Sgt. Walter Leo Daffron Jr.

Parents: Walter L. Daffron Sr. & Emma S. Carpenter-Daffron

Siblings: 1 sister

Hometown: Saint Joseph, Missouri

Inducted:

    - U. S. Army

        - 10 February 1941

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

            - started march at Mariveles on southern tip of Bataan
            - POWs ran past Japanese artillery firing at Corregidor
            - 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 entire camp
            - as many as 50 POWs died each day
            - Japanese opened new POW camp to lower death rate  

        - Cabanatuan #1

    - Japan

        - Hirohata #1D

            - POWs worked in steel mill

Hell Ship:

    - Coral Maru

        - Sailed: 20 September 1943

        - Arrived: 23 September 1943 - Takao, Formosa

        - Sailed: Unknown

        - Arrived: 5 October 1943 - Moji, Japan

    - Note: ship also known as Taga Maru

                 - 70 of the 850 POWs on board died

Liberated: September 1945

Married: Frances Hoffelmeyer - 11 December 1945

Children: 1 daughter, 2 sons

Died: 21 March 1965 - Saint Joseph, Missouri

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