Pvt. Edward F. Plodzien

Parents: Martin & Agnes Plodzien

Hometown: 1320 West Julian Street, Chicago, Illinois

Siblings: 2 sisters

Enlisted: Illinois National Guard

Inducted:

    - U. S. Army

        - 25 November 1940 - Chicago, Illinois

Training:

    - Fort Knox, Kentucky

    - Camp Polk, Louisiana

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

        - Cabanatuan

        - Las Pinas September 1943 - Unknown

            - Work: built runways

                - appears he was returned to Cabanatuan due to illness 

    Japan: 

         - Fukuoka #8

Hell Ship:

    - Canadian Inventor

        - Sailed: 4 July 1944

            - returned to Manila with boiler problems

        - Sailed: 16 July 1944

            - additional boiler problems

            - left behind by convoy

        - Arrived: Takao, Formosa - 23 July 1944

        - Sailed: 4 August 1944

            - sailed along west coast of Formosa

        - Arrived: Keelung, Formosa -5 August 1944

            - stayed for 12 days for more boiler repairs

        -  Sailed: 17 August 1944

            - as ship approached the Ryukyu Islands it was having more boiler problems

        - Arrived: Naha, Okinawa

            - boiler repairs

        - Sailed: Returned to Naha several times

        - Arrived: Moji, Japan - 1 September 1944 

Liberated: September 1945

Died: 25 September 1966

Buried: Rosehill Cemetery - Chicago, Illinois

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