Adelphis Joseph Messier
Private Adelphis J. Messier served with Able Company, First Battalion, 6th Marines.
He was killed in action at Betio, Tarawa atoll, on 22 November 1943.
Branch
Marine Corps Reserve
Service Number 388486
Current Status
Remains Not Recovered
Pursuit Category
This case is under Active Pursuit by the DPAA.
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
October 3, 1919
at Schenectady, NY
Parents
Ralph Joseph Messier (d. 1942)
Lillian Loiselle Messier (d. ~1930)
Education
Mont Pleasant High School
Occupation & Employer
General Electric Company
Service Life
Entered Service
May 19, 1942
at Albany, NY
Home Of Record
1032 Pleasant Street
Schenectady, NY
Next Of Kin
Father, Mr. Ralph J. Messier
Military Specialty
—
Primary Unit
A/1/6th Marines
Campaigns Served
Guadalcanal
Tarawa
Individual Decorations
Purple Heart
Additional Service Details
Prior to joining A/1/6, Private Messier served as a camoufleur with the 18th Marines (Engineeers).
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
Private Adelphis J. Messier, a former combat engineer, served with Company A, 6th Marines during the battle of Tarawa.
Messier’s company landed on 21 November 1943 and crossed Beach Green under the cover of darkness. Early the next morning, they began attacking eastward along the southern coast of Betio, working their way through tangled brush and craters and fighting for countless Japanese bunkers and pillboxes. When darkness fell on 22 November, A/1/6 dug in for defense and helped repelled a concentrated banzai attack. They lost heavily, but extracted a worse toll on their attackers, and the battle largely ended on 23 November.
Private Messier did not live to see the victory. At some point during the fighting on 22 November, he suffered shrapnel wounds across his entire body and fell dead to the ground.
Burial Information or Disposition
The day after he died, Private Messier was reportedly buried in “Gilbert Islands Cemetery” along with dozens of Marines from his battalion. He was one of eight Marines with a set of coordinates appended to his burial information: “Betio (KH 283072 D-2 Map 14Oct43).” Unfortunately, this burial site was destroyed shortly after the battle, and although a memorial with Private Messier’s name appeared in Cemetery 11 (Plot 3, Row 3, Grave 4), it bore no relation to his actual resting place.
In 2019, the non-profit organization History Flight located a previously lost burial feature known as Row D. This site was known to be the grave of most of the 1/6th Marines battle casualties, and more than thirty remains were subsequently recovered and identified. Among them were two Marines with map coordinates identical to the ones recorded for Private Messier.
Although this discovery is a strong indication that Messier may have been buried in the same vicinity, his remains have not yet been recovered or identified.
Next Of Kin Address
Former address of father, Mr. Ralph Messier.
Adelphis’ stepmother Emma Messier became his emergency contact after Ralph’s death in 1942. His older brother Alvoris assumed the responsibilities of next-of-kin.
Location Of Loss
Private Messier was killed in action at an unspecified location along Betio’s southern shore.
