Posted on 06/20/2010 5:13:42 PM PDT by Brad’s Gramma
(Info found here here) |
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John Basilone (November 4, 1916 February 19, 1945) was a United States Marine Gunnery Sergeant who received the Medal of Honor for his actions at the Battle of Guadalcanal during World War II. He was the only enlisted Marine in World War II to receive both the Medal of Honor and the Navy Cross. He served three years in the United States Army with duty in the Philippines before joining the Marine Corps in 1940. After attending training, Basilone deployed to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, the Solomon Islands and eventually to Guadalcanal where he held off 3,000 Japanese troops after his 15-member unit was reduced to two men. He was killed in action on the first day of the Battle of Iwo Jima, after which he was posthumously honored with the Navy Cross. He has received many honors including being the namesake for streets, military locations and a United States Navy destroyer. |
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Basilone was born in his home on November 4, 1916 in Buffalo, New York, the sixth of ten children. His father, Salvatore Basilone, emigrated from the Naples region of![]() Basilone worked as a golf caddy for the local country club before joining the military. He enlisted in the United States Army and completed his three-year enlistment with service in the Philippines, where he was a champion boxer. Upon returning home, he worked as a truck driver in Reisterstown, Maryland. After driving trucks for a few months, he wanted to go back to Manila and believed he could get there faster as a Marine than in the Army. He enlisted in the Marines in July 1940 from Baltimore, Maryland and went to recruit training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island followed by training at Marine Corps Base Quantico and New River. The Corps sent him to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba for his next assignment and then to Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands as a member of 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division. While on Guadalcanal, his fellow Marines gave him the nickname "Manila John" due to his former service in the Philippines. During the Battle for Henderson Field, his unit Afterwards, Private First Class Nash W. Phillips, of Fayetteville, North Carolina, recalled from the battle for Guadalcanal: "Basilone had a machine gun on the go for three days and nights without sleep, rest, or food. He was in a good emplacement, and causing the Japanese lots of trouble, not only firing his machine gun, but also using his pistol." After receiving the Medal of Honor, he returned to the United States and participated After his request to return to the fleet was approved, he was assigned to Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 27th Marine Regiment, 5th Marine Division during the invasion of Iwo Jima. On February 19, 1945 he was serving as a machine-gun section leader in action against Japanese forces on Red Beach II. During the battle, the Japanese concentrated their fire at the incoming Americans from heavily fortified blockhouses staged throughout the island. With his unit pinned down, Basilone made his way around the side of the Japanese positions until he was directly on top of the blockhouse. He then attacked with grenades and demolitions, single handedly destroying the entire strongpoint and its defending garrison. He then fought his way toward Airfield Number 1 and aided an American tank that was trapped in an enemy mine field under intense mortar and artillery barrages. He guided the heavy vehicle over the hazardous terrain to safety, despite heavy weapons fire from the Japanese. As he moved along the edge of the airfield, he was killed by Japanese mortar shrapnel. His actions helped Marines penetrate the Japanese defense and get off the landing beach during the critical early stages of the invasion. For his valor during the battle of Iwo Jima, he was posthumously approved for the Marine Corps' second highest decoration for bravery, the Navy Cross. His body was interred in Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia and his grave can be found in Section 12, Grave 384, grid Y/Z 23.5. Lena M Basilone died June 11, 1999 at the age of 86 and is buried at Riverside National Cemetery. Lena's obituary notes that she never remarried. |
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HooRay!!!! You got in!
***HUGS***
Good Lord's Day to you!
Well, I finally got here...had to go borrow the grandsons laptop! Good evening EVERYONE!!!
I know the feeling. That is how I feel some Saturday afternoons
when I am posting tunes. It’s like I am playing for myself. LOL!
Glad you are here! :)
Stole the grandson's laptop, huh...tsk, tsk!
Now they have to figure out why some can get in and some still can't!
I was beginning to think I was in Conor’s time warp....and that it was Sunday’s thread again! LOL!
I think they must have patched this thing up with duct tape,
it’s running sooooo slooooooowwwww! Hope it stays together
long enough to post this! :D
Hubby is sitting in the other room and he can load it but I can’t. Something is a little bit off with that.
G’night Conor. Rest well. Have a great Monday! *hugs*
Nite, Conor. Have a great week!
You too??? I can only get on FR with my laptop....NOT my desktop. What gives??? I just got here as well.
But, at least we finally made it.
Good evening, teen. *HUGS*
I’m thinking there is still something that isn’t quite fixed. I went and checked out the yahoo group and some over there can’t get in as well.
I know, I was on the alternate FR site today and some folks were back on real FR when I still wasn't, too weird!
I hope one of the Mods or Jim or John are monitoring this site and know that it’s still not what it should be.
That we did, how are ya? *hugs*
They know!
How was your weekend?
Today was pretty quiet. Daughter and grandson came over for a while but that’s it. I expect yours was good?
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