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Christopher Waterstraw

PFC Christopher Waterstraw served with Charlie Company, First Battalion, 5th Marines.
He was killed in action near Point Cruz, Guadalcanal, on 1 November 1942.

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

Branch

Marine Corps Regular
Service Number 292671

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

June 27, 1921
at Canandaigua, NY

Parents

Christian Waterstraw
Sarah Ann (Clemons) Waterstraw

Education

Canandaigua Academy

Occupation & Employer

Student

Service Life

Entered Service

August 23, 1940
at Buffalo, NY

Home Of Record

164 Tillotson Street
Canandaigua, NY

Next Of Kin

Mother, Mrs. Sarah Waterstraw

Military Specialty

Primary Unit

C/1/5th Marines

Campaigns Served

Guadalcanal

Individual Decorations

Purple Heart

Additional Service Details

Loss And Burial

Circumstances Of Loss

On 1 November 1942, the 5th Marines opened the “Matanikau Offensive” by forcing their way across Guadalcanal’s Matanikau River. Their First Battalion crossed near the river’s mouth using footbridges built under cover of darkness, and began advancing west at 0630 hours. The first two hours passed without opposition ā€“ but the morning would not stay quiet for long.

The point platoon of Charlie Company, led by 2Lt. David H. Crosby, Jr., was first to run into trouble.

They came down the nose of a grassy hill and started to work their way through the deep undergrowth of the flatlands below. The jungle in the flatlands is almost impenetrable. A camouflaged man cannot be seen a half-dozen yards away. The tricky Japs, masters at concealment, organized a defensive line in the wild tangled undergrowth, expecting a solid line of men to advance against it into an ambush, without even realizing the presence of the line.

But Dave, wise to their deceits, was carefully feeling his way, with his capable scouts, to prevent such an ambush to his own men and hundreds of men behind him. As they worked their way towards the enemy, a Jap sniper, overanxious, fired his rifle. One of the scouts immediately killed the Jap. Dave at once detected the enemy lines and set to work by means of his runners to bring the platoon forward a few at a time to build up a firing line.

The Japs, realizing that they had been discovered, opened a withering barrage of fire. Dave's men and he, himself, infiltrated through this barrage a few at a time and got into position to combat the enemy. David himself began coolly to direct them, when he was killed. He died instantly, painlessly, never knowing what caused his end. This was about 9 or 10 AM November 1.

David's men, berserk with sorrow at the loss of the leader whom they idolized, managed in the face of that hell to drive past the spot where he was slain so that they could recover him. They immediately attacked the enemy position but could not get close enough to assault it. These boys were also killed, the only man who safely returned was the runner whom David had sent back.

Charlie Company lost three officers, many enlisted men, and their supporting heavy machine guns in quick succession. Baker Company was called up from reserve to assist, secured the left flank, and helped push the last 250 yards towards the first objective line. The Marines paused to reorganize from 1130 to 1230, then attempted to advance again. An entire afternoon of fighting resulted in more dead and wounded men, and no ground gained.

By nightfall, 27 Marines of C/1/5 were dead or mortally wounded ā€“ one of the highest fatality rates any Marine company suffered in a single action on Guadalcanal.Ā Lieutenant Maurice Raphael, a platoon leader in B/1/5 recalled “moving across this hill that was covered with dead and dying men.” Raphael, who had served with Charlie Company until the first of October, knew many of those men by name.

"Saw Ausili die. Louis Kovacs was dead but still warm, Harland Swart, Carlson, Potocki, Doucette, Waterstraw... everyone was dead... shot to hell and back. It was the saddest and most awful sight I've ever seen in my life. I saw Jack Holland, leader 2nd Platoon, shot in the shoulder. Henry Loughman was shot in the groin and died... I found Crosby's body... Poor fellow, he never knew what hit him."

PFC Christopher Waterstraw was one of the Charlie Company Marines to lose his life on this bloody day. No further specifics about his death are currently known.

Burial Information or Disposition

On November 2, 1942, 1/5 began to gather its dead. Of the thirty-nine fatalities reported on the previous day, nine were interred in the 1st Marine Division Cemetery. Some of these died of wounds on their way to the hospital. The remainder ā€“ thirty enlisted men ā€“ were all buried in the field. The same location was recorded for each man: “About 400 yards west of Point Cruz, about 600 yards inland from the sea, on the island of Guadalcanal.” Thirty markers in a small area must have been an arresting sight ā€“ and, one would presume, a highly visible one. Yet to this day, only seven of these Marines have ever been located, and the exact location of the rest is still a mystery.

Read more about this burial site at Military History Now.

Next Of Kin Address

Home address of mother, Mrs. Sarah Waterstraw.

Location Of Loss

Approximate location of the burial site near Point Cruz.

Related Profiles

Members of First Battalion, 5th Marines KIA November 1, 1942.
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4 thoughts on “Christopher Waterstraw”

    1. Iā€™m near Canandaigua and have been to Guadalcanal many times. Relatives of Christopher Waterstraw are welcomed to call me 5 eight five 7 sixtysix 13 nine 5. Phone number is written that way to avoid internet bots.

      Chuck

  1. To support researchers in support of recovery of Christopher Waterstraw:

    From “Hell in the Pacific: A Marine Rifleman’s Journey from Guadalcanal to Peleliu” (Jim McEnery with Bill Sloan, Simon & Schuster, 2012):

    “On the morning of November 2 [note: I believe this date to be incorrect, since the description fits the events of 01 Nov. However, if it is correct then 1/5 followed the exact same path they had on 01 Nov], all three infantry battalions of the Fifth Marines were sent on an operation across the Matanikau…First Battalion moved out on the right- or north- side of our advance across flat land that ran through a coconut grove west of the native village of Matanikau…assignment was to attack…Kokumbona…”

    “…Second Battalion was advancing on the left- or south- side of our front and following a ridge that ran west from the river.”

    “..First Battalion was stopped cold in the coconut grove by a Jap defensive line anchored by at least two 75mm field pieces and about a dozen machine guns. There were also hundreds of Jap riflemen firing from a natural ditch that ran inland from the coast for 100 yards or more. The First took a god-awful bunch of casualties…”

    My analysis: the “natural ditch” is the creekbed that empties into the sea west of Point Cruz; today, that creekbed mouth separates the properties of the Pt Cruz Yacht Club and Solomon Kitano Mendana Hotel.

    Whaling Group, according to “Guadalcanal: First Offensive” (John Miller, Jr.), Map 9 (assuming map shows the correct ridgeline) moved along the inner ridgeline, which is readily visible from the current Matanikau bridge looking inland. Thus, I presume 2nd picked up the lower ridgeline closer to the sea, which starts closer to the “natural ditch”. I presume that with 2nd on the ridge, that 1-5 would have been exclusively in the flat land, as confirmed by “coconut grove.”

    Waterstraw’s field burial, as shown in the (rough) WW2 map (above), indicates a location on the edge of a field (which is still largely a field) east of the first ridge. The contemporary (color, above) proposed location I believe to be incorrect since (1) it’s on the sloping ridge that 2nd occupied, (2) it’s on the west, not east, side of “the ditch”, (3) the distance from Pt. Cruz is inaccurate, since Pt. Cruz was expanded (filled) on the westward side, (4) the field east of the start of the ridge line was held by Marines.

    I propose that Waterstraw was buried (looking at color photo) somewhere between the large building west of the Parliment (round building in green area) and the start of the ridge (brown in photo, immediately west of the square building.)

    I invite any discussion and particularly research in the effort to bring Christopher Waterstraw home.

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