CANTON — High school graduates across the country typically complete coursework and receive a diploma around age 18, but those who left high school in the mid-20th century to serve as members of the U.S. Armed Forces have a different story.
While the Selective Service and Training Act took effect in October 1940, and thousands of eligible men ages 18 to 65 entered service, thousands more volunteered after the Dec. 7, 1941, attacks on Pearl Harbor, many of whom left high school as the United States entered World War II.
With conflicts peppered throughout 20th-century U.S. military history, the trend of young men volunteering to serve out of high school continued — through World War II, Korea and Vietnam.
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