Kenneth F. Cramer

Kenneth F. Cramer (October 3, 1894 – February 20, 1954) was an American politician and United States Army major general who served as Chief of the National Guard Bureau.

Kenneth Frank Cramer
Major General Cramer as National Guard Bureau Chief, c. 1949
BornOctober 3, 1894
Gloversville, New York, US
DiedFebruary 20, 1954(1954-02-20) (aged 59)
Heidelberg, Germany
Place of burial
Arlington National Cemetery
Allegiance United States of America
Service/branch United States Army
Years of service1917–1954
Rank Major General
UnitConnecticut Army National Guard
National Guard Bureau
Commands held169th Infantry Regiment
24th Infantry Division
43rd Infantry Division
Chief of the National Guard Bureau
Southern Area Command, United States Army Europe
Battles/warsWorld War I
World War II
Korean War
AwardsSilver Star (4)
Legion of Merit
Bronze Star Medal
Air Medal
Purple Heart
Army Commendation Medal
Member of the Connecticut State Senate
In office
1933–1937
Member of the
Connecticut House of Representatives
In office
1929–1933
Personal details
Political partyRepublican
EducationPrinceton University
OccupationCoal dealer
State legislator

Early life and education

Kenneth Frank Cramer was born in Gloversville, New York on October 3, 1894.[1] He graduated from Princeton University in 1916, and received his master's degree in 1917.[2] In 1938, he completed the United States Army Command and General Staff College and was his class Honor Graduate.[3]

Career

World War I

Cramer enlisted in the United States Army for World War I and completed officer training in 1917.[4] He served in France during World War I, primarily with the 310th Infantry Regiment, a unit of the 78th Infantry Division. His service included combat during the St. Mihiel and Meuse-Argonne campaigns, and he was wounded and taken prisoner. He recuperated in a German hospital, and was released at the end of the war.[5][6]

Post-World War I

After the war, he maintained his membership in the Army Reserve and in 1931 transferred to the Connecticut Army National Guard as a captain, accepting a demotion from major in order to command a newly organized tank company.[7]

Cramer continued to advance through the ranks, and his assignments in Connecticut included: Plans, Operations and Training Officer, S3 for the 169th Infantry Regiment; Commander of 3rd Battalion, 169th Infantry Regiment; and Assistant Adjutant General of the Connecticut National Guard.[8][9]

Connecticut Legislature

He resided in Wethersfield, Connecticut, and in his civilian career he worked in the coal business, eventually becoming owner and operator of Hartford's K.F. Cramer Coal Company.[10] Cramer served on the Wethersfield School Board from 1927 to 1937.[11] He was a member of the Connecticut House (1929–1933) and Senate (1933–1937), and was a delegate to several Republican conventions.[12][13]

World War II

He was a colonel and commander of the 169th Infantry Regiment when he mobilized for World War II with New England's 43rd "Winged Victory" Division. He was soon transferred to the Pacific-bound 24th Infantry Division to become Assistant Division Commander and was promoted to brigadier general.[14][15]

Cramer took command of the 24th Division in 1945 and was promoted to major general.[16]

Post-World War II

After the war, Cramer was assigned as commander of the 43rd Division.[17] In 1947 he was appointed Chief of the National Guard Bureau, and served while continuing to command the division.[18][19] Cramer's tenure was highlighted by a feud with the Director of the newly formed Air National Guard, Major General George Finch, over the role the National Guard Bureau would play in the Air Guard's operations. The recently organized United States Air Force viewed the National Guard Bureau as providing purely administrative functions, while Cramer viewed NGB's (and the NGB Chief's) role as a more direct policy-making and oversight one. Finch argued for Air Force control of the Air National Guard, putting him at odds with Cramer. The feud reached a high point in 1949 when Cramer dismissed Finch without consulting the Air Force leadership. (Cramer later reinstated Finch.)[20][21][22]

In 1950, the Miltonberger Board, which was formed to review the National Guard Bureau's structure and policies, largely validated Cramer's view by recommending that the National Guard Bureau remain in the Air National Guard's chain of authority, with the NGB Chief exercising responsibility for both the Army and Air National Guards. The board also recommended the creation of a Deputy Chief of the National Guard Bureau position, to be filled by a major general of the opposite service from the Chief, who could provide advice and subject matter expertise to the Chief. Both recommendations were adopted.[23][24]

The feud ended when Finch was reassigned as senior Air Force member of the team which negotiated the treaty that ended the Korean War[25] and Cramer also requested a new assignment. Cramer was succeeded as NGB Chief by Raymond H. Fleming.[26]

Korean War

In 1950, Cramer commanded the 43rd Division when it was federalized for service in West Germany during the Korean War.[27][28]

During the division's mobilization at Fort Pickett, Virginia, Cramer was the target of protest by wives who objected to his insistence that soldiers stay on post each night, rather than spending nights with their families off post. In addition, he was investigated over concerns that his disciplinary measures in Germany were too harsh and had a negative effect on unit morale.[29][30] Cramer argued that requiring soldiers to remain on post during mobilization was necessary to improve readiness and cohesion by maximizing training time and that his actions in Germany were an effort to curtail black market activities. Although accused of being a martinet, Cramer was not found to be at fault.[31]

In 1952, he relinquished command of the 43rd Division in order to take command of the Southern Area Command in Germany, a subordinate unit of United States Army Europe, and he served in this assignment until his death.[32]

