Chapter XVII


1 USAFFE FO 2, 7 Jan 42, AG 300.4 (28 Dec 41) Phil Rcds; USAFFE-USFIP Rpt of Opns, p. 44.

2 Skerry, Comments on Engineer Hist, No. 10; Collier, Notebooks, III, 21.

3 USAFFE FO 2, 7 Jan 42; memo, Funk for Asst G-3 USAFFE, 8 Jan 42, AG 300.6 (24 Dec 41) Phil Rcds; McBride, Notes on Bataan Service Command, p. 106.

4 Ltr, Selleck to Board of Officers, 1 Feb 46, sub: Statement on Reduction in Rank, p. 11, OCMH.

5 Rpt, Comdr Bridget to Comdt, 16th Naval Dist, 9 Feb 42, sub: Action at Longoskawayan Point", p. 2, Off of Naval Rcds; memo, Selleck for McBride in McBride, Notes on Bataan Service Command, p. 131. The precise boundary between Selleck's sector and the Navy was at Apatot Bay.

6 The Dyess Story by Lt. Col. William E. Dyess, p. 38. Copyright, 1944, by Marajen Stevick Dyess. Courtesy of G. P. Putnam's Sons. Ind, Bataan, The Judgment Seat, p. 215.

7 Dyess, The Dyess Story, p. 39.

8 Morison, Rising Sun in the Pacific, p. 200. Morison states there were one hundred marines but this number is too high. Lt. William F. Hogaboom, who commanded these marines, put the number at forty. Hogaboom, "Action Report: Bataan," Marine Corps Gazette (April 1946), p. 27.

9 Memo, Selleck for McBride, in McBride, Notes on Bataan Service Command, p. 131; intervs, author with Selleck at various times in 1947 and 1948; ltr, Selleck to Board of Officers, 1 Feb 46, sub: Statement on Reduction in Rank; Col Alexander, Personal Recollections of Bataan, pp. 52-53, copy in OCMH.

10 Memo, Selleck for McBride in McBride, Notes on Bataan Service Command, p. 131.

11 Statement of Lt Col Shoji Ohta, Intel Officer, 16th Div, in Comments of Japanese Officers Regarding The Fall of the Philippines, pp. 58, 130, copy in OCMH.

12 For a full discussion of this action, see above, Ch. XVI, pp. 278-285.

13 14th Army Opns, I, 97.

14 USA vs. Homma, pp. 3060-61, testimony of Homma.

15 Rpt, Comdr, Torpedo Boat Sq Three, to Comdt, 16th Naval Dist, 27 Feb 42, sub: Action of PT 34, 22-23 Jan 42, Off of Naval Rcds; ltr, Comdr John D. Bulkeley to author, 5 Mar 48 OCMH; White, They Were Expendable, p. 11.

16 USA vs. Homma, pp. 3060-61, testimony of Homma; 14th Army Opns, I, 94, 97; Lt Col Irvin Alexander, Narrative of Quinauan Point Landing, p. 1, App. A, QM Rpt of Opns.

17 Bridget, Action at Longoskawayan Point, p. 2, Off of Naval Rcds; interv, Groce with Maj John McM. Gulick, 20 Apr 48.

18 Bridget, Action at Longoskawayan Point, pp. 2-3; Selleck, Comments on Draft MS, 8 Jan 52, OCMH. The number of men Bridget committed initially is not known but at the end of five days he had two hundred men from his naval battalion in action. The information on the number of Japanese in the area was secured from a prisoner of war and reported by Bridget, page 2.

19 Bridget, Action at Longoskawayan Point, pp. 3-4; Hogaboom, "Action Report: Bataan," Marine Corps Gazette (April 1946), pp. 27-28; Lt Herb S. Ellis, Hist of 3d Pursuit Sq, p. 48, Chunn Notebooks. The action at Longoskawayan Point is based upon the first two sources.

20 Capt Earl L. Sackett, USN, Hist of USS Canopus, p. 14, Off of Naval Rcds.

21 Lt Paulger (first name unknown), Hist of 34th Pursuit Sq, p. 52, Chunn Notebooks; Selleck, Comments on Draft MS, 8 Jan 52, OCMH.

22 Ltr, Selleck to Board of Officers, 1 Feb 46, sub: Statement on Reduction in Rank, p. 12; Alexander, Quinauan Point Landings, pp. 1-2; Alexander, Personal Recollections of Bataan, pp. 54-55; NLF and I Corps Rpt of Opns, p. 24; Collier, Notebooks, III, 43.

