WORLD WAR II GYRENE PHOTO ALBUM
page 24
 (above)
2nd Plt, Co M 3/8, New Zealand prior to shoving off for Tarawa— 1943. In the back row 3rd from right is Francis O'Brien from New York City. He served with the 8th Marines at Tarawa, Saipan, Tinian and on Okinawa. courtesy Mr. O'Brien's son, James
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I received the following information from Jim O'Brien in an e-mail message:
Yes, [dad] was at Tarawa. 3/8 went into Red Beach 3 at 1100 hours. They took a beating going in. Basically, they had to swim or wade the reef, about 800 yards under enemy fire. Some Marines were able to wade, but were cut down by enemy fire, or stepped into shell holes in the coral reef. Some were dropped off short of the reef, into deep water. There is a painting that illustrates that very location in the battle. It is also in the 2nd MARDIV history "Follow Me!"
I never heard about the war, when I was growing up. Like most combat vets, he never spoke about it. I found out about Tarawa from an older cousin. Then I did some reading. Only in recent years, has my dad spoken a bit about it. The only thing he told me was that he went in deep water, had to ditch his gear, and another Marine pulled him up and said we'd better head toward that pier. When they made it to the beach, there was plenty of gear available. Then, they got back in the machine gun business.
I remember seeing a citation for the Navy Commendation Medal that he was awarded. I recall from that the following: he was a machine gunner at Tarawa, a [squad] leader at Saipan and Tinian, and a [section] leader at Okinawa. A line in the citation read about "coolness under fire". When I think about it, that sums it up about the guy. He always was quiet, capable and able to deal with any situation at hand.
By war's end, he was doing a platoon sergeant's job as a buck Sergeant. After the war, he married, raised six children and was a New York City Policeman for 32 years.
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(above) Cpl James Gallagher, of Palm Beach Gardens, FL. Originally from New Jersey, he was an Old China Hand who enlisted in 1936. He served with the 6th Marines during its 1937-1938 deployment to China with the 2nd Marine Brigade. Cpl Gallagher was honorably discharged in 1939 and later volunteered for service in the Marine Corps during World War II.
After the war, Cpl Gallagher spent many years in the aerospace industry and retired in 1981. He was an avid golfer and was active in the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars and the China Marines Association. Survived by several generations of family members, Cpl Gallagher passed away in Janaury, 2006. photos and information courtesy of Marine veteran Thomas Cullen
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(above) Pfc Peter Ruvolo, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division. He was born in Brooklyn, New York and served from 1944–1946. He served in China with the Old Breed in E 2/7. Later, he was reassigned to H&S 2/7. Peter is retired and lives in Florida. He is still serving in the Marine Corps League and also stays busy helping the Young Marines. He helped form the Palm Beach Young Marines program and served 9 years as the executive officer under the Commanding Officer, Tom P. Cullen, who started the program. |
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(above) Peter went to boot camp in August 1944 at Parris Island in Platoon 530. The above left-hand photo shows Peter (left) with his boot camp buddy, Joe Sessa, who also hailed from Brooklyn. After boot camp, both went overseas in the 97th Replacement Draft and served together in Easy Co 2/7. The above right-hand photo shows Peter (right) and Joe (left) at Peitaiho Beach, China. |
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(left) Peter (left) with Joe Sessa at a reunion in 2000 at Long Island, NY. This was their first meeting in 50 years. Joe died three years after this photo was taken.
The above photos and information are courtesy of Peter Ruvolo
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