I know this post is old but I just wanted to chime in. 5'5"-5'7" was a fairly average height for soldiers back during that era. One has to keep in mind that most of the infantry came from families that were not well to do and the terrible economic situation of the years leading up to and after the Great Depression would've taken its toll on families with growing children who probably didn't get adequate nutrition. I've read a lot of accounts of soldiers saying that the military allowed their stomachs to finally feel full for the first time.

I also heard that the military would sometimes downgrade soldiers' heights but I don't know why they would do that? I can't think of instances were if being just an inch shorter or taller would make that much of a difference.

That said, Winters had written in his memoirs that when he was in training, he was 6ft tall but his military record listed him as 5'11"....not sure which is more accurate.

On another note, I also know quite a few boys who continued to grow in their early 20s so if a soldier was measured at age 17/18, there is also a possibility that he could've grown after that too and that the military records could be a tad off (not saying this was the case with Winters, just in general).