Death and burial

Cramer died of a heart attack on February 20, 1954 while hunting near Heidelberg, Germany.[33] He was buried in Arlington National Cemetery.[34] At the time of his death Cramer had completed doctoral studies at the University of Munich and had submitted his dissertation.[35]

Awards and decorations

Cramer's awards included the Silver Star (four awards), Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, Air Medal, Army Commendation Medal and Purple Heart.[36]

Legacy

Cramer's sister Beatrice endowed a scholarship in his name at the State University of New York at Cortland. The Kenneth Frank Cramer Scholarship is awarded annually to the top female applicant from Gloversville High School.[37]

References
  1. William R. Denslow, 10,000 Famous Freemasons From A To J Part One, 2004, p. 261
  2. J. T. White, The National Cyclopædia of American Biography, Volume 45, 1962, p. 292
  3. Hartford Courant, K. F. Cramer Is Promoted In Regiment, March 14, 1939
  4. Thomas Edison Troland, Princeton Alumni Weekly, In Time of Peace: General Cramer '16 prepared for war as Connecticut National Guardsman, November 10, 1944
  5. 310th Infantry Association, A History of the Three Hundred Tenth Infantry, Seventy-eighth Division, 1919, pages 24, 61, 117, 165, 186, 217, 224, 239, 264
  6. Hartford Courant, Cramer Visits Scene Of His Imprisonment, April 3, 1952
  7. Hartford Courant, Cramer Made Commander Of Tank Co., April 18, 1931
  8. Hartford Courant, Officers Are Reassigned For 169th, March 3, 1938
  9. Hartford Courant, Cramer Gets High Position In Military: Wethersfield Man Named Assistant Adjutant General of National Guard by Governor Baldwin, July 28, 1939
  10. Hartford Courant, General Cramer Back Home From Service In Army, April 1, 1946
  11. Hartford Courant, Cramer Quits Wethersfield School Board, June 15, 1937
  12. Harley Kilgore, Congressional Record, Remarks on the Passing of the Late Major General Kenneth F. Cramer, Volume 100, Part 3, pp. 3373–3374
  13. Republican National Convention, Official report of the Proceedings, 1936, p. 54
  14. Hartford Courant, Cramer Is Col. Nolan's Successor: Promoted and Assigned as 169th Commander, November 3, 1940
  15. United States Field Artillery Association, The Field Artillery Journal, Volumes 37–38, 1947, p. 237
  16. Victor W. Man, W. Victor Madeja, U. S. Army Order of Battle, Pacific Theater, 1941–1945, 1984, p. 25
  17. Associated Press, Meriden Record 43rd to Train at Camp Edwards, May 15, 1947
  18. Hartford Courant, Gen. Cramer To Take Oath September 30, September 24, 1947
  19. Associated Press, New York Times, Made National Guard Head To Succeed Miltonberger, June 28, 1947
  20. Associated Press, Pittsburgh Press, Generals feud in National Guard, October 2, 1949
  21. Associated Press, New York Times, General is Ousted in National Guard: Finch Is Expelled as Air Chief by Cramer, Then Reinstated as High Officials Intervene, October 3, 1949
  22. Austin Stevens, New York Times, Inquiry is Ordered in Guard Squabble: Army and Air Secretaries Ask for Full Report on Military Struggle for Power, December 3, 1949
  23. Associated Press, Palm beach Post, New Board Named to reorganize national Guard, February 26, 1950
  24. Charles Joseph Gross, Prelude to the Total Force: Air National Guard, 19431969, 1984, pp. 49–51
  25. Georgia National Guard, The Georgia Guardsman, Maj. Gen. George Finch, Georgia Air Guard Pioneer, January–March, 1986, p. 1
  26. Hartford Courant, Cramer Ends His Duties As Guard Bureau Head, September 6, 1950
  27. Hartford Courant, Cramer Tells 43d It Must Be Trained For The Ultimate, September 26, 1950
  28. Christian Science Monitor, N.E. National Guard Division Is Given Realistic Training, July 30, 1951
  29. Hartford Courant, Morano Asks Pickett Probe, Possibly Cramer's Removal, June 4, 1951
  30. Hartford Courant, Cramer's Rules Arouse Ire Of Men, Reports Say, July 2, 1953
  31. Robert C. Ruark, Hartford Courant, 'Political General' Charge Is Denied By Cramer, October 8, 1953
  32. Hartford Courant, Passion For Discipline Marks Gen. Cramer's Military Career, September 28, 1953
  33. Hartford Courant, Munich Rites For Cramer On Thursday: Burial of General To Take Place in Arlington Cemetery, February 22, 1954
  34. Burial Detail: Cramer, Kenneth F (Section 30, Grave 614) – ANC Explorer
  35. James Terry White, The National cyclopaedia of American biography, 1967, p. 282
  36. Connecticut House of Representatives, Journal of the House of Representatives, Senate Joint Resolution 39 on the Passing of Kenneth F. Cramer, 1955, p. 835
  37. Academic Works, Information page, Kenneth Frank Cramer Scholarship, accessed April 30, 2013
Military offices
Preceded by
MG Butler B. Miltonberger		 Chief of the National Guard Bureau
1947–1950		 Succeeded by
MG Raymond H. Fleming
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