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George Levi Knox II ("Skipper" Knox)[1] (December 23, 1916 – November 4, 1964) was a U.S. Army Air Force/U.S. Air Force officer, combat fighter pilot and Adjutant with the all-African American 332nd Fighter Group's 100th Fighter Squadron, best known as the Tuskegee Airmen. One of the 1,007 documented Tuskegee Airmen Pilots, he was a member of the Tuskegee Airmen's third-ever aviation cadet class, and one of the first twelve African Americans to become combat fighter pilots.[2][3] He was the second Indiana native to graduate from the Tuskegee Advanced Flying School (TAFS).[4]

He was one of the ten presiding officers in the court-martials of several Tuskegee Airmen after the Freeman Field mutiny in 1945.[5] He was named president after Benjamin O. Davis Jr. was dismissed.[N 1]

Early life

He was born on December 23, 1916, in Indianapolis, Indiana, Marion County, Indiana. He was the son of Elwood Knox[7] and the grandson of runaway slave George L. Knox (who wrote a book about his experiences, Life as I Remember It: As a Slave and a Freeman, in 1895).[8][9]

He was a graduate of Fisk University.[1][10][11][12] On January 27, 1937 he was initiated as a fraternity brother of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity's Nu Chapter in Indiana.[13][12] He then attended the University of Pittsburg and earned a graduate certificate.[14][12]

In 1942, he married Yvonne Marguerite Wright Knox (August 27, 1919- August 18, 2002). They were the parents of four children: Adelaide Emma, George L. III., John Elwood and Craig Streator.[14][11][12]

Military service

World War II

Photo of a P-51 Mustang. The Tuskegee Airmen's aircraft had distinctive markings that led to the name, "Red Tails."[N 2]

In October 1941, he entered the U.S. Army Air Corps at Fort Benjamin Harrison in Indianapolis, Indiana.[10] On May 20, 1942, he graduated from Tuskegee Advance Flying School (TAFS)'s third-ever[16] Single Engine Section Class SE-42-E.[3][17][18] He was one of the first twelve African American combat fighter pilots.[3]

He was the second Indiana native to graduate from the Tuskegee Advance Flying School (TAFS).[4] After receiving his wings and commission as a 2nd Lieutenant,[19][17][18] he was promoted to First Lieutenant in December 1942.[20] In 1943 he was with the 332nd Fighter Group, became a flight leader, and was assigned to Selfridge Field, Michigan.[21] A year later, he was a member of the "first Negro bombardment organization", the 477th Bombardment Group; in 1944, the squadron had received two commendations for its achievements.[22] At the rank of Captain, he was the "squad's most experienced Negro flier".[22]

Freeman Field mutiny

In 1945, he was president of the court assembled to pass judgment on a "racial incident" at Freeman Field, in Seymour, Indiana.[6] He was one of ten officers to preside over the Freeman Field mutiny courts-martial, appointed by General Frank O'Driscoll Hunter: Colonel Benjamin O. Davis Jr., Captains George L. Knox II, James T. Wiley, John H. Duren, Charles R. Stanton, William T. Yates, Elmore M. Kennedy, and Fitzroy Newsum and 1st Lieutenants William Robert Ming Jr. James Y. Carter. Trial Judge Advocates were: Captain James W. Redden and 1st Lieutenant Charles B. Hall.[5]

After World War II, he headed the AFROTC program at Tuskegee Institute. In 1946, he held the rank of Major.[23] The highest rank he held, at his death in 1964, was lieutenant colonel;[12] he was a professor of air science at the officer training corps at Tuskegee.[11][12][24] He was a member of St. Philip's Episcopal Church in Indianapolis, and St. Andrew's Episcopal Church in Tuskegee.[11][12][24]

Awards

Death

He died on November 4, 1964, in Tuskegee, Alabama, Macon County, Alabama.[11] His obituary in a Mobile Alabama newspaper reported that he died from an accidental gunshot at his home.[14][12][24] He was interred at Crown Hill Cemetery, Plot Sec: 41, Lot: 273 in Indianapolis, Indiana.[26]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Benjamin O. Davis Jr. was dismissed from the court after a challenge, Knox was named president. See historic photograph with press release in section Freeman Field mutiny#Release of the 101.[6]
  2. ^ The red markings that distinguished the Tuskegee Airmen included red bands on the noses of P-51s as well as a red rudder; their P-51B and D Mustangs flew with similar color schemes, with red propeller spinners, yellow wing bands and all-red tail surfaces.[15]

