Major General Ernest L. Massad
G. Schuman, Portrait of Ernest L. Massad, 1972, oil on canvas, Oklahoma Hall of Fame and Gaylord-Pickens Museum, Portraits and Busts Collection.
Inducted: 1971
Hometown: Ardmore, Oklahoma
Branch: United States Army
Major General Ernest L. Massad from Ardmore, Oklahoma, was born in 1908. Massad went to the University of Oklahoma, where he played football for the Sooners and earned the nickname "Iron Mike."
Massad enlisted in the Army in 1933 and in 1935 took command of a Civilian Conservation Corps in Arizona. He served in the 1st Cavalry Division from 1940 to 1943. During World War II, he also served in the 82nd Airborne Division. Massad served as the Battalion Command of the 11th Airborne Division in the Pacific Theater operations. Following the war in 1946, Massad retired from active duty, but continued his service in the U.S. Army Reserves. After returning home to Oklahoma, he took command of the 95th Infantry Training Division. He commanded this Division from 1962 to 1968, where he rose to the rank of Major General before retiring from the Army Reserves.
Massad was nominated by President Lyndon B. Johnson to serve as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs in 1968, serving from 1969 to 1970. After holding this position, Massad returned to Ardmore and opened E.L. Massad Oil Company. He was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame in 1971.