Lyman Louis Lemnitzer was born August 29, 1899 in Honesdale, PA, second son of Mr. and Mrs. William L. Lemnitzer. Graduating 86th of 271 in his West Point class of 1920, Lemnitzer was stationed for a time in the Philippines. In 1923 he married Katherine Tryon, daughter of a Methodist minister. Promoted to first lieutenant in 1925, he rose through the ranks to become a major general in 1944 and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the Korean War.

During World War II, General Lemnitzer took part in a series of daring secret missions. His exploits included slipping into North Africa by submarine in 1942 to confer with French commanders defying the Vichy government and later slipping into Switzerland to begin talks behind Hitler’s back. Dressed in civilian clothes, he pretended to be in Switzerland to buy a dachshund, which he walked and fed dog biscuits while secretly meeting with members of the German High Command.

General Lemnitzer died in 1988 and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Among many other honors, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Reagan and the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire from King George VI.