FORTITUD INENEWSLETTER OF THE MARINE CORPS HISTORICAL PROGRAM

VOLUME XV WINTER 1985-1986 NUMBER 3

COLOR PRINTS RECALL MARINES IN THE ERA OF THE 'FRIGATE NAv\". . . NEW BATTLE HONORS FOR THEMARINE CORPS WAR MEMORIAL AND A STATUE IX) MEMOPJALIZE MILITARY LEADERSHIP.. .CHAPLAINS' ROLEIN VIETNAM RECORDED IN NEW OFFICIAL HISIORY.. . FLIGHT LINES: CONSOLIDATED-VULTEE OY-i SENTINEL

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FORTITUDINEMotto of the United States Marine Corps in the 1812 era.

Winter 1985-1986

This quarterly newsletter of the Marine Corps historical program is publishedfor the Corps and for friends of Marine Corps history in accordance with Depart-ment of the Navy Publications and Printing Regulations NAVEXOS P-35. Individualsand institutions desiring Fortitudine on a complimentary regular basis are invitedto apply to: History and Museums Division, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps(HDS-1), Washington, D.C. 20374-0580.

The Secretary of the Navy has determined that this publication is necessary inthe transaction of business required by law of the Department of the Navy. Fundsfor printing of this publication have been approved by the Navy Publications andPrinting Policy Committee.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Director's Page: Marines in Bronze 3

Historical Quiz: Quotes By, About, and For Marines 7

Readers Always Write 8

Account of Chaplains' Service in Vietnam Off the Presses 9

Acquisitions: 'We Looked Like Cowboys,' Flight Gear Donor Says 10

Museum's Marine Artifacts 'Star' in New Video Series 11

Units to Get Prints of Marines' 'Frigate Navy' Exploits 12

Waterhouse Paint Brush Poised to Fill Gaps in Collection 13

Museum Reunites Okinawa Battle Flag with Survivors 14

Oral History Report: Bleasdale and Taxis Interviews 15

Combined Action Program Vets Meet In Washington, Visit Museum 16

In Memoriam: LtGen Mangrum, Pearl Harbor Vet, Past ACMC Dies 17

Flight Lines: Consolidated-Vu/tee 0Y2 Sentinel 20

Korean War Chronology: September 1950 21

Reserve Historical Unit Report: 'VMFA-323' Nears Printing 23

Answers to Historical Quiz: By, About, and For Marines 23

Annual Meeting Introduces New Foundation Officers 24

THE COVERCol Charles H. Waterhouse, USMCR, History and Museums Division's artist-in-

residence, produced this sketch preliminary to his painting, "Swamp Ambush"(above), one of the Marines in the Frigate Navy suite, which has been translatedinto a set of 14 full-color prints for Marine Corps distribution (see article in thisissue). The results of a Seminole Indian raid on a Marine patrol in the cypress bogsnear St. Augustine, Florida, in 1812, is the subject of the painting. The print setsaid understanding of the Corps' events, arms, and dress during 1798 to 1835.

Fortitudine is produced in the Publications Production Section of the History and Museums Divi-sion. The text for Fortitudine is set in 1O.point and 8.point Gramond typeface. Headlines are in 18.pointor 24.point Garamond. The newsletter is printed on 70.pound, matte-coated paper by offset lithography.

Volume XV

HISTORYAND MUSEUMSDIVISION

No.3

Marine Corps Historical CenterBuilding 58, Washington Navy Yard

Washington, D.C. 20374-0580

Telephone: (202) 433-3838, 433-3840, 433-3841

DIRECIORBOrn Edwin H. Simmons, USMC (Ret)

}-IIS1ORICAL BRANCHMr. Henry I. Shaw, Jr.

Acting Deputy Director for l4istoty

Mr. Heruy 1. Shaw, Jr.Assistant Deputy Director for History/Chief Historian

Histo,ies Section: Mr. Jack Shulimarn; LrCoI Wayne A. Babb, USMC; trColCyril V Moyher, USMCR; Ma) Frank M. Baths. Jr., USMC; Mu) G. RossDunham, USMC; Mr. Charles R. Smith; Dr. V. Keith Fleming, Jr.

Reference Section: Ms. DsnnyJ. Crawford; Mr. Robert V. Aquilins, Mrs.Ann A. Ferranre; Miss knu M. Kaljot; Mrs. Regina Strother.

Oral History Section: Mr. Benis M. Frank.

Archives: Mis. Joyce E. Bonnett.

MUSEUMS BRANCHCol E B. Nihart, USMC (Ret)Deputy Director for Museums

Mr. Charles A. WoodChief Curator

Artist-in-ResidenceCol Charles H. Waterhouse, USMCR

Marine Bu,rackc Special Projects: Mr. Richard A. long. Material History:Mr. Kenneth L Smith-Christmas, Exl,ibits: Mr. Carl M. DeVere, Sr.; SSgtMichael V. Gsither. USMC; Mr. Benny L Lcnos, Sr. Ass: Mr. John T Oynr,Jr. Personal Rupees: McJ. Michael Miller. Registtw Mr. John H. McGsny III.

Museums Activities, QusnricoLrCol Rudy I Schwanda. USMC

Officer-in-Charge

Administration: Capt David C. Uh1e USMC. Ordnance: Ms. AnthonyW. lbmmell. Restoration: Mr. Joseph E. Payton. Aviation; Vacant. Exhibits:Mr. RonaldJ. Perltinc Unujbmw Mrs. Nancy F King. Secunly: GySgt StarlinW. Andrews, USMC

SUPPORr BRANCHMu) Danny 8. Smith, USMC

Head/Division Esecutive Officer

Adminirtmison: CWO2J. C Owens, USMC; Sgt Donald Jackson, USMCStonily: GySgt C. W. Viar, USMC. Library: Miss Evelyn A. Englander.

Publications Psvduction: Mr. Robert 8. Srruder. Pmakshow Mrs. CatherineA. Kerns. Graphicc Mr. William S. Hill. Typesetting: ICpl James W.Rodngsaez II, USMC.

Editor, FortitudineMs. Robert E. Srruder

2

Director's Page

Marines in Bronze

BGen Simmons

Some things, even seemingly simplethings, move slowly. Back in April

1984 it was suggested to the Commandantthat "Lebanon" be added as a battle honorto the Marine Corps War Memorial atArlington. It was also suggested that if itwere desired to dedicate the new battlehonor on the Marine Corps Birthday, 10November 1984, the time to begin actionwas then. Gen Kelley promptly approvedboth recommendations, but raised thequestion, "But what about Grenada?"

The original battle honors form a friezeat the top of the polished black granite

base. They are incised into the stone inclassic gold-leafed four-inch Roman letters.Whoever compiled that original list,sometime in the early 1950s, obviously in-tended the honors to be evocative andrepresentative, not all-inclusive. Originallythere were 37 "honors." Some are wars (asin the case of "Korea"), some are cam-paigns (for example, "Marianas Islands"),and some are individual battles (such as,"Peleliu").

The only addition to these originalhonors was more than ten years ago andthat came as the indirect result of a

presidential request. Late in the day on 25March 1974 we learned that President Nix-on wanted to observe Vietnam VeteransDay, 29 March, at the Marine Corps WarMemorial by unveiling something tangi-ble. That gave us 72 hours to get the jobdone. When it comes to chiseling thingsin stone not even the President of theUnited States can move bureaucraticWashington that fast. This answer,however, was not well received by theanonymous action officer in the WhiteHouse who told us that there would be abattle honor ready for the President even

The new "second frieze" on the Marine Corps IVar Memorial inArlington begins with "Lebanon 1958" and continues through

"Grenada 1983." The dates for Marine Corps involvement andassistance in the Vietnam W'ar are established as 1962-1975.

3

if it had to be a paper one taped to thegranite. Before we were reduced to that ex-tremity, President Nixon (or the anony-mous person who was speaking in hisname) changed his mind and the require-ment was lifted.

But wheels had been set rolling andeveryone involved at HQMC agreed

that "Vietnam" should be added to themonument. There were, however, certainproblems to be resolved as to how andwhere.

First, the Marine Corps War Memorialdoes not "belong" to the Marine Corps;it belongs tQ the National Park Service.The unofficial, non-profit Marine CorpsWar Memorial Foundation, which raisedthe funds ($850,000) to create the monu-ment, turned it over to the Departmentof the Interior for perpetual care. Any-thing the Marine Corps now does withrespect to the memorial, including hold-ing parades and ceremonies there, is withNational Park Service forbearance and ap-proval.

Second, federal funds can be used tomaintain a monument, but ordinarily notto create or embellish one. Fortunately, thecost of adding "Vietnam" was not verymuch. Harold C. Vogel, an architecturalsculptor who specializes in cutting inscrip-tions in stone, came in with a bid of $475and this amount was underwritten by theMarine Corps War Memorial Foundation,which was still in existence. Just the word"Vietnam," not the inclusive dates, was tobe incised. At that point in time we wer-en't certain that the Vietnam War wasover—and, as it turned out, it wasn't.

T here remained the problem of whereon the base the new battle honor

should go. The first frieze had closed onitself as part of the original design. Shoulda second frieze be started?

Dr. Felix de Weldon, the sculptor whocreated the monument, was called in forconsultation. To start another frieze, hesaid, would throw things out of balance.He recommended that a vertical panel bestarted at the head of the monument.

There was another nicety to be resolved:Should we use "Viet Nam," which is thecorrect Vietnamese spelling, or should weuse "Vietnam," which had come to be themost common American usage. Thisproblem was fortuitously solved when itwas found that the chosen location of thebattle honor straddled two slabs of stone

Battle Honors InscribedOn the Marine Corps

W7ar Memorial

Revolutionary War 1775-1783French Naval War 1798-1801Tripoli 1801-1805War of 1812-1815Florida Indian Wars 1835-1842Mexico 1846-1848War Between the States 1861-1865Spanish War 1898Philippine Insurrection 1898-1902Boxer Rebellion 1900Nicaragua 1912Vera Cruz 1914Haiti 1915-1934Santo Domingo 1916-1924World War I 1917-1918

Belleau WoodsSoissonsSt. MihielBlanc MontMeuse-Argonne

Nicaragua 1926-1933World War II

1941 Pearl HarborWake IslandBataan & Corregidor

1942 MidwayGuadalcanal

1943 New GeorgiaBougainvilleTarawaNew Britain

1944 Marshall IslandsMarianas IslandsPeleliu

1945 Iwo JimaOkinawa

Korea 1950Lebanon 1958Vietnam 1962-1975Dominican Republic 1965Lebanon 1981-1984Grenada 1983

so that it could be read as either"VIETNAM" or "VIETNAM."

Getting permission to cut the seven let-ters into the monument was then runthrough the bureaucratic wickets and thejob was done in time for dedication at the1974 Marine Corps Birthday observance.

A dding "Lebanon" would not prove tobe so simple. First, there was the

4

matter of costs including ten years of in-flation. Mr. Vogel, who had done "Viet-nam" for $475, said that "Lebanon" wouldbe $730. The Marine Corps War Memori-al Foundation was now moribund, but theMarine Corps Historical Foundationagreed to underwrite the costs on the ba-sis of Mr. Vogel's preliminary bid.

The request for permission to add just"Lebanon" to the monument went to theDirector of the National Capital Regionof the National Park Service in June 1984.The acting regional director gave his ap-proval, but advanced two suggestions: one,that "Lebanon" be placed in extension of"Vietnam" as the beginning of a secondfrieze, and two, that the inclusive dates forboth Vietnam and Lebanon be added.

We were not keen on either of the Na-tional Park Service's suggestions. Dr. DeWeldon reaffirmed his 1974 recommen-dation that subsequent additions be incolumn rather than constituting a secondband or frieze, and there were still am-biguities as to the beginning and enddates of the Vietnam War.

