Harry Morton Radford
PFC Harry M. “Morty” Radford was a Marine Corps gunner who flew with VMSB-241.
He was shot down and reported missing in the battle of Midway on 4 June 1942.
Branch
Marine Corps Regular
Service Number 294811
Current Status
Remains not recovered.
Pursuit Category
Based on circumstances of loss, this individual is considered permanently non-recoverable.
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
January 31, 1920
at Jasper, MO
Parents
Herschel Martin Radford (d. 1931)
Pearl Pauline (Strecker) Radford
later Mrs. Pearl Johns
Education
Carthage High School (1939)
Occupation & Employer
Details unknown
Service Life
Entered Service
September 12, 1940
at Kansas City, MO
Home Of Record
609 Olive Street
Carthage, Missouri
Next Of Kin
Mother, Mrs. Pearl P. Johns
Military Specialty
Radioman/Gunner
Primary Unit
VMSB-241
Campaigns Served
Midway
Individual Decorations
Distinguished Flying Cross
Purple Heart
Additional Service Details
—
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
Private First Class “Morton” Radford was a Marine radioman and gunner with VMSB-241, a scout-bomber squadron based at Midway Island in 1942. He was part of the Third Section, First Division, led by Major Lofton R. Henderson, and usually flew with fellow Missourian 2Lt. Maurice A. Ward as his pilot.
At 0610 hours on 4 June 1942, VMSB-241 took off from Midway and rendezvoused at “Point Affirm” – a safe distance from the airfield, out of the way of an incoming Japanese strike force. A radio message sent them on course to attack an enemy carrier; a two-hour flight brought them within sight of the IJN Hiryū. The carrier sent up a wall of flak, and her fighters quickly climbed to engage the unescorted American bombers.
In the chaos and violence of the attack, SBD-2 Dauntless #2122 fell victim to a Japanese fighter or anti-aircraft gunner. No eyewitness accounts report seeing Ward and Radford fall, but they did not return from the Hiryū strike. Both Marines were officially declared dead on 5 June 1943.
Burial Information or Disposition
Shot down at sea; remains not recovered.
Next Of Kin Address
Address of mother, Mrs. Pearl Johns.
Location Of Loss
Radford was shot down at an unspecified point after departing from Midway.
