Joseph Jacob Foss - Grave of a Famous Person on Waymarking.com

General Foss inspired the nation as a wartime ace. Flying a Grumann Wildcat that was slower than the vaunted Japanese Zero, he shot down 26 fighters and bombers in the battle for Guadalcanal from October 1942 to January 1943. With his 26th "kill," he became the first American pilot of World War II to equal Captain Eddie Rickenbacker's record from World War I. Captain Foss was brought home in the spring of 1943 to receive the Medal of Honor from President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and to go on a national tour to sell war bonds, spur military recruiting and inspire workers in war plants. Thrilling an America still reeling from Pearl Harbor, Captain Foss was pictured in his dress uniform on the cover of Life on 7 June 1943, described as "America's No. 1 Ace." Following the War General Foss returned to South Dakota where he served two terms as Governor. In 1959 he became the first commissioner of the American Football League, serving until 1966. Later in life General Foss served as President of the National Rifle Association from 1988 – 1990. In October 2002, General Foss suffered a severe stroke and passed away on January 1, 2003. He is resting in Section 7 at Arlington National Cemetery.

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Description: Joseph Jacob Foss was born on April 17, 1915, on a farm near Sioux Falls, South Dakota. When he was 12, he visited a tiny airport near his home to see Charles Augustus Lindbergh, who was taking his Spirit of St. Louis on a national tour after flying to Paris. The boy envisioned soaring through the skies himself one day. Four years later, he went up in a plane for the first time, a $1.50 sightseeing ride in a Ford Tri-Motor. After watching a Marine Corps aerial team perform aerobatics in open-cockpit biplanes, he was convinced that the aviator's life was for him. Seeing a chance to fly at government expense, he joined the Marine Corps and won his wings in March 1941, nine months before the United States entered the war. On 9 October 1942, he landed his Wildcat on Guadalcanal at the southern end of the Solomons, the setting for the first American land offensive in the Pacific. Flying a Grumann Wildcat that was slower than the vaunted Japanese Zero, he shot down 26 fighters and bombers in the battle for Guadalcanal from October 1942 to January 1943. With his 26th "kill," he became the first American pilot of World War II to equal Captain Eddie Rickenbacker's record from World War I. The First Marine Division had gone ashore on August 7, 1942, to seize a partly completed airstrip that was later renamed Henderson Field. In October, the Marines were hanging on to the strip in the face of fierce Japanese efforts to retake the island and use it as a staging point to attack Australia, 1,600 miles to the south. Flying out of Henderson Field over the next three months, Captain Foss and his fliers, a band known as "Joe's Flying Circus" for its aerobatic maneuvers, played a major role in defending Guadalcanal. Early in November, while Captain Foss was strafing Japanese ships 150 miles north of Guadalcanal, machine-gun fire from a Japanese plane pierced his engine and shattered his canopy, narrowly missing the aviator's head. When the engine quit, Captain Foss ditched the plane in the ocean. It quickly sank. He freed himself and struggled in his life jacket for five hours in a rainstorm while sharks circled him. Finally, members of a Catholic mission from the island of Malaita, who were paddling by in canoes, rescued him. On January 15, 1943, Captain Foss downed his 26th plane. Ten days later, he was credited with a feat that may have saved Henderson Field. A large force of Japanese bombers and fighters approached Guadalcanal, hoping to obliterate the airstrip. Captain Foss and his 11 pilots went up to engage them. He quickly realized that the enemy fighters were seeking to lure them into a confrontation while the bombers slipped through. Instead of battling the fighters, the Americans maneuvered nearby without attacking. Soon, the Japanese began to run out of fuel. Fearing that Captain Foss's group was a decoy for other Americans hidden in the clouds, the Japanese returned to their bases on Bougainville and Munda, leaving Henderson Field untouched. It never again came under a sustained attack. In April 1943, stricken with malaria, Captain Foss went home. At a White House ceremony, President Roosevelt presented him with the Medal of Honor, citing "outstanding heroism and courage" on his many missions to defend Guadalcanal. He also received the Silver Star, Bronze Star and a Purple Heart. After the war he returned to Sioux Falls, where he and a friend ran the Joe Foss Flying Service, building it into a venture with 35 airplanes. He also organized the South Dakota Air National Guard and commanded a squadron. He was elected to the South Dakota Legislature as a Republican in 1948. Six years later, at 39, he was elected the youngest governor in the history of the state. After serving two two-year terms, he ran for Congress against George McGovern, the future Democratic presidential nominee, who was seeking a second term in the House of Representatives. Mr. McGovern, also a highly decorated pilot in the war, defeat Date of birth: 04/17/1915 Date of death: 01/01/2003 Area of notoriety: Military Marker Type: Headstone Setting: Outdoor Visiting Hours/Restrictions: Daily - 8 a.m to 5 p.m. Fee required?: No Web site: [Web Link]

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