Among government agencies several setsof dates are used. The Veterans Adminis-tration brackets what it calls the "VietnamEra" with the dates 5 August 1964, mark-ing the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, and 7May 1975, the date of the PresidentialProclamation officially ending U.S. in-volvement in Vietnam. The GeneralCounsel of the Department of Defenseuses the years 1964-197 3, the ending datebeing the year of the Paris Peace Accords,the withdrawal of U. S. combat troops,and the ending of public funding of thewar.

Supplying dates for Lebanon also

presented problems. The dates "1958,198 1-84" would appear awkward, but theintervention of 15 July-18 October 1958had seen four times as many Marines inLebanon as we had in any of the Marineamphibious units ashore in 1981-1984.

W bile these matters were underdiscussion, the Commandant

decided on 20 September 1984 that"Grenada" should indeed be one of thenew honors. It immediately became ap-parent that if Grenada were added to thelist, so then must be the DominicanRepublic for the brigade-size interventionof 1965. The list that went forward to Mr.ManusJ. Fish, regional director of the Na-

tional Park Service, on 25 Septembertherefore asked for permission to addDominican Republic, Lebanon, andGrenada in column and without dates.Mr. Vogel came in with a fresh bid of$2,790 for these additions.

The answer came back from the Nation-al Park Service on 19 October, signed bythe acting regional director, Mr. Lowell V.Sturgell. "Since the authorizing legislationfor the memorial cited that the design ofthe memorial be approved by the Com-mission of Fine Arts," they had consultedwith the Commission. The Commissionconcluded "that the sequencial recorda-tion of Marine Corps actions be continuedin a second, new frieze, to the right ofVietnam" and "that the year(s) of each ac-tion should be determined and be en-graved after each action." What had beensuggestions had now become conditionsfor approval. If we wanted to add thehonors, we would have to accede.

We came up with the dates 1962-197 5for Vietnam, marking the beginning ofMarine Corps operational involvement(and first casualties) and the final evacua-tion (in which the Marines played a majorrole).

A ll of this, of course, raised the poten-tial price tag. The Marine Corps

Historical Foundation had agreed to fundthe first bid of $730, but now the estimat-ed cost was up to $5,400. In December theU.S. Naval Institute came in with a checkfor $1,000. The Marine Corps HistoricalFoundation matched it with a pledge of$1,000. In February the Marine Corps As-sociation informally promised to fund thebalance.

With these funds more-or-less in hand,we went forward once again to NationalCapital Parks seeking a construction per-mit. The permit came back with a furtherrecommendation that "Lebanon 1958" besplit apart from "Lebanon 1981-1984." Thisbrought the cost, after an on-site visit byMr. Vogel, up to $6;840.

Mr. Vogel executed the commission inOctober and the new honors were dulydedicated ("long overdue," said the Com-mandant in his remarks) at the MarineCorps Birthday ceremony on Friday, 8November. It was a bright and beautifulday marred only by a stream of jet trans-ports thundering off of National Airport.The new honors, incised in the stone andgold-leafed, read:

LEBANON 1958 * VIETNAM 1962-1975* DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 1965 *

LEBANON 1981-1984 * GRENADA 1983

Ten days after the dedication of these

5

honors on the Marine Corps War Memori-al there was a similar ceremony at Quan-tico. On Monday, 18 November, onanother bright and beautiful autumn day,the Leftwich Statue was dedicated at TheBasic School. The gestation period for theLeftwich Statue was even longer than thatof the War Memorial battle honors.

It began in the late summer or early fallof 1978 with an informal agreement

among Gen Wilson, who was then theCommandant; H. Ross Perot, the Texasindustrialist and philanthropist; and Dr.De Weldon, the prospective sculptor. Mr.Perot, an intensely patriotic American,wished to memorialize Marine Corpsleadership in the form of a suite of statuesmodeled on LtCol William G. Leftwichwho had been killed in a helicopter crashin Vietnam on 18 November 1970 whileserving as commanding officer of the 1stMarine Division's Reconnaissance Battal-ion. Bill had been at the Naval Academywith Ross Perot so his death had a specialsignificance for the Texan.

Bill was one of the bona fide heroes ofthe Vietnam War. In his first tour, in 1965,as an advisor to the Vietnamese MarineBrigade he had been awarded the NavyCross for carrying on after being badlywounded in the battle to relieve the ob-

Vietnam War reconnaissance battalion commander LtCol JVil-ham G. Leftwich, Jr., is the subject of the statue created by the

sculptor of the Iwo Jima Memorial and dedicated on 18 Novem-ber at the Headquarters of The Basic School at Quantico.

scure village of Hoia An. Before his nextVietnamese tour he served as an instruc-tor at The Basic School and as the MarineCorps aide to the Under Secretary of theNavy. He went back to Vietnam in 1970,first to command the 2d Battalion, 1st Ma-rines, and then to command the Recon-naissance Battalion. He was serving assenior extract officer at the time of hisdeath, following the battalion traditionthat the commanding officer be presentat the emergency extraction of an endan-gered reconnaissance team.

Mr. Perot's formal offer came to GenWilson on 31 October 1978. There was tobe a bronze outdoor statue, approximatelyeight feet tall and mounted on a four-footgranite base, and there were to be 25miniature bronze copies of the statue,about 18 inches high. One of thestatuettes was to be awarded each year tothe captain judged to be the most out-standing ground officer in the Fleet Ma-rine Force. More statuettes were to be castat the end of the first 25 years so that theLeftwich Trophy could be continued.

W. Graham Claytor, then the Secretaryof the Navy, authorized acceptance of thegift on 5 December 1978, saying that itwould "be beneficial to the Marine Corpsas a source of inspiration and motivationto young Marine officers in the future."Gen Wilson concurred in the recommen-dation of LtGenJohn H. Miller, then thecommanding officer of the Marine CorpsDevelopment and Education Command,that the major statue be placed in frontof Heywood Hall, the headquarters build-ing at The Basic School.

A bout this time Gen Wilson directedme to assist Dr. De Weldon in all

appropriate ways. (As a coincidence, GenWilson, as a major serving at Marine Bar-racks, Washington, at the end of WorldWar II, had assisted Dr. De Weldon in asomewhat similar fashion during thesculpting of the Iwo Jima flag-raisers.) Ihad known Bill Leftwich well and, in fact,was the assistant division commander ofthe 1st Marine Division at the time of hisdeath.

Bill's widow, Mrs. Jane Michael, sup-plied a number of photographs showingBill in his Southeast Asia camouflage util-ities. His medical records indicated that.he had been 71 inches in height, of medi-um build, and weighed 180 pounds.

There was also a marked scar on his facefrom his wounds. I decided that GySgtWilliam K. Judge, Jr., then serving withthe History and Museums Division, wouldmake an excellent model. Judge, himselfa Vietnam veteran, was then 29 years old,72 inches tall, and weighed 175 pounds.It was my responsibility to see to it thathe was correctly uniformed and ac-

coutered.

In May 1979 it was announced thatCapt Clyde S. Brinkley, training officer ofthe 2d Marines, 2d Marine Division,would be the first recipient of the I.eftwichTrophy. The award was to be made at thecommissioning ceremony of the USS Left-wich in August at Pascagoula, Mississip-pi. The statuette had not yet beenreceived. About this time I got a proddingfrom both Gen Wilson and Mr. Perot tohurry things along.

I visited Dr. De Weldon at his Washing-ton studio on 19 June, viewed the claymodel of the statuette, and gained his as-surances that one of the small statueswould be ready for presentation at the 25August commissioning of the Leftwich, aSpruance-class destroyer.

T he statuette was indeed completed intime for Capt Brinkley to receive it

at the ceremony which was attended byMr. Perot and Dr. De Weldon as well asmembers of the Leftwich family. By thenGen Barrow had succeeded Gen Wilsonas Commandant. Gen Barrow wasrepresented at the Leftwich commission-ing by LtGen EdwardJ. Bronars, then theDeputy Chief of Staff for Manpower.

As yet there was no formal contract be-tween Mr. Perot and Dr. De Weldon forthe statuary. In September, Mr. Perotasked that the Marine Corps HistoricalFoundation act as the recipient of fundsfrom the Perot Foundation and in turnmake the disbursements to Dr. De Wel-don. Several months of negotiation fol-lowed and on 3 January 1980, Dr. DeWeldon and I, in my capacity as vice presi-dent of the Foundation, signed memoran-dums of agreement for the completion ofboth the Leftwich statue and the Leftwichtrophies.

InJune 1980, Dr. De Weldon delivered12 more statuettes, leaving 12 more to becast. One of these statuettes was exhibit-ed in the Headquarters, Marine Corps,lobby. Three others were sent to Quanti-

6

co for display at the schools to dramatizethe award. Another was placed in the Ma-rine Corps Museum in Washington. Theremaining 12 statuettes were delivered inMay 1981. Those statuettes not yet award-ed or not on display are held in stock atthe Marine Corps Historical Center.

Qn a Monday in June 1981, Dr.De Weldon showed me the clay

model of the full-sized statue at hisWashington studio, a great red brick 19thCentury barn of a place in NortheastWashington. At that point he was notquite satisfied with the modeling of theface.

It was hoped that the statue would becompleted and in place in time for dedi-cation during the Major GeneralJohn Rus-sell Leadership Conference which wasscheduled for the first week of May 1982,During the winter of 1981-82 Dr. De Wel-don was very much involved in the move-ment of the original plaster mold of theMarine Corps War Memorial "Iwo Jima"statue to the Marine Military Academy atHarlingen, Texas, and its conversion to apermanent statue. ("Dr. De Weldon's IwoJima Statues," Fortitudine, Fall 1981)

In February 1982 I again visited with Dr.De Weldon at his Washington studio.More work needed to be done to the pistolholster and pistol grip and to the M-16 ri-fle held in the figure's outstretched hand.

Dr. De Weldon came back from Texasagain briefly in March specifically to workon the Leftwich statue which he consi-dered his second highest priority, thehighest priority being the completion ofthe Texas Iwo Jima Memorial. Fourteenother commissions trailed somewhere be-hind these two. He advised me that hewould have the modelling completedshortly but that there was no way that thestatue could be cast to his satisfaction intime for unveiling at the Russell Con-ference.

It was hoped that the statue could bein place for the Marine Corps Birthday on10 November 1982. This did not comeabout nor was it ready in time for the 1983Russell Conference. However, Dr. De Wel-don in his courtly manner called on mein June 1983 to inform me that the full-size clay model was completed and readyfor inspection. We went together to thestudio and indeed the remaining detailhad been accurately and carefully sculpt-

earlier, on a bright and sunny Mondaymorning, 18 November -- the 15th an-niversary of the date of Bill's death. Thestatue was flanked by a platoon of BasicSchool second lieutenants on one side anda platoon of enlisted Marine instructors onthe other. They were in camouflage fielduniform. The Quantico Marine Bandplayed. LtGen David M. Twomey, Com-manding General, Marine Corps Develop-ment and Education Command, presided.

There were remarks by Col Peter J.Rowe, Commanding Officer, The BasicSchool, and Mr. Perot, who said, "All ofus who knew him, liked him. He was thekind of man we all wanted to be."

Then Jane and her two sons, Capt Wil-liam G. Leftwich III, USMC, and Lt ScottF. Leftwich, USN, unveiled the bronzemarker in front of the statue. It reads:

William Groom Leftwich, Jr.Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Marine Corps

Born Memphis, Tennessee, 28 April 1931Graduated U.S. Naval Academy, 5 June 1953Killed in Action, Vietnam, 18 November 1970

Remembered for his leadership, TacticalSkill, Bold Fighting Spirit, and Unflagging

The Leftwich Statue memorializes Marine Corps leadership as exemplified by LtCol Devotion to Duty.

Leftwich's "tactical skill, bold fighting spirit, and unflagging devotion to duty." Eli 7.75L1

ed. He also showed me the granite boul-ders that were intended for the base of thestatue.

