Gone but not Forgotten 51 years ago today, on Wednesday, March 13, 1968, 7th Marine Regiment lost 1 of their own heroes when Private First Class Carl Michael Morris was killed in action. However, in response to the invasion of South Korea by the communist North Korea, the 1st Battalion, 7th Marines was again called into action. The list also includes 14 U.S. Defense. 1st Battalion, 7th Marines-First Team - Facebook Cpl Murray is honored on the Vietnam Memorial at Panel 04E, Line 038. On 23 April, 1/7 turned over control of their sector to the U.S. Army and took up positions in the city of An Najaf. The battle that followed was a brutal 24-minute melee that saw capital ships on both sides blasting away at extremely close range. The second battle of Fallujah: 15 years later - Marine Corps Times On 11 December 1992, the first elements of 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, arrived at Mogadishu, Somalia for Operation Restore Hope. Vol. College of Distance Education and Training (CDET), Active Duty Command Sponsored Corporals Course, Reserve Command Sponsored Corporals Course, Research and Sponsored Projects Policy and Procedure, Brute Krulak Center for Innovation & Future Warfare, How Do We Learn? Sgt Sprouse was married to Betty Sprouse and had 3 children, Michael, David and Mark all from Mableton, GA. Sgt Sprouse was a career Marine with over 10 years of service, who served as a Drill Instructor in MCRD San Diego. Gone but not Forgotten 52 years ago today, on Friday, October 14, 1966, 7th Marine Regiment lost 3 of their own heroes when Lance Corporal Joseph Nelson Stevens, Private First Class Roger Allen Petersen and Combat Corpsman Woodward Stevens Hatfield, Jr., were killed in action. Cpl Naugle subsequently succumbed to the severity of his injuries. He had been in Vietnam 71 days. U.S. Army Air Forces B-17s scored a direct hit on the destroyer Mutsuki, sinking it. It was also during this campaign that Sgt "Manila John" Basilone was awarded the Medal of Honor for defending his exposed position from a comprehensive Japanese assault using only a machine gun. When a Marine removed the cover from the pit a grenade detonated causing a Secondary Firing Device (SFD) to explode wounding two men and killing LCpl Hadnot who died as a result of multiple fragmentation wounds. He enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps on April 13, 1966, in Albany, NY. PFC Walling was the son of Wayne A. and Dora E. Walling, of Chamois, MO. LCPL McLean is honored on the Vietnam Memorial at Panel 17W, Line 035. On 27 September, MajGen Geiger declared the island secure and ordered the American flag to be raised over the battlefield. Let me just say, Thank you and Semper Fidelis from an old comrade and a grateful nation. Gone but not Forgotten 51 years ago today, on Monday, October 16, 1967, 7th Marine Regiment lost 1 of their own heroes when Corporal Richard Arthur Demers was killed in an accident. Water was in short supply as there were no natural sources the Marines could tap. By the time a cease fire was called, two Marines lay dead, and two were mortally wounded. Dean Bennet escorts an Afghan child during a mission in Afghanistan's Helmand province, May 2, 2014. After countless extensions, the Battalion returned to Twentynine Palms, on 5 October 2003. The battle continued until both units were able to withdraw with their casualties into a defensive perimeter that night. The Japanese lost an estimated 10,695 men, with an additional 301 taken as prisoners of war. On the late evening of October 5 and 6, three Marines became separated from their night patrol north of the hamlet of Son Tra (4) in the Que Son District of Quang Nam Province. Gone but not Forgotten 52 years ago today, on Monday, October 17, 1966, 7th Marine Regiment lost 3 of their own heroes when Corporal Edward Joseph Corcoran was killed by Friendly Fire from a Combined Action Platoon compound, Lance Corporal Dalton Earl Jackson died of a non-hostile accidental homicide and Private First Class Raymond Jefferson Ross, Jr. was killed in action. On 21 September 1950, 1/7 carried out an amphibious landing at Inchon. Although wounded in one hand by hostile fire, which rendered it nearly useless, he ignored his painful injury as he resolutely continued to move toward the wounded Marine. He was a Marine Infantry Officer, age 24, born June 15, 1942. . TF 1/7 found over 22,000 pieces of ordnance during the deployment and captured over 200 suspected terrorists and criminals. He graduated from the U.S. He was a Marine Rifleman, age 21, born July 30, 1948. --Major General Roy S. Geiger, USMC, commanded the III Amphibious Corps, comprised of ground troops from the 1st Marine Division (Peleliu) and the Armys 81st Infantry Division (Angaur). He enlisted in the U.S. Marines on February 12, 1969, in St Louis, MO. At approximately 24:00 Hours, the night erupted. Observing a wounded Marine fall in front of the enemy, he completely disregarded his own safety as he boldly left his position to assist the injured man. He enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps on July 25, 1963, in Cincinnati, OH. PFC Morris had been in Vietnam 125 days. Under the Operational control (OPCON) of the 5th Marines during Operation Union II Delta Company set up a defensive perimeter for the night near the hamlet of Chau Lam. All the beaches that were ever used were in use. Gone but not Forgotten 47 years ago today, on Sunday, October 9, 1969, 7th Marine Regiment lost 1 of their own heroes when Lance Corporal Eldin George Berger, Jr., succumbed to friendly fire wounds he received while engaging enemy forces on the evening of October 5 and 6, 1969. I was the first person to reach his remains and accompanied them to Graves Registration, Bravo Company, 1stMedical