This Week In USBP History, Vol. 34

April 24 - April 30

HOUSE KEEPING
This is the section where I correct the mistakes from the last blog.
I found two mistakes from last week's blog.

1. I forgot to include a link to the memo​ in the 1970 post: 
   • On April 20, 1970, Chief of the Border Patrol Donald R. Coppock (photo) wrote a memo related to the change in title from Border Patrol Inspectors to Border Patrol Agents that occurred that year.
2. To my great embarrassment, I missed including the line of duty death anniversary of Jose D. Barraza.  Please see below.

2016
Jose D. Barraza
Date of Birth                 April 13, 1987
Entered on Duty:          August 8, 2008
Title:                              Border Patrol Agent
End of Watch:               April 18, 2016
 
Details:
On April 18, 2016, Border Patrol Agent Canine Handler Jose D. Barraza was killed in the line of duty in a two-vehicle accident near Sierra Blanca, Texas.
Agent Barraza entered on duty on August 8, 2008, as a member of U.S. Border Patrol Academy Class 800. He was assigned to the Sierra Blanca Station.
Agent Barraza was 29 years old and is survived by his wife, two children and his mother.

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ESPRIT DE CORPS
The workplace climate resulting from a combination of organizational pride and employee morale.

• Organizational pride is the positive feeling experienced by employees from being part of a meaningful team that is rich in history, tradition and culture.
• Employee morale is the feeling experienced by employee based in part on their perception of:
  • Being valued by the organization,
  • Fairly compensated, and
  • Performing meaningful work.

Esprit de corps is reinforced through the shared goals, mission and values of the organization and its employees.
The definition turns Esprit de Corps into a simple formula and defines parts that comprise organizational pride and employee morale.
Esprit de Corps = Organizational Pride + Employee Morale
Esprit de Corps is the key to a healthy organization and engaged employees.
Honor First is foundational to the Border Patrol's organizational pride and integral to its Esprit de Corps.

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DOCUMENTS​/EVENTS

1918

• On April 29, 1918, after numerous discussions with the Commissioner-General, Father of the Border Patrol Frank Berkshire (1870-1934) submitted a 9-page "Proposal to Establish an Immigration Service on the Land Boundaries."  This was his first proposal which recommended that a force of 1,608 men would be necessary to patrol the border.  The plan suggested patrolmen should be paid between $900 to $1,500 per year dependent upon whether the government provided a horse and equipment.  As the Supervising Inspector of the Mexican Border, his plan did not include staffing estimates for the Northern Border.  In addition, no records have been located to indicate a similar Supervising Inspector existed for the Canadian Border.
• On April 30, 1918, after having received Berkshire's Proposal to Establish an Immigration Service on the Land Boundaries a day earlier, the Commissioner-General wrote a 5-page letter to the Secretary of the Department of Labor.  The letter was to provide the Secretary information should he wish to bring the matter before the cabinet meeting that was scheduled to occur that day.  Further, and absent from Berkshire's proposal, the Commissioner-General provided that this initiative may be appropriate in dealing with the threat of German activity originating from Mexico:
  • ...Since the United States entered the war, although every government agency has cooperated and worked the best of its ability, it has been impossible adequately to control the passage of persons back and forth across the Mexican boundary. That information of military value has constantly been carried into Mexico and that the various laws having in view the protection of the United States against the machinations of the enemy have been extensively and repeatedly violated in that quarter has been demonstrated in many ways...

1924

• On April 30, 1924, the Action Commissioner-General sent a memo to the 11 immigration districts that were adjacent to the borders of the United States.  The memo indicated that funding was expected to be approved in the amount "...to effectively put a stop to all smuggling operations along the land boundaries..."  The memo instructed to the district heads to respond by telegram with the number of "guards or patrolmen" each district wished to receive.  They were instructed to follow the telegram with a written, more detailed response.  The memo also contains the telegram responses.
  • When I was conducting research at the National Archives, I assumed that there must have been a plan in existence to implement once funding was received to create the USBP.  The memo above and the corresponding telegrams clearly demonstrate that no such plan existed a mere three weeks before funding would be received.
  • Interestingly, once created and until 1941, the Border Patrol had more inspectors assigned to the northern border than to the southern border.  This occurred even though the southern border had requested staffing levels three times greater than that of the northern border. some my say that a greater number of inspectors were placed on the northern border in response to the ratification of the 18th Amendment and the passage of the Volstead Act, Prohibition. Further, many sources cite that the Border Patrol was created in response to Prohibition.  However, no official Immigration Service documents have been discovered in the National Archives that support that popular claim. 

1927

• On April 26, 1927, Acting Commissioner-General George Harris (1876-1941) wrote a memo​ concerning a change to the uniform of Border Patrol Inspectors and Immigrant Inspectors.
  • The USBP's original uniform policy, General Order 42 (December 11, 1924), specified sleeves, "To be fitted with blue cloth cuff, pointed in center, 4" on each side and 6" on point", similar to Harris' memo.  However, Harris' memo added blue shoulder straps.
  • It should be noted that George Harris was one of two people appointed to be Supervisor, Border Patrol (Chief of the Border Patrol), in 1926 when General Order 61 (GO61) was implemented.  Harris worked in the City of El Paso.  Ruel Davenport was the other Chief of the Border Patrol and worked in the City of Detroit.

