When Vincent Minor Schmidt was born on July 2, 1898, in McKeesport, Pennsylvania, his father, Lawrence, was 29 and his mother, Marie, was 20. He had four brothers and three sisters.

Lt. Colonel Schmidt served in the intelligence end in the European theater of operations in England, France and Germany. He was attached to General Dwight D. Eisenhower's headquarters. After serving in the first World War, Schmidt learned to fly and was a familiar figure at Roosevelt and Curtiss fields for years. He served many years as an aviation instructor and pilot in China and also In Spain and in Finland.

During the first World war, Schmidt served in the artillery with the US Marines under Major H. H. Brainard. He went into Germany with the army of occupation. He took up flying aside from his military duties. Returning to the U. S. he barnstormed.

In 1930, at Roosevelt field, he taught Marshall Field III to fly and accompanied Field on a safari to Africa.

In 1932, Schmidt went with the Tenth route army in China, as a Colonel. He spent several years thereafter in China, until 1937, with one trip home in between. In 1937, he flew in Spain for the Loyalists. News clippings indicate that Schmidt has fought in about ten wars in his lifetime.

He died on October 20, 1962, in Paris, France, at the age of 64, and was buried in the American Legion Mausoleum just west of Paris.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, www.ancestry.com