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Bataan Death March Memorial Famous memorial Veteran

Birth
Death
unknown
Monument
Albuquerque, Bernalillo County, New Mexico, USA Add to Map
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This memorial is dedicated to the brave soldiers that were members of the 200th and 515th Coastal Artillery (Anti Aircraft) that went through the Bataan Death March.
New Mexico's 200th and 515th Coast Artillery (Anti-aircraft) units served with bravery and great personal sacrifice in the defense of Luzon, Bataan and Corregidor, earning four Presidential Unit Citations. Following the surrender of Bataan on April 9, 1942 and Corregidor on May 6, 1942, the survivors of those bloody battles were to suffer 3-1/2 years of the most inhumane treatment known to mankind as prisoners of war. Their names and story are engraved on twelve granite columns at Bataan Memorial Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico. When the Japanese bombed Clark Field, Philippine Islands, on December 8, 1941 — December 7th in the US — just hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor, New Mexico's 200th Coast Artillery (Anti-aircraft) was the "first to fire" on the enemy. That night, in order to provide anti-aircraft protection for Manila, the Regiment was split, forming the 515th Coast Artillery, the first battle-born unit of World War II. Starving and diseased, the men held out for four months against an overwhelming enemy until Bataan was surrendered on April 9, 1942, and Corregidor on May 6, 1942. Except for the few who escaped to fight as guerrillas, the survivors of those bloody battles were to suffer 3-1/2 years of the most inhumane treatment known to mankind as prisoners of war. Eight hundred of the just over 1,800 men originally deployed would perish in prison camps or on Hell Ships. In 1943, while the men were suffering as prisoners of war, the City of Albuquerque vowed to build a Memorial to New Mexico's 200th and 515th Coast Artillery (Anti-aircraft) units. The Bataan Memorial was dedicated on April 7, 2002 because of the hard work, persistence, and cooperation of many individuals and organizations. The Bataan Veterans Organization, Albuquerque Chapter, never forgot the City's promise. Leo Padilla, Agapito Silva, William Overmier and Ernest Montoya, survivors of Bataan and Corregidor and slave labor camps in Japan and Manchuria, for many years lobbied the City of Albuquerque and some State legislators for the Memorial. They persevered against many adversities, never losing sight of their dream of having their comrades' contribution to freedom be remembered by generations of New Mexicans to come. (Memorial page by: Rita Osborne and Roanna Dolan Griffin)
This memorial is dedicated to the brave soldiers that were members of the 200th and 515th Coastal Artillery (Anti Aircraft) that went through the Bataan Death March.
New Mexico's 200th and 515th Coast Artillery (Anti-aircraft) units served with bravery and great personal sacrifice in the defense of Luzon, Bataan and Corregidor, earning four Presidential Unit Citations. Following the surrender of Bataan on April 9, 1942 and Corregidor on May 6, 1942, the survivors of those bloody battles were to suffer 3-1/2 years of the most inhumane treatment known to mankind as prisoners of war. Their names and story are engraved on twelve granite columns at Bataan Memorial Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico. When the Japanese bombed Clark Field, Philippine Islands, on December 8, 1941 — December 7th in the US — just hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor, New Mexico's 200th Coast Artillery (Anti-aircraft) was the "first to fire" on the enemy. That night, in order to provide anti-aircraft protection for Manila, the Regiment was split, forming the 515th Coast Artillery, the first battle-born unit of World War II. Starving and diseased, the men held out for four months against an overwhelming enemy until Bataan was surrendered on April 9, 1942, and Corregidor on May 6, 1942. Except for the few who escaped to fight as guerrillas, the survivors of those bloody battles were to suffer 3-1/2 years of the most inhumane treatment known to mankind as prisoners of war. Eight hundred of the just over 1,800 men originally deployed would perish in prison camps or on Hell Ships. In 1943, while the men were suffering as prisoners of war, the City of Albuquerque vowed to build a Memorial to New Mexico's 200th and 515th Coast Artillery (Anti-aircraft) units. The Bataan Memorial was dedicated on April 7, 2002 because of the hard work, persistence, and cooperation of many individuals and organizations. The Bataan Veterans Organization, Albuquerque Chapter, never forgot the City's promise. Leo Padilla, Agapito Silva, William Overmier and Ernest Montoya, survivors of Bataan and Corregidor and slave labor camps in Japan and Manchuria, for many years lobbied the City of Albuquerque and some State legislators for the Memorial. They persevered against many adversities, never losing sight of their dream of having their comrades' contribution to freedom be remembered by generations of New Mexicans to come. (Memorial page by: Rita Osborne and Roanna Dolan Griffin)

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  • Maintained by: Find a Grave
  • Originally Created by: Rita Osborne
  • Added: Jan 2, 2014
  • Find a Grave Memorial ID:
  • Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/122622943/bataan_death_march-memorial: accessed ), memorial page for Bataan Death March Memorial (unknown–unknown), Find a Grave Memorial ID 122622943, citing Bataan Memorial Park, Albuquerque, Bernalillo County, New Mexico, USA; Maintained by Find a Grave.