Pritchard, John Hugh

Title

Pritchard, John Hugh

Last Name

Pritchard

First and Middle Name

John Hugh

Biographical Text

1st Lieutenant John Hugh Pritchard graduated from Virginia Tech in 1917 and immediately joined the U.S. Army after graduation. He arrived in France on May 5, 1918 and served on the Western Front with the 9th Aero Squadron in the AEF 1st Army Observation Group. The 9th Aero Squadron performed long-range, strategic night reconnaissance over the entire length of the 1st Army sector on the Western Front. Pritchard's squadron was the only night reconnaissance squadron along the entire front. 

The night reconnaissance mission of the 9th Aero Squadron was reflected in the unit’s insignia which depicted an aircraft flying at night as three German search lights intersected to form the roman numeral IX (9). 

In his Virginia War History Questionnaire Pritchard wrote that in "the air service, the fighting is of different nature from the others because a man is alone, where he cannot well observe anyone else and everything is done more cold bloody and with less excitement. The men of the air service went about their duties as if they were at home under ordinary circumstances, as a rule."

Nicknames or Other Names

"General", "Sammy"

Hometown

London Bridge, VA

Birth Date

6/2/1895

Birthplace

Princes Anne, VA (Virginia Beach)

Death Date

7/4/1963

Cause of Death

Heart Attack

Place of Death

Saint Joseph, MO

VPI Graduating Class

1917

Undergraduate Major

Electrical Engineering

Graduated

Y

Service Branch

Reserve Officers

Unit

Coast Artillery / 9th Aero Squadron, 1st Army observation group

Rank

Second Lieutenant

Retired Rank

N/a

Postwar Life

Worked as the manager of a gas company in Port Arthur, TX

1927 "Virginia Polytehnic Institute in the World War" booklet

Y

Files

John Hugh Pritchard senior portrait from the 1917 Bugle (2).jpg
John Hugh Pritchard photograph from the 1917 Bugle (3).jpg
John Hugh Pritchard from the 1917 Bugle.jpg
John Hugh Pritchard - 9th Aero Squadron Insignia.JPG
John Hugh Pritchard WW1 Questionairre - VPI Class of 1917 - pg 1.tif
John Hugh Pritchard WW1 Questionairre - VPI Class of 1917 - pg 2.tif
John Hugh Pritchard WW1 Questionairre - VPI Class of 1917 - pg 3.tif

Collection

Citation

“Pritchard, John Hugh,” VPI in World War I, accessed March 28, 2024, http://vpiworldwarone.lib.vt.edu/items/show/154.

Output Formats

Comments (if you have information about a veteran or would like to talk about a veteran, also email the project director Daniel Newcomb at danieln1@vt.edu with your information or question)

Allowed tags: <p>, <a>, <em>, <strong>, <ul>, <ol>, <li>