Marine Corps Reserve PFC George Joseph Atkins, 23, killed in World War II, remains unaccounted-for.
Born December 6, 1919, in Chicago, Illinois, George was blessed to the union of Samuel Merritt and Alphonsine Marie (nee LaLonde) Atkins.
On October 28, 1942, George walked into a United States Marine Corps recruiting office in Washington, D.C. and enlisted in the Reserves. His unit eventually made it to Wellington, where George and his buddies enjoyed the sights, scenes and hospitality of New Zealand while awaiting orders.
Private First Class Atkins was with his brothers in Mike Company, 3rd Battalion of the 2nd Marines (M-3/2) when they landed on Betio as part of Operation: GALVANIC. The mission of the 2nd Marine Division was to secure the island in order to control the Japanese airstrip in the Tarawa Atoll; thereby preventing the Japanese Imperial forces from getting closer to the United States, and enabling US forces to get closer to mainland Japan. It would become one of the bloodiest battles in the Corps history.
It was November 20, 1943 (D-Day for the "Battle of Tarawa"), when young George - just 23 years old - perished.
Having a loved one away from home during the holidays is always trying; however, having a son or husband off fighting in the war left the whole family on edge. The fact that this battle took place just before Thanksgiving meant that most of the families, who had unknowingly earned their Gold Star, would receive their heart-wrenching telegrams on Christmas Eve – some Christmas Day or even New Years Day.
For his service and sacrifice, George's mother accepted his awards and decorations, including:
- Purple Heart
- Combat Action Ribbon
- World War II Victory Medal
- American Campaign Medal
- Marine Corps Presidential Unit Citation
- Asiatic-Pacific Theater Campaign Medal
- Marine Corp Expeditionary Medal, and
- Gold Star Lapel Button.
Despite the heavy casualties suffered by U.S. forces, military success in the battle of Tarawa was a huge victory for the U.S. military because the Gilbert Islands provided the U.S. Navy Pacific Fleet a platform from which to launch assaults on the Marshall and Caroline Islands to advance their Central Pacific Campaign against Japan.
In the immediate aftermath of the fighting on Tarawa, U.S. service members who died in the battle were buried in a number of battlefield cemeteries on the island. In 1946 and 1947, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company conducted remains recovery operations on Betio, but PFC Atkins' remains were not recovered. On October 7, 1949, a military review board declared George "non-recoverable".
His mother had this memorial marker placed - near his father - in Saint Josephs Cemetery, in West Branch, Michigan, in hopes that George would one day be found and returned home. She was later laid to rest next to it - the empty plot still offering no peace.
On November 21, 2013, Jennifer Morrison, an independent volunteer forensic genealogist, found the family of PFC Atkins and put them in contact with the Marine Corps POW/MIA Section. This (re)established lines of communication with George's family regarding the ongoing recovery and repatriation efforts, and offered his niece the opportunity to provide a Family Reference DNA Sample, should it be necessary for her Uncle George's identification.
Marine Corps Reserve Private First Class George Joseph Atkins is memorialized among the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific's Honolulu Memorial. His name is permanently inscribed within Court 2 of the "Courts of the Missing" (57325529, a cenotaph).
SOURCE
DPAA Personnel Profile
Marine Corps POW/MIA Section
American Battle Monuments Commission
Jennifer Morrison, independent volunteer forensic genealogist
Born December 6, 1919, in Chicago, Illinois, George was blessed to the union of Samuel Merritt and Alphonsine Marie (nee LaLonde) Atkins.
On October 28, 1942, George walked into a United States Marine Corps recruiting office in Washington, D.C. and enlisted in the Reserves. His unit eventually made it to Wellington, where George and his buddies enjoyed the sights, scenes and hospitality of New Zealand while awaiting orders.
Private First Class Atkins was with his brothers in Mike Company, 3rd Battalion of the 2nd Marines (M-3/2) when they landed on Betio as part of Operation: GALVANIC. The mission of the 2nd Marine Division was to secure the island in order to control the Japanese airstrip in the Tarawa Atoll; thereby preventing the Japanese Imperial forces from getting closer to the United States, and enabling US forces to get closer to mainland Japan. It would become one of the bloodiest battles in the Corps history.
It was November 20, 1943 (D-Day for the "Battle of Tarawa"), when young George - just 23 years old - perished.
