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Show Copy tor Thia Department Supplied by th American Legion News Service.) IS NAMED LEGION HISTORIAN Eben Putnam Performed Similar Service Serv-ice Before the Office Was Made Permanent. A life of singular variety and adventure ad-venture has been that of Eben Putnam, JS new-chosen national nation-al historian of the American Legion. Mr. Putnam was born In Salem, Mass., Oct. 10, 1868. He received his education in private pri-vate schools and the Cambridge high school. While he was a boy he was the companion and assistant of his father, the distinguished anthropologist, anthropolo-gist, Prof. Frederic Ward Putnam, In archaeological explorations In various parts of the world. Mr. Putnam has been deeply Interested Inter-ested In genealogy, eugenics and New England histories, and has compiled and published a number of works on these subjects. He has conducted extensive ex-tensive investigations over a period of more than twenty-five years into the question of immigration. He is a member of the Society of Colonial Wars, the Sons of the American Revolution, Revo-lution, the Military Order of Foreign Wars, and American Historical Society. Socie-ty. Early In the fall of 1915 Mr. Putnam Put-nam became convinced that this country coun-try must enter the war eventually, and joined the training school organized organ-ized in his state. He attended the Plattsburg camp the following summer sum-mer and the next winter was a member mem-ber of a provisional battalion of infantry. infan-try. He was barred from a commission commis-sion in the line because of his age, but Dn April 4, 1917, was commissioned a captain in the quartermaster corps. His son also was in the service. Mr. Putnam served as assistant to the depot quartermaster in Boston and later served overseas in the fuel branch. He "was discharged August 22, 1919. Mr. Putnam is a charter member of Wellesley Post No. 72 of the American Legion, and was Insurance Insur-ance officer and post historian until he resigned to accept the post of department de-partment historian for Massachusetts, where he served also in the capacity of a member of the state executive committee. He had performed the duties of a national historian of the Legion before that office was made permanent. |