He was born in Mellette County, South Dakota. Dale was the son of Fred and Freda (Graf) Schwant. Dale attended Colorado State College of Education on a music scholarship where he played clarinet in the concert band, cello in the symphony orchestra, clarinet and sax in dance bands, and was the drum major of the marching band. He was a member of the music fraternity, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia.
In January of 1943, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy and spent his overseas time in patrol bomber squadron and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal with two gold stars. After WWII he attended Washington State College where he earned a varsity letter in wrestling and a BA in political science. After graduation, he worked for a year as a traveling secretary for his fraternity, Lambda Chi Alpha, and then entered law school at the University of South Dakota. While in law school, he was president of the legal fraternity, Phi Delta Phi. In January of 1952, he graduated from law school and was admitted to the South Dakota State Bar. In February, he entered the FBI and was stationed in the Savannah and Knoxville Divisions before being transferred to the New York office in August of 1954. Dale retired in July of 1975 and moved to Florida in 1977, where he enjoyed playing tennis and gardening.
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