Zachary Ryan Gullett, age 20, from Hillsboro, Ohio, Highland county.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: 984Th Military Police Company, 759Th Mp Battalion, Fort Carson, Colorado
Date of death: Tuesday, May 1, 2007
Death details: Baghdad, Iraq
Source: Department of Defense, Military Times
Daniel Richard Hively, age 20, from Danville, Ohio, Highland county.
Parents: Richard H. Hively
Service era: Vietnam
Schools: Danville High graduate
Date of death: Friday, July 10, 1970
Death details: Hostile, South Vietnam
Source: National Archives, Manfield News Journal (1970
Harley Eugene Miller, age 19, from Leesburg, Ohio, Highland county.
Parents: Ruth Miller
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Sunday, November 21, 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 Harvey Eugene Miller entered the U.S. Marine Corps from Ohio and served in Company L, 3rd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division. He was killed in action on November 21, 1943, during the Battle of Tarawa. He was buried on Betio Island, but his remains were not found in post-war searches of the island. Today, Private Miller is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Donald William Caplinger, age 23, from Highland County Hillsboro, Ohio .
Parents: Eva Inez Caplinger
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Sunday, December 7, 1941
Death details: Killed aboard the USS Arizona. Remains not recovered.
Cemetery: Honolulu Memorial
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Wilmington News Journal (1942)
Hurschel Woodrow Wilson, age 19, from Highland County Greenfield, Ohio .
Parents: Harry Hurschel Wilson
Service era: World War II
Military history: Uss Arizona; United States Navy
Date of death: Sunday, December 7, 1941
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Chillicothe Gazette (1942)
Hurschel Woodrow Wilson, age 19, from Highland County Greenfield, Ohio .
Parents: Harry Hurschel Wilson
Service era: World War II
Military history: Uss Arizona; United States Navy
Date of death: Sunday, December 7, 1941
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Chillicothe Gazette (1942)
Neil Roger Scott from Ohio, Highland county.
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Unknown
Death details: On July 5, 1950, Task Force Smith, the first U.S. ground element to engage North Korean People’s Army (NKPA) troops, was defending a position north of Osan, South Korea. The Task Force’s goal was to delay enemy forces by blocking their movement down the road south from Suwon to Taejon, which was a major avenue of advance for the NKPA. That morning, the Task Force was engaged by a column of enemy tanks. The anti-tank weapons that the infantrymen employed were ineffective, and a large number of tanks broke through their position. Task Force Smith was forced to withdraw to the south, suffering heavy casualties in the process. Private First Class Neil Roger Scott, who joined the U.S. Army from Ohio, served with the Medical Company of the 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. His unit was part of Task Force Smith, and he was captured by enemy forces on July 5 and marched to the Apex prison camps in North Korea. He died of malnutrition and pneumonia at Hanjang-ni on an unspecified day in January 1951. Although he was buried near the camp, his remains were not identified among those returned to U.S. custody after the war. Today, Private First Class Scott is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency