George Juskalian

Kevork Juskalian was among the earliest graduates of the Euphrates College in Kharpert, completing his studies around 1881.

He served as a minor official of the local Turkish government in Mezire, a village near Kharpert.

He was then invited to work in the Persian consulate in Mezire until he was recalled by the Turkish government to serve as supervisor of eleven villages in the region of Kharpert.

Kevork Juskalian felt that there was no secure future for him in Ottoman Turkey and subsequently fled to the United States with his family, arriving at Ellis Island on November 15, 1887.

Consequently, the Juskalian family became some of the first Armenians to come to the United States.

Kevork found a job at the Iver Johnson Arms & Cycle Works in Worcester, Massachusetts.

He was instrumental in the establishment of the Armenian Church of Our Savior on January 18, 1891.

In 1893, Kevork returned to Kharpert and married Maritza Ferrahian, daughter of Krikor and Yeghisapet (Yesayan) Ferrahian.

Due to the Hamidian Massacres, Kevork and Maritza returned to the United States and Kevork rejoined the Iver Johnson Arms & Cycle Works company.

George Juskalian (Գեւորգ Ժուսգալեան; June 7, 1914 – July 4, 2010) was a decorated member of the United States Army who served for over three decades and fought in World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War.

George Juskalian was born in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, on June 7, 1914, the youngest son of Armenian parents Kevork Juskalian (1861–1938) and Maritza Ferrahian (1876–1960).

George's father, Kevork, was from Kharpert, Ottoman Turkey, and his mother Maritza was from Arapkir, Ottoman Turkey.

Juskalian then took part in Operation Torch as part of the 1st Infantry Division's 26th Infantry Regiment, commanded by Theodore Roosevelt Jr.. The Allies, who had organized three amphibious task forces, aimed to seize key ports and airfields in Morocco and Algeria while simultaneously targeting Casablanca, Oran and Algiers.

Juskalian's unit was part of the task force that invaded through the port of Oran.

Juskalian, who grew up in Fitchburg, attended the local schools and graduated from Fitchburg High School in 1932.

Following graduation from Boston University, Juskalian entered the army as a second lieutenant in June 1936.

During World War II, he served with the infantry during the North African Campaign and took part in Operation Torch.

At the Battle of the Kasserine Pass, he was captured by German troops and became a prisoner of war (POW) for twenty-seven months.

During the Korean War he commanded an infantry battalion.

He continued his education at Boston University, graduating in 1936 with a bachelor's degree in science, journalism.

While studying at Boston University, Juskalian undertook military training as part of the Reserve Officers Training Corps.

On graduation, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army, and in June 1936, was assigned as an administrative officer of a Civilian Conservation Corps camp at Brewster, Massachusetts, where he helped build a national park.

After leaving active service, Juskalian had intended to study law at the American University in Washington, D.C., but when his father died in 1938, he gave up this plan and returned to Fitchburg to reunite with his mother and assist his brother-in-law's dry-cleaning business.

That year, after passing a government exam, Juskalian became a fingerprint classifier for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and took part in the search for John Dillinger, who was on the "Top 10 Most Wanted" list.

He then volunteered for active service in 1939.

Juskalian was called to active duty at Fort Devens, Massachusetts, and was promoted to the rank as first lieutenant in November 1940.

Juskalian was given command of a 200-man company after the reorganization of the 1st Infantry Division.

In February 1942, Juskalian was promoted to captain and was sent to Camp Blanding, Florida, before moving to Fort Benning, Georgia and then Indiantown Gap Military Reservation, Pennsylvania, for additional training and combat readiness evaluation.

In August 1942, Juskalian boarded the RMS Queen Mary, and along with the other 15,000 soldiers of the 1st Infantry Division, was shipped to Europe.

The soldiers of the 1st Infantry Division are believed to be among the first American troops shipped out to the European theater during the war.

The division landed near Glasgow, Scotland, then proceeded to a British Army base near London to continue training.

Juskalian, who became the assistant plans and operations officer on the regimental staff, went to Inveraray, Scotland, to train for the North African Campaign.

Landing in Oran on November 8, 1942, the 1st Infantry Division's primary objective was to confront the German Afrika Korps commanded by Erwin Rommel, while its secondary objective was to support Bernard Law Montgomery's advance against the Italian forces.

Eventually, the 1st Infantry Division broke through the German resistance and scaled Mount Djebel.

He was then stationed in Tehran where he acted an advisor to the Imperial Iranian Army throughout 1957 and 1958.

During the Vietnam War, Juskalian once again undertook advisory duties, working with the South Vietnamese Army between 1963 and 1964, before serving as the MACV inspector general under General William Westmoreland.

Juskalian retired as a colonel in 1967 and is one of the most decorated Armenian-Americans to serve in the United States Army.

His awards include two Combat Infantryman Badges, two Silver Stars, the Legion of Merit, four Bronze Stars and the Air Medal.

He received the Nerses Shnorali Medal from the Catholicos of All Armenians in 1988.

The post office in his home town of Centreville, Virginia, has been named the "Colonel George Juskalian Post Office Building" in his honor.