Harry B. Leavitt was a first-year law student at the University of Washington when the US entered World War I. A native of Chicago, Harry was one of four children born to Russian immigrants Bernard Leavitt and Anna Towlen. At the time he registered for the draft Harry was working as a clerk with the Standard Oil Company, then located in Seattle’s iconic Alaska Building.
Harry served as a Sergeant in the Quartermaster Corps – the Army’s logistical unit responsible for organizing equipment and materials in the field and providing support for soldiers – which was instrumental in getting the newly-formed Camp Lewis up and running.
Half of the UW’s casualties died of disease rather than injuries or combat, including Harry. Unlike most of his comrades, however, who died of infectious disease, Harry died of cranial hemorrhage due to a brain tumor at Seattle’s Providence Hospital on 28 March 1918. (bit.ly/uw_leavitt) Harry was an active member of the Young Men’s Hebrew Association.