References

  1. ^ a b "All-Negro Fighter Squadron Ready for Action: They're Smart, Tough and Rarin' to Go. Meet the Flying Black Panthers" (PDF). Click. Vol. 6.
  2. ^ Dryden, Charles (25 June 2002). A-Train: Memoirs of a Tuskegee Airman. Tuscaloosa, Alabama: The University of Alabama Press. p. 87. ISBN 9780817312664. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  3. ^ a b c "Tuskegee Airmen Pilot Roster". CAF Rise Above. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
  4. ^ a b Indianapolis Chapter - Tuskegee Airmen Inc. https://www.indytuskegee.org/elementor-639/
  5. ^ a b Reilly, Thomas; Homan, Lynn (2008). Black Knights: The Story of the Tuskegee Airmen (7 ed.). Gretna Louisiana: Pelican Publishing Company. p. 203. ISBN 9781455601257. Retrieved 24 September 2021.
  6. ^ a b "Fine Bomber Pilot $150". The Pittsburgh Courier. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 1945-07-14. p. 4.
  7. ^ "Monster Meeting Series To Start". The Indianapolis News. Indianapolis, Indiana. 1942-11-14. p. 18.
  8. ^ Hunter, Al. "The Ghost of Old George Knox". The Weekly View. Weekly View. Retrieved 23 September 2021.
  9. ^ Knox, George (1979). Slave and Freeman, the Autobiography of George L. Knox. exington Kentucky: University Press of Kentucky. pp. 43–44. ISBN 0-8131-1384-9. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
  10. ^ a b "Army Offers Four-State Area 325 Cadet Pilot Scholarships a Month". The Indianapolis Star. Indianapolis, Indiana. 1941-10-19. p. 16.
  11. ^ a b c d e "Col. George Knox Dies In Alabama". The Indianapolis News. Indianapolis, Indiana. 1964-11-05. p. 26.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h i "'Skegee Instructor Is Accident Victim". The Mobile Beacon and Alabama Citizen. Mobile, Alabama. 1964-11-14. p. 1.
  13. ^ Watch the Yard. "Fly Nupes: Photos Of The Handsome And Daring Men Of Kappa Alpha Psi Who Served As Tuskegee Airmen." https://www.watchtheyard.com/kappas/tuskegee-airmen/14/
  14. ^ a b c d e f g "Obituary for George L. Knox (Aged 47)". The Mobile Beacon and Alabama Citizen. 14 November 1964. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
  15. ^ Rice, Markus. "The Men and Their Airplanes: The Fighters." Tuskegee Airmen, 1 March 2000.
  16. ^ "Brown Fighters Will Keep Colors Flying For U.S.A." The Detroit Tribune. Detroit, Michigan. 1942-07-04. p. 17.
  17. ^ a b "Tuskegee Flying School Graduates Another Class of Negro Pilots". Southeast Air Corps Training Center News. Montgomery, Alabama. 1942-05-30. p. 3.
  18. ^ a b "Third Class of Army Cadets Takes To Air". The Pittsburgh Courier. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 1942-05-30. p. 1.
  19. ^ "Tuskegee Airmen Pilot Listing". Tuskegee.edu. Tuskegee University. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
  20. ^ "George L. Knox". The Indianapolis News. Indianapolis, Indiana. 1942-12-26. p. 15.
  21. ^ Wilkins, Roy (November 1943). The Crisis - A Record of the Darker Races. New York, New York: The Crisis Publishing Company Inc. p. 345. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
  22. ^ a b "Bombardment Squadron Has Superior Record". The Pittsburgh Courier. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 1944-08-12. p. 2.
  23. ^ "Acceptance by Regular Army Rates Them Among Best in Nation". California Eagle. Los Angeles, California. 1946-09-19. p. 9.
  24. ^ a b c "Rites Held". The Pittsburgh Courier. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 1964-11-28. p. 5.
  25. ^ "Public Law 109–213—APR. 11, 2006 Congressional Gold Medal to the Tuskegee Airmen" (PDF). Congress.gov. US Library of Congress. 11 April 2006. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
  26. ^ "LTC George Levi Knox". Find A Grave. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_L._Knox_II