Charles E. Fritz (1921 – 5 May 2000) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

scientist A scientist is a person who conducts Scientific method, scientific research to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, ...

pioneering

disaster research Disaster risk reduction (DRR) sometimes called disaster risk management (DRM) is a systematic approach to identifying, assessing and reducing the risks of disaster. It aims to reduce socio-economic vulnerabilities to disaster as well as dealing w ...

during and following the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Fritz was born in

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

and graduated from

Drury University Drury University, formerly Drury College and originally Springfield College, is a private university in Springfield, Missouri. The university's mission statement describes itself as "church-related". It enrolls about 1,700 undergraduate and grad ...

with a good degree in

sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...

. He then attended the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...

gaining a master's degree. He then joined the Army Air Forces.

Career

Participant observer, England 1943 - 1946

During the Second World War Fritz was a Captain in the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

. Between 1943 and 1946 he was stationed in seven different locations in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Whilst in

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

, where his courtship of his wife enabled a more intimate experience of English social relations, he witnessed a remarkable resilience in the face of the danger and deprivations of war and the arrival of 6 million - 8 million American and allied troops.

Staff member US Strategic Bombing Survey 1945 - 1946

In 1945 he was stationed to

Teddington Teddington is a suburb in south-west London in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. In 2021, Teddington was named as the best place to live in London by ''The Sunday Times''. Historically in Middlesex, Teddington is situated on a long m ...

as part of the

United States Strategic Bombing Survey The United States Strategic Bombing Survey (USSBS) was a written report created by a board of experts assembled to produce an impartial assessment of the effects of the Anglo-American strategic bombing of Nazi Germany during the European theatre o ...

(USSBS) where his role was to produce 70 volumes involved in the study of the impact of the US strategic bombing of

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

in terms of its economic, demographic, industrial, morale, organizational and physical effects.

Associate Director at National Opinion Research Center 1950 - 1954

Fritz joined the

National Opinion Research Center NORC at the University of Chicago is one of the largest independent social research organizations in the United States. Established in 1941 as the National Opinion Research Center, its corporate headquarters is located in downtown Chicago, with o ...

as associate director of the Disaster Project. This project organised a 25 string team of trained interviewers that could be quickly deployed to disaster-struck areas to conduct interviews with both the victims of a disaster and staff from organisations responding to the disaster. These interviewers were recruited primarily from social science students who had graduated from the

Works

* (1958) ''Disaster research and military interrogation'' (Special report of the Bureau of Social Science Research) * (1961/1996) ''Disasters and Mental Health: Therapeutic Principles Drawn From Disaster Studies'' University of Delaware Disaster Research Center

Family life

In 1945 Fritz married Patricia Ware who he met while stationed in Bath in the 1940s. They had two children, Jonathan and Sherily.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fritz, Charles 1921 births 2000 deaths American sociologists Drury University alumni University of Chicago alumni United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II American expatriates in the United Kingdom