Sze, Wilbur Carl (031982): Difference between revisions

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{{Soldier

|lede_on_page=1

|asn=031982

|surname=Sze

|first=Wilbur

|middle=C.

|middle=Carl

|birth_year=1915

|death_year=2009

|certificate=9905

|birth_date=19 January 1915

|death_date=15 December 2009

|birth_place=Washington, D.C.

|death_place=Gaithersburg, Maryland

|branch=United States Marine Corps

|years_of_service=1943– Unknown

|photo=Wikipedia_Sze_Wilbur_C._Marine_Corps_photo.jpg

|nativity=D.C.

}}

Wilbur Carl Sze (January 19, 1915 – December 15, 2009) was the first Chinese-American to be commissioned as an officer in the United States Marine Corps.

</div>

== Biography ==

~~''Add~~ a ~~biography~~, ~~family details~~, and ~~sources~~. ~~Click Edit~~ to ~~change this page; no account is required~~.''

Wilbur Carl Sze (19 January 1915 – 15 December 2009) was the first Chinese-American to be commissioned as an officer in the United States Marine Corps.

Sze was born in Washington, D.C., the son of Dr. Phillip Sze, a physician; his uncle was the Chinese diplomat Alfred Sao-ke Sze. From 1920 to 1931 he lived in Shanghai, and on returning to the United States, unable to read, write, or speak English, he enrolled at Staunton Military Academy in Virginia. He transferred to Central High School in Washington in 1934, graduating in 1936, and studied electrical engineering at George Washington University; when the Japanese invasion of China in 1937 cut off his funds, he worked and attended classes at night, earning his degree on 22 February 1944.

On 15 December 1943, Second Lieutenant Wilbur Carl Sze became the first Chinese-American officer commissioned in the Marine Corps. In early August 1944, Lt Sze accompanied LtGen Robert Khe-Shang-Lim, Chief of the Supervising and Planning Committee of the Republic of China Army, on a tour of Marine Corps Base Camp LeJeune, North Carolina. From 30 November 1944, until 29 January 1945, Sze trained at and graduated from the Military Intelligence Training Center at Camp Ritchie, Maryland, placing him among the diverse ranks of the Ritchie Boys, a group of intelligence officers and enlisted men credited with obtaining much of the actionable intelligence on the Western Front.

Following the war, First Lieutenant Sze served as the aide-de-camp for Major General Keller E. Rockey, then Commanding General of the III Amphibious Corps while in Tientsin, China.

Sze was married to Mariana Yung-Kwa, the daughter of the former Chinese Consul in Washington D.C.

== Research notes ==

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== Sources ==

* Camp Ritchie ~~class roster~~ (~~classes~~ 1–31), ~~merged~~ research ~~file~~

* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilbur_C._Sze Wikipedia: Wilbur C. Sze]

* 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)

* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilbur_Carl_Sze Wikipedia: Wilbur Carl Sze]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{Soldier
+|lede_on_page=1
 |asn=031982
 |surname=Sze
 |first=Wilbur
-|middle=C.
+|middle=Carl
 |birth_year=1915
 |death_year=2009
 |certificate=9905
+|birth_date=19 January 1915
+|death_date=15 December 2009
+|birth_place=Washington, D.C.
+|death_place=Gaithersburg, Maryland
+|branch=United States Marine Corps
+|years_of_service=1943&ndash; Unknown
+|photo=Wikipedia_Sze_Wilbur_C._Marine_Corps_photo.jpg
+|nativity=D.C.
 }}
+<div class="soldier-lead">
+Wilbur Carl Sze (January 19, 1915 – December 15, 2009) was the first Chinese-American to be commissioned as an officer in the United States Marine Corps.
+</div>
 == Biography ==
-''Add a biography, family details, and sources. Click Edit to change this page; no account is required.''
+Wilbur Carl Sze (19 January 1915 – 15 December 2009) was the first Chinese-American to be commissioned as an officer in the United States Marine Corps.
+Sze was born in Washington, D.C., the son of Dr. Phillip Sze, a physician; his uncle was the Chinese diplomat Alfred Sao-ke Sze. From 1920 to 1931 he lived in Shanghai, and on returning to the United States, unable to read, write, or speak English, he enrolled at Staunton Military Academy in Virginia. He transferred to Central High School in Washington in 1934, graduating in 1936, and studied electrical engineering at George Washington University; when the Japanese invasion of China in 1937 cut off his funds, he worked and attended classes at night, earning his degree on 22 February 1944.
+On 15 December 1943, Second Lieutenant Wilbur Carl Sze became the first Chinese-American officer commissioned in the Marine Corps. In early August 1944, Lt Sze accompanied LtGen Robert Khe-Shang-Lim, Chief of the Supervising and Planning Committee of the Republic of China Army, on a tour of Marine Corps Base Camp LeJeune, North Carolina. From 30 November 1944, until 29 January 1945, Sze trained at and graduated from the Military Intelligence Training Center at Camp Ritchie, Maryland, placing him among the diverse ranks of the Ritchie Boys, a group of intelligence officers and enlisted men credited with obtaining much of the actionable intelligence on the Western Front.
+Following the war, First Lieutenant Sze served as the aide-de-camp for Major General Keller E. Rockey, then Commanding General of the III Amphibious Corps while in Tientsin, China.
+Sze was married to Mariana Yung-Kwa, the daughter of the former Chinese Consul in Washington D.C.
 == Research notes ==
@@ Line 29: / Line 50: @@
 == Sources ==
-* Camp Ritchie class roster (classes 1–31), merged research file
+* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilbur_C._Sze Wikipedia: Wilbur C. Sze]
+* 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)
+* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilbur_Carl_Sze Wikipedia: Wilbur Carl Sze]