Patrick William Milano
PFC Patrick W. Milano served with Able Company, First Battalion, 7th Marines.
He was reported missing in action at Guadalcanal on 25 October 1942.
Branch
Marine Corps Reserve
Service Number 351048
Current Status
Remains Not Recovered
Pursuit Category
The DPAA has not publicized this information
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
October 9, 1924
at Harrisburg, PA
as Pasquale Milano
Parents
Orazio Vito “John” Milano
Florence Rose (Kelly) Milano (d. 1931)
stepmother, Regina Milano
Education
Harrisburg Catholic High School
Occupation & Employer
High school student
Service Life
Entered Service
January 6, 1942
at Philadelphia, PA
Home Of Record
1419 West 3rd Street
Harrisburg, PA
Next Of Kin
Father, Mr. John Milano
Military Specialty
Machine Gunner
Primary Unit
7th Marines
Campaigns Served
Solomon Islands / Guadalcanal
Individual Decorations
Additional Service Details
Milano joined A/1/7th Marines from D/1/7th Marines on 13 October 1942.
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
On the night of 24 October 1942, the first platoon of A/1/7th Marines – 46 men led by Platoon Sergeant Ralph Briggs – pulled duty on an outpost about 1,500 yards south of the main American defensive line. None were especially enthused at the prospect of spending the night in such a remote place, but disgust gave way to nervousness as they heard Japanese voices approaching. Several thousand enemy troops were bearing down on Marine lines under cover of darkness and heavy rain. Briggs, who would become the namesake of the outpost, got on the landline to his boss, Lt. Col. Lewis “Chesty” Puller and sounded the alarm. The patrol lay silent as the Japanese army passed around them.
At 2130 hours, Briggs brought his men off the hill to an open stretch called “the Bowling Alley” and prepared to hurry back to safety. Not 25 yards away, they saw a Japanese battalion moving quietly along the trail. Briggs ordered his men to scatter and keep quiet – but, as PFC Gerald White recalled, “one of our men coughed. At this sound the Japanese, unaware of our presence before this, shouted and jumped about in great confusion. Then our group dashed through the underbrush pell-mell.”
PFC Wallace Wynn described the chaos that followed.
We burst through a screen of bushes and surprised six Japs. Three of them ran for safety, but the other three turned on us with bayonets. It was a tough fight because we had left our packs and bayonets behind to make running easier. One Jap lunged at me and luckily I turned my body. His bayonet got me in the chest but not deep enough to puncture my lung. I shot him dead before he could make another stab at me. One of my pals had been killed and the other was running with two Japs after him, and he, poor guy, had dropped that precious item, his rifle. He was defenseless. I shot one of the Japs but the other got my buddy through the back with his bayonet.... I shot him too. Then I went over to see my pal. He had gotten his right through the backbone.... What a nightmare things became after that.
Alone or in small groups, Briggs’ men ran, hid, or fought as best they could. Miraculously, most survived the ordeal and returned to American lines in the following days – or, in PFC Wynn’s case, after two harrowing weeks.
Two Marines – PFCs James P. Johnson and Stanley C. Rowlett – were confirmed dead immediately after the patrol. Two others – PFC Patrick W. Milano and Private Frank J. Panarisi – were posted as missing.
Burial Information or Disposition
The bodies of Panarisi and Rowlett were discovered shortly after the battle and buried in the First Marine Division Cemetery as X-17 and X-42; both were later identified. Johnson was reportedly “buried on scene of battle” on 1 November 1942, but the location was later lost.
No identifiable trace of Patrick Milano has ever been found. He was officially declared dead on 26 October 1943.
Memorials
Manila American Cemetery and Memorial
Milano is the namesake of the Patrick W. Milano Detachment, Marine Corps League, Harrisburg PA
Next Of Kin Address
Address of father, John Milano.
Location Of Loss
Approximate location of the Briggs Outpost.
