John Lewis Kay

Revision as of 13:29, 26 August 2026 by Admin (talk | contribs) (Enrich Born/Died infobox fields from biography prose)
John Lewis Kay
Personal details
Born1919
Germany
Died2015
NativityGermany
ReligionJewish
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch United States Army
Arm / serviceQuartermaster Corps
ASN01584444
RankSecond Lieutenant
Camp RitchieClass 7 (15 April – 12 June 1943)
Section15
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John Lewis Kay (1919–2015) was a Ritchie Boy (from Germany; Jewish) who trained at Camp Ritchie in class 7.

Biography

John Kay (birth name Hans Kaumheimer), was born in Germany, and went to high school in Italy. He served in the US Army during WWII and later worked as a Civil Affairs Officer (CAO). He fought in the campaigns to liberate Italy where he served as CAO with the following Divisions since the initial landing at Salerno: 56 Div (Brit), 7th Armored Div (Brit), 5 Div (Brit), 45th Div (US), all Divs in X Corps except 45th. Officer also served as CAO for the Communes of Mondragone, Carolina-Falciano, and Francolise. Lt John Kay was awarded the Bronze Star medal by Gen. Mark Clark for "heroic achievement in action" on October 31, 1944, in recognition for his actions that resulted in saving the lives of more than 1,000 civilians during the Italian campaign.

Research notes

  • IV Corps (to Major)

Gallery

Technical record

Field Imported value
Approx Age at Death 96
Class_ASN 584444
Class_Name KAY, John L.
match_method asn_partial_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 2020-07-18 (1 post)