Martinez

Born: 1918 - Jackson County, Texas

Inducted:

- U. S. Army - 19 March 1941

Training:

- Fort Knox, Kentucky

- Radio Operator

- Camp Polk, Louisiana

- assigned to 753rd Tank Battalion

- battalion did not take part in maneuvers

Units:

- 753rd Tank Battalion

- 192nd Tank Battalion

Overseas Duty:

- Philippine Islands

Engagements:

- Battle of Luzon

- Battle of Bataan

Prisoner of War:

9 April 1942

- Death March

           - Mariveles - POWs start march at southern tip of Bataan
            - POWs ran past Japanesee artillery firing at Corregidor
                - Americans on Corregidor returned fire
            - San Fernando - POWs put into small wooden boxcars
                - each boxcar could hold eight horses or forty men
                - 100 POWs packed into each car
                - POWs who died remained standing
            - Capas - dead fell to floor as living left 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 spiget for entire camp
            - as many as 50 POWs died each day
            - Japanese opened new POW camp to lower death rate

- Cabanatuan - May 1942 - September 1944

- Bilibid Prison

Hokusen Maru

- POWs boarded ship on 21 September 1944

- Sailed: Manila - 3 October 1944

- Arrived: Hong Kong - 11 October 1944

- remained in port until - 21 October 1944

- attacked by American planes - 13 October 1944

Sailed: Hong Kong - 21 October 1944

Arrived: Takao, Formosa - 24 October 1944

- POWs disembarked - 8 November 1944

Melbourne Maru

- Sailed: Formosa - 14 January 1945

- Arrived: Moji, Japan - 23 January 1945

Formosa

- Toroku Camp

Japan:

- Hirohata Camp or Naruo Camp

- Nagoya #9 - 29 May 1945 - 5 September 1945

- Work: Stevedores Iwase docks

Hell Ships:

- Unknown

Liberated: September 1945