Battalion in DaNang. He was a Marine Rifleman, age 19, born December 23, 1946. The Battle of the Chosin Reservoir and the Medal of Honor Private Joe Lee Peterson was the son of Louis Peterson and Lula Peterson both deceased, the nephew of Pearl Gibson and brother of Rufus Peterson both of Albany GA. By November the U.S. Navy was able to land reinforcements on Guadalcanal faster than the Japanese, and Allied counterattacks had steadily pushed the Japanese toward the northwest part of the island. This move was tactically important as a means to bypass and isolate enemy pockets of resistance. He was a Marine Motor Vehicle Operator, age 18, born April 8, 1949. Cpl Murray arrived in Vietnam on August 14, 1965, with Bravo Company, 1st Battal, Gone but not Forgotten 50 years ago today on Sunday, December 22, 1968, 7th Marine Regiment lost 1 of their own heroes when Hospitalman James Ferrell Fletcher was killed in action. ing casualties. 5TH MARINES. In March 2014, 1/7 again deployed to Helmand Province, Afghanistan. In March 2006, 1/7 again deployed to Iraq and operated near the Iraqi-Syrian border, conducting dismounted urban patrols, weapons cache sweeping and vehicle checkpoints. The following morning a search of the area revealed 7 enemy soldiers in green utilities KIA. Sangin is considered the bloodiest battleground of Afghanistan by both US and British alike. He enlisted in the U.S. Marines on February 12, 1969, in St Louis, MO. Chesty Puller, 5th Marines commander Col Harold D. Harris, 7th Marines commanderCol Herman H. Hannekenand 11th Marines commander Col William H. Harrison. 2ndLt Pannell had been in Vietnam 109 days. Indeed, the 1st Marines suffered so many casualties as it fought to achieve its objectives that the Armys 81st Infantry Division, known as the Wildcats, was called in to relieve them. Six months earlier LCpl Rackhaus was awarded the Silver Star Medal for his heroic actions on the night of May 29, 1969. The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to Lance Corporal John P. Rackhaus, United States Marine Corps, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action while serving as a Rifleman with Company A, First Battalion, Seventh Marines, First Marine Division (Rein. 2ndLt Pickett had been in Vietnam 101 days. 3RD MOTOR TRANS BN. This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Marine Corps. The 1/7 Marine Vietnam Association is comprised of the Marines and Corpsmen who served in that Battalion in the Republic of South Vietnam from 1965-1970. As the ships that brought the 7th Marines withdrew, they took with them the survivors of the 1st Parachute Battalion and sick bays full of badly wounded men. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). I was about 40 to 50 feet away waiting to speak with Marvin and watching him trying to ignite the C-4 charge. THE WALL OF FACES - Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund Private First Class James Thomas Hendricks was a Marine Antitank Assaultman, age 19, born June 6, 1949, from Norwalk, CT. PFC Hendricks arrived in Vietnam on July 28, 1968, and was assigned to Headquarters and Service Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine D. ivision (Rein), III MAF, FMFPac. They would be responsible for securing the islands airfield before moving to seize the northeastern part of the island. Tanaka was forced to retire, but he quickly revised his tactics, and his destroyer squadronthe so-called Toyko Expresswould ferry tens of thousands of Japanese troops and tons of vital supplies to Guadalcanal over the following months. The Battalion retrograded from Sangin district on 5 May 2014, and turned over security responsibility of the area to the Afghan National Army. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1958. I had shouted for him to throw the charge but unfortunately, I was an instant too late. At roughly the same time, a fleet of Japanese transports, carrying some 7,000 men, steamed southward from Rabaul behind an escort of several battleships and a large screen of cruisers and destroyers. Undaunted by the hostile rounds impacting around him, Private First Class Rackhaus used his one good hand to pull the wounded Marine to a casualty collection point. Let me just say, Thank you and Semper Fidelis from an old comrade and a grateful nation. The cruiserHonoluluand three destroyers provided star shell illumination to help the Marines turn the infiltrators back, but the rest of the fleet withdrew to avoid enemy submarines. HM1 Wood is honored on the Vietnam Memorial with his name inscribed on Panel 41W Line 028. The Battalion redeployed to Twentynine Palms, California in March of 1991. Lance Corporal Eldin George Berger, Jr. was the son of Eldin G. Berger and Elizabeth R. Berger of West Chester, PA. It is a powerful story that depicts the fierceness of the battles in Vietnam. Immediate steps were taken to eject the Japanese, utilizing forces that were available in the South Pacific. Washington D.C.: Historical Division, Headquarters, USMC, 1971. Assigned to Fallujah and Al-Karmah, it was tasked to maintain security in the area with close cooperation with Iraqi police, the Iraqi Army and Provincial Security Forces. 1/7 transfers authority, ends operations in Helmand province 2ndLt Pickett is honored on the Vietnam Memorial at Panel 17W, Line 075. History. Over the next weeks, the Wildcats would advance slowly around the Umurbrogol pocket, gradually eliminating all enemy resistance. Under its commander, Lieutenant Colonel Lewis B. By 8 May the Marines had lost 9 killed and 57 wounded and the Vietcong 88 killed. He arrived in Vietnam on November 12, 1967, and was assigned to Headquarters & Service Company, 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division (Rein), III MAF, FMFPac.