James Edward Thompson Jr. (October 13, 1935 – June 8, 2017) was a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

officer. He attained the rank of

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

and was a commander of the

101st Airborne Division The 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) ("Screaming Eagles") is a light infantry division (military), division of the United States Army that specializes in air assault military operation, operations. The 101st is designed to plan, coordinat ...

and

First United States Army First Army is the largest OC/T organization in the U.S. Army, comprising two divisions, ten brigades, and more than 7,500 Soldiers. Its mission is to partner with the U.S. Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve to enable leaders and deli ...

Early life

James Edward Thompson Jr. was born in

Durham, North Carolina Durham ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County, North Carolina, Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County, North Carolina, Orange County and Wake County, North Carol ...

on October 13, 1935, and graduated from the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...

in 1957 with a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in education. While in college, Thompson completed the

Reserve Officers' Training Corps The Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC; or ) is a group of college- and university-based officer-training programs for training commissioned officers of the United States Armed Forces. While ROTC graduate officers serve in all branches o ...

program, and at his graduation he was commissioned a second lieutenant of

Infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

Military education

After receiving his commission, Thompson completed the Infantry Officer Basic Course. His later military education included the Infantry Officer Advanced Course,

Air Command and Staff College The Air Command and Staff College (ACSC) is located at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama and is the United States Air Force's intermediate-level Professional Military Education (PME) school. It is a subordinate command of the Air Un ...

, and

United States Army War College The United States Army War College (USAWC) is a U.S. Army staff college in Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, with a Carlisle postal address, on the 500-acre (2 km2) campus of the historic Carlisle Barracks. It provides graduate-level instru ...

. In addition, he received a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

in political science from

Auburn University Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 26,800 undergraduate students, over 6,100 post-graduate students, and a tota ...

Military career

Early career

During the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

, Thompson commanded the 162nd Aviation Company (Assault Helicopter) during the first half of 1968. Thompson's later

field grade officer A senior officer is an officer of a more senior grade in military or other uniformed services. In military organisations, the term may refer to any officer above junior officer rank, but usually specifically refers to the middle-ranking group of ...

assignments included: commander, 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division; assistant chief of staff for operations, plans and training (G-3), 25th Infantry Division; director, military planning studies (European regions), Army War College; and commander, 3d Brigade, 101st Airborne Division.

General officer

After receiving promotion to brigadier general, Thompson's assignments included: assistant division commander (ADC) for support and ADC for operations, 101st Airborne Division, Kentucky; deputy director for plans and policy,

United States Pacific Command The United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM) is the unified combatant command of the United States Armed Forces responsible for the Indo-Pacific, Indo-Pacific region. It is the oldest and largest of the unified combatant commands. Lead ...

; and deputy director for operations, readiness, and mobilization in the Office of the Army's Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations (G-3). Thompson was assigned as commander of the

in August 1983, and he served until June 1985. From 1985 to 1987, Thompson was commandant of the

. In June 1987, Thompson was assigned as commander of

; he held this position until retiring in 1991.

Awards and decorations

Thompson's awards and decorations include:

Family

Thompson was married to Patricia (Cofer) Thompson. They were the parents of two children, James and Tamara.

Death and burial

In retirement, Thompson resided in

St. Simons, Georgia St. Simons Island (or simply St. Simons) is a barrier island and census-designated place (CDP) located on St. Simons Island in Glynn County, Georgia, Glynn County, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. The names of the community and the ...

. He died in Brunswick, Georgia on June 8, 2017. Thompson was buried at Christ Church Episcopal Cemetery in St. Simons.

References

Sources

Books

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Newspapers

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, James E. Jr. 1935 births 2017 deaths People from Durham, North Carolina People from St. Simons, Georgia University of Florida alumni Air Command and Staff College alumni United States Army War College alumni Auburn University alumni United States Army generals United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Recipients of the Soldier's Medal Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Air Medal American Master Army Aviators Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army)