Fritz Von Kolnitz
Ballplayers Decorated in Combat
| Date and Place of Birth: | May 20, 1893 Charleston, SC |
| Date and Place of Death: | March 18, 1948 Mount Pleasant, SC |
| Baseball Experience: | Major League |
| Position: | Third Base/Outfield |
| Rank: | Lieutenant-Colonel |
| Military Unit: | 322nd Bomb Group US Army Air Force |
| Area Served: | European Theater of Operations |
Alfred H. "Fritz" Von Kolnitz, the son of lawyer, was born in
Charleston, South Carolina, on May 20, 1893. He attended the University
of South Carolina Law School, but in 1913, he decided to start a career
in professional baseball. At that time, there was a lot of anti-German
sentiment in the United States, and he signed with the Morristown
Jobbers of the Class D Appalachian League under the name of R. H.
Holmes, batting .412 in 75 games.
Any player with a batting average like that was going to be noticed and
he signed with the Cincinnati Reds, under his real name, the following
year. Making his major league debut on April 18, 1914, against the
Pittsburgh Pirates, the 21-year-old third baseman/outfielder played 41
games and batted .221. In 1915, he played 50 games and hit .192,
followed by 24 games with the Chicago White Sox in 1916, batting .227.
Von Kolnitz refused to report to the White Sox in 1917, and played
independent ball in North Carolina, before entering military service
after the United States entered the First World War.
When he attempted to enlist he was met with four stern-faced army
colonels. Von Kolnitz said, later, that the conversation went as
follows:
"Where were you born?" asked one.
"America," replied Von Kolnitz.
"What is your father's nationality?" queried the second.
"American."
"Where was your grandfather born?" came from a third.
"Right here in the USA," he answered, "and my great-grandfather came
here before the Revolution."
"Well," growled the fourth colonel. "You'd better get rid of that
'Von.'"
Von Kolnitz was assigned to the Air Service and trained at Fort
Oglethorpe, Georgia, where he became a pilot. He was involved in a
flying accident during this time which resulted in a short stay in
hospital for concussion. He went on to attain the rank of lieutenant as
supervising inspector of aircraft, and was assigned to Camp Gordon,
Georgia, where he was made an adjutant, and then an instructor. Von
Kolnitz played a lot of baseball at Camp Gordon, and was promoted from
the rank of captain to major in September 1918, making him the highest
ranked former major league player in military service during the First
World War.
Following military service, Von Kolnitz returned to Charleston, where he
worked as a lawyer and in real estate. In August 1919, he returned to
professional baseball with the Charleston Gulls of the Class C South
Atlantic League. In 22 games he batted .273 and was back with the team
in 1920, hitting .356 in 82 games. In 1921, with the Charleston club now
known as the Pals and playing Class B baseball, Von Kolnitz batted .322
in 116 games and hit .275 for club in 1922, his final year in
professional baseball.
Von Kolnitz pursued a career in real estate and insurance between the
wars, and wrote several books and articles on the American Revolution
and Civil War. He also served as athletics director of the College of
Charleston, and was L. Mendel Rivers' rival in the Democratic Primary
for the First Congressional District of South Carolina, in 1940.
He was back in military service with the outbreak of World War II and in
charge of Squadron 1, Officer's Training School (OTS) at Miami Beach
Training Center in Florida. He later became the senior intelligence
officer with the 322nd Bomb Group stationed in England. The 322nd Bomb
Group was stationed at Bury St. Edmunds, and was the first to fly Martin
B-26 Marauders from the United Kingdom. In September 1943, Von Kolnitz
was awarded the Legion of Merit for perfecting a sand-table that he used
to familiarize his air crews with their targets.
Von Kolnitz had attained the rank of lieutenant-colonel before the end
of the war. He went back to Charleston, where he was vice-president and
treasurer of a real estate company. On March 18, 1948, Alfred Von
Kolnitz passed away at his home in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina,
following a heart attack. He was 54 years old and is buried at Magnolia
Cemetery in Charleston.
Date Added January 22, 2018
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