N ot much happened for the next sixmonths. Mr. Perot wanted to be cer-

tain that the statue met the approval ofBill's widow, Mrs. Jane Leftwich Michael,and his mother, Mrs. William G. Leftwich,Sr., of Memphis, Tennessee. Jane; Mrs.Leftwich; Jane's second husband, ColRichard L. Michael (who, sadly, has sincedied); myself; and some others met withDr. De Weldon at his cold and drafty stu-dio the morning of 2 January 1984. Janeand Mrs. Lefrwich pronounced themselveswell pleased with the statue. The remain-ing steps to be accomplished were largelymechanical and would involve making aplaster cast, then a mold, and then abronze casting. Dr. De Weldon estimat-ed that this could be done within sixmonths.

It did not go quite that quickly. All,however, was accomplished, including theconstruction of the foundation and baseat the location in front of Heywood Halland the installation of the 1,800-poundstatue itself, by late summer 1985.

The dedication took place, as I said

____________________

7

Historical Quiz:Quotes By, About, and For Marines

by Reference Section, Marine Corps Historical Center

Identify the authors of the following quotes:1. "Casualties many; Percentage of dead not known; Combat efficiency: we are

winning."

2. "The bended knee is not a tradition of our Corps."

3. "If the Battle of Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Eton, the Japanesebases in the Pacific were captured on the beaches of the Caribbean."

4. "You don't hurt 'em if you don't hit 'em."

5. "Being ready is not what matters. What matters is winning after you getthere."

6. "The raising of that flag on Suribachi means a Marine Corps for the next500 years."

7. "A ship without Marines is like a garment without buttons."

8. "Come on, you sons of bitches—do you want to live forever?"

9. "The Marine Corps is the Navy's police force and as long as I am Presidentthat is what it will remain. They have a propaganda machine that is almost equalto Stalin's."

10. "I have just returned from visiting the Marines at the front and there is nota finer fighting organization in the world."

Answers on page 23)

ReadersAlwaysWriteFORTITUDINE OR FISH HOUSE

I collect recipes for Fish House Punch andhave them from all over the U.S. and otherEnglish-speaking countries. I collect theserecipes (usually in print) because they arealmost always very wrong— Fortitudine is noexception [Fortitudine, Fall 1985].

The Schuylkill Fishing Company (propercorporate name), commonly known as TheFish House, most certainly invented FishHouse Punch.

Maj Samuel Nicholas was, indeed, amember of the Company—No. 102— [he]became a member in 1760 [and] Captainof Marines in 1776. I fear that somethinghappened to instructions from the Captain(the addition of Champagne or even sodaand gingerale is a travesty).

Perhaps you might wish to [try "proper"Fish House Punch:

1 fifth golden rum1 fifth brandy (any brand like

Cognac)1 dozen lemons (fresh)1 dozen limes (fresh)16 ounces melted sugar (12

ounces=tart; 16 ounces=sweet)3 ounces apricot brandy (gilding

the lily)

Pour contents into punch bowlover block of ice; pour over icefrom time to time with ladle. Addone quart of water if you are im-bibing before steeping one hour.

Cheers!L. Rodman Page

Radnor, Pennsylvania

EDITOR'S NOTE. The originator of Forti-tudine Punch protests that he never claimedit was Fish House Punch, but a derivativeof an old receipt for the same that includ-ed Champagne. This inclusion is indeed atravesty, but the club soda and gingera/e areaddedfor the same reason Adm "Old Grog"Vernon watered the rum — to prevent exces-sive drunkenness in the crew. The frozenlemonade is used as a 'Ield expedient,"while the brandy is omitted as an unneces-sary expense and a dangerous mixing ofspirits.

EMINENT HISTORIANS

On page 7 [Fortitudine, Fall 1985, "TheBattles of Craney Island and Hampton"] youmention Charles Napier (whose biographyI included in Eminent Victorian Soldiers),who did, as you say, go on to become ageneral, but not "a distinguished militaryhistorian." That was his brother William.There were so many Napiers who were sold-iers and sailors in the last century that it iseasy enough to confuse them.

Byron FarwellHillsboro, Virginia

EDITOR'S NOTE: The eminent historianand biographer of eminent Victorian soldi-ers has caught us up. Sir Charlesj Napier(1 782-1853) and Sir W7ilhiam F P Napier(1785-1860) were the sons of Col GeorgeNapier (1751-1804) who saw service in theAmerican Revolution and later headed uprvoolwich laboratory. He wrote a treatise ongunpowder. There were two other distin-guished sons: Sir George T Napier(1784-1855), who also became a genera/andwho published an account of his early lfeand Henry E. Napier (1789-1853), whoreached the rank of captain in the RoyalNavy and who published a history of Flor-ence. Sir Charles, who commanded theLight Brigade at Hampton, made hisgreatest mark as the conqueror of Sind andalleged maker of the famous latin pun, Pec-cavi ("I have sinned'2. He wrote extensive-ly on military and political subjects, but theappellation "distinguished military histori-an" indisputably applies to Sir W"illiam iffor no other reason than his great Historyof the Peninsular War George, William,and Charles al/served under Sir John Moorein Portugal and Spain. LtGen Sir Char/esJ. Napier is not, however to be confusedwith cousin Adm Sir Charles Napier(1 786-1860) who came to America, not in1813, but in the following year as a captainin the Chesapeake naval campaign of 1814.All clear now?

LEADER OF THE ATI4CKI read "The Battles of Craney Island and

Hampton" [Fortitudine, Fall 1985] withgreat interest and found it complementaryto my own account in the biography of AdmSir George Cockburn. The only discrepan-cy that I could find was that Capt Pechellof the San Domingo (Adm Warren's flag-ship), led the sea attack on Craney Islandand not Cockburn. Warren had only just

8

arrived from Bermuda with the main fleetand the troops under Beckwith and madea bad mistake in denying Cockburn whohad already carried out a detailed reconnais-sance. My book contains the following com-ment: 'Warren, in favouring his own captainwith command, had erred badly on this, thefirst occasion when an expeditionary forcemight have made a real impact on thecourse of this unfortunate war." Warren triedto make amends by giving Cockburn com-mand against Hampton and Cockburnplayed his part — as usual —with completesuccess. A court of enquiry held subsequent-ly, investigated the disgraceful conduct ofthe French Chasseurs who were never em-ployed again.

Capt A. J. Pack, RN (Rtd)Wickham, Hampshire

United Kingdom

EDITOR'S NOTE: Capt Pack biography ofAdm Cockburn is scheduled to be pub-lished in Britain in spring 1986; hopefullythere will be an American edition.

W7ORTH THE PRICE

I have just read your article ...["Fourat Center Recall 1945 Landing in NorthChina," Fortitudine, Fall 1985] andalthough it did not tell me much that wasnew. . . the pictures of the youthful Shaw,Simmons, and Frank were worth the priceof admission.

Richard W. LeopoldDepartment of History

Northwestern University

ARRAY OF SOURCES

The Fall 1985 Fortitudine contains amention that the MCHF has approved afellowship grant to Mr. David MacGregor

in connection with a dissertationprimarily focusing on the interwar de-velopments in amphibious warfare. I amwriting to call to the attention of theMCHF and of Mr. MacGregor the exis-tence of a relevant M.A. thesis . . . by a

former USMC junior officer, Mr. FrankJ.Infusino, titled "The United States MarineCorps and War Planning, 1900-1941" (SanDiego State University, 1973). We con-tributed a copy . . . to the Marine CorpsHistorical Center. It would be very help-ful to Mr. MacGregor . . . and ought tobe included in his array of sources.

Alvin D. CooxDepartment of History

San Diego State University

Account of Chaplains' Service in Vietnam Off the Presses

by Henry I. Shaw, JrChief Historian

T he first "functional" history in theHistory and Museums Division's ser-

ies of official studies of the Vietnam War,Chaplains with Marines in Vietnam,1962-1971, has just been printed by theGovernment Printing Office.

In the same format as volumes in thechronological, operational series, US. Ma-rines in Vietnam, the new history has oneappearance innovation—it is the first ofthe Division's publications ever to have adust jacket on the hardbound edition. Thehandsome jacket is essentially a copy of thesoftbound edition cover, which features aphotograph of Chaplain (LCdr) FrederickE. Whitaker, ChC, USN, conducting serv-ices for men of Company M, 3d Battalion,4th Marines on a ridgeline north of theRockpile, near the Demilitarized Zone.

The history is a joint venture of theChaplain Corps and the Division. In 1977,the Director, BGen Edwin H. Simmons,USMC (Ret), and the then-Chief ofChaplains, RAdmJohnJ. O'Connor, ChC,USN, agreed that a history of the ex-periences of chaplains working with Ma-rines in Vietnam was needed and that theChaplain Corps would provide the authorand the Division would provide the neces-sary editorial, administrative, and produc-tion support.

C haplain (Cdr) Herbert L. Bergsma,ChC, USN, a Christian Reformed

Church minister, reported on board withthe Historical Branch in time to partici-pate in the move from the Navy Annexto the Historical Center at the Washing-ton Navy Yard. Chaplain Bergsma, agraduate of his church's Calvin Collegeand Calvin Theological Seminary inGrand Rapids, Michigan, who later ob-tained a master of theology degree atPrinceton Theological Seminary, hadserved two tours in Vietnam with NavalMobile Construction Battalion 74 support-ing the III Marine Amphibious Corps.Other subsequent tours of duty includedtwo with Marines, at the Marine Corps AirStation at Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, and at

the Marine Corps Development and Edu-cation Command at Quantico.

With his Seabee and Marine back-ground, as well as Navy service at Mare Is-land shipyard and with destroyers,Chaplain Bergsma fitted in well as an ac-tive member of the Histories Section. Hecompleted his assigned task, a polishedfirst draft, on schedule and went on asHead, Chaplain Corps History Project in1978-80 to be a co-author of another offi-cial Chaplain Corps history, Chaplainswith US. Naval Units in Vietnam.

T he Marine Corps history was exten-sively reviewed by chaplains who had

served Marine units in Vietnam andChaplain Bergsma considered and incor-porated their comments where appropri-ate. Basically, however, the suggestedcorrections and additions were not exten-sive since the basic source material of thehistory was chaplains' end-of-tour reportsand contemporary letters and accounts ofchaplains' services. One of the appendicesof the history is a roster of all Navychaplains who served in Vietnam from1962-197 2, a listing of hundreds of names,dates, and units on which considerable ef-fort was expended. Hopefully, few errorsof omission or commission will be noted.

The book is most unusual for a MarineCorps history in that it does not providean operational account of the fighting —nor was it ever intended to do so. Withinthe general chronological framework ofevents that took place in I Corps, ChaplainBergsma has written about what it was liketo be a chaplain in intense combat, in thefield, at the aid stations and hospitals, andin base areas. He attempted, in his ownwords, "to show the texture of thechaplains' contributions to the Marines;their sense of fulfillment in their calling,the personal and often emotional invest-ment in their people, and the broad fabricof the clergyman in uniform."

The Chaplain Corps has undertaken toplace a copy of the book in the hands of

9

every active-duty chaplain in the Navy.The History and Museums Division willmake a distribution to major Marine Corpscommands, to all those who commentedon the draft history, and to its standardlist of civilian and service libraries and in-stitutions for record purposes.

T he history, which is written with con-siderable sensitivity and insight,

should have a good reception from the re-ligious press, and review copies will beprovided to periodicals of denominationsthat provide chaplains to the Navy.Chaplain Bergsma, now a Navy captain,is back once again with Marines as brigadechaplain at Kaneohe Bay after a tour asbase chaplain at Camp Pendleton.

Marine Corps activities may requisitioncopies of the softbound history throughregular publication supply channels atMCSA, Albany, Georgia. Institutionallibraries may obtain copies of the hard-bound edition on request to the Historyand Museums Division. Eli 775L1

Dust jacket on the first Division publica-tion to have one features a photo ofChaplain (.LCdr) Frederick E. WhitakeUSN conducting services for men of the 4thMarines near the Demilitarized Zone.

