J.D. Tippit entered the Army in 1944, doing his basic training at Camp Wolters, near Minerals Springs, Texas. At twenty years old, Tippit went to Fort Benning, Georgia to train with the 17th Airborne Division. J.D. had decided to become a paratrooper, and nothing would change his mind. After jumping from a plane in full combat gear from 2,000, 1,500, 1,000, and 600 feet he earned his paratrooper wings.
The 17th Airborne Division, under the command of Maj. General William Miley, was one of five airborne divisions created by the U.S. Army during WWII. Their motto is "Thunder From Heaven". On March 24, 1945, the 17th Airborne paratroopers conducted a massive assault on the Rhine River, to seize and hold the high ground just east of the bridge over the Issel River. They were also ordered to protect the right flank of the 18th Airborne and to establish contact with the 1st Commando Brigade northeast of the German city of Wesel. This operation was the largest single-lift of the war using 1,042 aircraft and 1,380 gliders in the initial assault. The 17th Airborne Division was engaged in combat for 65 days, sustaining 6,130 casualties with 1,226 killed in action.
In January of 1945, Tippit shipped out of France to join parachute infantry replacements for the 513th Battalion, 17th Airborne. On a patrol near the Rhine Valley, Tippit stumbled while carrying a 50 caliber machine gun and hurt his leg. When his name came up later on the list of Purple Heart recipients, he refused it, saying his injury was a result of his own negligence. He was later awarded the Bronze Star, (pictured above), for his combat duty. Six months after VE-Day, Tippit received his discharge and he returned home to work on his father's farm.
J.D. was born Sept. 18, 1924 near Annon, Texas. His parents, Edgar Lee and Lizzie Mae Tippit earned their living working rented farm land. When their first son was born they named him JD, from a character in a book Edgar had read about. Although many claimed JD stood for Jefferson Davis, in reality the initials didn't stand for anything. J.D. attended school in nearby Fulbright, Texas. He stayed in school until he reached the 10th grade, then he quit and went to work on his father's farm.
After the war in Europe was over, Tippit was discharged and went back to work on his father's farm. He married his high school sweetheart, Marie Frances Gasway on December 26, 1946. They moved to Dallas, where J.D. got a job working for Sears, Roebuck and Company. In the fall of 1949, Tippit was laid off from Sears, only 4 months before the birth of their first child. With few options, the Tippit's moved back to Red River County and J.D. tried his hand at farming. At first J.D. did pretty well farming, but then the weather changed and made making a living almost impossible. Tippit gave up on farming and moved back to Dallas.
In June of 1952, Tippit joined the Dallas police force. In April of 1956, Tippit responded to a call of a "demented person". When Tippit and his partner Daniel Smith, got to the house, the husband was in the doorway holding an ice pick and shouting threats to his wife. When asked to come outside the husband refused and slammed the door in their face. The officers broke down the door. The husband then stabbed Smith in the shoulder. Before Tippit could respond, the husband swung the ice pick two more times, striking J.D. in the stomach and right kneecap. Tippit was treated and released from Parkland hospital, but 4 months later his knee began giving him trouble. X-rays showed that part of the ice pick was embedded in his right kneecap. Tippit underwent surgery to replace the affected kneecap with a steel plate, leaving him with a slight permanent disability.
On the morning of November 22, 1963 Tippit left for work. Stopping briefly at his sister's house to drop off a Spanish book he'd borrowed. By 7 am he'd checked into the Dallas Police Substation in Oak Cliff. Around 10:30 that morning Tippit met with a friend then headed off to work. He stopped home for lunch, around noon. He only stayed 20 minutes, then headed back out to work. Minutes later, 3 shots were fired at the President's motorcade as it passed the Texas School Book Depository, striking Governor Connally and fatally wounding President Kennedy. Moments later the call came to Tippit to cover the central Oak Cliff area.
At 1:14 pm, two miles from the Texas School Book Depository, on a quiet residential street in Oak Cliff, Tippit came upon Lee Harvey Oswald walking down the sidewalk. Something about him caught JD's attention. Tippit got out of his car to talk to Oswald when in the wink of an eye, Oswald fired four shots into JD at point blank range, killing him instantly.
