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Pamela LaVerne Jeans-Historian
to remember
Marine Capt Samuel Thomas Gillespie.
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Contact Info
Home Town Dallas
Last Address 2405 Pennsylvania Ave. Dallas
MIA Date Feb 19, 1945
Cause MIA-Finding of Death
Reason Unknown, Not Reported
Location Solomon Islands
Location of Memorial Manila American Cemetery - Taguig City, Philippines
Marine Scout Bombing Squadron (VMSB-141) was commissioned on March 1, 1942 at Camp Kearny in San Diego, California. On August 30, 1942 they departed San Diego for the South Pacific and arrived at Henderson Airfield, Guadalcanal on September 23, 1942 and became part of the Cactus Air Force (CAF). On the night of October 13â??14, the squadron lost 26 of its 29 aircraft and five officers, including the commanding officer and executive officer, to shelling from Japanese battleships off the coast of Guadalcanal. The squadron fought on the island until November 19, 1942 when they were transferred to the Efate in the New Hebrides. During its time with the CAF the squadron would lose 18 of its 41 officers killed in action.
Capt Samuel Thomas Gillespie, pilotr, who on October 17, 1942 did not return from a patrol. He was listed as missing for one year and a day, then declared dead. Nobody knows what happened.
Other Comments:
Body Not Recovered
Distinguished Flying Cross
Captain Samuel T. Gillespie (MCSN: 0-11362), United States Marine Corps, was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for heroism and extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight, in actions against enemy Japanese forces in the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II. Action Date: World War II
