Tec 4 Wince I. Solsbee

Parents: William I. Solsbee & Polly Ann Wilson-Solsbee

Siblings: 6 sisters, 6 brothers

Home: Etowah, Tennessee

    - resided in Hennepin County, Minnesota

Enlisted: Minnesota National Guard

Inducted:

    - U. S. Army

        - 10 February 1941 - Brainerd, Minnesota

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

           - started march at Mariveles on southern tip of Bataan
           - POWs ran past Japanese artillery firing at Corregidor

           - did part of march with Bernard Fitzpatrick

           - according to Fitzpatrick, at one point, Solsbee looked up at the large

              crows above them and told the crows he wasn't going to die that

              day  
           - 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 the entire camp
            - as many as 50 POWs died each day
            - Japanese opened new POW camp to lower death rate 

        - Cabanatuan

Died:

    - 29 September 1942 - malaria & malnutrition

Buried:

    - Cabanatuan Camp Cemetery

Reburied:

    - American Military Cemetery as an Unknown 

    - his remains could not be positively identified  

Memorial:

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

Return to Company A