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Samuel Owen Preston, Jr.

Corporal Samuel O. Preston, Jr., served with the First Marine Raider Battalion and VMSB-141 during the Guadalcanal campaign.
He failed to return from a routine search over Santa Isabel Island on 8 November 1942.

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

Branch

Marine Corps Reserve
Service Number 364042

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

Current Status

Remains Not Recovered

Pursuit Category

The DPAA has not publicized this information.

Capsule History

Pre-War Life

Birth

May 22, 1913
at Millwood, KY

Parents

Samuel Owen Preston (d. 1945)
Dora Alice (Willis) Preston

Education

Details unknown

Occupation & Employer

Deck and room steward
American President Lines

Service Life

Entered Service

January 24, 1942
at Louisville, KY

Home Of Record

Louisville, KY

Next Of Kin

Wife, Mrs. Violet Preston

Military Specialty

Aviation radioman / gunner
Raider

Primary Unit

VMSB-141
E/1st Marine Raider Bn.

Campaigns Served

Solomon Islands / Guadalcanal

Individual Decorations

Purple Heart

Additional Service Details

Preston served four years in the US Navy before enlisting in the Marine Corps.

Loss And Burial

Circumstances Of Loss

Sam O. Preston, a professional sailor and former Navy man, enlisted in the Marine Corps shortly after Pearl Harbor. Clearly intending to be among the first to fight, he volunteered for duty with the First Marine Raider Battalion and landed in the Solomon Islands as a member of Company E. PFC Preston participated in the fighting for Tulagi, Edson’s Ridge, and the Matanikau River before securing an extremely unusual transfer. On 12 October 1942, Preston left the Raiders and joined Marine Air Group 23 at Henderson Field. He was assigned to a scout-bombing squadron, VMSB-141, as a rear-seat gunner and radioman.

Excerpt from the muster roll of the First Raider Battalion, October 1942.

After what must have been a hectic crash course in his new role, Preston began flying combat missions. On 1 November 1942, he flew four sorties against enemy troops. A week later, he was assigned to a routine patrol over Santa Isabel Island. The pilot, 1Lt. Wortham S. Ashcroft, had his arm in a sling from a recent wound but insisted on leading the mission. Ashcroft was an experienced flyer, and at the time was acting as squadron commander.

The two Marines took off in a Douglass SBD-3 (BuNo 06678) and set a course for Santa Isabel. As the patrol neared the target, a bad storm blew in and quickly enveloped the planes, reducing visibility to zero and compelling the pilots to fly on instruments alone. When the bombers emerged into clear sky, Ashcroft’s SBD was missing. Despite repeated searches, no trace of Ashcroft or Preston was ever found.
Burial Information or Disposition

None; remains not recovered. Ashcroft and Preston were officially declared dead on 19 February 1945.

Next Of Kin Address

Address of wife, Mrs. Violet Mary (Geronimo) Preston.
Preston listed his brother Douglas (2614 West Chestnut Street, Louisville, KY) as an alternate beneficiary.

Location Of Loss

SBD-3 #06678 was lost in a storm in the vicinity of Santa Isabel Island

Related Profiles

VMSB-141 personnel non-recovered from the Guadalcanal area.
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