Virgil V. Dargan from New Jersey, Essex county.
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Wednesday, November 29, 1944
Death details: Killed in action
Cemetery: Zachary Taylor National
Source: National Archives, grave marker
Anthony DiPetta, age 24, from Nutley, New Jersey, Essex county.
Parents: Sisto DiPetta
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Sunday, September 10, 1944
Death details: On January 3, 2023, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) identified the remains of Aviation Ordnanceman First Class Anthony Di Petta, missing from World War II. Aviation Ordnanceman First Class Di Petta entered the U.S. Navy from New Jersey and served in Torpedo Squadron 20. On September 10, 1944, he was one of three crew members on a TBM-1 Avenger (Bureau Number 17018) that took off from the USS Enterprise for a strike mission against Japanese forces in the Palau Islands. The plane was last seen spinning violently before crashing into the water near Malakal Island. Starting in 2003, the BentProp Project, an independent third-party organization, investigated the loss of this aircraft. A total of four BentProp Project investigations and two Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) investigations resulted in the location of a site about 200 meters from the shore of Malakal Island. The site was excavated in 2019 and 2021, yielding possible human remains and material evidence. The materials recovered were accessioned into the DPAA Central Identification Laboratory for further study. The laboratory analysis and the totality of the circumstantial evidence available established an association between the remains recovered from the site and AOM1c Di Petta.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
John K. Zazzali from New Jersey, Essex county.
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Tuesday, September 5, 1944
Death details: Killed in action
Cemetery: Zachary Taylor National
Source: National Archives, grave marker
James William Mulligan, age 21, from Montclair, New Jersey, Essex county.
Parents: James Mulligan
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 James William Mulligan entered the U.S. Marine Corps from New York and served in Company C, 2nd Tank Battalion. He was killed in action during the Battle of Tarawa on November 20, 1943. Private Mulligan was buried on Betio Island, but he could not be identified among remains recovered from the island after the war. Today, Private Mulligan is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Clifford Siegel, age 20, from Newark, New Jersey, Essex county.
Parents: Herman Siegel
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 Clifford Siegel, who joined the U.S. Marine Corps from New York, was a member of Company F, 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division. He was killed in action on November 20, 1943, during the Battle of Tarawa. He was buried on Betio in the Main Marine Cemetery, Cemetery #33, but after the war his remains were not identified. Today, Private Siegel is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Walter Haut from New Jersey, Essex county.
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Friday, October 29, 1943
Death details: Killed in action
Cemetery: Zachary Taylor National
Source: National Archives, grave marker
Douglas W. Cole, age 23, from Essex County Newark, New Jersey .
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Saturday, November 7, 1942
Death details: Killed when an Army bomber crashed on a routine flight near Waterboro, South Carolina
Source: Omaha World Herald (1943), Lincoln Journal Star (1942), Columbia Record (1942)
Archie Jr. Callahan from Essex County Newark, New Jersey .
Parents: Archie Callahan Sr.
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Sunday, December 7, 1941
Death details: Killed aboard the USS Oklahoma. Accounted for November 27, 2017
Cemetery: Honolulu Memorial
Source: National Archives
Francis Daniel Day, age 37, from Essex County Milburn, New Jersey .
Parents: William Day
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Sunday, December 7, 1941
Death details: Killed aboard the USS Oklahoma
Source: National Archives
Eugene Keller Eberhardt, age 29, from Essex County Newark, New Jersey .
Parents: Henry James Eberhardt
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Sunday, December 7, 1941
Death details: Killed aboard the USS Oklahoma. Accounted for July 3, 2018.
Source: National Archives