United States Army Forces in the Far East
Kirkpatrick subsequently served in Japan as head of the Construction Division of the Far East Command and United States Army Forces in the Far East, and as Chief of the Japan Construction Agency. He then became district engineer in Jacksonville, Florida, where he was responsible for the construction of the initial facilities at Cape Canaveral for the space program. This was followed by duty as district engineer of the Southern District of the Mediterranean Division, with its headquarters in Livorno, Italy. He retired from the Army on 1 November 1958 with the rank of colonel. He was awarded a third Legion of Merit.