WW2 Fallen - Adam Culp, 3rd Infantry Division

Pfc. Adam Culp was part of these 3rd Division troops embarking for the invasion of Sicily.
http://old.minford.k12.oh.us/mhs/history/Veterans/WWII/Killed/culp.html
http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?/topic/215633-wwii-3rd-infantry-division-patches-italian-made-one/
http://abmc.nomadmobileguides.com/SicilyRome.php?page=narrative&id=cont-4114

Adam Culp never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

He was born on December 18, 1917 in Ohio. His parents William and Artie were also both born in Ohio. His father worked as a farmer and later as a railroad shop laborer. Still later he worked as a blacksmith. Adam had three older sisters and a younger sister. By 1940 Adam was still living at home. He had completed 8 years of school and was working as a farm hand.

He enlisted in the army on February 28, 1941. He became a private first class in Company L, 3rd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division. The 3rd ID landed in North Africa in November 1942 and it captured half of Morocco. It's next assignment was the invasion of Sicily.

On August 9, 1943 Pfc. Culp's unit was fighting on the north end of Sicily by the Brolo River as it advanced on Palermo. The men endured heavy enemy artillery fire, tank fire, and machine-gun fire. The troops even had to deal with a mistaken bombing from friendly planes. Pfc. Culp was one of 41 men killed in this action with another 78 wounded and 58 missing.

His grave is at White Gravel Cemetery, Minford, Ohio.

Thank you Adam for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Adam.

On behalf of the fallen, if you would like to see more people become aware of this project to honor the WW2 fallen, be sure to share with others on Twitter, Facebook, etc. Thanks for your interest!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
Join the public Facebook group WW2 Fallen 100

WW2 Fallen - Silver Star hero and Wildcat pilot Dupont Landry, Battle of Santa Cruz Islands

Lt. Dupont Landry was a carrier based pilot on the USS Hornet at the Battle of Santa Cruz Island.
https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/tree/14115153/person/58461288/media/fcd81e1f-cd40-45ae-9a2c-162d2412e297?_phsrc=tPq7&_phstart=successSource
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/474215035746856671/ 

Dupont Paul Landry never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

He was born on December 17, 1917 in Louisiana. His parents Eugene and Anna were also both born in Louisiana. His father worked as an oil mill assistant engineer and later as a barber. Dupont had an older brother, older sister, younger brother and younger sister. His older brother served in the US Army during World War 2 and returned home. 

By 1940 Dupont had finished four years of high school and had moved 35 miles from Jeanerette to Lafayette and was living as a lodger while working at an oil terminal. He was also a student at the University of Southwestern Louisiana and was most likely in the Navy ROTC program.

He enlisted in the Navy on March 11, 1941. His first station was in Washington DC as a seaman 2nd class, but he somehow was selected for flight school. By May 1942 he was a lieutenant junior grade and fighter pilot in VF-72. Lt Landry's first assignment with the VF-72 was with the USS Wasp. In August 1942 VF-72 was assigned to USS Hornet. At that time Lt. Landry was flying F4F-4 Wildcats.

By September 15, 1942, Hornet was the only operational American carrier in the South Pacific. Enterprise and Saratoga had been recently damaged and Wasp had been sunk. Lt. Landry provided air cover for carrier duties in support of the Guadalcanal Campaign.

Enterprise rejoined Hornet on October 24, 1942. Two days later they fought the Battle of Santa Cruz Islands. When the American located the Japanese ships, Hornet sent two attack groups which included 15 Wildcats. When the Japanese attack group found Hornet, there were 37 Wildcats on defense. I was not able to find out which group Lt. Landry was in.

I don't know if Landry was downed dogfighting more experience Japanese fighter pilots, or if he was lost because the Hornet was too badly damaged to land planes so the Hornet based planes that couldn't find Enterprise had to ditch when they ran out of fuel. (see comment below for update) The Americans lost 81 aircraft out of 136 in the battle. Along with Lt. Landry, 6 other VF-72 pilots were killed that day. Lt. Landry was posthumously awarded the silver star.

His official date of death is listed as October 27, 1943 but this was due to the Navy's practice of how they handled those missing at sea by waiting one year and one day to list them as killed.

His cenotaph grave is at St. John the Evangelist Catholic Cemetery in Jeanerette, Louisiana.

Thank you Dupont for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Dupont.

On behalf of the fallen, if you would like to see more people become aware of this project to honor the WW2 fallen, be sure to share with others on Twitter, Facebook, etc. Thanks for your interest!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
Join the public Facebook group WW2 Fallen 100

WW2 Pearl Harbor Fallen - Howard Merrill, USS Arizona

Ensign Howard Merrill was killed when a Japanese bomb ignited the forward magazine of the USS Arizona.
He is still entombed there. The destroyer escort USS Merrill was named in his honor.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/65377077
https://www.militaryimages.net/media/paintings-of-pearl-harbour.34690/
http://www.cnn.com/travel/article/uss-arizona-pearl-harbor-memorial-feat/index.html
http://www.navsource.org/archives/06/392.htm

Howard Deal Merrill never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

He was born on December 16, 1917 in Utah. His father Claude was also born in Utah while his mother Eva was born in England. His father worked as a farmer. Howard had three older sisters. 

