Leonard Daniel Dry, Sr. – Master Sergeant, United States Army

From a press report: January 12, 2000

Leonard Daniel Dry Sr., 92, a retired Army master sergeant who served 20 years as the personal driver for General of the Army Dwight D. Eisenhower, died January 5, 2000 at his home in Arlington, Virginia,  after an apparent heart attack.

Sergeant Dry, an Army mechanic, began his service as Eisenhower’s driver in North Africa in 1942, and he remained with the general throughout the duration of World War II.

He went with Eisenhower to Sicily and then traveled with him to England for planning and preparation of the invasion at Normandy in June 1944. He served with Eisenhower as Allied Forces advanced through France and into Germany, and he was with Eisenhower at the schoolhouse in Rheims, France, when Germany surrendered in May 1945.

After the war, he accompanied Eisenhower on trips to Moscow and Rome. An Army unit gave Eisenhower a Mercedes-Benz convertible sedan that had been driven by Nazi air force chief Herman Goering, which Sergeant Dry drove for a period before Eisenhower gave up possession of the vehicle.

After the war, he was with Eisenhower when the general was president of Columbia University and at Supreme Headquarters, Allied Powers Europe. During the Eisenhower presidency, he was a White House driver. After Eisenhower left office in 1961, he went with him to his retirement farm at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

In 1962, Sergeant Dry retired from active military service. He received a Bronze Star. He then became a civilian driver for the Secret Service. He retired after 15 years in that position.

SergeantDry was born in Lamotte Township, Crawford County, Illinois. He was an
auto worker with Chrysler Corp. for 10 years before the war.

His wife of 38 years, Geraldine Cecilia Forster Dry, died in 1984.

Survivors include two children, Mary Alice Svercl of Arlington and Leonard Daniel Dry Jr. of Gainesville, Fla.; and four grandchildren.

DRY, LEONARD D.

On January 6, 2000, of Arlington, VA. Husband of the late Geraldine Forster; father of Mary Alice Svercl and Leonard Daniel Dry, Jr. Also survived by four grandchildren. Services will be held at Fort Myer Old Post Chapel Tuesday, January 18 at 10 a.m. Interment Arlington National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Educational Fund at Bishop Denis J. O’Connell High School, 6600 Little Falls Rd., Arlington, VA 22213.

Michael Robert Patterson

Michael Robert Patterson was born in Arlington and is the son of a former officer of the US Army. So it was no wonder that sooner or later his interests drew him to American history and especially to American military history. Many of his articles can be found on renowned portals like the New York Times, Washingtonpost or Wikipedia.

Reviewed by: Michael Howard