Arthur Fulbrook Gorham (January 11, 1915 – July 12, 1943) was a United States Army officer and paratrooper. Gorham was the first commander of the 1st Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, part of the 82nd Airborne Division. He led the unit from its inception until Operation Husky, the July 1943 Allied invasion of Sicily, where he was killed in action.
Early life and family Gorham was born in Brooklyn, New York, to James Allison Gorham, Sr. (September 13, 1890 – February 9, 1972) and Louise Fox Gorham (April 1885 – July 4, 1966).James Gorham, Sr. registered for the World War I draft as a 27-year-old with two children. Recently uncovered information reveals he also registered for the draft at the outbreak of World War II at the age of 52. By that time, Arthur was a lieutenant stationed at the Presidio. His older brother was James Allison Gorham, Jr. (November 26, 1911 – May 15, 2005). Gorham's parents were second generation Americans and were both of Scottish descent. The Gorhams moved from Brooklyn to Bellevue, Ohio, in July 1917. James, Sr. owned a successful dry goods business.
While awaiting transportation from Governors Island in New York to his first assignment after graduating from West Point, Gorham renewed a previous acquaintance with Corrine "Colonel" Bennett (later Clarke) (October 21, 1917 – October 20, 2001). They had met for the first time a few years earlier at an army football game. Bennett was then a senior at the University of Wichita where she was president of the Pi Beta Phi sorority (then called the Sorosis Sorority), captain of the rifle team and had held titles in both golf and tennis."Miss Corinne Bennett to Wed Lieut. A.F. Gorham this Summer," Undated and unknown news clipping from the Gorham Family archives. The two were married on June 21, 1939, in Wichita, Kansas."Young Socialites Wed at Charming Ceremony: Brilliant Assemblage of Wedding Guests Throng St. James Church at Impressive Military Rites," The Wichita Beacon, June 22, 1939, page 15. The couple had one child, Bruce Bennett Gorham Clarke (born January 26, 1943, at Ft. Benning, GA). Clarke followed in his father's footsteps graduating from West Point, serving in an airborne unit, fighting in Vietnam at Khe Sanh and commanding at every level from a platoon to a brigade.Clarke took the last name of his mother's second husband, Edwin R. Clarke (April 23, 1913 – July 7, 1996).Colonel Clarke's website can be found at http://www.brucebgclarke.com
Education Gorham was educated in Bellevue, Ohio, first at the Ellis School and he later graduated from Bellevue High School in 1932. During high school, he played in the band for four years, was secretary of the junior and senior classes, earned two varsity letters in football and two more in track and served on the high school newspaper, the Blazer, for four years. He was also a member of the National Honor Society.
After his high school graduation, having not secured a sought-after appointment to West Point, he attended Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, for a year where he played football winning his "numeral." During this time he pledged the Ohio Alpha chapter of Phi Delta Theta fraternity."Miss Corinne Bennett to Wed Lieut. A.F. Gorham this Summer," Undated and unknown news clipping from the Gorham Family archives. Gorham left Miami when he received the principal Congressional appointment to West Point from Rep. William L. Fiesinger.Letter from Rep. Fiesinger to Arthur F. Gorham dated December 5, 1933. From the Gorham family archives. After taking the West Point substantiating examination in February 1934 he spent time at Stanton Preparatory Academy in Cornwall, New York.
On July 2, 1934, Gorham joined the Class of 1938 at West Point.Letter from Major General James F. McKinley to Arthur F. Gorham dated May 1, 1934. From the Gorham family archives. While at West Point, Gorham was known for pipe smoking, surviving academics and maintaining a famously clean M1 rifle. To his classmates, he was known for his easy-going way and love of jazz. He played football for two years winning two monograms as an end on the Army "B" teamThe 1934 edition of "Bugle Notes" describes the standard for the Army Monogram Award as follows: "Members of Corps squads who do not earn the 'A', but who play in half the games of the season receive the monogram.", USMA Bugel Notes, 1934 edition, page 117 and earned a marksmanship medal—one shot short of winning an "expert" badge he refused to wear the award mailing it home to his parents instead.Letter from Gorham to his parents dated August 8, 1935. From the Gorham Family archives.Letter from Gorham to his parents dated May 3, 1936: "Finally received my marksmanship badge. Will send it home. If it were expert I’d wear it but not marksman – lots of men made that." From the Gorham Family archives. During his four years he was an acting corporal, acting sergeant, sergeant, acting company supply officer, and, in his fourth year, wore three chevrons as the lieutenant for Company B. Gorham graduated in the middle of his class and received a commission as an infantry officer. Gorham's graduation was front page news in his native Bellevue. At the time, he was just the second graduate of Central High School to graduate from a service academy. Admiral John Greenslade was previously the school's sole graduate."Bellevue Student to Graduate from West Point on June 14," The Bellevue Gazette, page 1, April 26, 1938.Bellevue newspapers reported that Gorham and Adm Greenslade shared a birthday, "January 12th." Gorham's birthday was actually January 11th.
