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Otto R. Kundert
| Otto R. Kundert | |
|---|---|
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1918 Java, South Dakota |
| Died | 10 December 2006 Winchester, Virginia |
| Nativity | United States |
| Religion | Protestant |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Army |
| Arm / service | Air Corps |
| ASN | 16034933 |
| Rank | Staff Sergeant |
| Camp Ritchie | Class 21 (21 July – 18 September 1944), 22 (23 August – 21 October 1944) |
| Section | 5A (21); 6F (22) |
| Enlisted | Chicago, Illinois |
{{Needs source}}, or explain disagreements on talk. Baseline import notes: About the data.
Otto R. Kundert (1918 – 10 December 2006) was a Ritchie Boy (from United States; Protestant) who trained at Camp Ritchie in class 21; 22.
Biography[edit | edit source]
Otto Robert Kundert was born in 1918 on a farm in Java, South Dakota, to ethnic German immigrants from Russia. A church organist from age eight, he entered the University of South Dakota at sixteen to qualify as an elementary teacher, played violin and clarinet in university ensembles, and later taught piano and children’s choruses before moving to Chicago to study voice as an operatic tenor.
Kundert served in the Army Air Corps as an instructor in Denver and performed in New Haven war-bond shows before transfer to the Military Intelligence Training Center at Camp Ritchie (Classes 21 and 22), where he studied and taught prisoner interrogation, aerial photo interpretation, and German order of battle. In 1945 he went to Wiesbaden as chief of a War Crimes Branch translation section that contributed documents to the Nuremberg trials. After discharge he headed a political intelligence section at the 7707 European Command Intelligence Center at Oberursel, interrogating refugees and German prisoners of war.
Returning to South Dakota in 1950, Kundert spoke widely on postwar Europe, joined Senator Francis H. Case’s staff in 1951, and entered the CIA in 1952 as a German and Russian translator and economic analyst, retiring in 1976. He later taught voice, German, and Russian in Winchester, Virginia. He died there of coronary artery disease on 10 December 2006.
Research notes[edit | edit source]
- Ger OB Nuremberg CIA
- Regenerated chronologically from the Washington Post obituary. No military decoration is asserted. Private psychic-client names are omitted.
Technical record[edit | edit source]
| Field | Imported value |
|---|---|
| Approx Age at Death | 88 |
| Nara ASN | 16034933 |
| Nara Name | KUNDERT OTTO R |
| Nara State | 78 |
| Nara County | 129 |
| Nara POE | 6120 |
| Nara DOE | 31041 |
| Nara Grade Alpha | PVT |
| Nara Grade Code | 8 |
| Nara Branch Alpha | AC |
| Nara Branch Code | 20 |
| Branch | Air Corps |
| Nara Term or Enlistment | 0 |
| Term of enlistment | Unknown |
| Defer. Date | 0 |
| Nara Source | 0 |
| Nara Nativity | 78 |
| Nativity.1 | SOUTH DAKOTA |
| Nara Year of Birth | 18 |
| Nara Race | 1 |
| Nara Race Description | White citizen |
| Nara Education | 6 |
| Nara Civilian Occupation | 30 |
| Nara Marital Status | 6 |
| Nara Height (inches) | 68 |
| Nara Weight (lbs) | 190 |
| Class_ASN | 16034933 |
| Class_Name | KUNDERT, Otto R. |
| match_method | asn_exact_name_exact |
| row_source | both |
Timeline[edit | edit source]
- 1918 — Born on a farm in Java, South Dakota.
- World War II — Served in the Army Air Corps; instructed in Denver and performed in New Haven war-bond programs.
- 1943–1944 — Trained and instructed at Camp Ritchie (Classes 21 and 22).
- 1945 — Served in Wiesbaden as chief of a War Crimes Branch translation section supporting the Nuremberg trials.
- 1945–1950 — Headed a political intelligence section at the 7707 European Command Intelligence Center, Oberursel.
- 1951 — Joined the staff of U.S. Senator Francis H. Case.
- 1952 — Joined the CIA as a translator and economic analyst.
- 1954 — Received an undergraduate degree.
- 1955 — Earned a law degree from American University.
- 1976 — Retired from the CIA.
- 10 December 2006 — Died in Winchester, Virginia.
Sources[edit | edit source]
- Washington Post, 21 December 2006 — Otto Kundert obituary (RB Archive copy)
- 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 2022-12-10 (1 post)