Henry L. Bretton

Henry L. Bretton
Personal details
Birth name	Henry H. Bismark
Born	18 May 1916 Berlin, Germany
Died	31 July 2018 Albuquerque, New Mexico
Nativity	Germany
Religion	Protestant
Awards	Bronze Star Medal
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch	United States Army
ASN	42052915
Camp Ritchie	Class 24 (26 October – 29 December 1944)
Enlisted	New York City, New York
Team	MII 535-G

Awards and honors

Bronze Star Medal

Teammates

Team — MII 535-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.

Henry L. Bretton (18 May 1916–31 July 2018), born Henry H. Bismark in Berlin, was a Camp Ritchie Class 24 interrogator (MI Team 535-G), Bronze Star recipient, OSS veteran, and political scientist.

Biography

Henry L. Bretton was born Henry H. Bismark on 18 May 1916 in Berlin, Germany, the son of Hans and Betty Bismark. He emigrated to the United States in 1938. Inducted into the Army at New York City, he trained at the Military Intelligence Training Center at Camp Ritchie, Maryland, graduating with Class 24 on 23 December 1944 as a German linguist; the War Department recommended a name change for security, effected by court order. In June 1944 he had already served as a German interpreter at Fort DuPont, Delaware.

Bretton served with Military Intelligence Interrogation Team 535-G attached to the 13th Armored Division. Headquarters 13th Armored Division General Orders No. 108 (28 June 1945) awarded him the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious achievement on 16 April 1945 at Hilden, Germany, where he investigated a war crime, traced the perpetrator through enemy territory to Düsseldorf and Montabaur, and established the facts. Family accounts also place his MIS team with armored reconnaissance under Third Army and describe a near miss near the Austrian border on 7 May 1945. At war’s end he transferred to OSS Secret Intelligence; his highest postwar reserve rank was first lieutenant (counter intelligence).

Discharged in September 1945, he entered Yale University in February 1946 under the G.I. Bill and graduated with honors in August 1947, then completed a Ph.D. In political science at the University of Michigan and taught there before becoming Distinguished Professor at SUNY Brockport. He held visiting appointments in Austria, Ghana, Kenya, and Vienna and authored multiple scholarly books. Bretton died on 31 July 2018 in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Research notes

• name was Bismark
• OSS
• to 1st Lt

Gallery

• 
  13th Armored Division GO 108 (28 June 1945) — Bronze Star citation for Pvt Henry L. Bretton, MI Team 535-G.
• 
  Continuation of Bretton Bronze Star citation (Hilden / Düsseldorf / Montabaur), GO 108.
• 
  Dream Shadows / Unit 374 profile pages mentioning Henry Bretton’s Centennial and wartime service.
• 
  Henry L. Bretton (portrait crop from RB Archive packet page)

Technical record

Field	Imported value
Approx Age at Death	102
Nara ASN	42052915
Nara Name	BRETTON HENRY L
Nara State	23
Nara County	81
Nara POE	2364
Nara DOE	91143
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	16
Nara Race	J
Nara Race Description	White not yet a citizen
Nara Education	5
Nara Civilian Occupation	513
Nara Marital Status	1
Nara Height (inches)	60
Nara Weight (lbs)	10
row_source	demographics

Timeline

• 18 May 1916 — Born in Berlin, Germany, as Henry H. Bismark.
• 1938 — Emigrated to the United States.
• June 1944 — German interpreter at Fort DuPont, Delaware.
• 23 December 1944 — Graduated Camp Ritchie Class 24 (German linguist); name change to Bretton.
• 16 April 1945 — War-crime investigation at Hilden leading to Bronze Star (13th Armored Div. GO 108).
• May 1945 — MIS team near Austrian border (family account); transferred to OSS Secret Intelligence.
• September 1945 — Discharged.
• February 1946 – August 1947 — Yale University (G.I. Bill); later Ph.D., University of Michigan.
• 1969 onward — Distinguished Professor, SUNY College at Brockport.
• 31 July 2018 — Died in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Sources

• Portrait crop for profile photo: Henry_L_Bretton_42052915_portrait.jpg (from source scan).
• Headquarters 13th Armored Division, General Orders No. 108, 28 June 1945 — Bronze Star Medal, Pvt Henry L. Bretton, MI Team 535-G (page image)
• Archive.org: Henry Bretton, Dream Shadows of Fulfillment
• French Funerals & Cremations obituary: Henry L. Bretton (18 May 1916 – 31 July 2018)
• 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 Henry L. Bretton for Camp Ritchie (private research document; 1 source documents reviewed)
• Dan Gross, Timeline of Bretton, Henry L. for Camp Ritchie (private research files; selected non-private narrative findings; 1 source files: HENRY L. BRETTON.doc)