Pvt. Thomas J. Roche
Born: 7 July 1922 - Chicago, Illinois
Parents: Frederick & Cecelia Roche
Home: 511 5th Street - Lewiston, Idaho
    - 1935 - family lived in Clarkston, Washington
Enlisted:
    - Idaho National Guard
        - 25 May 1940
Inducted:
    - U.S. Army
        - 9 September 1940 - Fort Lewis, Washington
Training:
    - Fort Lewis, Washington
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
            - Mariveles - POWs start march at southern tip of Bataan
            - POWs ran past Japanese 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:
    - Philippines:
        - 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
    - Japan:
        - Tokyo #5B
            - Work: POWs worked as stevedores and in a foundry
        - Sendai #5
            - transferred to camp - 13 April 1945
            - iron mill work
Hell Ship:
    - Coral Maru - ship also known as Taga Maru
        - Sailed: 20 September 1943
        - Arrived: 23 September 1943
        - Sailed: 29 September 1943
        - Arrived: Moji, Japan - 5 October 1943
Liberated: 15 September 1945
Married: 19 April 1947
    - divorced in 1970
Discharged: 30 September 1961
Rank: Master Sergeant
Died:
    - 17 May 1991
Buried:
    - Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery - Houston, Texas
        - Section:  9   Site:  1593

 

 

 


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