Karl W. Hornung

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Karl W. Hornung
Personal details
Born	1907 Germany
Nativity	Germany
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch	United States Army
ASN	32348002
Rank	Sergeant
Camp Ritchie	Class 3 (2 November – 23 December 1942)
Enlisted	Fort Jay, Governors Island, New York
Specialty	Military intelligence (early generalist curriculum)

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.

Karl W. Hornung (born 1907) was a German-born U.S. Army sergeant who trained at Camp Ritchie in Class 3 during the MITC’s first year, when the camp was still expanding and teaching a broad intelligence curriculum.

Biography

Karl W. Hornung was born in Germany in 1907. He was drafted into the U.S. Army on 3 June 1942 at Fort Jay, Governors Island, New York.

Hornung entered Camp Ritchie with Class 3 on 2 November 1942, while the former National Guard post was still under heavy construction for its new War Department role. In that early period trainees studied a generalist intelligence course—U.S. Army organization and staff channels, distinguishing raw information from finished intelligence, weather and terrain analysis, map reading (including Allied and captured German symbology), aerial photography with stereoscopes, and prisoner-of-war interrogation—often in small classrooms of about 18–24 men. Local towns such as Sabillasville, Maryland, and Blue Ridge Summit, Pennsylvania, were used for mapping and field exercises; final weeks included war-game “invasions” of nearby Maryland and Pennsylvania communities and practice interrogations of role-playing “German” prisoners.

He was promoted to sergeant. Research notes record a later transfer to Fort Jackson, South Carolina.

Research notes

• Transferred to Fort Jackson, SC
• Civilian occupation on import: salesperson
• Aughinbaugh’s 2018 article draws heavily on the Karl Hornung Papers at the U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center (Carlisle)

Gallery

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Technical record

Field	Imported value
Nara ASN	32348002
Nara Name	HORNUNG KARL W
Nara State	23
Nara County	81
Nara POE	2327
Nara DOE	30642
Nara Grade Alpha	PVT
Nara Grade Code	8
Nara Branch Alpha	BI
Nara Branch Code	0
Branch	Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA
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	7
Nara Race	1
Nara Race Description	White citizen
Nara Education	0
Nara Civilian Occupation	175
Nara Marital Status	2
Nara Height (inches)	66
Nara Weight (lbs)	185
row_source	demographics

Timeline

• 1907 — Born in Germany.
• 3 June 1942 — Drafted at Fort Jay, Governors Island, New York, as private (ASN 32348002).
• 2 November 1942 — Entered Camp Ritchie Class 3 (early MITC generalist curriculum).
• Promoted to sergeant.
• Transferred to Fort Jackson, South Carolina (research notes).

Sources

• Kevin M. Aughinbaugh, “The Castle of Intelligence: Camp Ritchie Maryland and the Military Intelligence Training Center during the Second World War,” The Gettysburg Historical Journal 17 (2018), art. 5 (PDF)
• 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)
• Dan Gross, Timeline of Karl W. Hornung for Camp Ritchie (private research document; 1 source documents reviewed)
• Dan Gross, Timeline of Hornung, Karl W. for Camp Ritchie (private research files; selected non-private narrative findings; 1 source files: KARL W. HORNUNG.doc)