Early Career and Leadership Style After less than two years with the 30th Infantry in San Francisco, Gorham moved to Fort Benning, Georgia. In November 1941 he graduated from the newly created Airborne School receiving a "Certificate of Proficiency" signed by then Major Robert Sink and, more importantly, a set of silver jump wings.Certificate of Proficiency, Issued November 8, 1941, by the Parachute Group Headquarters at Ft. Benning, GA. From the Gorham family archives. A month later, he completed the school's demolition and sabotage course.Certificate of Proficiency dated December 20, 1941, and issued by the Parachute Group Headquarters, Ft. Benning, GA. From the Gorham family archives. It was at this point in his short career that he began to stand out. As one of the early airborne qualified officers, he gained more rank and responsibility as the United States began to form parachute regiments and later airborne divisions.
In 1941 he volunteered to organize the first group of paratroopers on skis. So in February 1942 then-Captain Gorham took his B Company, 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment to Alta, Utah, where the United States was testing the concept of dropping paratroopers into the Alps behind the Germans and having them ski down to attack and harass their lines of communication.See Alan Engen and Gregory Thompson's First Tracks: A Century of Skiing in Utah, page 18. During this period Gorham is credited with having made the first parachute jump from over 10,000 feet. As was his leadership style, before Gorham would let anyone else jump he first made a solo jump to test whether it was safe. On that first jump, he was soon followed by LT Robert Ellis, SGT Roy Taylor and SGT W.P. Walsh."Four Paraski Troops Jump" undated story from the Gorham family archives. The troopers trained hard, but falling on skis was different than falling when landing in a parachute jump. There were many legs and ankles injured. Despite much favorable press,Graffis, Herb. "The Sporting Scene: Taking a look at those rugged men who make up the paratroops we acquire new respect for the unballyhooed B-teamers," Esquire, pps 64-55, November 1942. From the Gorham Family archives.Harold F. Osborne, "Uncle Sam's Para-Ski Troops Are Daring, Tough and Light-Hearted," March 7, 1942. the project was eventually abandoned and the troopers were spread out to the newly forming parachute units.
In a 1989 article in Assembly, the magazine of the U.S. Military Academy's Association of Graduates, his son Bruce B.G. Clarke described Gorham's leadership style:
The article goes on to report this observation by General Winton:
In the summer of 1942 the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment was activated in the tarpaper shack Frying Pan area of Fort Benning, overlooking Lawson Army Airfield. Gorham, then a major, was assigned as commander of the 1st Battalion.Nordyke, Phil, Four Stars of Valor: The Combat History of the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment in World War II, page 25, Zenith Press, 2006 There was no time lost in getting a hard training schedule started.
In Combat Jump: The Young Men Who Led the Assault into Fortress Europe, July 1943 (page 53), Ed Ruggero writes:
Gorham was promoted to lieutenant colonel on December 26, 1942, just shy of his 28th birthday. At the time of his promotion, he was one of the youngest lieutenant colonels in the U.S. Army."Gorham Promoted to Lieut. Colonel: Bellevuean Commands Paratroop Regiment [sic] at Ft. Benning [sic]" and "Arthur F. Gorham Given High Rank", undated news clippings from Gorham family archives.
Operation Husky: The Invasion of Sicily On the night of July 9, 1943, the paratroopers of the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment loaded aircraft and departed the coast of North Africa for the island of Sicily. The 1st Battalion, under the command of the 28-year-old Gorham spearheaded the first regimental-sized airborne assault. Winds were high as they jumped in the early morning hours of July 10 and the paratroopers were scattered across and well beyond their drop zones. Assembling into small groups, the men began to wreak havoc among the German and Italian defenders of Sicily.Major Ed Sayre's analysis of the Operation, written in 1947 while he was attending the Advanced Infantry Officer's Course, has been scanned and posted at https://www.scribd.com/doc/5336849/Sayre-Monograph-Operation-Husky
On July 10, at about 0600, Gorham with 30 men from his headquarters company joined up with CPT Ed Sayre who had gathered up about 50 troopers from A Company. LTC Gorham congratulated Sayre for capturing an Italian fortified farmhouse and over 20 machine guns and then they began organizing a defense, anticipating an enemy attack from the north on the road from Niscemi. Bolstering the lightly armed paratroopers’ firepower were the 20 captured machine guns with 500,000 rounds of ammunition. The troopers, now about 90 strong, did not have long to wait. (During the period covered by the narrative, LTC Gorham probably never had more than 100 paratroopers under his command, probably even fewer, thanks to casualties.) At 0700, a German armored column approached from the north, Preceded by an advanced guard of two Motorcycles and a Volkswagen. The paratroopers, following LTC Gorham's command, allowed the advance guard to close to within point blank range, then opened fire killing or capturing them. The tanks deployed and stopped. The Germans then sent in two companies of about 200 men, of a Panzer Grenadier unit. The German infantry advanced on foot across open ground. The troopers, again following LTC Gorham's command, allowed them to close within about 100 yards, then opened fire. Throughout the engagements, LTC Gorham exposed himself at personal risk to encourage his troops and direct their fire.
The Germans were decimated. Only a handful escaped. The German tanks did not advance. The reasons for the tanks not doing so are not clear, but it is not hard to imagine that the crews were stunned by the volume of fire the troopers put out with their 20 machine guns.