| George Elias Shalhoup | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 5 November 1904 Bekaa Valley, Lebanon |
| Died | 18 August 1999 Sanford, Maine |
| Nativity | Lebanon |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Army |
| ASN | 31027804 |
| Rank | Staff Sergeant |
| Camp Ritchie | Class 2 (24 August – 17 October 1942) |
| Enlisted | Portland, Maine |
{{Needs source}}, or explain disagreements on talk. Baseline import notes: About the data.
George Elias Shalhoup (5 November 1904 – 18 August 1999) was a Lebanon-born Ritchie Boy (Class 2) who used Arabic-language skills in North Africa and later served Sanford, Maine, as a veterans’ counselor.
Biography
George Elias Shalhoup was born on 5 November 1904 in the Bekaa Valley of Lebanon, the son of Elias and Hannah (Bshara) Shalhoup. He came to the United States in 1914 at age nine, became a citizen in 1928, and lived his adult life in Sanford, Maine, working in the shoe industry.
In the Army he attended Cooks and Bakers School at Fort Bragg and combat-intelligence training at Camp Ritchie (Class 2). In the North African campaign his Arabic made him valuable for intelligence work among Arabic-speaking populations in Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. He left the service in 1945 as a staff sergeant.
Afterward Sanford appointed him veterans’ guidance counselor; for about two years he helped more than two thousand local families with VA claims. He also served over twenty-one years on Selective Service Local Board No. 16 (York County) and received presidential certificates of appreciation from Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson. An avid tennis player into his nineties, he died on 18 August 1999 in Sanford.
Research notes
- Roster/census nativity sometimes coded Syria; contemporary obituary places birth in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley.
Technical record
| Field | Imported value |
|---|---|
| Approx Age at Death | 95 |
| Nara ASN | 31027804 |
| Nara Name | SHALHOUP GEORGE E |
| Nara State | 12 |
| Nara County | 31 |
| Nara POE | 1278 |
| Nara DOE | 210341 |
| Nara Grade Alpha | PVT |
| Nara Grade Code | 8 |
| Nara Branch Alpha | BI |
| Nara Branch Code | 0 |
| Branch | Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA |
| Nara Term or Enlistment | 7 |
| Term of enlistment | Enlistment for the Philippine Department |
| Defer. Date | 0 |
| Nara Source | 0 |
| Nara Nativity | L3 |
| Nara Year of Birth | 4 |
| Nara Race | 1 |
| Nara Race Description | White citizen |
| Nara Education | 1 |
| Nara Civilian Occupation | 861 |
| Nara Marital Status | 6 |
| Nara Height (inches) | 67 |
| Nara Weight (lbs) | 168 |
| Class_Name | Shalhoup, George E. |
| match_method | unique_name_no_asn |
| row_source | both |
| Census_HISTID | 9DA0F67E-0AC0-41BF-A32B-8846E5149CBD |
| Census_State | MAINE |
| Census_Relate | Child |
| Census_Sex | Male |
| Census_Age | 36 |
| Census_BirthYear | 1904 |
| Census_Marital | Never married/single |
| Census_Race | White |
| Census_BPL | 541 |
| Census_MBPL | 0 |
| Census_FBPL | 0 |
| Census_Citizen | Naturalized citizen |
| Census_Educ | Grade 10 |
| Census_OCC | 496 |
Timeline
- 5 November 1904 — Born in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.
- 1914 — Emigrated to the United States (age 9); citizen 1928; lived in Sanford, Maine.
- WWII — Fort Bragg Cooks and Bakers School; Camp Ritchie Class 2; North Africa Arabic-language intelligence; discharged staff sergeant 1945.
- Postwar — Sanford veterans’ guidance counselor (~2,000 families); Selective Service Local Board No. 16 (21+ years).
- 18 August 1999 — Died in Sanford, Maine, age 94.
Sources
- RB Archive — veterans’ counselor / tennis booster clipping and military portrait (portrait uploaded)
- Nashua Telegraph / Sanford area notice, 20 August 1999 — George E. Shalhoup obituary (RB Archive; newspaper page not bulk-uploaded)
- Camp Ritchie Museum, Inc. (The Ritchie History Museum), Classes 1–31 roster data
- Dan Gross research spreadsheets, including original Excel timeline/roster work, combined with other research and records
- NARA World War II Army enlistment records (where a NARA ASN is present)
- 1940 U.S. Census (where a census match is present)
- Ritchie Boys of WWII Facebook page, post dated 2022-12-03 (1 post)