Stahl

Born: 18 December 1919 - Saint Louis, Oklahoma

Parents: George F. Stahl & Sofrona Ketchum-Stahl

- father remarried

Siblings: 3 sisters, 1 brother, 1 half-sister, 1 half-brother

Home: Salinas, California

Enlisted: California National Guard

Inducted:

- U.S. Army

- 10 February 1941 - Salinas Army Airfield

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

- Cabanatuan

- Japan

- Tokyo #3B

- POWs worked as stevedores

- transferred - 1 May 1944

- Yokahoma #18D

- POWs made bricks

- camp destroyed by bombing - 4 June 1945

- Niigata #5B

- POWs worked as stevedores

Hell Ship:

- Taga Maru

- ship also known as Coral Maru

- Sailed: Manila - 23 September 1943

- Arrived: Takao, Formosa - 26 September 1943

- Sailed: Unknown

- Arrived: Moji, Japan - 5 October 1943

Liberated:

- 5 September 1945

Residence: Watsonville, California

Died:

- 27 December 1984 - Castroville, California