Ralph Otto Brandon

2023-05-31T15:15:42-05:00
Army Badge
  • Name: Ralph Otto Brandon
  • Location of Birth: Fairmount, Illinois
  • Date of Birth: February 1, 1890
  • Date of Death: January 4, 1977 (86 years old)
  • Parents:
  • High School and Class: 1911 - Grand Rapids High School, Grand Rapids, Minnesota
  • College:
  • Highest Rank: SFC (Sergeant First Class)
  • Branch: Army
  • Other Branch:
  • Date Sworn In:
  • Place Sworn In:
  • Date of Discharge:
  • Place of Discharge:
  • Military Awards:

  • Military Highlights:
    Entered the service in 1917 and worked as an aircraft inspector.

    Information in the United States, World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918:
    Name: Ralph Otto Brandon
    Race: Caucasian (White)
    Age: 27
    Marital Status: Single
    Birth Date: February 1, 1890
    Birth Place: Illinois, USA
    Residence Date: 1917-1918
    Residence Place: Balsam Township, Itasca County, Minnesota, USA
    Physical Build: Medium
    Height: Medium
    Hair Color: Light
    Eye Color: Blue

  • Wars Involved:
    World War I

  • MIA / POW:

  • Civilian Life:
    Ralph came to Grand Rapids, Minnesota with his family in 1907.

    A star athlete with the Grand Rapids high school teams, he graduated in 1911. Mr. Brandon worked in banks in Grand Rapids and Bemidji, Minnesota and Conrad, Montana before entering the service in 1917 and working as an aircraft inspector.

    After World War I, he worked for Interstate Mining Company, which later became Jones and Laughlin Steel Corporation. He lived in Hibbing from 1943-1946 and was superintendent of the Longyear Mine which he opened in Hibbing, Minnesota.

    In 1946, he transferred to Calumet, Minnesota. Mr. Brandon was superintendent of the Hill Annex and the Lind-Greenway until his retirement in 1955.

    He was a charter member of the Marble Legion post and he played on its first baseball team which won the state trounament. He always retained his keen interest in sports and was a strong booster for local athletic teams.

    Mr. Brandon was a member of the Community Presbyterian Church, the Old Settlers Club, Cap Baker Lions Club, Itasca Barracks, WWI Veterans, Itasca Lodge 208 AF & AM and the Marble Legion post

    Survivors are his wife, Cecilia (Bett), whom he married in Duluth on June 30, 1926; a son, Dennis J.; a daughter, Mrs. Rose-Mary (Roy) Griak; six grandchildren; a brother, David; and three sisters, Mrs. W. H. (Mary) Powers, Mrs. T. S. (Stella) Seaman, and Mrs. Mildred Miller.

    Buried in Itasca Calvary Cemetery at Grand Rapids, Minnesota. (Plot I-A-08-2-7)

  • Tribal Affiliation(s):

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