The Triple Nickel: Black Paratroopers in Washington State, 1945

Visión general

What is Operation Firefly? It was May of 1945, when an elite unit made up of some of the Army’s best-trained paratroopers were assigned to a remote airstrip in Oregon as part of a highly classified mission known as Operation Firefly. This first all-black paratrooper unit’s mission and service involving Washington state made quiet history and is all but forgotten. In a surprising and insightful presentation, Robert L. “Bob” Bartlett tells the tale of the “555.” Trained by U.S. Forest Service Rangers, members of the 555 jumped on some 36 forest fires as first responders, including the 1945 Mt. Baker fire. In the process of helping to save our forests, they gained military fame as the first all-black “Airborne Infantry Firefighters.”

Speaker Bio: Robert L. “Bob” Bartlett (Army, Vietnam War veteran) is the proud second son of Frances Bartlett and the late Walter Bartlett, Sr. (Army Air Corps, WWII veteran). Bob has nearly 30 years of university teaching and presentation experience in Eastern Washington. He holds two degrees from Colorado Mesa University; a Master’s degree in Sociology from Washington State University, and a Ph.D. in Leadership Studies from Gonzaga University. In 2003 he traveled to South Africa where he served as guest lecturer at the University of Pretoria. He is currently a faculty member in the Department of Sociology and Justice Studies at Eastern Washington University. Bartlett currently lives in Spokane.