Oliver Julian Kendall was born in Naperville, Illinois on December 30, 1888. His father, Francis Austin Kendall, distinguished himself as President of Naperville Combined School District 78 and as Mayor of Naperville. Judd's (as friends called him) mother, Linnie May Kendall, was a granddaughter of one of Naperville's pioneer families.

Oliver Julian Kendall attended Ellsworth Elementary and High School in Naperville, graduating in 1907. He then attended what is now North Central College. At the outbreak of World War I, Kendall entered into the army on June 14, 1917. He soon received his commission as a second lieutenant and then as a first lieutenant. Lt. Kendall served overseas in France.