Fairfield County Connecticut

Foss, Oliver Richmond Jr.
Army Private 1st class

Oliver Richmond Jr. Foss, age 20, from Fairfield County Fairfield, Connecticut .

Parents: Oliver R. Foss and preded in death by Norma Conwell Foss

Service era: Korea

Date of death: Friday, December 1, 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. Corporal Oliver Richmond Foss Jr., who joined the U.S. Army from Connecticut, was a member of the Medical Company, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division. He was killed in action during the fighting withdrawal from Kunu-ri on December 1. His remains have not been recovered, and he was not identified among remains returned to U.S. custody after the war. Today, Corporal Foss 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, Daily Item (1953)

Korponai, Zigmond Anthony
Navy Chief torpedoman’s mate

Zigmond Anthony Korponai from Stratford, Connecticut, Fairfield county.

Spouse: Mary Korponai

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

Doddo, Louis S.
Army Staff sergeant

Louis S. Doddo, age 30, from South Norwalk, Connecticut, Fairfield county.

Service era: World War II
Military history: 105th Infantry Regiment, 27th Infantry Division

Date of death: Friday, July 7, 1944
Death details: On November 3, 2020, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) identified the remains of Staff Sergeant Louis S. Doddo, missing from World War II. Doddo joined the U.S. Army from Connecticut and was a member of the 105th Infantry Regiment, 27th Infantry Division. He was killed in action against Japanese forces on Saipan on July 7, 1941. His remains were not recovered at the time of his loss. Doddo’s remains were eventually recovered from a cemetery on Saipan and buried as unknown at the Manila American Cemetery. After a multidisciplinary analysis, these unidentified remains were tentatively associated with members of the 105th Infantry Regiment. The remains were disinterred from the Manila American Cemetery and accessioned into the DPAA laboratory, where they were identified as those of Doddo.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, findagrave.com

Lawrence, Albert J.
Army Corporal

Albert J. Lawrence from Connecticut, Fairfield county.

Service era: World War II

Date of death: Monday, November 23, 1942
Death details: Following the Allied surrender on the Bataan Peninsula on April 9, 1942, the Japanese began the forcible transfer of American and Filipino prisoners of war to various prison camps in central Luzon, at the northern end of the Philippines. The largest of these camps was the notorious Cabanatuan Prison Camp. At its peak, Cabanatuan held approximately 8,000 American and Filipino prisoners of war that were captured during and after the Fall of Bataan. Camp overcrowding worsened with the arrival of Allied prisoners who had surrendered from Corregidor on May 6, 1942. Conditions at the camp were poor, with food and water extremely limited, leading to widespread malnutrition and outbreaks of malaria and dysentery. By the time the camp was liberated in early 1945, approximately 2,800 Americans had died at Cabanatuan. Prisoners were forced to bury the dead in makeshift communal graves, often completed without records or markers. As a result, identifying and recovering remains interred at Cabanatuan was difficult in the years after the war. Corporal Albert J. Lawrence entered the U.S. Army from Connecticut and served with the 7th Chemical Company in the Philippines during World War II. He was captured in Bataan following the American surrender on April 9, 1942, and died of dysentery and beriberi on November 23, 1942, at the Cabanatuan Prison Camp in Nueva Ecija Province. He was buried in a communal grave in the camp cemetery along with other deceased American POWs; however, his remains could not be associated with any remains recovered from Cabanatuan after the war. Today, Corporal Lawrence is memorialized on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency

Ashborn, Walter L.
Army 1st lieutenant

Walter L. Ashborn from Connecticut, Fairfield county.

Service era: World War II

Date of death: Sunday, October 11, 1942
Death details: Following the Allied surrender on the Bataan Peninsula on April 9, 1942, the Japanese began the forcible transfer of American and Filipino prisoners of war to various prison camps in central Luzon, at the northern end of the Philippines. The largest of these camps was the notorious Cabanatuan Prison Camp. At its peak, Cabanatuan held approximately 8,000 American and Filipino prisoners of war that were captured during and after the Fall of Bataan. Camp overcrowding worsened with the arrival of Allied prisoners who had surrendered from Corregidor on May 6, 1942. Conditions at the camp were poor and food and water supplied extremely limited, leading to widespread malnutrition and outbreaks of malaria and dysentery. By the time the camp was liberated in early 1945, approximately 2,800 Americans had died at Cabanatuan. Prisoners were forced to bury the dead in makeshift communal graves often completed without records or markers. As a result, identifying and recovering remains interred at Cabanatuan was difficult in the years after the war. First Lieutenant Walter L. Ashborn joined the U.S. Army from the Philippines and was a member of the Quartermaster Corps stationed in the Philippines during World War II. He was captured in Bataan following the American surrender and died of nephritis and myocardritis on October 11, 1942, at the Cabanatuan Prison Camp in Nueva Ecija Province. He was buried in an isolated grave in the camp cemetery; however, his remains could not be associated with any remains recovered from Cabanatuan after the war. Today, First Lieutenant Ashborn is memorialized on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.
Cemetery: Tablets of the Missing at Manila American Cemetery

Source: National Archives, American Battle Monuments Commission, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency

Gniadek, John
Army Private 1st class

John Gniadek from Connecticut, Fairfield county.

Service era: World War II

Date of death: Monday, August 24, 1942
Death details: Following the Allied surrender on the Bataan Peninsula on April 9, 1942, the Japanese began the forcible transfer of American and Filipino prisoners of war to various prison camps in central Luzon, at the northern end of the Philippines. The largest of these camps was the notorious Cabanatuan Prison Camp. At its peak, Cabanatuan held approximately 8,000 American and Filipino prisoners of war that were captured during and after the Fall of Bataan. Camp overcrowding worsened with the arrival of Allied prisoners who had surrendered from Corregidor on May 6, 1942. Conditions at the camp were poor, with food and water extremely limited, leading to widespread malnutrition and outbreaks of malaria and dysentery. By the time the camp was liberated in early 1945, approximately 2,800 Americans had died at Cabanatuan. Prisoners were forced to bury the dead in makeshift communal graves, often completed without records or markers. As a result, identifying and recovering remains interred at Cabanatuan was difficult in the years after the war. Private First Class John Gniadek joined the U.S. Army Air Forces from Connecticut and was a member of Headquarters Squadron, 27th Bombardment Group, in the Philippines during World War II. He was captured in Bataan following the American surrender on April 9, 1942 and died of dysentery on August 24, 1942 at the Cabanatuan Prison Camp in Nueva Ecija Province. He was buried in a communal grave in the camp cemetery along with other deceased American POWs; however, his remains could not be associated with any remains recovered from Cabanatuan after the war. Today, Private First Class Gniadek is memorialized on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency

Povesko, George
Navy Seaman 1st class

George Povesko, age 19, from Bridgeport, Connecticut, Fairfield county.

Parents: Elizabeth Povesko

Service era: World War II

Date of death: Sunday, December 7, 1941
Death details: Killed aboard the USS Arizona. Remains not recovered.

Source: National Archives

Fitzsimmons, Joseph P.
Private

Joseph P. Fitzsimmons, age 27, from Bridgeport, Connecticut, Fairfield county.

Service era: World War I

Date of death: Sunday, October 13, 1918
Death details: Killed in action
Cemetery: Saint Michael’s in Stratford

Source: Soldiers of the Great War, findagrave.com

Gardner, Edward
Private

Edward Gardner, age 30, from Shelton, Connecticut, Fairfield county.

Service era: World War I

Date of death: Saturday, October 12, 1918
Death details: Died of accident
Cemetery: Arlington National

Source: Soldiers of the Great War, findagrave.com

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