Acquisitions

'We Looked Like Cowboys,' Flight Gear Donor Saysby John H. McGarry, III

Registrar

t was just like cowboys and Indians."That is how Mr. Joseph Schvimmer

described the early days of Marine Compo-site Reconnaissance Squadron-i (VMCJ-1) atDa Nang airfield.

VMCJ.1 was described as the "eyes andears" of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing (1stMAW). In April of 1965, the squadron, fly-ing the camera-fitted RF-8 Crusader, was

deployed to Da Nang airfield, in theRepublic of South Vietnam. It was amongthe first Marine Corps air units to arrive "incountly' and was responsbile for flying pho-tographic reconnaissance missions, many inthe Red River Valley of North Vietnam.

Upon arrival in Da Nang they were sup-plied with material from the available 1stMAW mount-out supplies. Much of thematerial was World War II vintage, and bad-

ly deteriorated.

"When we opened the boxes, we found

Pistol-p ackin' Marine wore holster obtainedfrom local sources when supplies failed

most of the equipment was rotten," Mr.Schvimmer continues. "We were forced toscrounge around for our own." The DaNang airfield was briefly overrun by VietCong "sappers" during an attack on 30 June1965. As a result, the men of VMCJ.1sought out locally made holsters to carrypersonal sidearms.

"We all wore wide leather belts with hol-sters, worn low on the hip. We looked likecowboys and Indians," he remembered.These critically necessary but obviously un-official items of 782 gear would bring thewrath of then-LtGen Victor Krulak duringan inspection. "Even after being chewed outafter the inspection, we continued to wearthem because it was all we had."

The survival vest worn by Mr. Schvimmer,now a resident of Reston, Virginia, still con-tains all the issue items. The shroud knife,flare gun, survival pouches, and his kabarknife are all attached just as he wore themduring missions.

T he materials donated by Mr. Schvim-mer are welcome additions to the col-

lection for important reasons: the piecesheld from the Vietnam era are still few andthose on hand often are unaccompanied byuseful background information; donationssuch as Mr. Schvimmer's allow the curatori-al staff to fully document items used by aparticular unit at a specific time and place.

The documentation provided with theVMCJ-1 artides allows historians to study theintricate ways military men deal withunplanned-for situations—even to the pointof appearing to be "a bunch of cowboys andIndians." E1775E

Complete outfit of Vietnam-era fiz,ght gearwas a part of Mi Schvimmer's donation.

In 1965 Mr. Schvimmer was a captainwith VMCJ-1 serving the first of two

tours of duty in Vietnam. During a recentvisit to the Museum, he donated a vast col-lection of equipment and material to thecollection. Among the items presented wasa complete outfit of flight equipment. In-cluded were flight suit, pressure suit, hel-met, and survival vest.

Many of the items donated by Mr.Schvimmer looked like regulation issue, butwere made up by local tailors to fit theneeds of resupply. These include a varietyof headgear, induding one utility cap madefrom a World War II camouflage poncho.Another interesting item is a vest he hadmade to carry shotgun shells. This was wornwhen Mr. Schvimmer was responsible forcarrying out ground defense duty.

10

Note: If you are a Vietnam-era Ma-rine veteran, the items of uniform orequipment still in your possessionwhich you used, carried, or were is-sued while in the Republic of SouthVietnam are sought as donations tothe Marine Corps Museum. Photo-graphs and written memoirs of theperiod are also desired. Please contactthe Museum Registrar for additionalinformation.

Museum's Marine Artifacts 'Star' in New Video Series

by Kenneth L. Smith- ChristmasCurator of Material Histoiy

T he Museum deck of the HistoricalCenter resembled a Hollywood film

studio during the second week of Septem-ber, when a film production company,Cinemagraphics, Inc., set up its videocameras and lights. The company was con-tracted by the American Forces Informa-tion Service to produce a series ofcommercial "spots" for each branch ofService in the Department of Defense,featuring a panoply of historical art, ar-tifacts, and photographs. The spots areaimed at promoting pride in enlisted menand women serving overseas through therecounting of U.S. military history.

Over 18 months ago, a meeting was heldby AFIS to lay the groundwork for this

Cinemagraphics, Inc., production assistantRebecca Crawford advises Curator Smith-Christmas on arranging an M1912 uniform.

project. All of the Services sent represen-tatives who suggested topics for the spotsand then provided research material forcandidate production companies to use fortheir submissions. Once the productioncompany was selected, final researchmaterials were made available for thescripts and a suggested list of "visuals" wasprepared.

The recently produced uniform plates,US. Marine Corps Uniforms, 1983, by MajDonnaJ. Neary, USMCR, were selected asthe basis for the Marine Corps' four spots.They centered on the green service uni-form, the enlisted dress blue uniform, en-listed chevrons, and the development ofthe eagle, globe, and anchor emblem. Awide range of items were gathered fromnearly all of the Historical Center's collec-tions to support the scripts.

Many of the large portraits and oilstudies for recruiting posters were

dismounted from the walls in the upperdecks of the Center, while other works ofart were brought up from our art storageareas. The staff at Museums Branch Ac-tivities in Quantico assisted in the carefulselection of more than 20 candidate uni-forms and sent these, along with our en-tire chevron collection, to the Navy Yard.One after another, the exhibit cases in theTime Tunnel were opened and selected ar-tifacts were removed for photographing.Marines currently assigned to the Centerloaned articles of current uniforms, sincethese do not yet appear in the collections.The Marine Corps Exchange also loanedseveral chevrons that we needed to showall current enlisted insignia.

For three days, artifacts and art werelined up in the Museum, awaiting theirturn under the bright lights set up in atemporary studio made from the Muse-um's mini-theater. Museum visitors had towend their way through the cluster ofproduction staff and museum staff toreach the beginning of the Time Tunnel.In addition to the dozen or more peoplein this area, was a maze of lights and

11

equipment crisscrossed throughout withcables and wires. Most visitors were notgreatly inconvenienced, and were interest-ed in the proceedings, often stopping towatch the filming of an artifact from arespectful distance.

A fter the Marine Corps items werephotographed, we allowed the

production company to use the studio tofilm some artifacts borrowed from a localmilitaria dealer for several of the U.S. Ar-my's spots. When the company packed upits gear and the producer and directormade their farewells, a total of 160-plusitems had been filmed in color.

It is expected that more spots of thiskind will be used on Armed Forces Tele-vision overseas, and that more of our ex-tensive reserve artifact collection will beput to use to illustrate the scripts on fu-ture commercials. Eli 775E1

A ' 'half mannequin" is removed from thetemporaly studio set up in the Museum.

Units to Get Prints of Marines' 'Frigate Navy' Exploitsby Charles R. Smith

Historical rvriter

O n the afternoon of 3 August 1804,a small American squadron of brigs

and schooners led by the frigate Constitu-tion, under the command of Navy Capt Ed-ward Preble, launched the first of a seriesof five attacks against the North African portof Tripoli. On board the flagship, while sea-men on the gun deck fired broadside afterdevastating broadside into the town, Ma-rines under Capt John Hall and Lt RobertGreenleaf Ith their normal battle stationsin the fighting tops to man the long24-pounders on the spar deck. Stripped ofcoats and muskets, Marines readied the sixlong guns for another shot as the frigatetacked into position.

"Marines at the Great Guns" is the fourthin a set of 14 full-color prints, Marines inthe Frigate Navy, soon to be made availa-ble by the History and Museums Division

for Corps-wide distribution. Reproducedfrom original paintings by noted MarineCorps artist, Col Charles H. Waterhouse,USMCR, the prints, accompanied by abooklet containing descriptive essays andmaps, illustrate significant events in MarineCorps history from 1798 to 1835, a periodof growth for the Corps and the nation.

Pushed into an undeclared war withFrance in 1798, America had little choicebut to build a navy. As in 1775, Congressconsidered Marines on board ship an essen-tial component of any such force and fol-lowed the legislation founding the Navywith an act organizing a Marine Corps. TheUnited States Marine Corps, as we know it,was thus born on 11 July 1798. Withinmonths of authorization, Marine detach-ments were organized and assigned to thevarious ships being readied for sea.

12

The series of prints begins as "CaptainCarmick Joins the Constitution" in early July1799 at Boston. Alighting from the coachthat had carried him from Newport, RhodeIsland, the Marine captain arrives to takecommand of the frigate's poorly clothed andequipped Marine detachment. Within aweek the frigate was at sea, and by thespring of the following year, after monthsof training on board ship, Carmick's Marineslanded and captured the shore battery atPuerto Plata, Santo Domingo, after cuttingout the French privateer Sandwich in theharbor, the subject of the second print.

No longer satisfied with temporaiy quar-ters, LtCol Comdt William Ward Burrows,in another print, rides with President Tho-mas Jefferson through a still bucolicWashington, D.C., to select a site for thepermanent Marine Barracks. The site at"Eighth and I," near the Navy Yard andwithin easy marching distance of theCapitol, was eventually selected.

T he renewal of the Barbary Wars in 1801resulted in orders to the Mediterrane-

an Squadron for many Marines, where theyfought alongside sailors at ships' great guns.In 1805, near the war's end, Marine Ii Pres-ley N. O'Bannon, with six privates, and amotley force of Arabs and Greeks, marched500 miles across the Libyan desert fromAlexandria, Egypt. In the print, "The As-sault on Derna," the Marines, armed withcutlasses and rifles, led a charge through thetown, eventually capturing its fort and rais-ing the American flag for the first time overOld World territory.

From 1806 to 1811, Marines served withsmall detachments scattered throughout theworld on board ship at naval yards, andlanded on distant shores to defend Ameri-can diplomatic missions and endangeredcitizens. The fall of 1812 witnessed the par-ticipation of a Marine detachment in the ill-fated expediton to annex Florida. The"Swamp Ambush" print recounts the lossof Capt John Williams and a number ofMarines in a Seminole Indian raid amongthe cypress bogs and palmetto thickets nearSt. Augustine, which spelled an end to theexpedition.

In the second war with England, priority

Study for W7aterhouse 'c "The Repulse of the H:hlanders" was made by piecing togethersketches of individual Marines and soldiers and resulted in the print which deals withthe defeat at New Orleans of British hopes for control of the Mississippi River valley.Each print in the set is described in the pages of an accompanying explanatory booklet.

was given to providing Marines for ship'sdetachments of the blue-water Navy. TheseMarines fought gallantly alongside theirNavy brethren in all major sea battles andshared in the heroic exploits of such shipsas the Essex and her Pacific cruise, duringwhich Marine LtJohn M. Gamble was givencommand of the island of Nukuhiva. Ma-rines were also provided for the equally crit-ical Great Lakes squadrons, where they notonly fought, but also assisted in the con-struction of ships and strategic military in-stallations such as those at Sackets Harbor,New York. Company-size Marine unitsfought heroically, in a vain effort to forestallthe British capture of the nation's capital,as shown in "The Final Stand at Bladens-burg," and at New Orleans in "The Repulseof the Highlanders," where they joinedtroops under Army Gen AndrewJackson onthe fields of Chalmette to halt an attack onthe city, and dashing British hopes of gain-ing control of the Mississippi Valley.

[) uring the next 20 years, the Corps,under the able leadership of LtCol

Comdt Archibald Henderson, established

Col Waterhouse, right, poses at the FlowerMemonzlLibraiy in Watertown, New York,with Jeff Hall, in 1812 Marine uniform, ofthe Sackets Harbor Battlefield State Park.They participated in the opening of the"Marines in Frigate Navy" exhibit at thelibraty in June, along with a color guardformed by local Marine recruiters.

13

its place within the American military sys-tem by "showing the flag" in a numberof punitive actions against pirates andhostile governments, from the illustrated"Foray into Fajardo Bay, Puerto Rico," to"The Storming of Quallah Battoo,Sumatra." In 1835, a green-and-white uni-form derived from the Continental Ma-rines regimental uniform, worn during theRevolutionary War, was decreed. Thechange in uniform however did not signala change in the Corps, for it continued togrow and demonstrate its efficiency, dis-cipline, and usefulness on the ships andshore stations of the Navy.

