Iven Carl Kincheloe, born July 2, 1928, grew up one mile from this site and became a Korean War fighter ace, a test pilot, and a space pioneer. A 1945 graduate of Dowagiac High School, he was licensed to fly at 16, graduated from Purdue University in Aeronautical Engineering in 1949, and entered the USAF from ROTC. During the Korean War, he flew 131 combat missions and became the 10th jet ace of the war on April 6, 1952, earning the Silver Star, Distinguished Flying Cross, and three Air Medals. After the war, he trained as a test pilot and, while assigned to Edwards AFB, flew experimental rocket aircraft. On September 7, 1956, he piloted the rocket-powered Bell X-2 to a world record altitude of 126,200 feet, at the fringes of outer space, received the Mackey Trophy, and was hailed as "The First Spaceman." Chosen as the first pilot of the North American X-15, he became a national hero and spokesman for the USAF and space program, but he died on July 26, 1958, in a jet crash while flight testing an experimental aircraft and never flew the X-15. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery and awarded the Legion of Merit, and his legacy is honored by Kincheloe AFB in the Upper Peninsula, the Iven C. Kincheloe Award, and Dowagiac’s Kincheloe Elementary School.