Turner was born in 1912 and grew up in Casper, Wyoming, the son of a wool buyer. He attended Natrona County High School, where he played in the school's state football championship-winning football team in 1928. He graduated in 1929.[2][3][4]
Turner attended the University of Michigan. While at Michigan, he served as president of the inter-fraternity council,[5] junior class president,[6] and a member of the Sphinx honor society.[7] He was a candidate for the Rhodes Scholarship.[8][9]
Turner married Ruth Stevenson in 1935. He was an officer in the United States Navy during World War II. After the war he worked in Kalamazoo, Michigan as a business executive.[9] He had three children with his wife; Thomas Edwin, Stevenson, and Constance Jean. Thomas and Stevenson, the oldest, were born in New York, whereas Constance was born in Michigan.[10]
Athletics
At college, Turner competed in the half-mile races. As a sophomore in 1932, he helped lead Michigan to the Big Ten Conference indoor and outdoor championships.[11][12] He competed for Michigan through 1933.[13][14][15]
In 1932, Turner finished third in the final trial to make the United States Olympic team.[9] At the games, he finished third in his semi-final to progress to the final. He finished fifth in the final, seven tenths of a second behind the bronze-medal runner.[11][16]
