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Ervin J. Carroll

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Ervin J. Carroll
Personal details
Born13 January 1916
Somerset, Massachusetts
Died19 April 1983
NativityUnited States
ReligionCatholic
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch United States Army
Arm / serviceQuartermaster Corps
ASN0383996
RankLieutenant Colonel
Rank at RitchieFirst Lieutenant
Camp RitchieClass 22 (23 August – 21 October 1944)
Section6C
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.


Ervin J. Carroll (13 January 1916 – 19 April 1983) was a Massachusetts-born Ritchie Boy (Class 22) who taught map and interrogation work at Camp Ritchie and later retired as a lieutenant colonel.

Biography[edit | edit source]

Ervin J. Carroll was born on 13 January 1916 in Somerset, Massachusetts, the son of Francis and Eugenia (Blanchette) Carroll. His Army service began in the early 1940s with the 2nd Armored Division during training at Fort Benning, Georgia, under Gen. George S. Patton. He also served as a Portuguese interpreter for U.S. forces in Brazil.

At the Military Intelligence Training Center at Camp Ritchie (Class 22) he instructed Chinese, Japanese, and Spanish map work. He later taught prisoner-of-war interrogation at the Ground General School, Fort Riley, Kansas, served as assistant commander of the 3rd Army Intelligence School at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and was chief U.S. intelligence instructor at the Philippine Armed Forces Intelligence School. Certified to teach French, he also studied Spanish in Panama and Japanese in Tokyo, with assignments across the Orient, South Pacific, South Atlantic, and the Americas. A veteran of World War II and the Korean War, he retired as a lieutenant colonel.

After leaving the Army he was a substitute teacher in the Swansea school system until 1981. He died on 19 April 1983 at St. Anne’s Hospital and was buried at Newport Memorial Park in Newport.

Research notes[edit | edit source]

  • Providence Journal paid notice (21 April 1983) is the principal narrative source; street address omitted for privacy.

Technical record[edit | edit source]

Field Imported value
Approx Age at Death 67
Class_ASN 383996
Class_Name CARROLL, Ervin J.
match_method asn_exact_name_exact
row_source both

Timeline[edit | edit source]

  • 13 January 1916 — Born in Somerset, Massachusetts.
  • Early 1940s — 2nd Armored Division training, Fort Benning; Portuguese interpreter, Brazil.
  • Camp Ritchie Class 22 — Instructor, Chinese/Japanese/Spanish map work.
  • Later career — Fort Riley interrogation instruction; 3rd Army Intelligence School, Fort Bragg; Philippine Armed Forces Intelligence School; language study in Panama and Tokyo.
  • WWII and Korean War service; retired lieutenant colonel.
  • Post-retirement — Substitute teacher, Swansea schools (to 1981).
  • 19 April 1983 — Died at St. Anne’s Hospital; burial Newport Memorial Park, Newport.

Sources[edit | edit source]

  • Providence Journal (RI), 21 April 1983, p. C-02 — “Lt. Col. Ervin J. Carroll, at 67; served in Army” (RB Archive ProQuest PDF; private copy, not 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 2022-12-02 (1 post)