By 1940 Howard graduated from the US Naval Academy. He was commissioned an ensign and assigned to the USS Arizona.

On the morning of December 7, 1941, Ensign Merrill was on duty onboard the Arizona when it was  hit by four Japanese bombs. The final one penetrated to the forward magazine and exploded with devastating loss of life. Ensign Merrill's battle station was the central engine room. Along with hundreds of his fellow sailors, Ensign Merrill remains entombed in the USS Arizona Memorial.

His cenotaph grave is at Aultorest Memorial Park, Ogden, Utah.

In August 1943 Howard's sister Dorothy christen the destroyer escort USS Merrill, named in Ensign Merrill's honor. It provided transatlantic escort duty during the war.

Thank you Ensign Merrill for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Howard.  

Ensign Merrill's story is also told at https://www.fold3.com/page/636414303-howard-merrill/stories. It is part of the Stories Behind the Stars project, Utah pilot.

Thanks to Darillyn Lamb Starr for recommending that Howard be profiled.

On behalf of the fallen, if you would like to see more people become aware of this project to honor the WW2 fallen, be sure to share with others on Twitter, Facebook, etc. Thanks for your interest!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
Join the public Facebook group WW2 Fallen 100

WW2 Fallen - James Conover, 34th Infantry Division

Pvt. James Conover arrived in Algeria with these troops from the 168th Infantry Regiment.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/54333845
http://www.nationalguard.mil/About-the-Guard/Today-in-Guard-History/November/

James W. Conover never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

He was born on December 15, 1917 in Kentucky. His parents Ed and Fanny were also both born in Kentucky. His father worked as a farmer. James had three older sisters and one older brother. He also had three younger sisters and four younger brothers, at least two of them served in the army in WW2 and returned home. James had a grammar school education and worked on the family farm.

He enlisted in the army on February 27, 1941. He became a private in Company K, 3rd Battalion, 168th Infantry Regiment, 34th Infantry Division. The 34th ID was part of the initial European Theater engagement when it participated in the invasion of Algiers in November 1942. It was a major force in the American victory in defeating the Germans in Tunisia. Pvt. Conover was killed in action on May 6, 1943, a week before the Germans stopped fighting. It would be a bloody path to the end of the war for the 168th IR. Total killed would reach close to 1,300 just from this one regiment.

His grave is at Conover Cemetery in Gentrys Mill, Kentucky.

Thank you James for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for James.

On behalf of the fallen, if you would like to see more people become aware of this project to honor the WW2 fallen, be sure to share with others on Twitter, Facebook, etc. Thanks for your interest!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
Join the public Facebook group WW2 Fallen 100

WW2 Fallen - Submariner Hugh McKnight, USS Robalo

Lt. Hugh McKnight and the crew of USS Robalo, lost at sea on July 26, 2944.
http://www.oneternalpatrol.com/uss-robalo-273.htm

Hugh Ferguson McKnight, Jr. never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

He was born on December 14, 1917 in Pennsylvania. His parents Hugh and Mabel were also both born in Pennsylvania. His father worked as a hardware works part manager and later as a hardware store merchant. Hugh Jr. had two older half-brothers from his mother's first marriage. By 1940 Hugh was a full-time student completing his fourth year of college while living at home.

I don't know when Hugh enlisted in the US Navy or when he decided to volunteer for submarine duty. He became a lieutenant junior grade on the submarine USS Robalo. The Robalo completed two patrols before it's final patrol that started on June 22, 1944 out of Freemantle, Australia. After a July 2 report, Robalo was never heard from again. It was not until after the war that details emerged about her loss.

It appears that Robalo struck an enemy mine on July 26, 1944 near Balabac Island, Philippines. Only the four men on the bridge survived. They were captured shortly after by the Japanese occupying the Philippines. None of them survived the war. They were either executed by their captors or drowned when a ship they took to Japan was sunk. A total of 81 crewmen from Robalo, including Lt. McKnight were lost.

Hugh is remembered at the Tablet of the Missing, Manila American Cemetery, Philippines..

Thank you Hugh for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Hugh.

Thanks to Darillyn Lamb Starr for recommending that Hugh be profiled.

On behalf of the fallen, if you would like to see more people become aware of this project to honor the WW2 fallen, be sure to share with others on Twitter, Facebook, etc. Thanks for your interest!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
Join the public Facebook group WW2 Fallen 100

WW2 Fallen - Submariner Joseph Stubbins, S-26 - first US sub sunk in WW2

Ensign Joseph Stubbins was lost at sea with the crew of USS S-26.
http://www.oneternalpatrol.com/stubbins-j-b.htm
http://www.oneternalpatrol.com/uss-s-26-131-loss.htm 

Joseph Briggs Stubbins never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

He was born on December 13, 1917 in Alabama. His mother Lucile was also born in Alabama while his father Hugh was born in Kentucky. His father worked as a traveling shoe salesman. Joseph had two older brothers and a younger brother. By 1940 Joseph had completed three years of college and would graduate from Georgia Teach before joining the Navy, most likely sometime in 1941.