1928

• On April 25, 1928, Assistant Superintendent Antonio Bonazzi (1890-1950) wrote a report to the Commissioner of Immigration for Montreal District (Patrol District #1) concerning sub-district #1.  Sub-district #, modern day Houlton Sector, contained stations in Calais, Vanceboro, and Houlton. The report also proposed a substation at Van Buren, Maine. This document from December 12, 1929 shows that the Montreal District was comprised of the following sub-districts; Houlton, Rouses Point, Newport, and Messena. 
  • The position of Assistant Superintendent was created by GO61​ in 1926 and was the highest uniformed rank in the USBP.  There was one Assistant Superintendent assigned per district.  They were the immediate supervisors of Chief Patrol Inspectors.
  • The nomenclature of the time may be confusing.  The Border Patrol was created in 1924 under the Department of Labor, becoming part of the Bureau of Immigration.  Under the Bureau was the Immigration Service which was decentralized and divided the United States into 35 immigration districts.  Many districts were divided into sub-districts.  In 1924, eleven districts and their 32 sub-districts were located along the international boundaries and received new Border Patrol employees.  A district located along the border was also known as a "Patrol District". Throughout the decades, the sub-districts would evolve to become the modern day Sectors.  Therefore, the USBP began not with two but with 32 "Sectors."​ 

1930

• On April 24, 1930, El Paso District Director Grover Wilmoth (1884-1951) wrote an 11-page memo in response to the Commissioner-General's request to provide his opinion concerning H.R. 11204 Border Patrol Act, 1930. 
  • H.R. 11204 would have expanded the U.S. Coast Guard by creating a border patrol within it, including enlisted personnel, warrant officers and 60 commissioned officers to lead it.  Once created, the President was authorized to discontinue the Customs Border Patrol and the Immigration Border Patrol.  Therefore, this proposed USCG border patrol was not going to absorb the other patrols, but was to take their place.
  • Wilmoth never writes that he was against H.R. 11204.  However, it is clear that he did not support it.
  • Wilmoth provided a detailed description of the the sub-districts that comprised the El Paso District, which correspond to modern-day Tucson, El Paso and Big Bend Sectors.
  • Additionally, on page 7, Wilmoth indicates that some form official training was being conducted in the El Paso District in 1930 by stating:
    • Classes of instruction are held for the discussion of various questions arising under the several subjects enumerated...​

1931

• On April 29, 1931, Chief Patrol Inspector Herbert Horsley (1878-1962) of the El Paso Sub-district wrote a report to the District Director of the El Paso District concerning a gunfight in which three Border Patrol Inspectors had been involved on the night of April 24, 1931.  The inspectors had intercepted three alcohol smugglers, one of which opened fire on the inspectors.  All inspectors returned fire and the smugglers fled to Mexico.  Shortly thereafter, the inspectors receive rifle fire from Mexico.  All three inspectors returned fire.  No injuries were reported in the exchange of gunfire.

1932

• On April 25, 1932, the Commissioner-General issued a memo concerning the position of Assistant Superintendents.  This memo was most likely related to the short-lived two border district initiative.
  • ​In 1932 GO61 was superseded with two other General Orders which created the two Border Districts and the title of the position of Supervisor of the Border Patrol was changed to Director, Border Patrol:
    • General Order 183 - which created the Director of the Border Patrol for the Mexican Border, Gulf and Florida immigration districts.  The district was headquartered in El Paso and George Harris came back to be the "Chief" for a nonconsecutive term.
    • General Order 184 - which created the Director of the Canadian Border District.  The district was headquartered in Detroit and Frank Berkshire, the Father of the Border Patrol, became the third person to be "Chief" of the Border Patrol.
    • The two border district approach was very short-lived, beginning in 1932 and ending in 1933 when GO183 and GO184 were superseded with General Order 203 which reinstated GO61 effective June 1, 1933. 

1934

• On April 26, 1934, a memo was written to the Commissioner-General recommending a change in the USBP uniform, discontinuing riding breeches for pants.
  • For the Border Patrol's first decade, riding breaches were the pants of the uniform.  That started to change in 1934 when regular pants received authorization.  See this 1934 document written by the Chief Patrol Inspector of the Tucson Sub-district.  It also includes the earliest photo of which I am aware of a "rough duty" uniform. By the August of 1934, Inspectors on the southwest border would be authorized to wear pants instead of riding breaches (at their own cost).

1952

• On April 24, 1952, Chief of the border Patrol Harlon Carter (1913-1991) wrote a memo defining the uniform for the Border Patrol Pistol Team. Two other interesting items in the memo:
  • The "4930 Deal Drive" appears to be a location in Oxen Hill, MD, not in Washington DC.  
  • The bottom of the memo has 9 names which appear to identify the members of the team.

1955

• On April 29, 1955, Paul Kester "Bing" Crosby (1910-1965), wrote a paper concerning the USBP recruiting efforts covering March 1953 - December 1954.  During that time frame, 43,809 applications were received and only 467 trainees entered on duty (1.065%).