Since the opening exhibit on 11 July1983 at the Marine Corps Museum (see

Fortitudine, Summer 1983), the originalpaintings have been shown at the UnitedStates Naval Academy, and at museums andgalleries in Philadelphia, Boston, and Sack-ets Harbor. Soon available for wider distri-bution, the prints are intended to be madeaccessible for viewing by Marines in orderthat they gain a greater understanding ofthe events, arms, dress, and accoutrementsof the Corps during this period.L11775E

Waterhouse Paint Brush Is Poised to Fill Gaps in Collectionby Col Brooke Nihart

Deputy Director for Museums

hat have you done for uslately?" is a refrain Col

Charles Waterhouse hears after complet-ing each historical art project. With "Ma-rines in the Frigate Navy" acclaimed atfive different East Coast showings andreproduced as a set of prints, this ques-tion was again posed to our artist-in-residence.

making use of Commandants' portraitsand historical art. Suitable reproductionsof the portraits in the Commandant'sHouse were easily made, but there weresignificant gaps in art illustrating historicevents. The solution—draw up a list ofthe gapped events, research each, andhave Col Waterhouse paint them.

mo Bay in 1898, and the defense of thePeking Legations in 1900.

"Marines and Manifest Destiny" wasproposed as a theme which would showthe Marine Corps from 1835 to the CivilWar. Included would be Mexican Warevents on the Gulf Coast, Marines withPerry in Japan, and the capture of JohnBrown at Harpers Ferry, as Marines helpedsupport our national interests.

T he first year's list is in. RegistrarJohnH. McGarry, an authority on the

Civil War period, researched thoroughlythe events, personalities, and graphicresources available on the Marines' cap-ture of John Brown at Harpers Ferry. ColWaterhouse already is well along with hispainting of the event.

T his completes the first year's ef-

fort. In the second year, Col Water-house will paint Marines in the Philip-pines, 1899-1902; in Panama, 1903; withthe Great White Fleet, 1907; in the Ad-vance Base Force, Culebra, 1913; and atVeracruz, 1914.

If the project continues beyond a se-cond year, the Mexican War will be com-pleted, and the Banana Wars, China ofthe 'teens to thirties, and World War I il-lustrated.

Coupled with past works by Water-house on World War II and Vietnam, hispast series, "Marines in the Revolution,""Marines in the Conquest of California,"and "Marines in the Frigate Navy," theCorps would then possess a comprehen-sive and coherent history in art that wouldgo beyond past short series by Marine ar-tists John J. Capolino, Donald L. Dick-son, John Clymer, and Tom Lovell.

H igher authority intervened,however, mandating a Marine

Corps passageway in the Pentagon'sSecretary of the Navy's country. The his-tory of the Corps was to be presented inthe 7th Corridor, on the fourth deck,

The assault on Fort Fisher in 1864 willbe next, with Material History CuratorKenneth L. Smith-Christmas' researchcomplete. Following at two-month inter-vals will be Marines with Perry in Japan,the 1885 intervention in Panama, the sei-zure of an advanced base at Guantana-

Museum Reunites Okinawa Battle Flag with Survivorsby John H. McGarry, III

Registrar

T he fortieth anniversary of the Battlefor Okinawa was similar to many of

the reunions held throughout the worldin the past twelve months, bringingtogether veterans long since separated.The Okinawa plus 40 reunion was unusualhowever, in reuniting a Marine veteran anda flag.

In the early morning hours of 1 April1945, VAdm Richard K. Turner, USN, sentthe message to "Land the landing force."These words set in motion the commit-ment of more than one-half million men.Before the campaign was over and the is-land secure, some of the most bitter com-bat of the war would be experienced.Fierce cave fighting, Kamikaze attacks,and an unrelenting philosophy of defensewould cost the American forces 50,000casualties, including 12,500 killed.

One of the units to land on that Eastermorning was the 2d Battalion of the 22dMarines, 6th Marine Division. The unitcarried with it a 48-star American flagwhich had been given to the men of theunit just hours before the invasion by thebattalion commander, LtCol Horatio C.Woodhouse, USMC. He instructed themen to raise the flag as a symbol "be-

Cpl (now MajGen) James L. Day wears theBronze Star and Purple Heart he receivedfrom Okinawa combat dz#ing April 1945.

tokening the advance of freedom." One ofthe men of the battalion's weapons com-pany was newly promoted Cpl James L.Day.

Landing ashore with little resistance,the 6th Marine Division quickly

moved inland and captured the Yontanairfield by midday. It continued movingunaware of the Japanese plan to allow theinvasion forces to be lured into the centerof the island before counterattacking.Swinging to the north, the 2d Battalionmoved on. On 19 April, the unit hadreached the northernmost tip of the is-land, and proudly raised its flag. Japaneseresistance in the south quickly created theneed for LtCol Woodhouse and his mento wheel and move to provide support forthe advance in that direction.

By 14 May the 2d Battalion had drivensouth to face a rectangular hill that wouldbe nicknamed "Sugarloaf." A dense sys-tem of interlockingJapanese defenses tem-porarily halted the American drive. Thefierce fighting would cause mountingcasualties for the 2d Battalion. Typical ofthe hardhitting Marine offense, and therising number of wounded, was Cpl Day.Wounded by white phosphorous, he•would receive the Bronze Star for"meritorious action." Eventually the unitpushed past the troublesome hill, and by30 May had reached Naha City. It was herethat a sniper's bullet would kill LtColWoodhouse. Advancing against unremit-ting opposition, the unit reached thesouthernmost tip of the island by 21 June,and again raised its flag.

Mourning the loss of LtCol Wood-house, the unit requested that its

new commander send the now-famousflag to Woodhouse's mother. Years laterthe flag, now the property of the VirginiaMilitary Institute, would be placed on in-definite loan to the Marine CorpsMuseum.

As the fortieth anniversary of the bat-tle approached, Cpl, now MajGen, JamesL. Day, began preparations for an ap-propriate ceremony. MajGen Day is com-manding general of Marine Corps Base,Camp S. D. Butler, Okinawa. A private or-

14

ganization, Okinawa plus 40, was formedto contact veterans and provide travel ar-rangements.

MajGen Day became aware of theWoodhouse flag, and made a formal re-quest to the Museum for the temporaryloan of the flag for the ceremonies. Thus,40 years later, there occurred the reunionof the Marine and the flag.

Just as the flag had been raised twiceduring the war, there were two ceremo-

nies for the flag during the reunion. On1 April, in commemoration of the begin-ning of the invasion of the main island,the flag was raised at Building 1, overCamp Butler. The majority of the 6th Ma-rine Division Association's members par-ticipating in the Okinawa plus 40 reunionarrived later in the month and took partin the second flag raising on 2lJune. Fea-tured among the activities of the reunionwere personally led tours of the Sugarloafbattlefield by MajGen Day.

Museum artifacts are traditionally heldfor exhibition and study. But there are oc-casions, as just seen, where artifacts can berecalled to duty to serve alongside the Ma-rines who made them famous. L11775E

The 'IVoodhousejiag," with 48 stars, loanedby the Museum, is raised at morning colorsat Camp Butlei Okinawa, on 1 April1985.

Oral History Report: Bleasdale and Taxis Interviews

by Benis M. FrankHead, Oral History Section

Iamong the latest accessions into the Ma-rine Corps Oral History Collection. Sincethe last appearance of this column in For-titudine, the Oral History Section has con-ducted a number of other interviews andaccessioned additional materials. GenTaxis was able to read and correct his in-terview transcript before he died, but GenBleasdale was unable to do so.

Gen Bleasdale died in February 1984 inLondon, where he had been living almostfrom the time he retired in 1946. Duringhis career he was decorated with two NavyCrosses, a Distinguished Service Cross, andthe French Croix de Guerre with Palm forbravery and heroism in World War I andNicaragua. Gen Bleasdale enlisted in theMarine Corps in 1915 and experiencedcombat in Haiti before he wcnt to Francein 1917 with the 5th Marines. He was givena battlefield commission and command ofa machine gun section, which saw con-siderable action before the war was over.In the between-the-war years, Gen Bleas-dale achieved a significant reputation asa leader and a teacher. In World War II,he commanded the 29th Marines duringthe battle for Okinawa.

A Naval Academy graduate and a mem-ber of the Class of 1931, Gen Taxis diedin November 1984. He was one of thelucky Basic School students who receivedorders to join the 4th Marines in Shanghaifollowing graduation. He was an artillery-man early in his career and in the immedi-ate prewar years, became involved with theCorps' base defense program. His inter-view is especially valuable for his reminis-cences of the development of defensebattalions, their training, and especiallythe development of antiaircraft artillerytechniques and tactics. A large part of hisinterview is concerned with his 1951-1953tour in the Mideast as Senior U.S. MilitaryObserver, Palestine, while he was attachedto the United Nations and is particularlypertinent to current international affairsin the mideast.

Two other major interviews recently ac-cessioned are those with LtGen OrmondR. Simpson and MajGen NormanJ. An-derson. We had interviewed Gen Simpsonfor our Vietnam writing program beforehe retired to Texas. In this interview ses-sion, he responded to questions preparedby those Marine historians who were work-ing in the period when Gen Simpsoncommanded the 1st Marine Division inVietnam. We had intended to interviewhim about his career in depth, but therenever was an opportunity to get down toTexas A&M University at College Station,where Gen Simpson had retired to takea position with the university. Fortunate-ly, Texas A&M had a program of its ownwhich is headed by Dr. Terry Anderson,who was involved in interviewing gradu-ates of the university who had prominentmilitary careers. We provided Dr. Ander-son with an outline of Gen Simpson's Ma-rine Corps career and other materials,including some questions to which wewanted Gen Simpson to address himself.When he was finished with the interview,Dr. Anderson sent us the interview tapesand we transcribed them and otherwiseprocessed the interview, which consumestwo volumes. Because of his interestingand demanding assignments throughouthis career—assistant G-4 on GeneralDouglas MacArthur's staff, military secre-tary to Gen Pate during the Ribbon Creekaffair, 3d MEB commander in Thailandduring the Laotian crisis —and the factthat he discusses each fully in turn, GenSimpson's interview is especially an impor-tant addition to the collection. He alsospeaks of Texas A&M when he was a stu-dent and the many changes it has under-gone from that time until the present.

G en Anderson is a veteran Marine avi-ator, who early on had to choose be-

tween becoming a Marine flyer or flyingfor a commercial airline. The MarineCorps won out, and, although his heartwas set on becoming a fighter pilot whenhe was a young junior officer, he was as-signed to transports instead, which he flewthroughout World War II. As his memoirs

15

indicate, he was able to get into the fighterprogram later in his career. A large sectionof Gen Anderson's interview concerns theVietnam War and more importantly therole he played in the single managementof air resources issue. Gen Anderson hasbeen closely involved with the MarineCorps Historical Program ever since he wasa member of the first Commandant's Ad-visory Committee on Marine Corps His-tory and a charter member of the MarineCorps Historical Foundation. That he issensitive to what is important to MarineCorps history is evident in the contents ofthis interview.

In supporting Marine Corps history,Gen Anderson has acted as a volunteer in-terviewer for the Oral History Program.Earlier, he had interviewed MajGens Ar-thur H. Adams and PaulJ. Fontana for us,and recently he interviewed MajGen Vic-tor A. Armstrong and BGen Austin W.Brunelli. All four Marines had full andmeaningful careers.

Elsewhere in this issue, the death ofLtGen Richard C. Mangrum is not-

ed. With his death, we have accessionedthe transcript of the only interview sessionin which he participated. Instead of be-ginning the interview by speaking of hisearly Marine Corps career, Gen Mangrumwanted to talk about his Guadalcanal ex-periences, when he led the first dive bom-ber squadron to land there. It is

regrettable that we were unable to get himto relate on tape more of his rich careerwhich led to his appointment as AssistantCommandant.

