Ashley Illinois

Brothers, Herman Lynn
Army Master Sergeant

Herman Lynn Brothers from Ashley, Illinois, White county.

Parents: Lewis Brothers

Service era: Korea

Date of death: Thursday, November 2, 1950
Death details: During the last week of October 1950, Republic of Korea (ROK) Army forces under the control of the U.S. Eighth Army were advancing deep in North Korean territory, approaching the Yalu River on the Chinese-Korean border. Chinese Communist Forces (CCF) struck back in a surprise attack, engaging the ROK 1st and 6th Divisions near Unsan, some sixty miles north of Pyongyang. The U.S. 1st Cavalry Division, with the 8th Cavalry Regiment in the lead, was rushed forward to reinforce the ROK units in the Unsan area. On November 1, the regiment’s 1st Battalion took up positions north of Unsan, while the 2nd Battalion moved to guard the Nammyon River valley west of town, and the 3rd Battalion was placed in reserve at the valley’s southern end. Master Sergeant Herman Lynn Brothers, who joined the U.S. Army from Connecticut, was a member of Company B of the 2nd Chemical Mortar Battalion. In late October of 1950, MSG Brothers was with the rest of Company B in the Unsan area to support ROK forces in the region. After midnight on November 1, U.S. forces in the Unsan area were ordered to withdraw to avoid being surrounded by the enemy. However, Company B was unable to withdraw due to the strong enemy presence, and MSG Brothers was killed during the subsequent fighting. His remains were not recovered, and he is still unaccounted for. Today, Master Sergeant Brothers is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Mount Vernon Register News (1950)

Pate, Charles Samuel
Marines Platoon Sergeant

Charles Samuel Pate, age 23, from Ashley, Illinois, Washington county.

Parents: Mable I. Plate

Service era: World War II

Date of death: Saturday, November 20, 1943
Death details: From November 20 through 23, 1943, the U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Navy conducted a large-scale amphibious assault on the Japanese-held atoll of Tarawa as part of Operation Galvanic, the Allied capture of the Gilbert Islands. Located 2,500 miles southwest of Hawaii, Tarawa was a crucial stepping stone in the planned U.S. offensive across the central Pacific toward Japan. The Japanese garrison on Tarawa’s main island of Betio was well-entrenched with hundreds of bunkers and gun positions behind formidable beach obstacles. The first wave of Marines approaching the shore encountered lower-than-expected tides, forcing them to leave their landing craft on the reef and wade the hundreds of yards to the beach under intense enemy fire. The heaviest number of U.S. casualties were suffered during this phase of the landing. Eventually, rising tides allowed U.S. warships to maneuver closer to shore and support the troops with effective naval gunfire. More Marines landed on the second day, launching attacks inland from the beaches and seizing the Japanese airfield on the island. However, the enemy launched vicious counterattacks and two more days of intense fighting were needed to secure Betio. The last enemy strongpoints were taken on the morning of November 23. The fighting on Betio cost the Marines nearly 3,000 casualties but enabled U.S. forces to press further across the Pacific and yielded valuable tactical lessons that reduced U.S. losses in future amphibious landings. Platoon Sergeant Charles Samuel Pate, who entered the U.S. Marine Corps from Illinois, served in Company M, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division. He was killed in action on November 20 during the Battle of Tarawa. He was buried at Tarawa in Cemetery #11, Grave #9, Row #3, Plot #2, but after the war his remains were not identified among those disinterred from the atoll. Platoon Sergeant Pate is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency

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