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Randolph Ray Edwards

Private Randolph R. Edwards served with Dog Company, First Battalion, 7th Marines.
He was killed in action at Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, on 24 September 1942.

Created by potrace 1.16, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2019

Branch

Marine Corps Regular
Service Number 364854

Created by potrace 1.16, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2019

Current Status

Remains Not Recovered

Pursuit Category

This case is under Active Pursuit by the DPAA.

Capsule History

Pre-War Life

Birth

August 30, 1919
at McComb, MS

Parents

Benjamin Howard Edwards
separated from
Ethel (Sanders) Edwards

Education

Alcée Fortier High School
Southwest Mississippi Jr. College

Occupation & Employer

Brakeman
Illinois Central Railroad (ICRR)

Service Life

Entered Service

February 2, 1942
at Jackson, MS

Home Of Record

2253 Brainard Street
New Orleans, LA

Next Of Kin

Father, Mr. Benjamin H. Edwards.

Military Specialty

Mortarman

Primary Unit

D/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 detachment and were caught in a murderous crossfire from multiple machine gun positions.

Puller had the foresight to bring along the mortar platoon of his heavy weapons company – though they had traded in their 81mm tubes for lighter, more portable 60mm weapons – and he ordered them to deploy to provide covering fire. The Marines were well trained, but most were experiencing their first real firefight. This was the case with Private Randolph “Ray” Edwards, a lanky Southerner who volunteered for duty with the 7th Marines in hopes of seeing some action. One of Ray’s new buddies, PFC Ed Poppendick, remarked on the dangers of being a new man in combat.

This kid Randolph that had just gotten in our outfit… didn’t last too long. That happened a lot with the new recruits who were coming in with no battle experience. Having been in the island for a little bit, [I] had already learned a lot about different things, and [I] tried to pass on some knowledge to the new guys. But no one can take a standard ten or twenty minutes, or even two hours, to explain… what’s going to happen in a battle. Even if you had all the time in the world to explain it, there’s always a new situation that you’ve never been in before. You just told the new guys to keep their heads low and stay away from going up any paths. Once you were in actual battle conditions, you had to learn a lot of things real fast, and your previous training was never enough.

Anyway, this kid Randolph… I had just gotten to know him. You don’t get to meet too many of the guys enough to know them because once you get used to them, it’s like everything else; you get to know them, and they’re gone.
PFC Ed Poppendick
D/1/7th Marines

Although the mortars were deployed behind the front lines, they were still within range of the Japanese gunners – as they learned when Edwards made a fatal mistake. “Randolph got hit when they called for the small mortars,” continued Poppendick. “He had the mortar base plate, and he made the mistake of going up the path. As he went, geez, they just riddled him right down the side with a machine gun. He really got it….”

The Marines finally managed to disengage under cover of darkness. They had suffered heavy casualties – more than two dozen wounded, and seven killed outright. Three more men would die of wounds before the next morning.

Excerpt from the muster roll of D/1/7, September 1942.
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 Y,” the other on “Hill X.” Ray Edwards was the first man buried in the Hill X location.

After the battle was over, I had to identify Randolph’s body. When you saw a dead marine, it was really a tough situation. But you were glad it wasn’t you. Afterwards a group of us buried Randolph. [We buried] anybody that was killed… right on the spot. Someone would make a map of the graves so they could go back and dig our guys up. We always went back for the fallen when we had the chance. A lot of times… [they would] bury the marine in his poncho  and take his canteen and put all the information in the canteen and bury him with it.
PFC Ed Poppendick
D/1/7th Marines

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. Benjamin H. Edwards.
Ray was living with his aunt, Miss Gertrude Edwards, at 530 Minnesota Avenue, McComb, Mississippi.

Location Of Loss

Approximate location of Hill X – now the outskirts of Honiara, Guadalcanal.

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.

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