Sgt. William Earl Braye Jr.

Parents: William E. Braye Sr. & Matilda Braye

Siblings: twin brother

Hometown: Salinas, California

    -  

Enlisted: California National Guard

Inducted:

    - U. S. Army

        - 10 February 1941 - Salinas Army Air Base

Training: 

    - Fort Lewis, Washington

Units: 

    - 194th Tank Battalion

Overseas Duty: 

    - Philippine Islands

Engagements: 

   - Battle of Luzon

   - Battle of Bataan

Prisoner of War: 

    - 9 April 1942

        - Death March

            - Mariveles - POWs start 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 spigot for entire camp
            - as many as 50 POWs died each day
            - Japanese opened new POW camp to lower death rate  

        - Las Pinas Detail

            - POWs built runways and revetments 

        - Cabanatuan #1

    - Japan

        - Fukuoka #4B

            - Work: POWs worked as laborers for various companies

                - Beaten while POW because he had left camp hospital

Hell Ship:

    - Nissyo Maru

        - Sailed: 14 July 1944 - Manila

        - Arrived: 27 July 1944 - Takao, Formosa

        - Sailed: 28 July 1944 - Takao, Formosa

        - Arrived: 6 August 1944 - Moji, Japan

Liberated: 13 September 1945

    - testified as Witness at War Crimes Trial

Discharged: 5 April 1946

Reenlisted: 10 March 1948

Discharged: 30 November 1962

Wife:

    - Phyllis

       - passed away - November 1995

    - Geraldyne

Children: 3 sons, 1 daughter

Retired:

    - U. S. Army - Chief Warrant Officer 3rd Class

        - 1963 - 23 years of service

Worked: Red Cross

    - Director - Vietnam

Died: 31 December 2009 - Boise, Idaho

Buried: Mountain View Cemetery - Mountain Home, Idaho

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