Glenn Happe
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Gunnery Sergeant Glenn Happe served with Charlie Company, First Battalion, 8th Marines.
He was reported missing in action at Betio, Tarawa atoll, on 20 November 1943.
*This is an official date of loss; the battalion did not land until 21 November 1943.
Branch
Marine Corps Regular
Service Number 278623
Current Status
Remains Not Recovered
Pursuit Category
This case is under Active Pursuit by the DPAA.
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
July 1, 1916
at Brookerville, FL
Parents
Louis Talton Shaw
Annie Maud (Haffner) Shaw
later Annie Happe
Education
Lodi Union High School (1936)
University of the Pacific
Occupation & Employer
Details unknown
Service Life
Entered Service
December 4, 1939
at San Diego, CA
Home Of Record
1226 South Sutter Street
Stockton, CA
Next Of Kin
Wife, Mrs. Evelyn Ann Happe
Military Specialty
Machine gun NCO
Primary Unit
C/1/8th Marines
Campaigns Served
Guadalcanal
Tarawa
Individual Decorations
Purple Heart
Additional Service Details
Happe served as a heavy machine gun section leader with D/1/8th Marines on Guadalcanal.
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
Gunnery Sergeant Glenn Happe, an experienced machine gun section leader and Guadalcanal veteran, served with Charlie Company, 8th Marines, during the battle for Tarawa.
At midday on 20 November 1943, BLT 1-8 climbed over the sides of their transport ships and boarded LCVPs in Tarawa lagoon. They anticipated imminent landing orders, but due to the desperate situation on the beach were held offshore in their little boats, bobbing in the waves for the rest of the day and a very long night. Early on 21 November, they were ordered to land on Betio’s Beach Red 2.
At 0615, the first waves of 1-8 rushed down the ramps and into the breaking surf on a coral reef some 500 yards from shore. Although friendly troops held the water’s edge, they “immediately came under heavy machine gun fire from both flanks.” The battalion was decimated on the long walk to shore. An action report penned by the 8th Marines noted that “many of the casualties resulted from drowning, due to the heavy packs and equipment men attempted to take across the submerged fringing reef.”
Gunny Happe was last seen alive during the landing operation. When the battle ended, he was officially noted as “missing in action” – a status that was soon amended to “killed in action.” Although his battalion did not land until D+1, Happe’s official date of death is given as 20 November 1943.
Burial Information or Disposition
None recorded; reported as missing in action.
A memorial marker was erected in Cemetery 33, Plot 10, Row 2, Grave 8.
Next Of Kin Address
Address of wife, Mrs. Evelyn Claussen Happe.
Location Of Loss
Gunnery Sergeant Happe’s battalion landed in the vicinity of Beach Red 2, Betio.