Soft launch: Soldier biographies and research notes vary in completeness. Prefer class-roster, NARA, newspapers, and other cited sources for contested facts — treat Research notes as leads, not settled history. Anyone can correct a page; contact us with questions.
Alfred Oppenheimer
| Alfred Oppenheimer | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1926 Hamburg, Germany |
| Died | 1995 |
| Nativity | Germany |
| Religion | Jewish |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Army |
| ASN | 42073609 |
| Rank | Private First Class |
| Rank at Ritchie | Private |
| Camp Ritchie | Class 25 (30 November 1944 – 29 January 1945) |
| Section | 5C |
| Enlisted | New York City, New York |
{{Needs source}}, or explain disagreements on talk. Baseline import notes: About the data.
Alfred Oppenheimer (1926–1995) was a Ritchie Boy (from Germany; Jewish) who trained at Camp Ritchie in class 25.
Biography
Alfred Oppenheimer (1926–1995) was a German-born Jewish Ritchie Boy who left Germany at age 15 in 1941 and came to the United States. Drafted at about 17 or 18, he completed a GED in the Army and trained at Camp Ritchie in class 25. He served with an Interrogation of Prisoners of War team attached to the 6th Armored Division, interrogating German prisoners and taking part in counter-intelligence work seeking out political prisoners; his specialties included artillery and interpreter duties.
The timeline research also records Served as Counter intelligence agent to find Nazi officials.
Research notes
No notes were in the source row. Add what you know.
Gallery
Technical record
| Field | Imported value |
|---|---|
| Approx Age at Death | 69 |
| Nara ASN | 42073609 |
| Nara Name | OPPENHEIMER ALFRED |
| Nara State | 23 |
| Nara County | 005 |
| Nara POE | 2364 |
| Nara DOE | 110744 |
| Nara Grade Alpha | PVT |
| Nara Race | 1 |
| Nara Race Description | White citizen |
| Class_ASN | 42073609 |
| Class_Name | OPPENHEIMER, Alfred |
| match_method | asn_exact_name_exact |
| row_source | both |
| Census_HISTID | F2901163-9053-4CA8-A125-552CE3A4E881 |
| Census_State | ILLINOIS |
| Census_Relate | Child |
| Census_Sex | Male |
| Census_Age | 14 |
| Census_BirthYear | 1926 |
| Census_Marital | Never married/single |
| Census_Race | White |
| Census_BPL | 453 |
| Census_MBPL | 453 |
| Census_FBPL | 453 |
| Census_Nativity | Foreign born |
| Census_Citizen | Not a citizen |
| Census_Educ | Grade 9 |
| Census_OCC | 995 |
| Census_Mtongue | German |
Timeline
- 3/2/1926 Born in Hamburg, Germany. Religion: Hebrew.
- 11/30/1944 Started Class 25 (German).
- Assigned to G-2 as part of 6th Armored Division (as Replacement ?).
- Basic training with Field Artillery unit.
- Promoted to Pfc.
- See: “Combat History of the 6th Armored Division in ETO 18 July 1944 - 8 May 1945”.
- See: “Super Sixth: The History of the 6th Armored Division in World War II" by George F.
- Served as Counter intelligence agent to find Nazi officials.
Sources
- 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 2021-05-12 (1 post)
- Ritchie Boys of WWII Facebook page, post dated 2021-05-13 (1 post)
- Dan Gross, Timeline of Alfred Oppenheimer for Camp Ritchie (private research document; 1 source documents reviewed)
- Dan Gross, Timeline of Oppenheimer, Alfred for Camp Ritchie (private research files; selected non-private narrative findings; 1 source files: ALFRED OPPENHEIMER.docx)