The oral histories conducted by theChaplain Corps' historian with Navychaplains who have served with Marinescontinue to be accessioned into our col-lection. Since our last report, we havereceived the oral histories of ChaplainsRichard 0. Hutcheson, Withers Moore,Francis L. Garrett, and Robert M.Schurghart. What these dedicated menhave said about their Marine Corps assign-ments make for very interesting and mov-ing reading. —p.--

nterviews with BGen Samuel G. Taxisand BGen Victor F. Bleasdale are

Meanwhile, on the west coast, LtGenAlpha L. Bowser was another volunteer in-terviewer who interviewed MajGen CarlW. Hoffman for the program. As GenBowser was not able to complete the in-terview, Gen Hoffman completed it in a"do-it-yourself' fashion, using as his guide"A Do-It-Yourself Oral History Primer,"copies of which are available from ihe OralHistory Section.

At the same time, the Oral History sec-tion was doing some interviewing also. Wecontinued on with our Marine SecurityGuard Battalion interviews in support ofthe writing of a history of State Depart-ment Marines to be completed and pub-lished at some time in the future. TheMarines interviewed had just returnedfrom Beirut, so their observations will beadded to the information derived fromearlier Beirut-oriented interviews. In the

same area, the former Chaplain of the Ma-rine Corps, Capt Eli Takesian, ChC, USN,was interviewed about his trips to Leba-non when the Marines were committedthere and about the role he played as Ma-rine Corps Chaplain following the 23 Oc-tober 1963 terrorist bombing of the BLTbuilding at Beirut airport.

The most recent in-depth interviewconducted by the Oral History Section waswith Marine Corps super-marksman ColWalter R. Walsh, USMC (Ret). He had anexciting and rewarding career as an FBIagent before he came into the Corps, andhe played an important role in upgradingthe quality of Marine Corps team shoot-ing during his years of active service.

Similarly, another unusual interviewwas with Mr. Frederick D. Hunt, a

former foreign service officer, who was in

the United States Consulate in Shanghaiat the time the 4th Marines lth in Novem-ber 1941. He clearly recalled the eventsleading up to the departure of the Marinesand the scene at the bund when the Ma-rines boarded lighters to take them to theirtransport anchored midstream in theWhangpo River.

A final interview conducted during thisperiod was with Maj Earl J. Wilson,USMCR (Ret), who was a Marine Corpspublic affairs officer in World War II. MajWilson came into Gen Denig's CombatCorrespondents program early on and, likemost of the other CCs and PAOs, saw aconsiderable amount of field duty andcombat. In his several interview sessions,Maj Wilson commented on the operationsof a PAO in combat and donated a num-ber of pictures which shall be put in histranscript when it is bound. Eli 775E1

Combined Action Program Vets Meet in Washington, Visit Museum

security."

by Jack ShulimsonHead Histories Section

16

''I n small wars, tolerance, sympathy,

and kindness should be the keynotethe district chief) platoon. The Marinesreceived rudimentary training in Vietnamese

Marines, however, believed in what theywere doing and that in some way they made

of our relationship with the mass of the language, history, customs, and military and life safer for their villagers and provided apopulation . . . . The purpose should al- governmental organization. Initially, or- protective screen for Marine units.ways be to restore normal government ganized into five combined action platoons,

and to establish peace, order, and

— United States Marine CorpsSmall I Vats Manual, 1940 edition

these Marines entered into the life of theirassigned village and were integrated into itsdefense. They offered military training tothe Popular Force troops, while at the same

t is, however, this historical perspectiveI thatJames G. Duguid, founder and ex-ecutive director of the organization, hopesto capture. He arranged to record all of the

These words had special meaning to the time participating in civic action. historical presentations at the conventionsome 60 Vietnam veterans, all members ofthe Combined Action Veterans Associationwhich held its second annual convention inWashington, D.C., from 9-12 November.Corning from all over the country, they metat the Capital Holiday Inn to renew ac-quaintances, share experiences, and attemptto preserve the history of their unique or-ganization. For four days in a series ofpanels, meetings, tours of the Marine CorpsHistorical Center, and a visit to the Viet-

The program expanded rapidly. By theend of 1966 there were 57 combined actionplatoons with 760 Marines and 1,490 Popu-las Force troops. At the height of the pro-gram in the spring of 1970 there were 114combined action platoons involving some2,000 Marines and Navy Corpsmen and3,000 South Vietnamese. These units weredivided into (hum Combined Action Groupsat the province level.

and donated copies of these tapes to theHistorical Center. Mr. Duguid has recentlyreceived a research grant from the MarineCorps Historical Center (hr the transcriptionof interviews with combined action Marinesand the development of a data base rela-tive to combined action Marines.

The Combined Action Veterans Associ-ation has had a close relationship with theMarine Corps Historical Center. This writer

nam Memorial, these veterans relived and As the program expanded, the mission attended the association's first conventionelaborated on their attempt to bring "peace, also grew from base security to the attain- last year in San Francisco arid conductedorder, and security" to Vietnam. ment of village-level pacification. Called by

some an armed "Peace Corps:' the corn-several oral history interviews, and was madean honorary member of the organization.

T he Combined Action Program had itsinception in the summer of 1965 in

bined action Marines attempted to train thelocal Popular Force militia and villagers to

Carl M. DeVere, Sr., head of the ExhibitsSection, created a special combined action

Vietnam as an expedient to improve base sustain and defend themselves. From a display, which was much remarked upon by

security. The concept involved the assigning historical perspective, it is still impossible to the veterans. At this convention, the organi-

of a Marine squad to a South Vietnamese determine the effectiveness of the Com- zation formalized its structure and plans to

Popular Force (local military responsible to bined Action Program in precise terms. The meet on the West Coast next year. [11 775E]

In Memoriam

LtGen Mangrum, Pearl Harbor Vet, Past ACMC Dies

F ormer Assistant Commandant of theMarine Corps and veteran Marine avi-

ator LtGen Richard C. Mangrum, USMC(Ret), died on 28 September in SouthernPines, North Carolina, at the age of 79.He was buried in Arlington NationalCemetery in a graveside service with sim-ple military honors on 4 October.

A veteran of two wars, Gen Mangrumwas decorated with the Navy Cross and theDistinguished Flying Cross for extraordi-nary heroism while commandingVMSB-232, the first Marine dive bombersquadron to fly onto Guadalcanal andoperate in the Solomons following thelanding of the 1st Marine Division therein August 1942.

Gen Mangrum enlisted in the MarineCorps Reserve in September 1928, corn-pleted primary flight training in Seattlethe following December, and advancedflight training at Pensacola in February thenext year. He was commissioned a Reservesecond lieutenant in April and placed oninactive duty for a brief period. Hereturned to active duty as a Reservist inJune and remained on active duty untilhis retirement nearly 40 years later. He be-came a Regular in February 1941.

W hen Pearl Harbor was attacked,Capt Mangrum was stationed at

Ewa Field on. Oahu as a member ofVMSB-232 and was given command of thesquadron in January 1942. He flew toGuadalcanal, arriving there 20 August1942. Eight days later he led a flight ofSBDs in a dive-bombing attack on aJapanese surface force of four destroyers.One destroyer was sunk, one severelydamaged, and another received a directhit. For his courageous leadership and ut-ter disregard for personal safety in this at-tack, Maj Mangrum was given theDistinguished Flying Cross.

In October, LtCol Mangrum was deco-rated with the Navy Cross for:

• extraordinary heroism and distinguishedservice in the line of his profession as leaderof Marine Scout-Bombing Squadron 232 inthe Solomon Islands Area against enemyforces from August 20 to September 15,1942. Commanding a Navy and Marine

by Benis M. FrankHead, Oral History Section

Corps striking force of sixteen planes, Lieu-tenant Colonel Mangrum intercepted and at-tacked an enemy task force of surface craftwhich was planning to attack our beachheadon Guadalcanal. Striking with lightning-likeprecision, his planes dropped all their bombsbefore the enemy surface craft could initiateevasive tactics, making a direct hit on the lar-gest transport, blasting men and debris intothe water, and setting the ship afire. After acruiser was also hit and left burning, later todisappear, the Japanese were forced to with-draw and abandon their mission. LieutenantColonel Mangrum's high quality of leadershipand the aggressive spirit of his command inaction contributed in large measure to thesuccess achieved by our forces and were inkeeping with the highest traditions of theUnited States Naval Service.

Following his first tour in the Pacific,Col Mangrum returned to the States inJanuary 1943 for several assignments be-

- fore once again heading for the Pacific, thistime to become chief of staff of the 3dMAW and then commander of MAG-4 5,4th MAW. His last assignment in the warzone was as air defense commander atUlithi. At the end of the war, Col Man-grum was assigned to the Division of Avi-ation at Headquarters, Marine Corps, and

then to the Naval War College where hewas first a student and then an instructor.InJuly 1951, he flew to Korea to take com-mand of MAG-12, and later was 1st MAWliaison officer to 5th Air Force Headquart-ers in Seoul.

Q n his return to the United States inJune 1952, Col Mangrum became

chief of staff of the Education Center atQuantico, and two years later he took com-mand of the Marine Corps Air Station atMiami, Florida. In June 1956 he arrivedat Headquarters, Marine Corps, to becomedeputy assistant chief of staff, G-3, andthe following month he was promoted tobrigadier general. After a three-year tourat Headquarters, Gen Mangrum was trans-ferred to Iwakuni to become, successively,assistant wing commander of the 1st MAWand then, with his promotion to majorgeneral, commanding general of the wing.Several other major assignments followedhis tour in Japan, and inJuly 1965, he waspromoted to lieutenant general and as-sumed the duties of the Assistant Com-mandant of the Marine Corps. GenMangrum retired on 30 June 1967.

LtGen Richard C. Mangrum in officia/photograph as Assistant Commandant in 1965.

17

LTGEN RICHARD G. WEF.DE, USMC (RET),

who earned the Distinguished Service Me-dal for exceptionally meritorious service inVietnam as chief of staff of the U.S. Mili-tary Assistance Command, Vietnam, anda Gold Star in lieu of a second DSM forservice as Commanding General, FleetMarine Force, Atlantic, died 22 Octoberat the age of 74 in Portsmouth NavalHospital after a long bout with cancer. Hewas buried in Arlington NationalCemetery on 25 October with full mili-tary honors.

A native of Sterling, Kansas, he attend-ed Kansas State Teachers College for twoyears before entering the Naval Academyand graduating in the Class of 1935. GenWeede was a member of the famous Bas-ic School class of 1935, which provided theMarine Corps with two Commandants andmore general officers than any other Bas-ic School class. He was an artilleryman inthe early part of his career and command-ed the 5-Inch Artillery Group which land-ed on Tarawa shortly after the invasion. Hewas later given command of 2d Battalion,10th Marines, which participated in thelanding on Iheya Shima during the finalstages of the Okinawa campaign.

During the interwar years, he was as-signed successively to the Navy Depart-ment's Bureau of Ordnance and MarineCorps Schools in Quantico. He then wasassigned to the 1st Marine Division inKorea, where he commanded the 5th Ma-rines and was later division chief of staff.

After selection to the rank of brigadiergeneral in 1958, Gen Weede was namedCommanding General, Recruit TrainingCommand, Marine Corps Recruit Depot,

LtGen Richard G. Ueede

San Diego. He left San Diego in Novem-ber 1959 to assume command of the 1stMarine Brigade at Kaneohe and waspromoted to major general in August1961.

Gen Weede left Hawaii for Saigon inFebruary 1962 to become chief of staff ofthe newly activated U.S. Military As-sistance Command, Vietnam. Upon hisreturn to HQMC in June 1964, he was as-signed as G-3 and inJuly 1965 he becameDirector of Personnel. Gen Weede wasnominated for three-star rank in May 1967to become CG, FMFLant/II Marine Ex-peditionary Force. He retiredon 31 Au-gust 1969, after 34 years of active service.