23 Alexander, Quinauan Point Landings, p. 2; Paulger, 34th Pursuit Sq, p. 52, Chunn Notebooks; Col Gilmer M. Bell, CofS South Sector, Opns in the South Subsector, p. 2, copy in OCMH; Alexander, Personal Recollections of Bataan, p. 61.

24 Ltr, Selleck to Board of Officers, 1 Feb 46, sub: Statement on Reduction in Rank, p. 13; Selleck, Comments on draft chapter prepared by author, OCMH; interv, author with Marshall, 7 Apr 48.

25 Alexander, Quinauan Point Landings, p.. 2; Alexander, Personal Recollections of Bataan, p. 62; Bell, Opns in South Subsector, p. 2; Dyess, The Dyess Story, p. 41. Dyess, then a captain, commanded the 21st Pursuit Squadron.

26 Melville Jacoby, "Corregidor Cable No. 79," Field Artillery Journal (April 1942), p. 267; ltr, Maj Gen Charles A. Willoughby to Ward, 17 May 51, OCMH; Notebook of Col Alexander, copy in OCMH; Selleck, Comments on Draft MS, 8 Jan 52, OCMH.

27 Interv, author with Marshall, 7 Apr 48.

28 Ibid.; ltr, Selleck to Board of Officers, 1 Feb 46, sub: Statement on Reduction in Rank, p. 13; ltr, Pierce to Ward, 5 Jan 52, OCMH; Bell, Opns in the South Subsector, p. 2. Selleck was reduced to colonel on 25 January. Official Army Register, 1947.

29 USAFFE FO 10, 25 Jan 42, AG 300.4 (28 Dec 41) Phil Rcds.

30 Ltr, Col Howard to TAG, sub: Unit Hist 2d Bn, 88th FA (PS), p. 5. A copy of the letter, as well as a lengthier draft, is on file in OCMH.

31 14th Army Opns, I, 107; Collier, Notebooks, III, 42; USAFFE-USFIP Rpt of Opns, p. 49; Capt Clifton A. Groom, Hist, 3d Bn, 45th Inf (PS) 8 Dec 41-9 Apr 42, p. 8, and Anderson, Hist of 57th Inf (PS), p. 3, both in Chunn Notebooks. The Japanese attempt to reinforce on the 27th is described below, pp. 21-23.

32 The account of the fight at Longoskawayan Point to 28 January is based on Bridget, Action at Longoskawayan Point, pp. 3-5, and Hogaboom, "Action Report: Bataan," Marine Corps Gazette (April 1946), pp. 27-31.

33 Diary of Col Bunker, entry of 25 Jan 42. Colonel Bunker died in prison camp and the diary was lent to the author before it was given to the U. S. Military Academy at West Point. A photostat copy is in OCMH.

34 Ibid.

35 Ibid.

36 USAFFE G-3 Info Bulletin, 3 Feb 42, quoted in Harbor Defenses Rpt of Opns, p. 31.

37 Ltr, Howard to TAG, sub: 2d Bn, 88th FA (PS), p. 5; Collier, Notebooks, III, 41-42; USAFFE-USFIP Rpt of Opns, p. 49.

38 Bunker, Diary, entry of 27 Jan 42.

39 The account of the last days of fighting at Longoskawayan Point is based on Anderson, Hist of the 57th Inf (PS), pp. 3-4, Chunn Notebooks.

40 Ltr, Howard to TAG, sub: 2d Bn, 88th FA (PS), p. 5.

41 Bunker, Diary, entry of 29 Jan 42; Harbor Defenses Rpt of Opns, p. 31.

42 Rockwell, Naval Activities in Luzon Area, p. 14, and ltr, CO, USS Quail to Comdt. 16th Naval Dist, 30 Jan 42, sub: Action at Longoskawayan Point, 29 Jan 42, both in Off of Naval Rcds.

43 For an account of the activities of the armored launches, see Sackett, Hist of USS Canopus, pp. 16-17.

44 Lt Col Harold K. Johnson, Anyasan and Silaiim Points (paper prepared for School of Combined Arms, 1946-47, Command and General Staff College), p. 12.

45 USA vs. Homma, p. 3060, testimony of Homma; ltr, Col Stuart Wood to author, 23 Mar 48, OCMH; interv, Groce with Selleck, 2 Apr 48.

