Rupprecht, Leonard G.
Army Technician 5

Leonard G. Rupprecht, age 23, from Clark County Neillsville, Wisconsin .

Parents: Florence Mueller, George Rupprecht

Service era: World War II
Schools: Neillsville High (1939)

Date of death: Monday, November 16, 1942
Death details: In November 1942, the U.S. Army’s 32nd Infantry Division regained control of Buna, Papua New Guinea, with its goal of neutralizing an enemy threat to Port Moresby and, ultimately, to the Australian mainland itself. The rugged terrain that the soldiers faced was fiercely defended by Japanese troops and included tidal swamplands with a labyrinth of camouflaged trenches and bunkers. In December 1942, when the 32nd Infantry Division was reinforced with Australian soldiers, Buna finally fell to the Allies; however, malaria and other tropical diseases contributed to a high number of casualties and deaths for the 32nd Infantry Division. Technician Fifth Grade Leonard G. Rupprecht entered the U.S. Army from Wisconsin and served in the Service Company of the 128th Infantry Regiment, 32nd Infantry Division. On November 16, 1942, as part of the Allied efforts to retake Buna, TEC5 Rupprecht and his unit were aboard a trawler that was close to shore en route to the village of Hariko in southeastern Australian New Guinea. During their journey, the trawler was strafed by a number of Japanese aircraft. After the attack began, TEC5 Rupprecht and three other individuals boarded an assault boat in an attempt to reach shore; however, the men were not seen again, and the boat was found empty roughly a half mile away. All four of the boat’s occupants, including TEC5 Rupprecht, are believed to have died while attempting to reach shore in the assault boat, and their remains were never recovered. Today, Technician Fifth Grade Rupprecht is memorialized on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Marshfield News Herald (1943)