Promote & Preserve stories of U.S. fallen soldiers/sailors
Merlin German, age 22, from Manhattan, New York.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: Retired List Maint/Spt Section (Mmsr-7), Mcb Quantico, Virginia
Date of death: Friday, April 11, 2008
Death details: Died at Brooke Army Medical Center, San Antonio, United States from wounds sustained while conducting combat operation in Anbar Iraq on February 22, 2005. He was medically retired on September 28, 2007 because of his injuries.
Source: Department of Defense, Military Times
Joseph Willock Harding, age 20, from New York County Manhattan, New York .
Parents: Ruby Brickhouse
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Thursday, November 30, 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 Joseph Willock Harding Jr., who joined the U.S. Army from New York, was a member of L Company, 3rd Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division. He went missing in action on November 30, 1950, during the fighting withdrawal from Kunu-ri, but the exact circumstances surrounding his loss are unknown. He was never reported as a prisoner of war, and his remains were never recovered or identified following the end of hostilities. Today, Sergeant Harding 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 News (1954)
Thomas Joseph Norton, age 20, from Manhattan, New York, New York county.
Parents: Mary Norton
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 First Class Thomas Joseph Norton, who joined the U.S. Marine Corps in New York, was a member of Company A, 1st Marine Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division. He was killed in action on Tarawa on November 20, 1943, and buried in the Main Marine Cemetery. However, after the war, his remains could not be recovered. Today, Private First Class Norton is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency