Richard "Dick" Wheeler

This page is about the military historian Richard "Dick" Wheeler. For the Major League Baseall player named Dick Wheeler, see Dick Wheeler.

Richard "Dick" Wheeler
Born	(1922-01-08)January 8, 1922 Reading, Pennsylvania
Died	October 21, 2008(2008-10-21) (aged 86) Nutting Hall, Pine Grove, Pennsylvania
Occupation	Historian author

Richard "Dick" Wheeler was an American military historian who authored seventeen books and served as a military consultant for multiple film and television projects. A member of the United States Marine Corp's Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 28th Marines, 5th Marine Division) during World War II, he was seriously wounded during the Battle of Iwo Jima.

Post-war, he penned an account of that battle, The Bloody Battle for Suribachi, and became a respected military historian. Following his first book's release in 1965, he then published additional works, including Voices of the Civil War in 1976 and Iwo, which was released in 1980.

Formative years

Born on January 8, 1922 in the city of Reading in Berks County, Pennsylvania, Wheeler was a son of Reading native Clarence E. Wheeler and Margaret (Wenrich) Wheeler, a native of Pine Grove, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania. He and his sister, Marjery, subsequently spent their formative years in Laureldale, Pennsylvania after relocating there with their parents in 1926.

Military service

Wheeler served with the United States Marine Corp's Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 28th Marines, 5th Marine Division) during World War II. He was seriously wounded during the Battle of Iwo Jima.

Post-war life and publishing career

Wheeler published his first book, The Bloody Battle for Suribachi, in 1965. He was subsequently contacted for technical advice about the Battle of Iwo Jima by film and television writers and directors, including those involved with the development and release of Flags of Our Fathers.

Publications

• Wheeler, Richard. The Bloody Battle for Suribachi. New York, New York: Crowell, 1965. OCLC 1416031
• Wheeler, Richard. Voices of the Civil War. New York, New York: Crowell, 1976. OCLC 1818393
• Wheeler, Richard. We Knew Stonewall Jackson. New York, New York: Crowell, 1977. OCLC 918284789
• Wheeler, Richard. We Knew William Tecumseh Sherman. New York, New York: Crowell, 1976. OCLC 918287385
• Wheeler, Richard. Sherman's March. New York, New York: Crowell, 1978. OCLC 493675572
• Wheeler, Richard. Iwo. New York, New York: Lippincott & Crowell, 1980. OCLC 252378851
• Wheeler, Richard. A Special Valor: The U.S. Marines and the Pacific War. New York, New York: Harper & Row, 1983. OCLC 10341353
• Wheeler, Richard. Sword Over Richmond: An eyewitness history of McClellan's Peninsula campaign. New York, New York: Harper & Row, 1986. OCLC 645872536
• Wheeler, Richard and Bronson Pinchot. Witness to Gettysburg: Inside the battle that changed the course of the Civil War (audiobook). Blackstone Audio, 1987. OCLC 933390971
• Wheeler, Richard. Voices of the Civil War. New York, New York: Meridian, 1990. OCLC 214987653
• Wheeler, Richard. On Fields of Fury: From the Wilderness to the Crater, an eyewitness history. New York, New York: Harper Collins, 1991. OCLC 906559833
• Wheeler, Richard. Lee's Terrible Swift Sword: From Antietam to Chancellorsville: An eyewitness history. New York, New York: Harper Perennial, 1992. OCLC 317849296
• Wheeler, Richard. A Rising Thunder: From Lincoln's Election to the Battle of Bull Run: An eyewitness history. New York, New York: Harper Collins, 1994. OCLC 924842097
• Wheeler, Richard. The Bloody Battle for Suribachi. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1994. OCLC 60283569
• Wheeler, Richard. Iwo. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1994. OCLC 31693687
• Wheeler, Richard. Gettysburg 1863: Campaign of endless echoes. New York, New York: Plume, 1999. OCLC 40821077
• Wheeler, Richard and Dick Estell. Witness to Appomattox (audiobook). Blackstone Audio Inc., 2005. OCLC 144560296
• Wheeler, Richard. The Bloody Battle for Suribachi: The amazing story of Iwo Jima that inspired Flags of Our Fathers. New York, New York: Skyhorse, 2007. OCLC 798563531

Later years and death

Nutting Hall, Pine Grove, Pennsylvania, c. 2009.

In 1997, Wheeler relocated to Pine Grove, Pennsylvania, where he resided at Nutting Hall, the historic home owned by his sister, Marjery Wheeler Mattox. He continued to research and write military history books, and also continued to serve as a consultant for television and film productions.

Dick Wheeler died at the age of 86 at Nutting Hall in Pine Grove, Pennsylvania on October 21, 2008. He was interred at Saint Peter's Cemetery in Pine Grove.

See also

• Nutting Hall (Pine Grove, Pennsylvania)

External links

• "Corp. Richard James "Dick" Wheeler" (memorial with photos). Salt Lake City, Utah: Find a Grave, retrieved online August 24, 2019.