McCreanor

What is known as Pvt. Raymond J. McCreanor was that he was born on March 7, 1917, in Warren, Ohio. He was the son of Frank & Rose McCreanor. With his two sisters and four brothers, he was raised in Warren.
Raymond was inducted into the U. S. Army on March 28, 1941, in Cleveland and joined the 192nd Tank Battalion at Fort Knox, Kentucky in early 1941. He was assigned to C Company to fill out the company's roster.

He took part in maneuvers in the late summer of 1941. After the maneuvers, at Camp Polk, Louisiana, he learned he was being sent overseas with his battalion. After a leave home, he traveled west, by train, to San Francisco. There, his company was taken by ferry to Angel Island. During his stay, he was inoculated and received a physical.

As a Prisoner of War, he was held at Cabanatuan. It is believed he went out on a work detail to Las Pinas. It was from there that he was sent to Japan on the Nissyo Maru on July 14, 1944. The ship reached Takao, Formosa on July 17th and stayed until July 28th when it sailed for Moji, Japan. He arrived in Moji, Japan on August 6, 1944. On August 8, 1944, he arrived at a new POW camp known as Oeyama Camp. The POWs in this camp worked in a nickol refinery.

In May, 1945, B-29s began bombing the industrial district in which the camp was located. The camp Raymond was held in was inside a factory complex. The bombings were so bad that the camp was totally destroyed by fire. On May 18, 1945, the camp was disbanded and the POWs were transferred to Yodogawa Camp, which was an island seaport. The camp was also known as Osaka Camp #3. The POWs worked in a tin smelting plant and were involved in the manufacturing of corrugated tin.

Raymond and the other prisoners unloaded food, coal and coke from ships for a nickel refinery. The food they unloaded was bound for the Japanese army. Raymond and the other POWs would steal a couple of pocketfuls of beans everyday.

Raymond was liberated from Yodogawa Camp. After being returned to Manila for medical treatment, Raymond returned home to Ohio. He married Clara Lenio, and they became the parents of a son and two daughters. He worked at American Welding and Manufacturing.

Raymond J. McCreanor passed away on August 2, 1982, in Warren, Ohio. He was buried at Saint Mary's Cemetery in Warren, Ohio.