46 Bell, Opns in South Subsector, p. 2; Dyess, The Dyess Story, p. 42; 1st Lt John A. Goodpasture, V Interceptor Comd Combat Unit 1, p. 43, Paulger, Hist of 34th Pursuit Sq, p. 52, and 1st Lt Lawrence N. Parcher, Hist of 21st Pursuit Sq, p. 50, all three in Chunn Notebooks.

47 Groom, Hist, 3d Bn, 45th Inf (PS), pp. 8-14, Chunn Notebooks; Bell, Opns in South Subsector, p. 3; Lilly, 57th Inf (PS) Opns Rpt, p. 5. The account which follows is based on these sources.

48 Croom, Hist, 3d Bn, 45th Inf (PS), pp. 9-10, Chunn Notebooks.

49 Lilly, 57th Inf (PS) Opns Rpt, p. 5.

50 Strickler's body was recovered on the 7th. Memo, QM Hq Phil Dept to QM USAFFE, sub: Supply Situation, 7 Feb 42, AG 319.1 (29 Jan 42) Phil Rcds.

51 Croom, Hist, 3d Bn, 45th Inf (PS), p. 12, Chunn Notebooks.

52 Prov Tank Gp Rpt of Opns, p. 20-21; NLF and I Corps Rpt of Opns, p. 24.

53 Croom, Hist, 3d Bn, 45th Inf (PS), p. 12, Chunn Notebooks; Prov Tank Gp Rpt of Opns, p. 21; Weaver, Comments on Draft MS, Comment 44, OCMH.

54 Dyess, The Dyess Story, p. 43.

55 Ibid., pp. 43-44.

56 Wainwright, General Wainwright's Story, p. 57.

57 Skerry, Comments on Draft MS, Comment D, OCMH.

58 Ltr, Capt H. W. Goodall, USN, to George Groce, 17 Aug 48, OCMH; Dyess, The Dyess Story, p. 44; rad, Comdt, 16th Naval Dist, to OPNAV, 8 Feb 42, War Diary, 16th Naval Dist, Off of Naval Rcds. On the way back, the boats were attacked again by dive bombers. Among the casualties that day was Commander Goodall, seriously wounded.

59 USA vs. Homma, p. 3061, testimony of Homma; rpt, Graves Registration Unit, 7, 8, 9, and 11 Feb 42, AG 319.1 (29 Jan 42) Phil Rcds.

60 Bell, Opns in South Subsector, p. 4; Paulger, 34th Pursuit Sq, p. 52, Croom, Hist, 3d Bn, 45th Inf (PS), p. 14, and Parcher, 21st Pursuit Sq, pp. 50-51, all three in Chunn Notebooks.

61 Morioka's 16th Division was scattered at this time. The 9th Infantry was under General Nara's control on the east coast of Bataan; two battalions of the 20th Infantry were already in Bataan and operating under General Kimura, infantry group commander of the division. The third regiment of the division, the 33d Infantry, was split: one battalion was in Manila, one in southern Luzon, and the third was on Mindanao. 14th Army Opns, I, 98-99.

62 Ibid., 107-08.

63 Ibid.; Collier, Notebooks, III, 42.

64 Maj Achille C. Tisdelle, Diary, entry of 6 Feb 42, copy in OCMH. Major Tisdelle was aide to General King, Chief of the Artillery Section, USAFFE.

65 Johnson, Anyasan and Silaiim Points, pp. 2-3. Colonel Johnson states that the percentage of the tree bursts was as high as 50 percent.

66 Collier, Notebooks, III, 42.

67 Bell, Opns in South Subsector, p. 5; 2d Lt Stephen H. Crosby, Hist of 17th Pursuit Sq, p. 48, Chunn Notebooks; NLF and I Corps Rpt of Opns, p. 25.

68 Crosby, 17th Pursuit Sq, pp. 48-49, Chunn Notebooks.

69 Ibid.; Bell, Opns in South Subsector, p. 5.

70 Ibid.; Capts Ralph Amato, Jr., and Louis Murphy, Hist of 2d Bn, 45th Inf (PS), 8 Dec 41-9 Apr 42, p. 9, Chunn Notebooks; NLF and I Corps Rpt of Opns, p. 25; Lilly, 57th Inf (PS) Opns, p. 5; Maj Harold K. Johnson, 57th Inf (PS) Diary, pp. 11-12, copy in OCMH. There is considerable disagreement among the sources on the dates for operations in this sector. The conflicting sources cannot be reconciled and the dates used in this account were determined after an evaluation of all the sources.

