Boundary County Idaho

Graham, David Leroy
Army Corporal

David Leroy Graham, age 27, from Boundary County Bonners Ferry, Idaho .

Service era: Korea

Date of death: Wednesday, January 31, 1951
Death details: By mid-November 1950, U.S. and Allied forces had advanced to within approximately sixty miles of the Yalu River, the border between North Korea and China. On November 25, approximately 300,000 Chinese Communist Forces (CCF) “volunteers” suddenly and fiercely counterattacked after crossing the Yalu. The 2nd Infantry Division, located the farthest north of units at the Chongchon River, could not halt the CCF advance and was ordered to withdraw to defensive positions at Sunchon in the South Pyongan province of North Korea. As the division pulled back from Kunu-ri toward Sunchon, it conducted an intense rearguard action while fighting to break through well-defended roadblocks set up by CCF infiltrators. The withdrawal was not complete until December 1, and the 2nd Infantry Division suffered extremely heavy casualties in the process. Sergeant David Leroy Graham, who joined the U.S. Army from Idaho, served with B Company, 2nd Engineer Cambat Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division. He was captured by enemy forces on December 1, 1950, as his unit withdrew from Kuni-ri to Sunchon, and marched with a large group of other prisoners to the Pukchin-Tarigol Valley. He died of pneumonia at Pukchin-Tarigol on January 31 1951, while under the care of a captured Army doctor. His remains were never recovered. Today, Sergeant Graham is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, The Times News (1951)

Welchko, Cecil R.
Army Captain

Cecil R. Welchko from Boundary County Bonners Ferry, Idaho .

Parents: Mrs. A. B. Ashby

Service era: World War II
Schools: Washington State College (1939)
Military history: Army – 31 Infantry Regiment

Date of death: Friday, December 15, 1944
Death details: On December 13, 1944, Japanese forces in the Philippines began the transfer of 1,621 Allied prisoners of war (POWs) to Japan. The POWs were to make the journey aboard transport ships whose harsh conditions and extreme overcrowding led survivors to refer to them as “Hell Ships.” The ships also lacked markings that would distinguish them from any other military target, causing some of them to be attacked by Allied forces who could not identify them as POW transports. On December 14, 1944, Allied aircraft attacked the first ship, the Oryoku Maru, in Subic Bay in the Philippines, killing many Allied POWs who became lost in the water, sank with the ship, or were washed ashore. Survivors of the bombing were put aboard two other ships, the Enoura Maru and the Brazil Maru, to continue on to Japan. During the journey, while anchored in Takao Harbor, Formosa (present-day Taiwan), the Enoura Maru was attacked by Allied aircraft from the USS Hornet (CV-8), killing Allied POWs who were lost in the water, on board the ship, or on the nearby shore. Survivors of the Enoura Maru bombing were loaded onto the Brazil Maru, and reached Japan on January 30, 1945. As a result of these incidents, Allied POWs were lost in the Philippines, at sea between the Philippines and Taiwan, while anchored in Taiwan, at sea between Taiwan and Japan, and in Japan. The attacks on these POW transports ultimately resulted in a series of death notifications from the Japanese government through the International Red Cross (IRC), and some casualties were given up to five different dates of death at various locations during the transfer. Witness accounts from surviving POWs offer detailed information for a handful of casualties, but the specific dates of loss and/or last-known locations for many of these POWs are based on the most recent reported date of death. Captain Cecil R. Welchko, who entered the U.S. Army from Idaho, served with the Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment He was taken as a POW following the Japanese invasion and interned in the islands until December 1944, when he was put aboard the Oryoku Maru for transport to Japan. Records indicate CPT Welchko was killed several weeks later in the attack on the Enoura Maru; however, these reports often involve information solely furnished by enemy governments, with some casualties given multiple dates of death. Future research may determine that these reports were inaccurate. Captain Welchko’s remains could not be identified following the war, and he is still unaccounted-for. Today, Captain Welchko is memorialized on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, News Tribune (1945)

O’brien, William L.
Army Flight officer

William L. O’brien, age 26, from Boundary County Bonners Ferry, Idaho .

Service era: World War II
Military history: He joined the royal Candadian air force and served there until his transfer to the American air force.

Date of death: Friday, September 1, 1944
Death details: Killed when engine failures caused a bomber to crash at Rogers Dry Lake near Muroc Army Airfield in California

Source: National Archives, Los Angeles Times (1944)

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