Having a loved one away from home during the holidays is always trying; however, having a son or husband off fighting in the war left the whole family on edge. The fact that this battle took place just before Thanksgiving meant that most of the families, who had unknowingly earned their Gold Star, would receive their heart-wrenching telegrams on Christmas Eve – some Christmas Day or even New Years Day.
For his service and sacrifice, George's mother accepted his awards and decorations, including:
- Purple Heart
- Combat Action Ribbon
- World War II Victory Medal
- American Campaign Medal
- Marine Corps Presidential Unit Citation
- Asiatic-Pacific Theater Campaign Medal
- Marine Corp Expeditionary Medal, and
- Gold Star Lapel Button.
Despite the heavy casualties suffered by U.S. forces, military success in the battle of Tarawa was a huge victory for the U.S. military because the Gilbert Islands provided the U.S. Navy Pacific Fleet a platform from which to launch assaults on the Marshall and Caroline Islands to advance their Central Pacific Campaign against Japan.
In the immediate aftermath of the fighting on Tarawa, U.S. service members who died in the battle were buried in a number of battlefield cemeteries on the island. In 1946 and 1947, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company conducted remains recovery operations on Betio, but PFC Atkins' remains were not recovered. On October 7, 1949, a military review board declared George "non-recoverable".
His mother had this memorial marker placed - near his father - in Saint Josephs Cemetery, in West Branch, Michigan, in hopes that George would one day be found and returned home. She was later laid to rest next to it - the empty plot still offering no peace.
On November 21, 2013, Jennifer Morrison, an independent volunteer forensic genealogist, found the family of PFC Atkins and put them in contact with the Marine Corps POW/MIA Section. This (re)established lines of communication with George's family regarding the ongoing recovery and repatriation efforts, and offered his niece the opportunity to provide a Family Reference DNA Sample, should it be necessary for her Uncle George's identification.
Marine Corps Reserve Private First Class George Joseph Atkins is memorialized among the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific's Honolulu Memorial. His name is permanently inscribed within Court 2 of the "Courts of the Missing" (57325529, a cenotaph).
SOURCE
DPAA Personnel Profile
Marine Corps POW/MIA Section
American Battle Monuments Commission
Jennifer Morrison, independent volunteer forensic genealogist
Marine Corps Reserve PFC George Joseph Atkins, 23, killed in World War II, remains unaccounted-for.
Born December 6, 1919, in Chicago, Illinois, George was blessed to the union of Samuel Merritt and Alphonsine Marie (nee LaLonde) Atkins.
On October 28, 1942, George walked into a United States Marine Corps recruiting office in Washington, D.C. and enlisted in the Reserves. His unit eventually made it to Wellington, where George and his buddies enjoyed the sights, scenes and hospitality of New Zealand while awaiting orders.
Private First Class Atkins was with his brothers in Mike Company, 3rd Battalion of the 2nd Marines (M-3/2) when they landed on Betio as part of Operation: GALVANIC. The mission of the 2nd Marine Division was to secure the island in order to control the Japanese airstrip in the Tarawa Atoll; thereby preventing the Japanese Imperial forces from getting closer to the United States, and enabling US forces to get closer to mainland Japan. It would become one of the bloodiest battles in the Corps history.
It was November 20, 1943 (D-Day for the "Battle of Tarawa"), when young George - just 23 years old - perished.
Having a loved one away from home during the holidays is always trying; however, having a son or husband off fighting in the war left the whole family on edge. The fact that this battle took place just before Thanksgiving meant that most of the families, who had unknowingly earned their Gold Star, would receive their heart-wrenching telegrams on Christmas Eve – some Christmas Day or even New Years Day.
For his service and sacrifice, George's mother accepted his awards and decorations, including:
- Purple Heart
- Combat Action Ribbon
- World War II Victory Medal
- American Campaign Medal
- Marine Corps Presidential Unit Citation
- Asiatic-Pacific Theater Campaign Medal
- Marine Corp Expeditionary Medal, and
- Gold Star Lapel Button.
Despite the heavy casualties suffered by U.S. forces, military success in the battle of Tarawa was a huge victory for the U.S. military because the Gilbert Islands provided the U.S. Navy Pacific Fleet a platform from which to launch assaults on the Marshall and Caroline Islands to advance their Central Pacific Campaign against Japan.
In the immediate aftermath of the fighting on Tarawa, U.S. service members who died in the battle were buried in a number of battlefield cemeteries on the island. In 1946 and 1947, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company conducted remains recovery operations on Betio, but PFC Atkins' remains were not recovered. On October 7, 1949, a military review board declared George "non-recoverable".
