Joseph Ransohoff - Early Life and Education

Early Life and Education

Ransohoff was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, son of Dr. Joseph Louis Ransohoff II, a surgeon who himself was the son of a surgeon. He received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University. While attending Harvard he briefly considered leaving the country in order to participate in the Spanish Civil War, motivated by his lifelong socialist sympathies. One of Ransohoff's favorite boasts was that he was the only student in the history of Harvard to graduate on parole. He later received his medical degree from the University of Chicago in 1941 and went on to become a surgery instructor at the University of Cincinnati, like his father and grandfather before him. Three years into his residency, he was drafted into the United States Army where he was taught neurosurgery. During the war, Ransohoff was present at both the Battle of Normandy and the Battle of the Bulge. In the course of his service, he personally befriended General George S. Patton, and became a fixture in the General's close circle of associates. Later in the war, Ransohoff was assigned to air evacuation centers in France and Germany.