Name: Ernest L. Massad

Birth: 25 Dec 1908

Death: 20 Feb 1993 - Ardmore, Carter, Oklahoma, United States of America

Civil: Oklahoma

California Passenger and Crew Lists

Name: Ernest Massad

Arrival Date: 10 Jan 1932

Age: 22

Birth Date: 25 Dec 1909

Birthplace: Brinkman, Oklahoma, United States

Gender: Male

Ship Name: Calawai

Port of Arrival: Wilmington, California

Port of Departure: Honolulu, Hawaii

Name: Earnest Massad

Home in 1930: Maud, Seminole, Oklahoma

Age: 21

Estimated birth year: abt 1909

Relation to Head of House: Son

Father's name: Namey

Mother's name: Shafiga

Household Members: Name Age

Namey Massad 47

Shafiga Massad 42

Monier Massad 25

Emma L Massad 23

Earnest Massad 21

Camal Massad 19

Ethel Massad 16

Colleen Massad 5

Robert Jones 28

Name: Massad, Ernest Louis

Birth - Death: 1908-

Source Citation:

Biography Index. A cumulative index to biographical material in books and magazines. Volume 8: September, 1967-August, 1970. New York: H.W. Wilson Co., 1971. (BioIn 8)

Who's Who in American Politics. Fourth edition, 1973-1974. New York: R.R. Bowker, 1973. Use the Index to locate biographies. (WhoAmP 4)

Who's Who in American Politics. Fifth edition, 1975-1976. New York: R.R. Bowker, 1975. Use the Index to locate biographies. (WhoAmP 5)

Who's Who in American Politics. Sixth edition, 1977-1978. New York: R.R. Bowker, 1977. Use the Index to locate biographies. (WhoAmP 6)

Who's Who in American Politics. Seventh edition, 1979-1980. New York: R.R. Bowker, 1979. Use the Index to locate biographies. (WhoAmP 7)

Message from member:

Ernest Louis "Iron Mike" Massad was Lebanese-American college football star, major general of the U.S. Army, and successful oilman.

Massad was born in 1908 in Brinkman, Oklahoma to a Lebanese immigrant family, Namey and Shafiga Kouri Massad (the US Censuses list them as from the "Syrian Arab Republic," but after WWI the French carved up the Republic and established the state of "Lebanon" - where the Massad's emigrated from - and four Syrian states.) After graduation from Ardmore High School, he enrolled in the University of Oklahoma in 1928. He starred in football, playing fullback, linebacker and kicker, and earned the nickname "Iron Mike" for his athletic ability. In 1956, he was chosen by Sports Illustrated magazine for inclusion in a set of "Men of Achievement" who had excelled at football in 1931, and in 1956 were "furnishing U.S. leadership in business, medicine, law, theology, diplomacy, teaching, coaching and the military."

Massad was a member of Reserve Officers' Training Corps from 1928 to 1932 and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in 1933. He married Mozelle Sockwell on January 30, 1939 in Shreveport, Louisiana, and had a son, Michael Louis, and a daughter, Elaine. He was a member of the First Cavalry Division from 1940 to 1943. During World War II, he served in the 82nd Airborne Division and was promoted to battalion commander in the Eleventh Airborne Division, which fought in the Pacific Theater of Operations. He served as Commander of the 675th Para-Glider Field Artillery Battalion and fought in the New Guinea campaign and the battles of Leyte and Luzon. He was promoted to colonel in 1945 and left active duty in 1946. During his service he was awarded the the Army Distinguished Service Medal, Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star with Oak Leaf Cluster, Purple Heart, Silver Arrowhead, and Presidential Unit Citation.

Massad moved to Ardmore, Oklahoma, where he re-joined the US Army Reserve. In January 1958 he was named Assistant Division Commander of the 95th Infantry Division in January 1958 and was promoted to Brigadier General in May 1959. He was promoted to Major General on December 11, 1962, and left the Reserve in 1968.

He served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for reserve affairs in Washington D.C., appointed by President Lyndon B. Johnson. He served as Chairman of the State of Oklahoma Fair Board and was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame. He was elected Vice President of the Oklahoma Heritage Association on January 27, 1984.

In 1963 the Western Federation of American Syrian and Lebanese Clubs named Massad American Lebanese Man of the Year.

After military life, he was an independent operator of the E.L. "Mike" Massad Oil Company and a successful businessman in housing and real estate. He died on February 20, 1993, in an Oklahoma City hospital.

Oklahoma native Ernest Louis "Mike" Massad graduated from the University of Oklahoma where he competed in football, baseball, and track. His military career began in 1935 when he took command of a Civilian Conservation Corps in Arizona. During World War II he commanded an Airborne Battalion in New Guinea, Leute, and Luzon. He was awarded the Silver Star Medal, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star with Oak Leaf Cluster, Purple Heart, Silver Arrow Head, and the Presidential Unit Citation. After occupation day in Japan, General Massad returned to Ardmore, Oklahoma, and from 1962 to 1968 commanded the 95th Infantry Training Division. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal and the Oklahoma Distinguished Medal. In 1963 he was named Lebanese Man of the Year and in 1967 received the Americanism Award. In 1968 President Lyndon B. Johnson nominated him Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense and in 1970 he received the National Patriotism Award from the China, Burma, and Indian Veterans. In 1984, Massad was appointed the chairman of the board for the Oklahoma State Fair.