Alvin Chester Cockrell, Jr. was born in Hazelhurst, Mississippi, on September 18, 1918, and was enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve on May 1, 1937 and served as an enlisted man until accepting an appointment as 2d lieutenant, USMCR, on June 25, 1940. Over the next two years, Cockrell served at marine barracks at Quantico, Guantanamo Bay, Parris Island, and New River. He was appointed a 1st lieutenant on December 2, 1941.