonic flight. Then, in 1985, President Ronald Reagan awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom. These two medals are the highest honors an individual can receive for outstanding service and achievement. Yeager also obtained several other prestigious awards during his career, including the 1948 Collier Trophy, and the 1958 Harmon International Trophy, as well as numerous military citations.
On October 14, 1997, the 50th anniversary of Yeager's first Mach One flight, Yeager broke the sound barrier once again, this time in an F-15. That flight was his last official flight in an Air Force plane.
Yeager traveled a long and challenging path from his West Virginia beginnings to becoming one of the world's most famous aviators. For many people, he exemplifies the true meaning of the word "hero," not only as a record setter and pioneering test pilot, but also as a military aviator.
--David H. Onkst
Sources and further reading:
Hallion, Richard P. Designers and Test Pilots. Alexandria, Va.: Time-Life Books, 1983.
_____________. Supersonic Flight: Breaking the Sound Barrier and Beyond. Washington, D.C.: Brassey's , 1997.
______________. Test Pilots: The Frontiersmen of Flight. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1988.
Janos, Leo and Chuck Yeager. Yeager: An Autobiography. New York: Bantam Books, 1985.
Lundgren, William R. Across the High Frontier: The Story of A Test Pilot--Major Charles E. Yeager, USAF. New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc. 1955.
Rotundo, Louis c. Into the Unknown: The X-1 Story. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1994.
Yeager, Chuck and Leerhsen, Charles. Press On: Further Adventures in the Good Life. New York, Bantam Books, 1988.
Yeager, Chuck, et al. The Quest for Mach One: A First Person Account of Breaking the Sound Barrier. New York: Penguin Studio, 1997.
Young, James O. Meeting the Challenge of Supersonic Flight. Edwards Air Force Base, Cal.: Air Force Flight Test Center History Office, 1997.
"Brigadier General Chuck Yeager: Official Biography," Edwards Air Force Base, http://www.edwards.af.mil/history/docs_html/people/yeager_biography.html
"Chuck Yeager," on the Ace Pilots website. http://www.acepilots.com/usaaf_yeager.html
"Chuck Yeager," http://www.chuckyeager.org
"Chuck Yeager," http://www.members.tripod.com/derekhorne/main.html
"Chuck Yeager and the Bell X-1." http://www.Nationalgeographic.com/sound/banner.html
"General Chuck Yeager Interview," Achievement Organization. http://www.Achievement.org/autodoc/page/yea0int-1
"The Planes that Yeager Flew," Edward Air Force Base. http://www.edwards.af.mil/gallery/yeager/docs_html
"X-1 Biographies--Charles E. (Chuck) Yeager," NASA History Office. http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/x1/chuck.html
- [S1369] census 1930 USA WV, (Name: Ancestry.com; Location: www.ancestry.com;), Year: 1930; Census Place: Hamlin, Lincoln, West Virginia; Roll: 2539; Page: 2B; Enumeration District: 1; Image: 893.0; FHL microfilm: 2342273.
Record for A Hal Yeager
1930 United States Federal Census about A Hal Yeager
Name: A Hal Yeager
Gender: Male
Birth Year: abt 1898
Birthplace: West Virginia
Race: White
Home in 1930: Hamlin, Lincoln, West Virginia
Marital Status: Married
Relation to Head of House: Head
Spouse's Name: Susie Yeager
Father's Birthplace: West Virginia
Mother's Birthplace: West Virginia
Parents' birthplace: View image
Neighbors: View others on page
Household Members: Name Age
A Hal Yeager 32 WV WV WV
Susie Yeager 31 WV WV WV
Ray Yeager 8 WV WV WV
Charles Yeager 7 WV WV WV
Pansy Lea Yeager 4 WV WV WV
Doris Ann Yeager 1 WV WV WV
Source Citation: Year: 1930; Census Place: Hamlin, Lincoln, West Virginia; Roll: 2539; Page: 2B; Enumeration District: 1; Image: 893.0; FHL microfilm: 2342273.
Source Information: Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2002.
Original data: United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Fifteenth Census of the United States, 1930. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1930. T626, 2,667 rolls.
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census 1930 USA WV
Database online. Year: 1930; Census Place: Hamlin, Lincoln, West Virginia; Roll: 2539; Page: 2B; Enumeration District: 1; Image: 893.0; FHL microfilm: 2342273. |
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