John Edward Edwinson, Jr.
Corporal John E. “Eddie” Edwinson, Jr. served with Able Company, First Battalion, 7th Marines.
He was killed in action at Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, on 24 September 1942.
Branch
Marine Corps Regular
Service Number 299874
Current Status
Remains Not Recovered
Pursuit Category
This case is under Active Pursuit by the DPAA.
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
March 17, 1921
at Lowell, MA
Parents
John E. Edwinson, Sr.
Vera (Britton) Edwinson (d. 1936)
Education
Wilmington High School (1938)
Occupation & Employer
Brakeman
Illinois Central Railroad (ICRR)
Service Life
Entered Service
October 22, 1940
at Boston, MA
Home Of Record
Bay State Road
Tewksbury, MA
Next Of Kin
Father, John E. Edwinson Sr.
Military Specialty
—
Primary Unit
A/1/7th Marines
Campaigns Served
Guadalcanal
Individual Decorations
Purple Heart
Additional Service Details
—
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
On 24 September 1942 – six days after arriving on Guadalcanal – the First Battalion, 7th Marines departed from the Lunga Perimeter and headed out into Guadalcanal’s backcountry. They followed a trail known as the “Maizuru Road” which had served as a Japanese advance and retreat route during the battle for Edson’s Ridge. The battalion commander, Lt. Col. Lewis B. “Chesty” Puller, hoped to cross the Matanikau River at an undefended point, then advance along the Japanese-held bank to outflank enemy fortifications. This maneuver was a crucial part of a planned offensive scheduled to begin on 26 September.
After an exhausting day-long hike, the battalion reached a stream bed and began searching for a suitable bivouac. While the rearguard (Company C and Company D) occupied a defendable hill, Companies A and B advanced to the riverbank and sent scouts into the woods beyond. They ran into a Japanese detachments and were caught in a murderous crossfire from multiple machine gun positions. Captain Robert Haggerty’s platoon of A/1/7 melted into the grass and scattered, withdrawing as best they could to the cover of the stream. The first burst of fire wounded three Marines and killed two others – Corporals John “Eddie” Edwinson and Manuel J. Pimentel.
The ensuing firefight cost the lives of ten Marines and wounded an additional two dozen before Puller managed to break contact and withdraw his men to a nearby hill for the night. Those who died in the firefight were temporarily left where they fell.
Burial Information or Disposition
Early on 25 September, Puller’s men set out to locate and bury their friends. The ten fatal casualties were buried in two groups of five – one on “Hill X,” the reserve position, and one on “Hill Y,” closer to the scene of the firefight. The bodies of Wehr, Karnaghon, Pimentel, Edwinson, and Cockrell were carried to a ridgeline to increase the likelihood that future patrols would spot the graves. Identifying information was placed into the dead men’s canteens, and a dog tag was buried with each body. Finally, small markers were placed and the Marines said their goodbyes.
The battalion departed soon after the final grave was dug: two companies returned to the perimeter with the wounded, while Puller pressed on with Company C and reinforcements from 2/5th Marines. The remote location was rarely, if ever, seen by American troops for the rest of the battle.
Two post-war expeditions (1947 and 1949) failed to locate the graves of Puller’s men, and all were declared non-recoverable.
The Hill X and Hill Y sites were prioritized by the DPAA starting in 2012. Subsequent archaeological digs have returned possible remains, identification tags, and additional material evidence from the area. To date, no official identifications have been made.
Next Of Kin Address
Address of father, Mr. John Edwinson Sr.
Location Of Loss
Approximate location of Hill X – now the outskirts of Honiara, Guadalcanal.
Gallery
Related Profiles
Buried in the field, Hills X and Y, as result of Maizuru Ambush.
Leaving Mac Behind: The Lost Marines of Guadalcanal
Willie Rowe, or someone who sounded a lot like Willie, was crying in the darkness.
PFC Gerald White could not blame Willie. He felt a bit like crying himself. His battalion of the 7t Marines left the Lunga perimeter full of fight, ready to prove they were no Johnny-come-lately laggards but the warriors who would turn the tide on Guadalcanal. Now they were a “weary and dejected band” dug in on a nameless hill overlooking an unfamiliar stream, an anonymous location with no known landmarks save those they named themselves. The field where Fuller found the cooking fire; the ridge their guns were on; the tree where Goble hid; the trail where Randolph died.
Unremarkable places, except that men bled for them.
Read more about the Maizuru Ambush in "Leaving Mac Behind."
Click the cover for details.