"The ways of the world I knew very little about - boy, I learned 'em overnight there." (Interview)

Russell Mack Baldwin

Dr. Russell Baldwin in uniform [detail] War: World War II, 1939-1946 Branch: Army Unit: 551st Heavy Pontoon Bridge Battalion Service Location: Utah Beach, France; Ardennes, Belgium; Holland; Germany; Austria Highest Rank: Technician Five Place of Birth: Cleveland, OH

Growing up in an idyllic suburb of Cleveland, Russell Baldwin had just opened practice as a licensed optometrist in October 1941 when he was drafted. The army wasn't much interested in his specialty, and he became a member of a bridge building battalion. His unit landed in the second wave after D-Day, when danger was still prevalent. Baldwin survived several close shaves only to be captured by the retreating Germans, who abandoned him after a month. Back home, he found that his parents had rented his bedroom to a college student, and the two eventually shared their own room after they were married.