Luis Angel Lebron, age 20, from Newark, New Jersey, Essex county.
Parents: Raymond Lebron
Service era: Vietnam
Military history: 9th Wisconsin
Date of death: Friday, January 30, 1970
Death details: Hostile, killed in South Vietnam
Source: National Archives, Asbury Park Press (1970)
Richard D. Hogenbirk, age 23, from East Orange, New Jersey, Essex county.
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Wednesday, November 8, 1961
Death details: Among 77 killed in Richmond, Virginia when the engines aboard their plane failed and it crashed into marshland. The crew and passengers died from carbon monoxide poisoning. The flight was enroute from Baltimore to Columbia, South Carolina.
Source: Associated Press (1961)
Marck Loos Jr. Tooker, age 22, from Montclair, New Jersey, Essex county.
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Friday, July 11, 1952
Death details: On July 11, 1952, an AD-3Q Skyraider (bureau number 122863) with a crew of two departed the USS Bon Homme Richard (CV-31) on a strike mission against enemy targets in Pyongyang. While diving at its target, the Skyraider was hit by anti-aircraft fire and crashed near Pyongyang. Witnesses did not see any parachutes leave the aircraft before it crashed, and the fate of the two crew members is unknown. They were not reported to be prisoners of war, and their remains have not been recovered. Aviation Electronics Technician Petty Officer First Class Marck Loos Tooker Jr., who joined the U.S. Navy from New Jersey, served with Composite Squadron 33 embarked aboard the Bon Homme Richard. He was the radar operator aboard the Skyraider when it crashed and is still unaccounted-for. Today, Petty Officer First Class Tooker is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Karl Hudnell Gibson, age 45, from Essex County New Jersey.
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Sunday, December 10, 1950
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 First Class Karl Hudnell Gibson, who joined the U.S. Army from New Jersey, was a member of the Medical Company, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division. He was captured by the CCF during the fighting withdrawal from Kunu-ri on December 1, 1950. He died of pneumonia on December 10, while being marched to the Pukchin-Tarigol Valley prison camp in North Korea. His remains have not been recovered, and he was not identified among remains returned to U.S. custody after the war. Today, Sergeant First Class Gibson is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. His name is also inscribed on the Korean War Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington, DC, which was updated in 2022 to include the names of the fallen.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Roscoe Linden Hildebrand, age 30, from Berwick, New Jersey, Essex county.
Parents: David Hildebrand
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Thursday, November 30, 1950
Death details: On November 29, 1950, men from Company G of the U.S. 1st Marine Regiment, MP Company and Tank Company, 1st Marine Division, Company B and elements of Company D of the 31st Infantry Regiment, Headquarters Company of the X Corps, and Royal Marines from Number 41 Independent Commando Battalion were sent north from Koto-ri to open the main supply route to Hagaru-ri and resupply and reinforce Allied troops that had been surrounded near the Chosin Reservoir. The group, known as Task Force Drysdale, set out with tanks and other vehicles in the lead and rear, and initially only met light resistance from Chinese Communist Forces (CCF). As attacks increased in ferocity, the group became fragmented as the CCF managed to establish road blocks that further split the task force. Soon, the CCF blew a bridge and halted the convoy altogether. The Royal Marines and most of Company G were north of the bridge at this time and were able to continue to Hagaru-ri. Near the south end of the convoy, a destroyed truck blocked the road. The tanks and troops south of the destroyed truck fought as long as possible before ultimately returning to Koto-ri on November 30. The men between the blown bridge and the destroyed truck, however, were trapped, and subjected to several mortar barrages before CCF moved into hand-to-hand combat range. Fighting raged there until the morning of November 30, when the survivors were forced to surrender. Over 300 troops were wounded, captured, or died during the action. Corporal Roscoe Linden Hildebrand, who joined the U.S. Army from New Jersey, served with B Company, 1st Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. Although many elements of the 31st Regiment were part of the 31st RCT, B Company, 1st Battalion was part of Task Force Drysdale, a unit tasked with keeping the road between Koto-ri and Hagaru-ri open so the 31st RCT could withdraw safely. Corporal Hildebrand went missing on November 30, 1950, somewhere on the road between Koto-ri and Hagaru-ri. No one saw him fall, and he was not reported to be a prisoner of war. His remains were not identified among those returned to U.S. custody after the war. Today, Corporal Hildebrand is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Wilkes Barre Times Leader (1951)
Salvatore DeCosta, age 17, from Newark, New Jersey, Essex county.
Parents: Mildred Decosta
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Wednesday, November 8, 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 Salvatore DeCosta, who joined the U.S. Army from New Jersey, was a member of Company I of the 3rd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division. On November 2, 1950, members of Company I were occupying defensive positions with the 3rd Battalion near Unsan when they received orders to withdraw. The units faced enemy fire as they withdrew, and MSG DeCosta was wounded during the action and eventually captured. After the war, surviving prisoners reported that they witnessed MSG DeCosta’s death a few days after his capture while on a march to Prison Camp 5 near Pyoktong; however, other returnees reported that they heard that MSG DeCosta had died at Unsan. Master Sergeant DeCosta’s remains were not recovered and he was not identified among remains returned to U.S. custody after the ceasefire. Today, Master Sergeant DeCosta is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Passaic Herald News (1953)
James Patrick McGuire from New Jersey, Essex county.
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. Sergeant James Patrick McGuire, who joined the U.S. Army from New Jersey, was a member of Company B, 2nd Chemical Mortar Battalion. In late October of 1950, Company B was positioned near Unsan to support ROK forces in the area. After midnight on November 1, U.S. units in the area were ordered to withdraw to avoid encirclement by the enemy. Company B was caught behind enemy lines, and most of its members either were taken prisoner or went missing in action. Sergeant McGuire was captured by the CCF and marched to Camp 5, a prison camp in Pyoktong, North Korea, on the southern bank of the Yalu River. He died there in April of 1951. His remains have not been recovered or identified among those returned to U.S. custody after the war. Today, Sergeant McGuire is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
James Walter Engdahl from New Jersey, Essex 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 James Walter Engdahl entered the U.S. Army from New Jersey and served with Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 19th Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. He was killed in action on July 16, 1950, during the Battle of Kum River, while attempting to break through an enemy roadblock outside Taejon. His remains could not be recovered at the time of his loss, and he remains unaccounted for. Today, Private First Class Engdahl is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Larry S. Wassil, age 33, from New Jersey, Essex county.
Service era: World War II
Military history: 13 Infantry 8 Division
Date of death: Thursday, December 28, 1944
Death details: On July 27, 2021, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) identified the remains of Sergeant Larry S. Wassil, missing from World War II. Sergeant Wassil entered the U.S. Army from New Jersey and was a member of Company K, 13th Infantry Regiment, 8th Infantry Division. On December 28, 1944, he led a three-man reconnaissance patrol near Bergstein, Germany. The patrol came under German machine gun fire, at which time the patrol members scattered to find cover. When the firing ceased, SGT Wassil could not be found. In 1952, local woodcutters found a set of remains near Bergstein. These remains were turned over to U.S. custody, but could not be identified at the time. After a multidisciplinary analysis, the DPAA determined that the unknown remains were likely associated with SGT Wassil. The remains were exhumed and accessioned into the DPAA laboratory in April of 2019. Laboratory analysis led to the successful identification of the remains as those of SGT Wassil.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Edward Vernon Farrell from Maplewood, New Jersey, Essex county.
Parents: Charles Edward Farrell
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