MAJGEN EDWIN B. WHEELER, USMC(RET), 67, suffered a fatal heart attack athis home in Dallas on 14 October. His ash-es were laid to rest in a private gravesideservice with simple military honors on 18October at Arlington National Cemetery.

He was born in Port Chester, New York,in March 1918, was schooled there, andgraduated from Williams College in 1939.It was in March 1941, while he was attend-ing New York University Law School, thathe enlisted in the Marine Corps. Threemonths later he was commissioned.

His initial assignment was as a rifle pla-toon leader in the 1st Raider Battalion—Edson's Raiders. Lt Wheeler participatedin the Tulagi and Guadalcanal operationsand later led a Raider company in the bat-tle for New Georgia. In the postwar peri-od, Maj Wheeler served at various postsand stations at home and abroad. In theKorean War, he commanded the 1st Am-phibian Tractor Battalion and then the 1stBattalion, 5th Marines, and before leav-ing Korea he served as 5th Marinesregimental executive officer.

Following his promotion to colonel inJuly 1959, he was Marine Corps aide tothree Secretaries of the Navy—W. B.Franke, John B. Connally, and Fred Korth.He next commanded Marine Barracks, 8thand I, Washington, D.C., before leavingfor Vietnam, where he commanded the 3dMarines. Upon his return to the states, ColWheeler was commander of The BasicSchool. At his promotion to general officerrank in 1966, he left for Camp Lejeune tobecome assistant division commander, 2dMarine Division, and later took commandof the division as a brigadier general.

He was promoted to major general in1968, and two years later, he left Camp

18

Lejeune for his last duty assignment as G-1at Headquarters, Marine Corps, where heremained until his retirement in 1972.

BGEN AMERICO A. SARDO, USMC (RET),

died of a heart attack at the age of 55 on1 September at Salisbury, Maryland. Hewas born in Murtosa, Portugal, in 1930and came to the United States with his fa-mily four years later, settling in North Tar-rytown, New York. He graduated fromWesleyan University in 1952, and in thefollowing two years, he attended theWoodrow Wilson School of Public and In-ternational Affairs at Princeton Universi-ty, where he received a master's degree inpublic affairs.

He enlisted in the Marine Corps inNovember 1954, attended officer candi-date school at Quantico, and was commis-sioned in February 1955. He served onactive duty for three years and returned tocivilian life to work for W. R. Grace andCompany as an economic analyst. Lt Sardoreturned to active duty in March 1959 andwas initially assigned to the 1st Marine Di-vision at Camp Pendleton.

After a tour with the 1st MAW onOkinawa, Capt Sardo returned to theUnited States for a three-year stint at WestPoint, where he was an assistant professorin the Department of Social Studies andan instructor in Latin American studies.Maj Sardo served two years as Senior Ma-rine Advisor to the Venezuelan MarineCorps.

In 1967 he was posted to Vietnamwhere he was executive officer of the 3dBattalion, 7th Marines. A year later hereturned to the States and to Headquart-

MajGen Edwin B. UYheeler

BGen Americo A. Sardo

ers, Marine Corps, where he was a mem-ber of the Joint Planning Group in thePlans and Programs Division. LtCol Sardowas assigned as Marine Corps Aide to VicePresident Ford in June 1973, and re-mained his aide when Mr. Ford becamePresident.

Col Sardo attended the National WarCollege, 1975-1976, and was then trans-ferred to the 2d Marine Division, wherehe served successively as division inspec-tor; Commanding Officer, 8th Marines;and division G-3. He was promoted togeneral officer rank in June 1979, whenhe became director of the Training Divi-sion, Headquarters, Marine Corps. Twoyears later he was forced to retire becauseof a heart condition. Gen Sardo was bu-ried with full military honors at Arling-ton Cemetery.

COL NICHOLAS A. CANZONA, USMCR(RET), a former Marine Corps historianwho was the co-author of Volumes I, II,and III of US. Marine Corps Operationsin Korea, died in Winston-Salem, NorthCarolina, on 23 August at the age of 60,shortly after he was discovered to be suffer-ing from leukemia.

A native Chicagoan, Col Canzona wasa student at St. Mary's College in Minneso-ta when he enlisted in the Marine Corpsin January 1943 for assignment to the V-12College Training Program. He was sent toNotre Dame and Cornell Universities, andin 1945 went to Parris Island for recruittraining and then to Quantico for officercandidate school. He was commissioneda regular after graduation from the firstpostwar Basic School class.

During the interwar period, he servedat Midway, Pearl Harbor, and CampLejeune, and had just graduated from theEngineer Officers' School at Fort Belvoirwhen the Korean War erupted. He wasthen assigned to the 1st Marine Brigadeat Camp Pendleton as an engineer platoonleader. He fought with the brigade in thePusan Perimeter and participated in theInchon landing and the liberation of Seoulwith the 1st Marine Division. For his ac-tions during the fighting at Chosin Reser-voir and later, he was decorated with theSilver Star Medal. In 1951, he participat-ed in Operation Killer, the first UnitedNations counteroffensive against ChineseCommunist forces in the war.

Lt Canzona retumed from Korea in April1951, when he served briefly in Philadelphiabefore being assigned as inspector-instructorin Baltimore. He was promoted to captainin 1952 and the following year was trans-ferred to the Historical Branch at Head-quarters, Marine Corps, for duty as a

historical writer. Between 1953 and 1956,with Lynn Montross, he wrote the first threevolumes of the official Marine Corps histo-ry of operations in Korea. During this sameperiod, he completed studies at Johns Hop-kins University; graduating with a bachelorof science degree in chemistry in 1954.

With the end of his writing assignmentin 1957, Capt Canzona transferred to theMarine Corps Reserve to begin a businesscareer. At the same time, he joined thehistory faculty of the Naval Academy. Heremained active in the Marine CorpsReserve, was promoted to major in 1957,and four years later he became executiveofficer of the 1st Engineer Battalion,USMCR, in Baltimore.

Three years later, as a lieutenantcolonel, he took command of the battal-ion, now redesignated the 4th EngineerBattalion, FMF, USMCR. LtCol Canzonareturned to active service in 1966 to be-come division engineer officer of the re-

19

Col Nicholas A. Canzona

cently activated 4th Marine DivisionHeadquarters. He served successively as as-sistant G-3 and then G-3 of the division,and was promoted to the rank of colonelin 1968. Less than a year later, in March1969, Col Canzona went to Vietnam,where he commanded the 1st Marine Di-vision Headquarters Battalion. In October,he was reassigned as division G-4, andreturned to the States in March 1970.

For his service in Vietnam, he was deco-rated with the Legion of Merit with com-bat "V" and the Vietnam Cross ofGallantry with Gold Star. His next state-side assignment was command of the 25thMarines, USMCR, in Worcester, Mas-sachusetts in April, and three years later,Col Canzona was assigned as deputy direc-tor, Division of Reserve, Headquarters,Marine Corps. He assumed the director-ship in December 1973. He retired toWinston-Salem in 1974, to begin a careeras a real estate broker. In 1980, he mount-ed an unsuccessful campaign for a NorthCarolina state senate seat. Col Canzonawas buried with full honors in ArlingtonCemetery on 28 August. Eli 775E1

Academy Monthly Seeks Marine GradsMarine officer graduates of the U.S. Naval Academy are sought to participate

in the monthly periodical Marine Outlook, which chronicles the promotions,duty assignments, and career highlights of graduates from general officers tosecond lieutenants, to provide midshipmen information on Corps opportuni-ties. Alumni are asked to mail current photographs, brief biographical sketches,and updates on activities to: Capt Keith Oliver, Editor; Marine Outlook; Divi-sion of English & History; U.S. Naval Academy; Annapolis, Maryland 21402.Information is also accepted by telephone at (301) 267-3377/2819.

FLIGHT LINES

Consolidated- Vu/tee 0 Y-2 Sentinel

by Maj Frank M. Batha, Jr., USMCAviation Historian

T he Sentinel design evolved from theStinson Voyager, a light three-seat

airplane built for private flying. Acquiredby the Army in 1942 as the L-5 and theMarine Corps in 1943 as the OY-1, con-struction of the Sentinel differed from theoriginal Voyager design in order to con-serve alloy materials and improve its mili-tary qualities. The fabric-covered,high-wing monoplane used a welded steel-tube fuselage structure joined to all-wood

wing and tail sections. It was powered bya six-cylinder, horizontally opposed, air-cooled Lycoming engine. The enclosedcabin was rearranged to seat two in tan-dem. Crew visibility was improved byreducing the height of the rear fuselage,using transparent panels in the roof, andinclining the sides of the cabin slightlyoutward.

The Sentinel was obtained by the Ma-rine Corps in order to have a "direct sup-

port" artillery spotting capability. Notingthe Army's success with the direct assign-ment of light observation aircraft to fieldartillery battalions, the Marine Corps de-termined to develop a similar capability.A new "breed" of Marine observationsquadron (VMO) was established, and theSentinel was selected as the airplane to beused in carrying out the VMO mission.

Marine Corps combat experience withthe "direct support" observation squadronconcept actually occurred under somewhatirregular circumstances while the first ofthe new OY-1 equipped VMOs were be-ing formed, During the Cape Gloucesteroperation of 1943-44, MajGen William H.Rupertus established an Air Liaison Unitto support his 1st Marine Division. UsingPiper Cub airplanes borrowed from theArmy, and officers and enlisted men as-signed to the division, the Air Liaison Unitflew more than 1,000 artillery spotting,recOnnaissance, transport, and generalutility missions during the operation. Itwas a pattern often repeated throughoutthe- remainder of the war by VMOs atGU2JTI, Saipan, Tinian, Peleliu, Iwo Jima,and Okinawa.

The aircraft model designation OY-2was established to allay confusion result-ing from the use of two entirely differentelectrical systems in the OY-1. Originallythe OY-1 used a 12-volt system, but follow-on productions were equipped with a24-volt system. In December 1948, allOY-ls with 24-volt electrical systems wereredesignated as OY-2s.

During the Korean War the Sentinelsaw a final period of combat service whenit was used by VMO-6 from August 1950until April 1952.

The Sentinel on display at the MarineCorps Air-Ground Museum was original-ly an OY-1 (Bureau No. 120454) which wasredesignated an OY-2 after undergoing the24-volt electrical system retrofit. It sawservice with VMOs-1 and -6. E1775L1

In addition to its use as an artillery spotting platform, the OY-2 Sentinel was alsovaluable to Marine combat troops for the medical evacuation capabilities it provided.

Technical Data

As depicted for a reconnaissance mission in the OY-2 airplane characteristicsand performance chart issued 1 December 1954.

Manufacturer: Consolidated-Vultee Aircraft Corporation, Stinson Aircraft Di-vision, Wayne, Michigan.

Type: Short-range observation and liaison.Accommodation: Pilot and one passenger.Power Plant: One 190-h.p. Lycoming 0-435-11.Dimensions: Span, 34 ft.; Length, 24 ft., 1 in.; Height, 7 ft., 1 in.Weights: Empty, 1,600 lbs.; Gross, 2,265 lbs.Performance: Max. speed, 110 kn.p.h. at sea level; Service ceiling, 15,600 ft.;

Range, 310 n. mi.; Climb at sea level, 900 ft. per mm.Features: One litter or 200 lbs. of cargo, five message containers, type A-i mes-

sage pick-up system, and provisions for a K-20 camera.

