Edens

Born: 15 July 1919 - Guymon, Texas County, Oklahoma

- name spelled "Raymon" on military records

Parents: Hiram Edens & Maud Carley-Edens

Siblings: 2 sisters, 1 brother

Hometown: Sledgeville Township, Texas County, Oklahoma

Occupation: worked on family's farm

Inducted:

- U. S. Army

- 19 March 1941

- Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Training:

- Fort Knox, Kentucky

- Camp Polk, Louisiana

Units:

- 753rd Tank Battalion

- assigned to battalion after basic training

- 192nd Tank Battalion

- volunteered to replace a National Guardsman released from federal service

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:

- 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

Died: 9 May 1942 - malaria & dysentery

Buried:

- Camp O'Donnell Cemetery

- Section D Row: 8 Grave: 4

Reburied:

- American Military Cemetery - Manila, Philippine Islands

- Plot: A Row: 15 Grave: 93