Tec 5 William C. Kent


Born: 7 June 1922 - Alabama

Parent: Mrs. E. J. Kent

Siblings: Unknown

Hometown: Lapine, Alabama

Inducted:

    - U. S. Army

        - 29 July 1940 - Montgomery, Alabama

Training: 

    - Unknown

        - joined A Company at Angel Island

Units: 

    - 194th Tank Battalion

Overseas Duty: 

    - Philippine Islands

Engagements: 

    - Battle of Luzon

        - 8 December 1941 - 6 January 1942 

    - Battle of Bataan

        - 7 January 1942 - 9 April 1942

Prisoner of War: 

    - 9 April 1942

        - Death March

           - started march at Mariveles on southern tip of Bataan
           - POWs ran past Japanese artillery firing at Corregidor
           - San Fernando - POWs put into small wooden boxcars
               - 100 POWs packed into each boxcar
                   - those who died remain standing
           - Capas - living left cars - dead fell out of boxcars
           - POWs walked last ten miles to Camp O'Donnell
 

POW Camps:

    - Philippine Islands:

        - Camp O'Donnell

            - unfinished Filipino training base
            - Japanese put camp into use as POW Camp
            - only one water spigot for entire camp
            - as many as 50 POWs died each day
            - Japanese opened new POW camp to lower death rate
 
 

        - Cabanatuan #1

Died:

    - 25 June 1942 - cerebral malaria

        - Approximate time of death - 9:00 AM

Buried:

    - Cabanatuan Camp Cemetery 

         - remains could not be positively identified after the war

        - buried as an "Unknown" at the new American cemetery 

Memorial:

    - Tablets of the Missing - American Military Cemetery - Manila, Philippine Islands


 






Return to Company A