1999

• On April 26, 1999, the U.S. Army Institute of Heraldry finalized the spec sheets for the design of the U.S. Border Patrol Honor Guard Device. 

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NEWTON-AZRAK AWARD ACTION ANNIVERSARIES​

Follow this link to see examples of USBP employees Upholding Honor First.

• An organization’s values are codified in its awards system. Recognizing the achievements, service and heroism of employees is important.  It is critical for those in positions of leadership to value the workforce.  Awards are a fundamental manner for leaders to demonstrate appreciation to the workforce for upholding the organizational values. – U.S. Border Patrol Honorary Awards​

2015
Fernando Galvan, Jr. - ​photo
Border Patrol Agent
Edinburg, TX
Arturo Gutierrez - ​photo
Border Patrol Agent
Edinburg, TX 
On April 29, 2015, while patrolling the Rio Grande River near La Paloma, Texas, Border Patrol Agents Fernando Galvan and Arturo Gutierrez received a report of drug smugglers in a minivan moving a large load of narcotics north from the Mexico-United States border. 
 
Gutierrez discovered the minivan at a nearby intersection where it was off the road and wrecked. When the agents approached the scene they observed flames coming from under the vehicle. The agents removed one unresponsive adult male from the wreck and called for emergency medical services and local law enforcement for support. While Galvan and Gutierrez tried to extinguish the fire, now beginning to engulf the minivan, they discovered an unresponsive man inside the smoke-filled van. 
 
Unable to put out the fire, they recognized the person inside the minivan was in imminent danger. Galvan and Gutierrez quickly entered the flaming vehicle, and removed the crash victim just in time. Once the agents pulled the man from the minivan, the front end of the vehicle became completely engulfed in flames. They placed both subjects a safe distance from the burning vehicle who ultimately survived.
2021
 
Kent L. Carroll
Border Patrol Agent
San Diego, CA
In the early morning hours of April 26, 2020, Border Patrol Agent Kent Carroll was in a carpool travelling on Interstate 15 with two other agents when they witnessed a major two vehicle accident. One car had struck a guardrail and erupted into flames. Without hesitation, the agents jumped into action. Agent Carroll and a third agent jumped over the center divider and ran across the interstate. Agent Carroll utilized his emergency medical technician skills and checked on the driver of one car to evaluate potential injuries. The third agent was at the second vehicle which was completely engulfed in flames. Beyond the call of duty and facing grave danger, Agent Carroll approached the vehicle to assist as one of the victims attempted to escape the inferno. As the victim began to collapse, Agent Carroll and a third agent caught him and assisted him to safety. Agent Carroll’s actions brought great credit upon himself and the United States Border Patrol.
 
Francisco F. Gonzales
Border Patrol Agent
San Diego, CA
In the early morning hours of April 26, 2020, Border Patrol Agent Francisco Gonzales was in a carpool travelling on Interstate 15 with two other agents when they witnessed a major vehicle accident. One car had struck a guardrail and erupted into flames. Without hesitation, the agents jumped into action. Agent Gonzales instructed another agent to call 911. Agent Gonzales and a third agent then jumped over the center divider and ran across the interstate to the flaming vehicle. Agent Gonzales saw that the driver and passenger were on fire. Beyond the call of duty and facing grave danger, Agent Gonzales approached the vehicle and opened the door. The sudden burst of heat forced Agent Gonzales back but allowed one of the victims to escape the inferno. As the victim began to collapse, Agent Gonzales and a third agent caught him and assisted him to safety. Agent Gonzales’ actions brought great credit upon himself and the United States Border Patrol.

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USBP FALLEN​

As of December 8, 2021, the U.S. Border Patrol has suffered 151* fallen.
Titles:

• 3 Mounted Watchmen fell before 1924 and are carried as Border Patrol fallen
• 48 Border Patrol Inspectors fell between 1924 and 1970
• 99 Border Patrol Agents have fallen since 1970
• 1 Enforcement Analysis Specialist

The names that appear below hold a place of honor. They have made the ultimate sacrifice in an effort to fulfill the oath each officer took to protect and defend the United States of America.
The facts regarding each officer are presented without major editing of the "language of the day" found in the reports detailing the circumstances of each event. This is done to provide the reader an association with historical timeframes.
Employees who died in the line of duty due to being exposed to deadly illnesses will not have the cause of death listed.
*With the exception of two of the fallen immediately below, all names are listed (or in the process of being included) on the official Honor Roll of U.S. Border Patrol Fallen and inscribed on the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial.  The U.S. Border Patrol should fix these discrepancies. HonorFirst.com honors both of the fallen.

• Joe R. White - He is recognized as officially fallen by the U.S. Border Patrol but his name is not inscribed on the National Law Enforcement Officer Memorial.
• John Charles Gigax - His name is inscribed on the National Law Enforcement Officer Memorial (see link) but he is not recognized as officially fallen by the U.S. Border Patrol.  His EOW was November 7, 1999.

There are no line of duty death anniversaries for the week.