Colonel Nathaniel Ramsey Hoskot, a resident of Alexandria, Virginia, died there March 22, 2004. He was 92.
Colonel Hoskot was a native of Dayton, Ohio, and was raised in Boise, Idaho, and graduated from the University of California at Berkeley, in 1933, where he was a Phi Delta Theta. He was employed by the Union Oil Company in the San Joaquin Valley, living in Hanford, Bakersfield, Arvin and Tulare.
In 1940, Hoskot entered the U.S. Army as a First Lieutenant. During World War II, he parachuted into Normandy after midnight on D-Day, June 6, 1944. His assignment was to be a liaison between the 101st and 82nd airborne divisions, but he was captured later that day and was a Prisoner of War in Oflag-64, a camp near Warsaw Poland, until 1945.
He received the Silver Star for his actions the next day, when his POW convoy was strafed by Allied planes. German guards were shooting prisoners who tried to get off the trucks, some of which were on fire, according to his award citation. Col. Hoskot, who had leapt to safety from the back of a jeep, put himself between the guards and the POWs and helped unload prisoners from the trucks. He was held in a prisoner-of-war camp in Poland until 1945.
He received a Silver Star, two Bronze Stars, a Purple Heart, Legion of Merit, Combat Infantryman Badge, Master Parachutist Badge, Glider Badge, various campaign ribbons from World War II and a 1947 award from the Nepalese government, the Star of Prasiddha Pravala Gorkha Dakshine Bahu.
After the war he was stationed in New Delhi, India, which saw its independence from Britain during his tour there. He served as the Assistant U.S. Military Attaché in New Delhi and then as the first Military Attaché in the newly-formed country of Pakistan, helping to set up the first American Embassy in Karachi before returning to the United States in 1948.
In 1950 he served in the Korean War as the G-3 of the 3rd Infantry Division. He was later commander of headquarters in Heidelberg, West Germany, and chief of staff of the Berlin command. His last assignment was at the Pentagon, where he was the Army liaison to the White House during the Kennedy administration.
Although his military career took him to many parts of the globe, Col. Hoskot and his family returned frequently to spend summer vacations at Doyles Springs [CA], above Springville.
After his retirement from the military in 1963, Col. Hoskot was director of operations in international sales for Hughes Aircraft's helicopter division, working two years in Vietnam from 1967-1969. He later worked for Breda Nardi Costruzzioni Aeronautiche in Milan, Italy. He and his wife retired to Northern Virginia in 1982.
He volunteered with Traveler's Aid at Ronald Reagan National Airport for 17 years and with the information desk at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum for 13 years, retiring from those positions in 2001.
A graveside service was held at Arlington National Cemetery, Post Chapel, Fort Myer; with full military honors.
Colonel Hoskot was a native of Dayton, Ohio, and was raised in Boise, Idaho, and graduated from the University of California at Berkeley, in 1933, where he was a Phi Delta Theta. He was employed by the Union Oil Company in the San Joaquin Valley, living in Hanford, Bakersfield, Arvin and Tulare.
In 1940, Hoskot entered the U.S. Army as a First Lieutenant. During World War II, he parachuted into Normandy after midnight on D-Day, June 6, 1944. His assignment was to be a liaison between the 101st and 82nd airborne divisions, but he was captured later that day and was a Prisoner of War in Oflag-64, a camp near Warsaw Poland, until 1945.
He received the Silver Star for his actions the next day, when his POW convoy was strafed by Allied planes. German guards were shooting prisoners who tried to get off the trucks, some of which were on fire, according to his award citation. Col. Hoskot, who had leapt to safety from the back of a jeep, put himself between the guards and the POWs and helped unload prisoners from the trucks. He was held in a prisoner-of-war camp in Poland until 1945.
He received a Silver Star, two Bronze Stars, a Purple Heart, Legion of Merit, Combat Infantryman Badge, Master Parachutist Badge, Glider Badge, various campaign ribbons from World War II and a 1947 award from the Nepalese government, the Star of Prasiddha Pravala Gorkha Dakshine Bahu.
After the war he was stationed in New Delhi, India, which saw its independence from Britain during his tour there. He served as the Assistant U.S. Military Attaché in New Delhi and then as the first Military Attaché in the newly-formed country of Pakistan, helping to set up the first American Embassy in Karachi before returning to the United States in 1948.
In 1950 he served in the Korean War as the G-3 of the 3rd Infantry Division. He was later commander of headquarters in Heidelberg, West Germany, and chief of staff of the Berlin command. His last assignment was at the Pentagon, where he was the Army liaison to the White House during the Kennedy administration.
Although his military career took him to many parts of the globe, Col. Hoskot and his family returned frequently to spend summer vacations at Doyles Springs [CA], above Springville.
After his retirement from the military in 1963, Col. Hoskot was director of operations in international sales for Hughes Aircraft's helicopter division, working two years in Vietnam from 1967-1969. He later worked for Breda Nardi Costruzzioni Aeronautiche in Milan, Italy. He and his wife retired to Northern Virginia in 1982.
He volunteered with Traveler's Aid at Ronald Reagan National Airport for 17 years and with the information desk at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum for 13 years, retiring from those positions in 2001.
A graveside service was held at Arlington National Cemetery, Post Chapel, Fort Myer; with full military honors.