Joseph became an ensign serving on the submarine USS S-26. WW1 era S-class submarines were generally not named for sea life like the majority of American subs in WW2. Three days after the war started S-26 was dispatched from New London, Connecticut to patrol on the Pacific side of the Panama Canal.

At 2210 hours on January 24, 1942 the sub chaser USS Sturdy was escorting four surfaced submarines including S-26 steaming out of Balboa. It flashed a message it was leaving the subs that was not picked up by the S-26. Eleven minutes later, in the darkness, Sturdy rammed S-26 near the aft torpedo room. Within one minute the submarine sank in 300 feet of water. The three men on the bridge, including the captain, survived. Ensign Stubbins and 45 other seamen were trapped in the sub. Rescue efforts the next day were unsuccessful and divers noticed no signs of life. It was the first American submarine sunk in the war. (The USS Sealion, scuttled on December 25, 1941 after being damaged by Japanese air attack on December 10, 1941, was the first ship lost, but not the first one to sink.)

His remains were never recovered but he is remembered at the East Coast Memorial in Manhattan, NY. The S-26, upright and intact 300 feet below the sea, remains a protected war grave.

Thank you Joseph for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Joseph.

Thanks to Darillyn Lamb Starr for recommending that Joseph be profiled.

On behalf of the fallen, if you would like to see more people become aware of this project to honor the WW2 fallen, be sure to share with others on Twitter, Facebook, etc. Thanks for your interest!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.
Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
Join the public Facebook group WW2 Fallen 100

WW2 Fallen - P-47 & P-51 ace Victor France and his P-51 pilot daughter

Captain Victor France scored 10 kills piloting P-47s and P-51s in Europe.
http://www.americanairmuseum.com/person/215693

Victor James France never had a chance to reach 100 years old today. Instead, he sacrificed his life for our freedom.

He was born on December 12, 1917 in Missouri. I was not able to locate census data about Victor or his family, but he considered Dallas his hometown. He graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a degree in journalism. While in college he learned to fly in the Civil Aeronautics Association. He also participated in ROTC.

He enlisted in the RAF (yes, not a typo) in Canada in March 1942. Perhaps he knew that anyone enlisting in the USAAF would not be flying for some time due to a lack of enough planes and he wanted to see action sooner. Regardless, six months later he was able to leave the RAF and gain a commission in 334th Fighter Squadron, 4th Fighter Group. He was promoted to the rank of captain. He was initially a P-47 Thunderbolt pilot but moved to piloting P-51 Mustangs. During his military career he flew 111 missions. He displayed his Texas roots by wearing cowboy boots and donning a polka dot scarf when flying. He was credited with 10 enemy planes shot down.

His final mission was on April 18, 1944. He was flying a P-51 Mustang Miss Dallas when he was killed in action near Rengerslage, Germany. 

Details of Captain France's final mission are memorialized at americanairmuseum.com.

It was on 18 April 1944, and the Group's escort duty was finished. Fuel and ammunition were running low, so Group Commander Blakeslee ordered the group to return to base. Vic could not leave the injured bomber free to be attacked, so, followed by his wingman, he dove into the pack of enemy fighters, dispersing them and shooting one that had attacked his wingman, driving him off. However, one German pilot persisted, returning to attack the B-17 again, causing Vic to announce over the radio, "The rest of you guys go home, I'm gonna get that bastard."

When Vic attacked, the Me-109 did a split-s, manoeuvre, with Vic on his tail in a vertical dive. Vic was scoring hits as the two planes were nearing compressibility. Unable to pull out of the dive, Vic hit the ground in a ball of flames, his plane disintegrating over a wide area.

Victor's awards and decorations included the Air Medal with three Oak Leaf Clusters and the Distinguished Flying Cross with three Oak Leaf Clusters.

His grave is at Rose Hill Burial Park, Oklahoma City.

Also from the americanairmuseum.com memorial:

Years later. it was discovered that Victor had met and become enamoured of a young woman pilot who was ferrying P-51s to the 4th Fighter Group. When he died, Victor could not have known that he had fathered a child, a girl. Unfortunately, her mother also died when her daughter was only months old, and the infant child was raised by her grandmother, who kept her father's identity a secret. Upon the grandmother's death the young woman, Kathleen, discovered her father's identity while going through her grandmother's belongings. She wrote to Vic's former Commanding Officer, Col. Don Blakeslee, asking for information about her father. Blakeslee, in turn, contacted Don Allen, Vic's crew chief and asked him to follow up on her request. Allen was able to send her several pictures and to give her much insight into her father's life as a fighter pilot.

Don was astounded when her subsequent letters revealed that, although neither her father nor mother (both P-51 pilots) could have know, Kathleen was also a pilot - she flew P-51 as an attraction at air show. What a family coincidence!

Thank you Victor for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Victor.

On behalf of the fallen, if you would like to see more people become aware of this project to honor the WW2 fallen, be sure to share with others on Twitter, Facebook, etc. Thanks for your interest!

I created this video to explain why I started this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXt8QA481lY.

Follow on Twitter @ww2fallen100
Join the public Facebook group WW2 Fallen 100