Herbert Irvin Piculell
Private Herbert I. Piculell served with Item Company, Third Battalion, 8th Marines.
He was killed in action at Guadalcanal on 21 November 1942.
Branch
Marine Corps Reserve
Service Number 370966
Current Status
Remains Not Recovered
Pursuit Category
The DPAA has not publicized this information.
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
April 2, 1917
in Afton Township, MN
Parents
Chester Irving Piculell
Ellen O. (Nelson) Piculell (d. 1938)
Education
Stillwater High School (1934)
Occupation & Employer
Laborer
Cudahy Packing Company
Service Life
Entered Service
February 19, 1942
at Minneapolis, MN
Home Of Record
Stillwater, MN
Next Of Kin
Father, Mr. Chester Piculell
Military Specialty
—
Individual Decorations
Purple Heart
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
In mid-November 1942, the 8th Marines supported a series of advances by Army troops in preparation for a major assault along Guadalcanal’s northern coast. The Marines provided flank security and combat patrols, and would stand by to assist with the attack as needed.
Early on the morning of 21 November 1942, Marine artillery opened a heavy barrage on Japanese positions near Point Cruz. At 0555, a frantic message from the Third Battalion reached 8th Marines headquarters: 105mm shells were landing on Item Company, destroying the phone lines. Firing ceased immediately as the infantry assessed their damage. Item Company reported two Marines killed and one seriously wounded in the friendly fire incident, and the information was recorded in the regiment’s operations log.
However, other records seem to contradict this information. Item Company’s muster rolls report only one Marine killed in action in the entire month of November, 1942: Private Herbert I. Piculell. Furthermore, Piculell is the company’s only casualty of any kind reported on 21 November. He may have been the “1 seriously wounded” in the incident – the musters note he died at 10:00 AM, perhaps as a result of injuries suffered that morning. While Piculell’s USMC casualty card blames “enemy gun fire” for his death, it is not unusual for friendly fire incidents to be explained away as enemy action.
Two other 3/8 Marines were killed on 21 November 1942: Privates Walter L. Griffith and Alfred P. Moes, both of Mike Compay. Their casualty cards give times of death at 6:00 AM and 6:30 AM respectively, both due to “enemy mortar fire.” It is likely that Griffith and Moes were the two KIAs associated with Item; their unit was the battalion’s heavy weapons company, which provided machine gunners to rifle companies in combat. Griffith and Moes were buried in the First Marine Division Cemetery later that day.
Burial Information or Disposition
Private Piculell’s remains were reportedly “buried locally” at coordinates 70.0-198.0 on the standard Map 104 of Guadalcanal’s northern coast. Subsequent expeditions were unable to find any trace of this grave.
Memorials
Next Of Kin Address
The Piculells lived on a rural route outside the town of Stillwater, MN.
Location Of Loss
Approximate location of Piculell’s field burial.
