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Topus, Richard I. (12156045): Difference between revisions
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|class_number=24 | |class_number=24 | ||
|class_display=24 | |class_display=24 | ||
|rank_final= | |rank_final=Technician Fifth Grade | ||
|birth_date=15 March 1924 | |||
|death_date=5 December 2008 | |||
|birth_place=New York City | |||
|death_place=Scottsdale, Arizona | |||
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== Biography == | == Biography == | ||
Richard Topus | Richard I. Topus was born on 15 March 1924 in Brooklyn, New York City, to Russian Jewish immigrants. Growing up in Flatbush, he learned pigeon racing from rooftop loft keepers—two of them World War I Army pigeoneers—though his parents would not allow him a loft of his own. | ||
Topus enlisted in early 1942 at eighteen and was assigned to the Army Signal Corps Pigeon Service. At Camp Ritchie (Class 24) he joined a small cadre of pigeoneers who trained soldiers and birds for combat messaging: care and feeding, capsule handling, air drops, and airborne jumps with pigeons carried in specially made vests. The team also bred for speed and endurance and conditioned birds to mobile combat lofts. | |||
After the war Topus earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in business from Hofstra, built a career culminating as executive vice president for sales and marketing at Friendship Food Products, taught marketing at Hofstra, C.W. Post, SUNY Farmingdale, and later Arizona State, and worked as a securities arbitrator in Scottsdale. He died there of kidney failure on 5 December 2008. | |||
== Research notes == | == Research notes == | ||
* Pigeon training | * Pigeon training | ||
* Regenerated from the Margalit Fox obituary. No military decoration is asserted. Brooklyn is rendered within New York City for the infobox birth_place. | |||
== Gallery == | == Gallery == | ||
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<div class="soldier-timeline-body"> | <div class="soldier-timeline-body"> | ||
* | * 15 March 1924 — Born in Brooklyn, New York City. | ||
* | * Early 1942 — Enlisted in the Army; assigned to the Signal Corps Pigeon Service. | ||
* | * World War II — Stationed at Camp Ritchie (Class 24) training pigeoneers and homing pigeons for combat intelligence. | ||
* | * Postwar — Earned Hofstra business degrees; Friendship Dairies executive career; college teaching. | ||
* | * 5 December 2008 — Died in Scottsdale, Arizona. | ||
</div> | </div> | ||
</div><div style="clear: both;"></div> | </div><div style="clear: both;"></div> | ||
== Sources == | == Sources == | ||
* Margalit Fox, ''New York Times'' / ''The Gazette'' (Montreal) — Richard Topus obituaries (RB Archive ProQuest copies), December 2008 | |||
* Camp Ritchie Museum, Inc. (The Ritchie History Museum), Classes 1–31 roster data | * 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 | * Dan Gross research spreadsheets, including original Excel timeline/roster work, combined with other research and records | ||
Revision as of 23:23, 16 September 2026
| Richard I. Topus | |
|---|---|
| Personal details | |
| Born | 15 March 1924 New York City |
| Died | 5 December 2008 Scottsdale, Arizona |
| Nativity | United States |
| Religion | Jewish |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Army |
| ASN | 12156045 |
| Rank | Technician Fifth Grade |
| Rank at Ritchie | Private |
| Camp Ritchie | Class 24 (26 October – 29 December 1944) |
| Section | 6B |
| Enlisted | New York City, New York |
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.
Richard I. Topus (1924–2008) was a Ritchie Boy (from United States; Jewish) who trained at Camp Ritchie in class 24.
Biography
Richard I. Topus was born on 15 March 1924 in Brooklyn, New York City, to Russian Jewish immigrants. Growing up in Flatbush, he learned pigeon racing from rooftop loft keepers—two of them World War I Army pigeoneers—though his parents would not allow him a loft of his own.
Topus enlisted in early 1942 at eighteen and was assigned to the Army Signal Corps Pigeon Service. At Camp Ritchie (Class 24) he joined a small cadre of pigeoneers who trained soldiers and birds for combat messaging: care and feeding, capsule handling, air drops, and airborne jumps with pigeons carried in specially made vests. The team also bred for speed and endurance and conditioned birds to mobile combat lofts.
After the war Topus earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in business from Hofstra, built a career culminating as executive vice president for sales and marketing at Friendship Food Products, taught marketing at Hofstra, C.W. Post, SUNY Farmingdale, and later Arizona State, and worked as a securities arbitrator in Scottsdale. He died there of kidney failure on 5 December 2008.
Research notes
- Pigeon training
- Regenerated from the Margalit Fox obituary. No military decoration is asserted. Brooklyn is rendered within New York City for the infobox birth_place.
Gallery
Technical record
| Field | Imported value |
|---|---|
| Approx Age at Death | 84 |
| Nara ASN | 12156045 |
| Nara Name | TOPUS RICHARD I |
| Nara State | 23 |
| Nara County | 81 |
| Nara POE | 2364 |
| Nara DOE | 201042 |
| Nara Grade Alpha | PVT |
| Nara Grade Code | 8 |
| Nara Branch Alpha | SC |
| Nara Branch Code | 90 |
| Branch | Signal Corps |
| 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 | 23 |
| Nativity.1 | NEW YORK |
| Nara Year of Birth | 24 |
| Nara Race | 1 |
| Nara Race Description | White citizen |
| Nara Education | 5 |
| Nara Civilian Occupation | 475 |
| Nara Marital Status | 6 |
| Nara Height (inches) | 69 |
| Nara Weight (lbs) | 153 |
| Class_ASN | 12156045 |
| Class_Name | TOPUS, Richard I. |
| match_method | asn_exact_name_exact |
| row_source | both |
Timeline
- 15 March 1924 — Born in Brooklyn, New York City.
- Early 1942 — Enlisted in the Army; assigned to the Signal Corps Pigeon Service.
- World War II — Stationed at Camp Ritchie (Class 24) training pigeoneers and homing pigeons for combat intelligence.
- Postwar — Earned Hofstra business degrees; Friendship Dairies executive career; college teaching.
- 5 December 2008 — Died in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Sources
- Margalit Fox, New York Times / The Gazette (Montreal) — Richard Topus obituaries (RB Archive ProQuest copies), December 2008
- 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 2022-12-08 (1 post)
- Dan Gross, Timeline of Richard I. Topus for Camp Ritchie (private research document; 1 source documents reviewed)
- Dan Gross, Timeline of Topus, Richard I. for Camp Ritchie (private research files; selected non-private narrative findings; 1 source files: RICHARD TOPUS.doc)