Colonel Nathaniel Ramsey Hoskot, a resident of Alexandria, Virginia, died there March 22, 2004. He was 92.
Colonel Hoskot was a native of Dayton, Ohio, and was raised in Boise, Idaho, and graduated from the University of California at Berkeley, in 1933, where he was a Phi Delta Theta. He was employed by the Union Oil Company in the San Joaquin Valley, living in Hanford, Bakersfield, Arvin and Tulare.
In 1940, Hoskot entered the U.S. Army as a First Lieutenant. During World War II, he parachuted into Normandy after midnight on D-Day, June 6, 1944. His assignment was to be a liaison between the 101st and 82nd airborne divisions, but he was captured later that day and was a Prisoner of War in Oflag-64, a camp near Warsaw Poland, until 1945.
He received the Silver Star for his actions the next day, when his POW convoy was strafed by Allied planes. German guards were shooting prisoners who tried to get off the trucks, some of which were on fire, according to his award citation. Col. Hoskot, who had leapt to safety from the back of a jeep, put himself between the guards and the POWs and helped unload prisoners from the trucks. He was held in a prisoner-of-war camp in Poland until 1945.
He received a Silver Star, two Bronze Stars, a Purple Heart, Legion of Merit, Combat Infantryman Badge, Master Parachutist Badge, Glider Badge, various campaign ribbons from World War II and a 1947 award from the Nepalese government, the Star of Prasiddha Pravala Gorkha Dakshine Bahu.
After the war he was stationed in New Delhi, India, which saw its independence from Britain during his tour there. He served as the Assistant U.S. Military Attaché in New Delhi and then as the first Military Attaché in the newly-formed country of Pakistan, helping to set up the first American Embassy in Karachi before returning to the United States in 1948.
In 1950 he served in the Korean War as the G-3 of the 3rd Infantry Division. He was later commander of headquarters in Heidelberg, West Germany, and chief of staff of the Berlin command. His last assignment was at the Pentagon, where he was the Army liaison to the White House during the Kennedy administration.
Although his military career took him to many parts of the globe, Col. Hoskot and his family returned frequently to spend summer vacations at Doyles Springs [CA], above Springville.
After his retirement from the military in 1963, Col. Hoskot was director of operations in international sales for Hughes Aircraft's helicopter division, working two years in Vietnam from 1967-1969. He later worked for Breda Nardi Costruzzioni Aeronautiche in Milan, Italy. He and his wife retired to Northern Virginia in 1982.
He volunteered with Traveler's Aid at Ronald Reagan National Airport for 17 years and with the information desk at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum for 13 years, retiring from those positions in 2001.
A graveside service was held at Arlington National Cemetery, Post Chapel, Fort Myer; with full military honors.
Colonel Hoskot was a native of Dayton, Ohio, and was raised in Boise, Idaho, and graduated from the University of California at Berkeley, in 1933, where he was a Phi Delta Theta. He was employed by the Union Oil Company in the San Joaquin Valley, living in Hanford, Bakersfield, Arvin and Tulare.
In 1940, Hoskot entered the U.S. Army as a First Lieutenant. During World War II, he parachuted into Normandy after midnight on D-Day, June 6, 1944. His assignment was to be a liaison between the 101st and 82nd airborne divisions, but he was captured later that day and was a Prisoner of War in Oflag-64, a camp near Warsaw Poland, until 1945.
He received the Silver Star for his actions the next day, when his POW convoy was strafed by Allied planes. German guards were shooting prisoners who tried to get off the trucks, some of which were on fire, according to his award citation. Col. Hoskot, who had leapt to safety from the back of a jeep, put himself between the guards and the POWs and helped unload prisoners from the trucks. He was held in a prisoner-of-war camp in Poland until 1945.
He received a Silver Star, two Bronze Stars, a Purple Heart, Legion of Merit, Combat Infantryman Badge, Master Parachutist Badge, Glider Badge, various campaign ribbons from World War II and a 1947 award from the Nepalese government, the Star of Prasiddha Pravala Gorkha Dakshine Bahu.
After the war he was stationed in New Delhi, India, which saw its independence from Britain during his tour there. He served as the Assistant U.S. Military Attaché in New Delhi and then as the first Military Attaché in the newly-formed country of Pakistan, helping to set up the first American Embassy in Karachi before returning to the United States in 1948.
In 1950 he served in the Korean War as the G-3 of the 3rd Infantry Division. He was later commander of headquarters in Heidelberg, West Germany, and chief of staff of the Berlin command. His last assignment was at the Pentagon, where he was the Army liaison to the White House during the Kennedy administration.
Although his military career took him to many parts of the globe, Col. Hoskot and his family returned frequently to spend summer vacations at Doyles Springs [CA], above Springville.
After his retirement from the military in 1963, Col. Hoskot was director of operations in international sales for Hughes Aircraft's helicopter division, working two years in Vietnam from 1967-1969. He later worked for Breda Nardi Costruzzioni Aeronautiche in Milan, Italy. He and his wife retired to Northern Virginia in 1982.
He volunteered with Traveler's Aid at Ronald Reagan National Airport for 17 years and with the information desk at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum for 13 years, retiring from those positions in 2001.
A graveside service was held at Arlington National Cemetery, Post Chapel, Fort Myer; with full military honors.
Gravesite Details
COL US ARMY; WORLD WAR II; KOREA