His mother had this memorial marker placed - near his father - in Saint Josephs Cemetery, in West Branch, Michigan, in hopes that George would one day be found and returned home. She was later laid to rest next to it - the empty plot still offering no peace.
On November 21, 2013, Jennifer Morrison, an independent volunteer forensic genealogist, found the family of PFC Atkins and put them in contact with the Marine Corps POW/MIA Section. This (re)established lines of communication with George's family regarding the ongoing recovery and repatriation efforts, and offered his niece the opportunity to provide a Family Reference DNA Sample, should it be necessary for her Uncle George's identification.
Marine Corps Reserve Private First Class George Joseph Atkins is memorialized among the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific's Honolulu Memorial. His name is permanently inscribed within Court 2 of the "Courts of the Missing" (57325529, a cenotaph).
SOURCE
DPAA Personnel Profile
Marine Corps POW/MIA Section
American Battle Monuments Commission
Jennifer Morrison, independent volunteer forensic genealogist
Born December 6, 1919, in Chicago, Illinois, George was blessed to the union of Samuel Merritt and Alphonsine Marie (nee LaLonde) Atkins.
On October 28, 1942, George walked into a United States Marine Corps recruiting office in Washington, D.C. and enlisted in the Reserves. His unit eventually made it to Wellington, where George and his buddies enjoyed the sights, scenes and hospitality of New Zealand while awaiting orders.
Private First Class Atkins was with his brothers in Mike Company, 3rd Battalion of the 2nd Marines (M-3/2) when they landed on Betio as part of Operation: GALVANIC. The mission of the 2nd Marine Division was to secure the island in order to control the Japanese airstrip in the Tarawa Atoll; thereby preventing the Japanese Imperial forces from getting closer to the United States, and enabling US forces to get closer to mainland Japan. It would become one of the bloodiest battles in the Corps history.
It was November 20, 1943 (D-Day for the "Battle of Tarawa"), when young George - just 23 years old - perished.
Having a loved one away from home during the holidays is always trying; however, having a son or husband off fighting in the war left the whole family on edge. The fact that this battle took place just before Thanksgiving meant that most of the families, who had unknowingly earned their Gold Star, would receive their heart-wrenching telegrams on Christmas Eve – some Christmas Day or even New Years Day.
For his service and sacrifice, George's mother accepted his awards and decorations, including:
- Purple Heart
- Combat Action Ribbon
- World War II Victory Medal
- American Campaign Medal
- Marine Corps Presidential Unit Citation
- Asiatic-Pacific Theater Campaign Medal
- Marine Corp Expeditionary Medal, and
- Gold Star Lapel Button.
Despite the heavy casualties suffered by U.S. forces, military success in the battle of Tarawa was a huge victory for the U.S. military because the Gilbert Islands provided the U.S. Navy Pacific Fleet a platform from which to launch assaults on the Marshall and Caroline Islands to advance their Central Pacific Campaign against Japan.
In the immediate aftermath of the fighting on Tarawa, U.S. service members who died in the battle were buried in a number of battlefield cemeteries on the island. In 1946 and 1947, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company conducted remains recovery operations on Betio, but PFC Atkins' remains were not recovered. On October 7, 1949, a military review board declared George "non-recoverable".
His mother had this memorial marker placed - near his father - in Saint Josephs Cemetery, in West Branch, Michigan, in hopes that George would one day be found and returned home. She was later laid to rest next to it - the empty plot still offering no peace.
On November 21, 2013, Jennifer Morrison, an independent volunteer forensic genealogist, found the family of PFC Atkins and put them in contact with the Marine Corps POW/MIA Section. This (re)established lines of communication with George's family regarding the ongoing recovery and repatriation efforts, and offered his niece the opportunity to provide a Family Reference DNA Sample, should it be necessary for her Uncle George's identification.
Marine Corps Reserve Private First Class George Joseph Atkins is memorialized among the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific's Honolulu Memorial. His name is permanently inscribed within Court 2 of the "Courts of the Missing" (57325529, a cenotaph).
SOURCE
DPAA Personnel Profile
Marine Corps POW/MIA Section
American Battle Monuments Commission
Jennifer Morrison, independent volunteer forensic genealogist
Inscription
GEORGE J. / 1919 ✞ 1943
Gravesite Details
Memorial marker placed by his mother in 1947. George is still unaccounted for.
