Milan Elmer Whitten, age 21, from Hollis Center, Maine, York county.
Service era: Vietnam
Schools: Bonny Eagle High (1965)
Military history: 35th Infantry Regiment
Date of death: Saturday, October 29, 1966
Death details: Killed by small arms fire, Pleiku Province
Cemetery: Buxton Lower Corner Cemetery
Source: National Archives, Portland Press Herald, 35th Infantry Regiment Association
Neil Brooks Taylor, age 25, from Rangeley, Maine, Franklin county.
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Tuesday, September 14, 1965
Death details: On February 4, 2015, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) identified the remains of Lieutenant Junior Grade Neil Brooks Taylor, missing from the Vietnam War.
Lieutenant Junior Grade Taylor entered the U.S. Navy from Maine and was a member of Attack Squadron 192, Carrier Air Wing 19. On September 14, 1965, he piloted an A-4C Skyhawk (bureau number unknown) that took off from the USS Bon Homme Richard (CVA-31) on a bombing mission over South Vietnam. While over the target area, he failed to recover from a steep bombing run and crashed in Bac Lieu Province. LTJG Taylor died in the crash but his remains were not recovered at the time of his loss. In 2013, a joint search team investigated the crash site and recovered remains that U.S. analysts eventually identified as those of LTJG Taylor.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Colby George Fox, age 18, from Piscataquis County Guilford, Maine .
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. Private First Class Colby George Fox, who joined the U.S. Army from Maine, was a member of Company, B, 1st Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division. He went missing in action during the fighting withdrawal from Kunu-ri on November 30, but the exact circumstances surrounding his loss are unknown. He was never reported as a prisoner of war, and his remains have not been recovered or identified following the end of hostilities. Today, Private First Class Fox 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, Bangor Daily News ()1950), Associated Press (1954)
Ralph Murray Brume, age 25, from York County West Buxton, Maine .
Service era: World War II
Schools: Western State Normal
Date of death: Monday, August 6, 1945
Death details: Killed aboard USS Bullhead SS-332 when it was sunk by air attack near the Lombok Strait.
Source: On Eternal Patrol, Boston Globe (1945)
Harry J. Dawe, age 37, from Kennebec County Oakland, Maine .
Parents: Harry Dawe
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Tuesday, January 9, 1945
Death details: On December 13, 1944, Japanese forces in the Philippines began the transfer of 1,621 Allied prisoners of war (POWs) to Japan. The POWs were to make the journey aboard transport ships whose harsh conditions and extreme overcrowding led survivors to refer to them as “Hell Ships.” The ships also lacked markings that would distinguish them from any other military target, causing some of them to be attacked by Allied forces who could not identify them as POW transports. On December 14, 1944, Allied aircraft attacked the first ship, the Oryoku Maru, in Subic Bay in the Philippines, killing many Allied POWs who became lost in the water, sank with the ship, or were washed ashore. Survivors of the bombing were put aboard two other ships, the Enoura Maru and the Brazil Maru, to continue on to Japan. During the journey, while anchored in Takao Harbor, Formosa (present-day Taiwan), the Enoura Maru was attacked by Allied aircraft from the USS Hornet (CV-8), killing Allied POWs who were lost in the water, on board the ship, or on the nearby shore. Survivors of the Enoura Maru bombing were loaded onto the Brazil Maru, and reached Japan on January 30, 1945. As a result of these incidents, Allied POWs were lost in the Philippines, at sea between the Philippines and Taiwan, while anchored in Taiwan, at sea between Taiwan and Japan, and in Japan. The attacks on these POW transports ultimately resulted in a series of death notifications from the Japanese government through the International Red Cross (IRC), and some casualties were given up to five different dates of death at various locations during the transfer. Witness accounts from surviving POWs offer detailed information for a handful of casualties, but the specific dates of loss and/or last-known locations for many of these POWs are based on the most recent reported date of death. Second Lieutenant Harry J. Dawe, who joined the U.S. Army from Maine, served with Battery K, 59th Coast Artillery Regiment in the Philippines. He was taken as a POW following the Japanese invasion and interned in the islands until December 1944, when he was put aboard the Oryoku Maru for transport to Japan. Records indicate 2LT Dawe was killed several weeks later in the attack on the Enoura Maru; however, these reports often involve information solely furnished by enemy governments, with some casualties given multiple dates of death. Future research may determine that these reports were inaccurate. 2LT Dawe’s remains could not be identified following the war, and he is still unaccounted-for. Today, Second Lieutenant Dawe is memorialized on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Morning Sentinel (1945)
George S. Davis, age 27, from Cumberland County Maine.
