Harold Walter Doyash
PFC Harold W. Doyash served with Dog Company, First Battalion, 4th Marines.
He was captured at Corregidor and died while a prisoner of war at Cabanatuan, Philippine Islands, on 1 November 1942.
Branch
Marine Corps Regular
Service Number 281424
Current Status
Remains not recovered.
Pursuit Category
This case is under Active Pursuit by the DPAA.
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
January 28, 1918
at Detroit, MI
Parents
Walter Doyash
Daisy (Burnside) Doyash
Education
Grammar school
Occupation & Employer
Details unknown
Service Life
Entered Service
Janurary 23, 1940
at Detroit, MI
Home Of Record
4034 Lawrence Avenue
Detroit, MI
Next Of Kin
Mother, Mrs. Daisy Doyash
Military Specialty
—
Primary Unit
D/1/4th Marines
Campaigns Served
Philippine Islands / Corregidor
Individual Decorations
Additional Service Details
—
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
Harold Doyash was stationed at Cavite, Philippine Islands, when the United States entered World War II. His unit was re-designated as the Third Battalion, 4th Marines, and Doyash served with both King Company and Dog Company (in the First Battalion). He fought in the defense of the Philippines and the siege of Corregidor in the spring of 1942.
PFC Doyash was captured in the fall of Corregidor on 6 May 1942, and held as a prisoner of war at Cabanatuan Camp #1, Nueva Ecija province. Unsanitary living conditions, harsh treatment by guards, and a starvation diet took a rapid toll on the prisoners of war. Doyash suffered from a lack of vitamin B and constant exposure to the sun; he developed pellagra and was hospitalized as his condition worsened. The disease killed him on 1 November 1942.
(Word of Doyash’s death reached American authorities in the summer of 1943, leading to an erroneous death date of 1 July 1943. This was corrected after the war, when prisoner records came to light.)
Burial Information or Disposition
Doyash was buried in Grave 704 of the Cabanatuan cemetery, along with nine other prisoners – all members of the United States Army.
| Name | Rank | Service Number | Age | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bruntmyer, Lloyd R. | PFC | 19048974 | 22 | Unaccounted |
| Doyash, Harold W. | PFC | 281424 | 24 | Unaccounted |
| Calkins, William E. | Private | 19020998 | 18 | Unaccounted |
| Blaho, Paul | Corporal | 7022718 | 22 | Identified |
| Winters, Charles B. | PFC | 6664117 | 23 | Unaccounted |
| Smith, Henry J. | Private | 6671009 | 31 | Unaccounted |
| Erwin, Kenneth G. | Corporal | 18049796 | 20 | Unaccounted |
| Clark, Walter | Corporal | 19053642 | 28 | Unaccounted |
| Hennessy, Harland | Private | 32092573 | 24 | Unaccounted |
| O'Hara, Thomas W. | Private | 32115031 | 26 | Identified |
Grave 704 was exhumed in 1946, and the remains sent to Manila for examination. Those that could not be individually identified – including PFC Doyash – were buried as unknowns in the Manila American Cemetery.
The unknowns listed above are associated with X-605, -672, -673, -675, -676, -677, and 678, Manila Mausoleum #2.
Memorials
Next Of Kin Address
Address of mother, Mrs. Daisy Doyash.
Location Of Loss
PFC Doyash died at Cabanatuan Camp #1.
