Jared Scott Arnn, age 21, from Boonville, Indiana, Warrick county.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: 1st Cavalry Division
Date of death: Sunday, September 28, 2008
Death details: Died as a result of internal bleeding from an existing medical condition at Fort Hood’s Darnall Hospital. He was found unresponsive in his barracks.
Cemetery: Boonville
Source: Salado Village Voice, Associated Press (2008)
William Douglas Frakes, age 19, from Boonville, Indiana, Warrick county.
Parents: William H. Frakes (1929 -1977) and Nancy Lee Frakes (July 16, 1938 – 2005)
Service era: Vietnam
Military history: Company M, 1st Marines, 1st Marine Division; Purple Heart
Date of death: Friday, July 3, 1970
Death details: Hostile in South Vietnam
Cemetery: Maple Grove, Boonville
Source: National Archives, grave marker
William Douglas Frakes, age 19, from Boonville, Indiana, Warrick county.
Parents: William H. Frakes (1929 -1977) and Nancy Lee Frakes (July 16, 1938 – 2005)
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Friday, July 3, 1970
Death details: Hostile in South Vietnam
Cemetery: Maple Grove, Boonville
Source: National Archives, grave marker
Billy J. Harry, age 18, from Boonville, Indiana, Warrick county.
Spouse: Married
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. Private First Class Billy J. Harry, who joined the U.S. Marine Corps from Kentucky, served with Company C, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marine Division. He was killed in action on November 20, during the Battle of Tarawa. He was buried in Cemetery #33, Main Marine Cemetery, but after the war his remains were not recovered. Private First Class Harry is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency