Joseph, Ralph H. (32011103): Difference between revisions
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|asn=32011103 | |asn=32011103 | ||
|surname=Joseph | |surname=Joseph | ||
|first= | |first=Ralph | ||
|middle=H. | |middle=H. | ||
|alias=Rudolph | |alias=Rudolph | ||
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|class_number=13 | |class_number=13 | ||
|class_display=13 | |class_display=13 | ||
|photo=Joseph_Ralph_H_32011103_wartime_portrait.png | |||
|birth_place=Würzburg, Germany | |||
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''' | '''Ralph H. Joseph''' (born Rudolph; 1915–1999) was a Würzburg-born Jewish refugee and Camp Ritchie trainee ([[:Category:Class 13|Class 13]]) who served in Europe after D-Day, including the Battle of the Bulge. | ||
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== Biography == | == Biography == | ||
Ralph H. Joseph (born Rudolph Joseph) was born in 1915 in Würzburg, Germany, into an assimilated German Jewish family. As a young man he heard Hitler speak publicly and fled to Italy; repeatedly denied a U.S. Visa despite American relatives, he lived about two years in Cuba before entering the United States at Key West with twenty dollars. Fluent in German, English, Spanish, and Italian, he joined the Army before the United States entered World War II. | |||
Joseph trained at [[Camp Ritchie]], Maryland, in [[:Category:Class 13|Class 13]] (technician fifth grade). After D-Day he served in Europe, including front-line duty and the Battle of the Bulge, work his family long knew only as “translator.” After the war he settled in Queens, New York, worked as a bookkeeper, and with his German-immigrant wife raised their son Frank; the household deliberately stopped speaking German at home. He died in 1999 at age 84. His Ritchie Boys service became widely known to the family after a 2021 ''Atlanta Jewish Times'' feature. | |||
== Research notes == | == Research notes == | ||
== Gallery == | == Gallery == | ||
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Joseph_Ralph_H_32011103_wartime_portrait.png|Ralph H. Joseph in U.S. Army uniform (Atlanta Jewish Times / Marcia Caller Jaffe, 2021). | |||
Joseph_Ralph_H_32011103_then_now_photo.jpg|Supporting photo from Atlanta Jewish Times feature on Ralph Joseph (2021). | |||
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== Technical record == | == Technical record == | ||
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== Timeline == | |||
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* 1915 — Born Rudolph Joseph in Würzburg, Germany. | |||
* 1944–1945 — Europe after D-Day; Battle of the Bulge. | |||
* 1999 — Died at age 84. | |||
* Flees Germany via Italy and Cuba; enters U.S. at Key West. | |||
* Joins U.S. Army; Camp Ritchie Class 13 (T/5). | |||
* Postwar — Queens, New York; bookkeeper. | |||
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== Sources == | == Sources == | ||
* Camp Ritchie | * [https://www.atlantajewishtimes.com/physician-uncovers-true-story-of-dads-heroism/ Marcia Caller Jaffe, “Physician Uncovers True Story of Dad’s Heroism,” ''Atlanta Jewish Times'', 27 October 2021] | ||
* 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) | * NARA World War II Army enlistment records (where a NARA ASN is present) | ||
* 1940 U.S. Census (where a census match is present) | * 1940 U.S. Census (where a census match is present) | ||