James Palache was born on July 3, 1896. He was 22 years of age and at the time of America's entrance into to the war, was a junior student at Harvard. He was prominent in fraternity circles there and was a manager of the freshman baseball team. When the United States declared war on Germany, Palache entered an officer's training camp and was later commissioned as a second lieutenant. He served in the 18th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division during World War I. He died from his wounds received in battle on May 15, 1918 and is now buried in Suresnes American Cemetery, Suresnes, France.

Source of information: Berkeley Daily Gazette (Berkeley, CA), Wednesday, May 22, 1918, page 1, column 4