Promote & Preserve stories of U.S. fallen soldiers/sailors
Chase S. Marta, age 24, from Chico, California, Butte county.
Service era: Afghanistan
Military history: 3rd Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
Date of death: Monday, May 7, 2012
Death details: Died of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device. Killed were Sgt. Jacob M. Schwallie, Spc. Chase S. Marta, Pfc. Dustin D. Gross.
Source: Department of Defense, Military Times
Steven Joseph Walberg, age 18, from Paradise, California, Butte county.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: Hht, 1St Squadron, 4Th Cavalry, Fort Riley, Kansas
Date of death: Sunday, April 15, 2007
Death details: Hostile; Baghdad, Iraq
Source: Department of Defense, Military Times
Arron Ray Clark, age 20, from Chico, California, Butte county.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: Company B, 440Th Signal Battalion, Apo Ae 09175
Date of death: Friday, December 5, 2003
Death details: Hostile; Baghdad, Iraq
Source: Department of Defense, Military Times
Joseph Verne Olszewski, age 20, from Chico, California, Butte county.
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Tuesday, January 27, 1970
Death details: Died in Vietnam
Source: National Archives, Chico Enterprise Record (1970)
Robert Gene Rogers, age 20, from Paradise, California, Butte county.
Parents: Lon Whitson
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Sunday, January 25, 1970
Death details: Drowned in Vietnam when a vehicle in which he was riding overturned and threw him into a canal.
Source: National Archives, Sacramento Bee (1970)
Joseph Jr. Lewis, age 18, from Gridley, California, Butte county.
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Thursday, March 26, 1953
Death details: In late March 1953, elements of the 1st Marine Division manned a string of outposts along a 33-mile section of the main line of resistance on the Korean Peninsula, near the present-day Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). The 1st Marine Division’s 5th Marine Regiment was responsible for three of these outposts, named Carson, Reno, and Vegas, or collectively “the Nevada Cities Complex.” On March 26, Chinese Communist Forces attacked all three outposts. Although Carson managed to stave off the assault, Reno and Vegas, which were more lightly manned, eventually succumbed to the enemy. Over 1,000 Marines were killed, wounded, or went missing during the attack on the Nevada Cities Complex. Private First Class Joseph Lewis Jr. joined the U.S. Marine Corps from California and was a member of C Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division. He went missing in action during the fighting at the Nevada Cities Complex on March 26, 1953. Private First Class Lewis was never reported to be a prisoner of war, and he was not identified among remains returned to U.S. custody after the conflict’s ceasefire. Today, Private First Class Lewis is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Harold Peter Turner, age 35, from Chico, California, Butte county.
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Thursday, January 29, 1953
Death details: On the evening on January 28, 1953, a B-29 Superfortress (tail number 42-65357A) with a crew of fourteen departed Kadena Air Base in a flight of four. The briefed mission was a night bombing operation targeting the Kompo-Dong supply yard south of Pyongyang, North Korea. Shortly after releasing its payload, the B-29 was attacked by enemy MiG-15 fighters. Just after midnight, the aircraft commander made a distress call and ordered the crew to bail out. A few minutes later, witnesses reported the Superfortress caught fire and exploded in midair near Hungsu-ri. It is believed that five airmen were still aboard the aircraft when it exploded. The nine surviving crew members were captured by the North Koreans; three of them were returned to U.S. custody following the war, and one is known to have died at the Pike’s Peak prisoner interrogation center. While being moved in a convoy to a holding site, the remaining five prisoners were “liberated” by a group of Korean irregulars, believed to be North Koreans masquerading as South Korean guerrillas. Later that day, the B-29’s Aircraft Commander (Captain Gilbert Ashley) was allowed to contact United Nations Forces. On April 24, U.S. forces attempted to rescue the five men, but the rescue aircraft was fired upon during the attempt and the efforts were abandoned. Later reporting revealed the loyalty of the guerrilla unit and the probability that it had used the prisoners as bait. The five prisoners became known as the “Ashley 5,” after the Aircraft Commander, and all five of them remain unaccounted-for, along with the five who were believed to be aboard the plane when it exploded and the one who died at the Pike’s Peak center. Captain Harold Peter Turner, who joined the U.S. Air Force from California, was assigned to the 28th Bombardment Squadron, 19th Bombardment Group. He was the pilot of this Superfortress when it went down, and was among five survivors known as the Ashley 5. He remains unaccounted-for. Today, Captain Turner is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.Relativeswerelatertoldthoseaboardsurvivedthecrashandwereheldcaptivebytheenemy.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, San Francisco Examiner (1997)
Clifford Harold Smith from Unknown, California, Butte county.
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Sunday, July 16, 1950
Death details: On the evening of July 15, 1950, the U.S. Army’s 19th Infantry Regiment held defensive positions along the south bank of the Kum River. As dusk approached, North Korean People’s Army (NKPA) tanks appeared on the opposite shore and began firing on the U.S. positions. Although U.S. troops repulsed the attacks that evening, the next morning the NKPA crossed the river and launched a major attack against the 19th Regiment. As the regiment began withdrawing south to Taejon, the North Koreans pushed deep into their defensive lines and set up a roadblock en route to Taejon. When retreating American convoys could not break through the roadblock, soldiers were forced to leave the road and attempt to make their way in small groups across the countryside. Of the 900 soldiers in the 19th Infantry when the Battle of Kum River started, only 434 made it to friendly lines. Private First Class Clifford Harold Smith entered the U.S. Army from California and served with Company A, 1st Battalion, 19th Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. He went missing on July 16, 1950, during the Battle of Kum River, while his unit was withdrawing through and around an enemy roadblock outside Taejon, South Korea. He was not reported as a prisoner of war, and he remains unaccounted-for. Today, Private First Class Smith is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Thomas B. Shone, age 33, from Butte County California.
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Tuesday, January 9, 1945
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 Thomas B. Shone, entered the U.S. Army from California, served in the 45th Infantry Regiment (Philippine Scout) in the Philippines during World War II. 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 Shone 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 Shone’s remains could not be identified following the war, and he is still unaccounted-for. Today, Captain Shone is memorialized on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Los Angeles Evening Citizen News (1943)
Theodore Melton Ingraham from Oroville, California, Butte county.
Parents: Mrs. Irma Kestella
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Monday, December 18, 1944
Death details: He was aboard the destroyer USS Hull as it operated as part of the Fast Carrier Strike Force in the Philippine Sea. On December 17, 1944, the Hull was participating in refueling operations when the ships of its fueling group were engulfed by Typhoon Cobra. The Hull lost its ability to steer amid the enormous waves and began taking on water. The Hull eventually took on too much water to stay afloat and rolled and sank shortly before noon, on December 18. Sixty-two crew members were rescued, but a little more than two-hundred crew members were lost in the sinking.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency