William Hazlett Upson participant of World War I
Early life
Born at Glen Ridge, New Jersey on September 6, 1891, Upson was the son of William Ford Upson (1857–1930) and Grace (Hazlett) Upson (1861–1911); his older brother was the aeronautics engineer Ralph Hazlett Upson. He graduated from Glen Ridge High School in 1909. Upson attended Cornell University, graduating in 1914. He worked for a short time as a farmer and then served in the United States Army during World War I, after which he was employed as a traveling tractor mechanic by the Caterpillar Tractor Company.