Pvt. William Elwood Blacketer

Parents: Elmer Blacketer & Hattie Shewmaker-Blacketer

Siblings: 2 sisters, 1 brother

Hometown:  Harrodsburg, Kentucky

Enlisted: 

    - Kentucky National Guard - Harrodsburg

Inducted: 

    - U. S. Army

        - 25 November 1940 - Harrodsburg

Training: 

    - Fort Knox, Kentucky

        - tank driver

    - Camp Polk, Louisiana

        - Louisiana Maneuvers

Overseas Duty: 

    - Philippine Islands

Engagements: 

    - Battle of Luzon

    - Battle of Bataan

Prisoner of War: 

    - 9 April 1942

        - Death March

            - Mariveles - POWs started 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

    Japan:  

        - Yodagawa Camp

            - Work: steel mill

        - Oeyama Camp

            - Work: nickel refinery 

Hell Ship: 

     - Nagato Maru  

        - Boarded: Manila - 6 November 1942

        - Sailed: 11 November 1942

        - Arrived: Takao, Formosa - 14 November 1942

        - Sailed: 18 November 1942

        - Arrived: Pescadores Islands - 18 November 1942

        - Sailed: 18 November 1942

        - Arrived: Keelung, Formosa - 18 November 1942

        - Sailed: 20 November 1942

        - Arrived: Moji - 24 November 1942

Liberated: 2 September 1945

Married: Juanita Yeast

    - sister of Willard and Claude Yeast of the 192nd Tank Battalion

Note: 

    According to Bill Blacketer, his father had worked as a book salesman and was accused of embezzling money from his company.  He spent two years in prison.  Bill stated that he was in Louisville in December 1969 just after enlisting in the Air Force.  He was walking down the street and ran into his father.  The two talked for several hours before parting company.  That was the last time he ever saw his father.

    Other members of the family have stated that William was involved in some trouble with Chicago hoodlums.  According to them, he disappeared not too long after this and has never been heard from again. 

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