This Military Service Page was created/owned by
Pvt Richard Barzelogna
to remember
Marine PFC Jesse Bowers.
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Jesse Eugene Bowers' last known employment was that of Construction Contractor in the Persian Gulf region.
Other Comments:
Jesse Eugene "Gene" Bowers was born 7-7-1923 in Baxley, Georgia.
Gene served in the USMC, 7-10-1942 through 10-15-1945, with most of his service being deployed in the Pacific Theater, with one 30 day leave home during autumn, 1945, in which he surprised his mother. He kept a framed patch of III Amphibious Corps and was very proud of his service with that unit.
He was a very active life member of DAV Jim Bowe Chapter 86, Flagler Beach, Florida, and VFW Flagler County Post 5213, Bunnell, Florida.
On 7-6-1980, he was murdered by his wife, Francis, with a single gun shot while visiting a friend and fellow USMC veteran/ VFW Life member in Bunnell, Florida. She was found Not Guilty By Reason of Insanity in the subsequent murder trial that followed.
Western Pacific Campaign (1944-45)/Battle of Peleliu
From Month/Year
September / 1944
To Month/Year
October / 1944
Description The Battle of Peleliu, codenamed Operation Stalemate II, was fought between the United States and the Empire of Japan in the Pacific Theater of World War II, from September–November 1944 on the island of Peleliu, present-day Palau. U.S. Marines of the First Marine Division and later soldiers of the U.S. Army's 81st Infantry Division, fought to capture an airstrip on the small coral island. This battle was part of a larger offensive campaign known as Operation Forager which ran from June–November 1944 in the Pacific Theater of Operations.
Major General William Rupertus, USMC—commander of 1st Marine Division—predicted the island would be secured within four days. However, due to Japan's well-crafted fortifications and stiff resistance, the battle lasted over two months. In the United States, it was a controversial battle because of the island's questionable strategic value and the high casualty rate, which exceeded all other amphibious operations during the Pacific War. The National Museum of the Marine Corps called it "the bitterest battle of the war for the Marines".