WW2 Guadalcanal Fallen - Medal of Honor hero coxswain Douglas Munro

Signalman 1/c Douglas Munro earned the Medal Honor for his role in rescuing three companies of marines as shown in this art work by Bernard D'Andrea.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_Albert_Munro
https://www.warhistoryonline.com/world-war-ii/douglas-munro-saved-500-marines.html

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

He was born on October 11, 1919 in Vancouver, British Columbia. His parents James and Edith were born in California and England, respectively. Moving to Washington by 1920, his father worked as an electrical worker and later as a railroad electrician. Douglas had one older sister. 

Douglas completed one year of college and then joined the US Coast Guard in September 1939. He chose the Coast Guard because it focused on saving lives. By 1940 he was stationed on the US Coast Guard cutter Spencer. He reached the rank of signalman first class.

After the war started, he volunteered for reassignment to the attack transport USS Hunter Liggett along with his best friend Ray Evans. This was one of the transports use to deliver the 1st Marine Division to Guadalcanal. When the navy looked for coxswains to pilot the Higgins boats that would be used to take marines to the beach, Signalman Munro and Evans both volunteered again. His first assignment as a coxswain was in the Battle of Tulagi.

On September 27, 1942 Signalman Munro volunteered to transport marines to the Matanikau River in their attempt to outflank the Japanese. The Japanese in the area were too strong, so the marines had to evacuate. Directing the other boats to extract the marines. Signalman Munro positioned his boat to shield the others. He was killed while the other boats with the marines made it out safely. According to his best friend Ray Evans his dying words were, "Did they get off?"

He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor and it was presented to his parents at the White House by President Roosevelt on May 24, 1943. The citation reads as follows:

For extraordinary heroism and conspicuous gallantry in action above and beyond the call of duty as Officer-in-Charge of a group of Higgins boats, engaged in the evacuation of a Battalion of Marines trapped by enemy Japanese forces at Point Cruz, Guadalcanal, on September 27, 1942. 

After making preliminary plans for the evacuation of nearly 500 beleaguered Marines, Munro, under constant risk of his life, daringly led five of his small craft toward the shore. As he closed the beach, he signaled the others to land, and then in order to draw the enemy's fire and protect the heavily loaded boats, he valiantly placed his craft with its two small guns as a shield between the beachhead and the Japanese. 

When the perilous task of evacuation was nearly completed, Munro was killed by enemy fire, but his crew, two of whom were wounded, carried on until the last boat had loaded and cleared the beach. 

By his outstanding leadership, expert planning, and dauntless devotion to duty, he and his courageous comrades undoubtedly saved the lives of many who otherwise would have perished. He gallantly gave up his life in defense of his country.

Petty Officer Munro is the only person from the US Coast Guard ever to receive the Medal of Honor. He is the only non-marine to have his name enshrined on the Wall of Heroes at the National Museum of the Marine Corps. The destroyer escort USS Douglas A. Munro (DE 422) was named in his honor as well as two later ships. The Douglas A. Munro Coast Guard Headquarters Building in Washington DC is also named in his honor.

There is a special website dedicated to Douglas Munro. You can find it here.

His grave is at Laurel Hill Memorial Park in Cle Elum, Washington.

Thank you Petty Officer Munro for your sacrifice. Let's Earn It for Douglas.

Last year on this date I profiled B-17 pilot Joseph Turley. You can read about Joseph here.

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!

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