Parents: Philip Webb Davis
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Tuesday, January 9, 1945
Death details: On December 13, 1944, Japanese forces in the Philippines began the transfer of 1,621 Allied prisoners of war (POWs) to Japan. The POWs were to make the journey aboard transport ships whose harsh conditions and extreme overcrowding led survivors to refer to them as “Hell Ships.” The ships also lacked markings that would distinguish them from any other military target, causing some of them to be attacked by Allied forces who could not identify them as POW transports. On December 14, 1944, Allied aircraft attacked the first ship, the Oryoku Maru, in Subic Bay in the Philippines, killing many Allied POWs who became lost in the water, sank with the ship, or were washed ashore. Survivors of the bombing were put aboard two other ships, the Enoura Maru and the Brazil Maru, to continue on to Japan. During the journey, while anchored in Takao Harbor, Formosa (present-day Taiwan), the Enoura Maru was attacked by Allied aircraft from the USS Hornet (CV-8), killing Allied POWs who were lost in the water, on board the ship, or on the nearby shore. Survivors of the Enoura Maru bombing were loaded onto the Brazil Maru, and reached Japan on January 30, 1945. As a result of these incidents, Allied POWs were lost in the Philippines, at sea between the Philippines and Taiwan, while anchored in Taiwan, at sea between Taiwan and Japan, and in Japan. The attacks on these POW transports ultimately resulted in a series of death notifications from the Japanese government through the International Red Cross (IRC), and some casualties were given up to five different dates of death at various locations during the transfer. Witness accounts from surviving POWs offer detailed information for a handful of casualties, but the specific dates of loss and/or last-known locations for many of these POWs are based on the most recent reported date of death. Second Lieutenant George S. Davis joined the U.S. Army Air Forces from Maine and was serving with the 91st Bombardment Squadron, 27th Bombardment Group, in the Philippine Islands during World War II. He was taken as a POW following the Japanese invasion and was interned in the islands until December 1944, when he was put aboard the Oryoku Maru for transport to Japan. Records indicate 2LT Davis was killed several weeks later in the attack on the Enoura Maru; however, these reports often involve information solely furnished by enemy governments, with some casualties given multiple dates of death. Future research may determine that these reports were inaccurate. Second Lieutenant Davis’s remains were not recovered or identified following the war. Today, Second Lieutenant Davis is memorialized on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Portland Press Herald (1944)
Ernest N. Vienneau from Maine, Penobscot county.
Service era: World War II
Military history: 340 Bombardment Squadron 97 Bombardment Group (Heavy)
Date of death: Monday, November 6, 1944
Death details: The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Air Forces 2nd Lt. Ernest N. Vienneau, 25, killed during World War II, was accounted for April 16, 2021.
In the fall of 1944, Vienneau was a pilot assigned to the 340th Bombardment Squadron, 97th Bombardment Group, 15th Air Force, based out of Amendola, Italy. On Nov. 6, the B-17 Flying Fortress bomber on which he was serving as co-pilot came under heavy anti-aircraft fire while on a mission over Maribor, Yugoslavia, in present-day Slovenia. During the barrage, a piece of flak penetrated the cockpit and struck Vienneau in the head, mortally wounding him. While the crew treated Vienneau, the pilot attempted to fly the damaged B-17 back to base. However, the aircraft could not make it and the pilot was forced to ditch off the coast of Vis Island, Croatia. The surviving 10 crew made it out of the aircraft, but Vienneau’s body could not be recovered from the rapidly sinking B-17. Following the war, his remains could not be found and recovered.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Fernand Joseph Russell, age 19, from Waterville, Maine, Kennebec county.
Parents: Louise M. Russell
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 Fernand Joseph Russell entered the U.S. Marine Corps from Maine and served in Company E of the 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division. He was killed in action during the Battle of Tarawa on November 20 and buried in Cemetery #11, Grave #9, Row #3, Plot #6. After the war, his remains were not located among those disinterred from Tarawa. Private First Class Russell is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Alberic Maurice Blanchette, age 19, from Caribou, Maine, Aroostook county.
Parents: Benjamin Blanchette
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Saturday, November 20, 1943
Death details: On July 12, 2017, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) identified the remains of Private Alberic Maurice Blancette, missing from World War II. Private Blanchette entered the U.S. Marine Corps from Maine and served in Company K, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division. He was killed in action on November 20, 1943, during the Battle of Tarawa. His body could not be recovered at the time of his loss, and he was not identified among remains recovered from Tarawa immediately after the war. However, modern forensic techniques allowed for the identification of Private Blanchette among unidentified remains recovered from Betio that had been buried as unknowns in Hawaii. Private Blanchette is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Cemetery: Honolulu Memorial
Source: National Archives, American Battle Monuments Commission, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Ira E. Hersey, age 21, from Maine, Aroostook county.
Spouse: Single
Service era: World War II
Military history: 35th Infantry Regiment
Date of death: Saturday, September 11, 1943
Death details: Killed in action, Vella Lavella, Kokolope Bay
Cemetery: Manila American
Source: National Archives, 35th Infantry Regiment Association