20

Korean War ChronologySeptember 1950

by Robert V AquilinaAssistant Head Reference Section

T hroughout August 1950, while the 1st Provisional MarineBrigade slammed the door on repeated North Korean

thrusts during the defense of the Pusan Perimeter, plans wereunderway for a major American amphibious operation on SouthKorea's western coast. The target city was Inchon, barely 25 milesfrom the occupied South Korean capital city of Seoul, and itsadjacent Kimpo airfield.The numerous obstacles confronting the planners of the opera-tion were formidable indeed. After navigating a narrow chan-nel up from the Yellow Sea, the attacking force at Inchon wouldconfront tidal fluctuations of 31 f&t, which flooded over 6,000yards of vast mud flats. This factor necessitated a landing dateof 15 September, unless the United Nations Command wishedto postpone the landing until mid-October. Undaunted by theenormous personnel, logistical, and hydographic odds facing hiscommand, Gen Douglas MacArthur determined to press aheadwith Operation Chromite—the September landing at Inchon.

On 5 September, the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade was dis-engaged from active combat with North Korean forces andmoved to Pusan. The brigade was disbanded on 13 September,and its components absorbed into their old designations in the1st Marine Division. The commanding general of the division

US. Navy shibs that brought the 1st Marine Division invasion forceto Korea appear stranded in mud flats in Inchon harbo whichhas a 31-foot tide, in this photograph from 16 September 1950.

21

was 57-year-old MajGen Oliver P. Smith, whose Marines wereassembled in the Inchon target area on the eve of D-day as thelanding force of X Corps, commanded by MajGen Edward M.Almond, USA. The specific operation plan called for a battal-ion of the 5th Marines to land on Wolmi-do Island in Inchonharbor in the early morning tide and secure that commandingposition prior to the main landings by the remaining two bat-talions of the 5th Marines and the 1st Marines later in the day.

Following preliminary air and naval bombardments by JointTask Force 7, Battalion Landing Team 3/5 seized Wolmi-do

Island in the morning hours of 15 September, followed by earlyevening landings of the remaining 5th Marines and 1st Marinesbattalions on the "beaches" of Inchon harbor. The North Koreanswere caught completely by surprise, and barely one day afterthe landings, the 1st Marine Division was on the road towardsSeoul.

On 17 September, LtCol Raymond L Murray's 5th Marines tookKimpo AirfIeld, crossed the Han River, and captured enemy posi-tions less than 10 miles southwest of Seoul. The 1st Marines, un-der the command of Col lewis B. "Chesty" Puller, had meanwhile

The day before, 15 September 1950, 1st Division Marines aboardlanding craft readied scaling ladders for their assault on the In-chon seawall in General MacArthur's Operation Chromite.

advanced directly toward the Seoul suburb of Yongdungpo. Closeair support was effectively provided by squadrons of the 1st Ma-rine Aircraft Wing, flying from carriers during the amphibious as-sault, and subsequently based at Kimpo. By 20 September, Marineshad crossed the Han River along a six-mile beachhead. Marinecolumns cut the road to Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, andapproached the outskirts of Seoul. The South Korean capital itselfwas reached on 25 September by the 1st and 5th Marines. In twodays of house-to-house fighting, the 1st Marine Division liberatedSeoul from its captors to pave the way for South Korean PresidentSyngman Rhee's triumphal reentry to his capital city

T he U.S. Eighth Army was conducting a combined offen-sive to the south, and on 26 September advance units made

contact just south of Seoul with an Army regiment of X Corps.An early end to the war appeared in sight as Col Homer L. Lit-zenberg's 7th Marines, after landing on the 21st, pushed rapid-ly north of Seoul to seize Uijongbu, and the main road to theNorth Korean capital of Pyongyang.

Planned in a record time of approximately 20 days, theInchon-Seoul operation dealt a stunning blow to the NorthKorean People's Army. The capability and readiness of Marinesin executing a major amphibious assault under the most difficultconditions of weather and geography earned the glowing admi-ration of Gen MacArthur and the American public. With theNorth Korean Army on the run, rumors abounded that the warwould soon be over, and the "boys home by Christmas." Few ob-servers could foresee that in little more than one month the 1stMarine Division would be fighting for its survival. L111775L1

After their capture of W/olmi-do Island on 15 September mem-bers of Battalion landing Team 3/5 secure prisoners for transportto the mainland at Inchon for questioning and medical care.

22

In a much reprinted photograph, men of the 1st Marine Diviiionmount scaling ladders and storm over the seawall to consolidatethe Inchon beachhead on 15 September swiftly completing oneof "the fastest operations on record" and taking few casualties.

Men on their way to reinforce 1st Division front lines northeastof Inchon on 17 September pause to look over a knocked-outand still-smoldering North Korean T-34 tank in their path.

Reserve Historical Unit Report:

'VMFA-323' Nears Printingby LtCol Cyril V Moyher USMCR

G o! Gerald R. Pitzl, USMCR, reported to the Historical Centerfor one week's active duty on 19 August. During that time,

he incorporated comments in the working draft for the upcomingpublication of "A History of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 323."The history will become a part of the History and Museums Divi-sion's air squadron. history series.

The squadron history program, overseen by aviation writer MajFrank M. Batha, USMC, provides concise operational narratives ofsquadrons. To date, six histories of such units have been published,and five others, including VMFA-323, are in various stages of com-pletion. The histories not only contribute to the troop informa-tion and public affairs programs of the Marine corps, but are alsoused by unit commanders to give their officers and men an en-hanced sense of esprit for their organizations, and a deeper senseof responsibility and identity with them.

T his project was initiated in 1980 by Capt William H. Bowers,USMCR, the squadron's unit historian. When Capt Bowers

left active service, Col Pitzl, then a new member of the MTIJ, wasassigned to the project during the summer of 1981.

Col Pitzl joined the Marine Corps in December 1952 and wascommissioned in May 1956. He has served overseas tours in Japan,the Philippines, Korea, and Vietnam. In his civilian career, Dr. Pitzlis an associate professor of geography at Macalester College, St.Paul, Minnesota, where, for the last 13 years, he has taught coursesin geography, cartography, and computer science.

He is currently writing a preface, appendix, and captions for thephotos; the history will then be sent to the Government PrintingOffice for publication. [11775 LI

LtGen George C. Axtell USMC ('Ret), a W'orld rVar H we on Okina-wa and the first commanding officer of VMFA-323, reviewed thecomment edition of the squadron c history with Col Pitzl in August.

23

Historical Quiz: Quotes By, About, and For Marines(Answers to questions on page 7)

1. Radio message to MajGen Julian C. Smith, CG, 2d MarineDivision, aboard USS Maryland (BB 46), from Col David M.Shoup ashore at Betio (Tarawa), 21 November 1943.

2. LtGen Alexander A. Vandegrift to the Senate Naval AffairsCommittee, 5 May 1946 (regarding U.S. Army proposals for abo-lition of the Marine Corps).

3. LtGen Holland M. Smith, Coral and Brass, page 19, 1949.

4. LtGen Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller, Marine, 1962.

5. LtGen Victor H. Krulak, to Marines leaving for Vietnam,April 1965.

6. James Forrestal to LtGen Holland M. Smith, as Marines raisedthe colors on Mount Suribachi, Iwo Jima, 23 February 1945.

7. Adm David D. Porter, USN.

8. GySgt Daniel Daly, to his platoon at Belleau Wood, 6 June1918.

9. President Harry S. Truman in a 29 August 1950 letter toCongressman Gordon L. McDonough, replying to the Congress-man's 21 August 1950 suggestion that the Marine Corps be en-titled to full recognition as a major branch of the Armed Forces.

10. Gen Douglas MacArthur, on the outskirts of Seoul, Korea,21 September 1950.

Foundation Annual Meeting(continued from page 24)

Col James A. Bracken, USMC (Ret)Capt Marshall K. Snyder, USMCCol Harold A. Hayes, Jr., USMC (Ret)LtCol Joseph A. Como, USMC (Ret)Mr. Robert E. MillettSgtMaj Frank Turse, USMC (Ret)China Post 1 (In Exile)Mr. Frederick D. HuntCol Sheldon C. Downes, USMCR"RAM" Detachment, MCL No. 571Mr. James E. Suffiw.n5th ROCMr. David H. HugelMr. Christopher S. DonnerCol Harvey C. Barnum, USMCCol Cleon E. Hammond, USMCR (Ret)Capt J. Gene Hochfelder, USMCR (Ret)Cadet Philip J. RidderhofCol S. N. Collins, Jr., USMCRCol Richard S. Johnson, USMC (Ret)Mr. Eric H. ArcherMaj Richard C. Kennard, USMCR (Ret)Maj Robert C. Sevilian, USMC (Ret)Mr. V. Hollingsworth

Inquiries about the Foundation's activities may be sent to theoffice at the Historical Center or calls can be made to (202)433-3914 or 433-2945.

DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVYHEADQUARTERS U.S. MARINE CORPS

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20380

OFFICIAL BUSINESS

24

BULK RATE

POSTAGE AND FEES PAID

USMC

PERMIT NO. G-63

Annual Meeting Introduces New Foundation Officers

A s of 12 November, the Foundation has 1,051 members.Those who have joined since the listing in the summer

issue of Fortitudine are:T he Annual Meeting of the membership of the Marine

Corps Historical Foundation was held on 4 November.Almost 100 members attended, some from as far away as Califor-nia and Maine. Foundation outgoing President, LtGen DonnJ. Robertson, USMC (Ret), reported on the state of the organi-zation under his stewardship. BGen Edwin H. Simmons, USMC(Ret), reported on the status of the Marine Corps HistoricalProgram.

The outgoing Chairman of the Nominating Committee, CotWilliam P. McCahill, USMCR (Ret), gave the results of the re-cent election for members of the Board of Directors. They are:

For a term of three years: LtGen William K. Jones, USMC(Ret); LtGen George C. Axtell, USMC (Ret); MajGen NormanJ. Anderson, USMC (Ret); LtGen Donn J. Robertson, USMC(Ret); Gen Robert E. Hogaboom, USMC (Ret); Col MargaretM. Henderson, USMC (Ret); and Col Leslie A. Gilson, USMC(Ret).

For a term of two years: Col Warren P. Baker, USMC (Ret),and BGen Jacob E. Glick, USMC (Ret).

For a term of one year: LtCol Lily H. Gridley, USMCR (Ret).

MajGen John J. Salesses, USMCRMaj William D. Schleier, USMCRDr. Eugene B. SledgeLCdr John P. Dooley, USNCapt Chase Small, USMCR (Ret)Mr. Irwin T. Hyatt, Jr.LtCol Charles D. Perriguey, Jr., USMCRMt. Earl W. JamesMr. Richard P. BaylorLCdr Mitchell N. Weber, USNWO-1 James H. Edwards, USMCRMr. Michael H. AllenCot John A. Gunn, USMCR (Ret)MajGen Roy E. Moss, USMC (Ret)MajGen Rathvon McC. Tompkins, USMC (Ret)Col Fred A. Smith, USMCR (Ret)Col David J. Leighton, USMCRCol William L. Golemon, USMCR (Ret)The 6th ROC AssociationMr. Howard C. WestwoodMr. Robert C. SterlingMaj William I. Landauer, USMC (Ret)LtCol James A. Michener, USMC (Ret)MGySgt George R. Polk, USMCRCapt Donald K. Willingham, USMCRMiss Maria G. FrakerCapt Robert I. Katz, USNR (Ret)Mr. Frederick L. DonnellyMr. James D. Hay, Jr.Mr. Fred N. Ropkey

In our continuing commemoration of the 40th anniver-sary of the ending of World War II, MajGen Fred E. Haynes,

USMC (Ret), reminisced on the occupation ofJapan and BGenJ. Donald Hittle, USMC (Ret), did the same for the occupa-tion of China.

Following the traditional members' luncheon, the Board ofDirectors retired to their semi-annual meeting. Chief order ofbusiness was the election of officers and a chairman for theBoard.

The new officers and chairman are: MajGen John P. Con-don, USMC (Ret), president; LtGen William K. Jones, USMC(Ret), vice president; LtCol Cyril V. Moyher, USMCR, secretary;Mr. Gordon F. Hems, treasurer; and LtGen DonnJ. Robertson,USMC (Ret), chairman of the Board of Directors. (continued on page 23)