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NAME Raymond Homer Moershall |
NICKNAME — |
SERVICE NUMBER 375620 |
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| UNIT VMF-223 Ground Echelon |
HOME OF RECORD 305 West Union Avenue, Wheaton, IL |
NEXT OF KIN Mother, Mrs. Mary Moershall |
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| DATE OF BIRTH June 1, 1922 |
ENTERED SERVICE April 20, 1942 |
DATE OF LOSS October 16, 1942 |
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| REGION Solomon Islands |
CAMPAIGN / AREA Guadalcanal |
CASUALTY TYPE Missing In Action Declared Dead October 17, 1943 |
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| CIRCUMSTANCES OF LOSS PFC Raymond Moershall, a member of the ground echelon of VMF-223, was slated to leave Guadalcanal on 16 October 1942. He was one of about 150 ambulatory patients – sick, wounded, or combat fatigued – taken aboard the USS McFarland (AVD-14) for evacuation. At 1750, the ship was attacked by a flight of nine Japanese Aichi Type 99 (“Val”) dive bombers. The final plane landed a bomb on the McFarland’s stern, setting off the ship’s depth charges and causing havoc among the passengers packed on the exposed deck. Several men, including Private Moershall, were blown overboard by the blast and never seen again. Moershall was reported as missing in action when the McFarland beached at Tulagi. An official declaration of death followed on 17 October, 1943. |
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| INDIVIDUAL DECORATIONS Purple Heart |
LAST KNOWN RANK Private First Class |
STATUS OF REMAINS Lost at sea |
MEMORIALS Manila American Cemetery |
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Biography:
Coming soon. Contact the webmaster for more information about this Marine.
Articles & Records:
A partial casualty report from the USS McFarland
The Chicago Tribune, 13 December 1942.
