Kann, Walter (42050581)

Walter Kann
Personal details
Born	25 May 1923
Died	1 December 2008
Nativity	Germany
Religion	Jewish
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch	United States Army
ASN	42050581
Rank	Private
Camp Ritchie	Class 22 (23 August – 21 October 1944)
Section	5C
Enlisted	New York City, New York
Teams	IPW 180, MII 498-G

Teammates

Team — IPW 180

Team — MII 498-G

These are other soldiers listed on the same team roster. People moved between teams; overlapping service dates are not always documented.

Research notes on this page are compiled from the source file and later edits. They may be unverified, incomplete, or incorrect, and should not be treated as established fact. Please correct the article or add sources on the talk page. For class-roster terms, see About the data.

Sources & confidence: Treat Research notes as leads, not settled fact. Prefer NARA, the class roster, newspapers, Find a Grave, or published histories for contested claims. Mark unsourced claims with {{Needs source}}, or explain disagreements on talk. Baseline import notes: About the data.

Walter Kann (25 May 1923 – 1 December 2008) was a Ritchie Boy (from Germany; Jewish) who trained at Camp Ritchie in class 22 and served with IPW Team 180.

Biography

Walter was born May 25, 1923. Walter graduated Phi Beta Kappa from CCNY in 1948. Walter passed away on December 1, 2008 at the age of 85. He emigrated from Germany in June of 1938, and he served in the U.S. After completing courses at Camp Ritchie he served as an MI interrogator in Germany and was honorably discharged as a Tech Sgt. 316th, HQ Intelligence Army Detachment in 1946. He thereafter began a dynamic 60-year career in commodity trading, long serving as a high level executive and board member at Philipp Brothers, NY, and its successor companies for 38 years, living in Tokyo heading up Phibro's Japanese operations from 1953 through 1956. In 1985 he helped found Newco AG, Switzerland, serving as chairman through 1999. He remained active in business until his death. He was known and respected worldwide, but particularly in Asia and South Africa.

Research notes

• 498-G

Technical record

Field	Imported value
Approx Age at Death	85
Nara ASN	42050581
Nara Name	ANN WALTER
Nara State	23
Nara County	61
Nara POE	2364
Nara DOE	291043
Nara Grade Alpha	PVT
Nara Grade Code	8
Nara Branch Alpha	NO
Nara Branch Code	2
Branch	No branch assignment
Nara Term or Enlistment	5
Term of enlistment	Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to law
Defer. Date	0
Nara Source	0
Nara Nativity	N1
Nara Year of Birth	23
Nara Race	J
Nara Race Description	White not yet a citizen
Nara Education	7
Nara Civilian Occupation	105
Nara Marital Status	1
Nara Height (inches)	0
Nara Weight (lbs)	0
Class_ASN	42050581
Class_Name	KANN, Walter
match_method	asn_exact_name_exact
row_source	both

Sources

• Camp Ritchie class roster (classes 1–31), merged research file
• 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 2023-02-07 (1 post)