71 Amato and Murphy, 2d Bn, 45th Inf (PS), p. 10, Chunn Notebooks; Johnson, 57th Inf (PS) Diary, pp. 11-17; Johnson, Anyasan and Silaiim, pp. 6-13; ltr, Howard to TAG, sub: 2d Bn, 88th FA (PS), p. 11; Lilly, 57th Inf (PS) Opns, p. 5; Bell, Opns in South Subsector. The present account is based on these sources in addition to those cited below.

72 Johnson, 57th Inf (PS) Diary, p. 11.

73 Ibid., p. 13.

74 14th Army Opns Order, Series A, No. 220, 27 Jan 42, 65th Brig Opns Rpt, Mt. Samat, ATIS Enemy Pub 289, Supp. 24.

75 Memo, QM Phil Dept to QM USAFFE, sub: Status Rpt, 1 Feb 42, AG 319.1 (29 Jan 42) Phil Rcds. See also, USA vs. Homma, p. 3061, testimony of Homma; ltr, Col Wood to author, 23 Mar 48, OCMH; Amato and Murphy, 2d Bn, 45th Inf (PS), pp. 10-11, Chunn Notebooks.

76 14th Army Opns, I, 107-08.

77 Collier, Notebooks, III, 44; Bluemel, 31st Div (PA) Rpt of Opns, p. 15; ltr, Bluemel to Groce, 15 Jun 48, OCMH; Prov Tank Gp Rpt of Opns, pp. 20-21.

78 USAFFE-USFIP Rpt of Opns, p. 52; ltr, Howard to TAG, Hist, 2d Bn, 88th FA (PS), p. 13; NLF and I Corps Rpt of Opns, p. 25; Croom, Hist, 3d Bn, 45th Inf (PS), pp. 12-12, Chunn Notebooks; Collier, Notebooks, III, 45-46; rad, 16th Naval Dist to OPNAV, 2 Feb 42, War Diary, 16th Naval Dist, Off of Naval Rcds; Rockwell, Naval Activities in Luzon Area, p. 15; ltr, Bulkeley to author, 5 Mar 48, OCMH; Chandler, "26th Cavalry (PS) Battles to Glory," Part 3, Armored Cavalry Journal (July-August 1947), p. 17; Ind, Bataan, The Judgment Seat, pp. 278-79; USA vs. Homma, p. 3061, testimony of Homma; 14th Army Opns, I, 102-08, II, Maps 2 and 3; rpt, Comdr, Motor Torpedo Boat Div Nine, to Comdt, 16th Naval Dist, 3 Feb 42, sub: Attack of PT 32 on Enemy Cruiser, Off of Naval Rcds; White, They Were Expendable, pp. 77-82; Comments of Former Japanese Officers Regarding The Fall of the Philippines, p. 60, OCMH.

79 14th Army Opns, I, 108.

80 Prov Tank Gp Rpt of Opns, pp. 21-22.

81 Ltr, Howard to TAG, sub: 2d Bn, 88th FA (PS), p. 5.

82 Johnson, Anyasan and Silaiim Points, p. 11.

83 Bell, Opns Rpt, 8-9 Feb 42, AG 370.2 (19 Dec 41) Phil Rcds.

84 Johnson, Anyasan and Silaiim Points, p. 12.

85 Tactical Situation Rpt, 14th Army, ATIS Doc 56113, 3 Mar 50, p. 4, in Translation of Japanese Documents, GHQ FEC, Mil Intel Sec, 2 vols., II, No. 15.

86 14th Army Opns, I, 102, 108; Bell, Opns Rpt, 8-9 Feb 42. The Japanese reported a PT attack but American records contain no mention of such an attack.

87 Ltr, Col Wood to author, 23 Mar 48, OCMH.

88 Crosby, 17th Pursuit Sq, p. 48-49, Chunn Notebooks.

89 Johnson, Anyasan and Silaiim Points, p. 14.

90 Maj James C. Blanning, CO 2d Sq, 26th Cavalry (PS), War Diary, pp. 11-18, OCMH; Chandler, "26th Cavalry (PS) Battles to Glory," Part 3, Armored Cavalry Journal (July-August 1947), pp. 18-19.

91 For estimated casualties in each unit see the reports cited for each unit above. The totals given are estimates reached by the author.

92 It is extremely difficult to establish the exact number of Japanese in the 1st Battalion, 20th Infantry, or to account precisely for their fate. Various estimates are given in all the sources cited. The author has estimated the strength on the basis of all known factors plus the fact that the battalion had seen little action and had suffered few casualties.


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