Dickinson, William H.
Army Private

William H. Dickinson from Maryland, Allegany county.

Service era: World War II

Date of death: Sunday, June 4, 1944
Death details: On May 17, 1944, U.S. and Chinese troops began the siege of Myitkyina, Burma. The town, which was occupied by the Japanese, possessed a strategically vital airstrip that would allow supplies and aerial support to reach troops fighting in difficult jungle terrain of the China-Burma-India Theater. While Chinese units comprised the majority of the ground combat troops, the U.S. Army’s 5307th Composite Unit, also known as Merrill’s Marauders, was also active in the fighting. The Japanese were able to defend the town until August 3, 1944, when their remaining men were ordered to withdraw. Hard fighting, difficult terrain, and the outbreak of disease led to significant casualties among the Chinese and American units that fought to take control of the town. Private William H. Dickinson joined the U.S. Army from Maryland and was a member of Company B, 236th Engineer Combat Battalion. He was killed in action on June 4, 1944, during the siege of Myitkyina. Private Dickinson’s remains were not recovered at the time of his loss, and he has not been identified among remains recovered from the area after the war. Today, Private Dickinson is memorialized on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency