James Edward Watkins
PFC James E. Watkins served with Item Company, Third Battalion, 8th Marines.
He was killed in action at Betio, Tarawa atoll, on 21 November 1943.
Branch
Marine Corps Reserve
Service Number 264317
Current Status
Remains Not Recovered
Pursuit Category
This case is under Active Pursuit by the DPAA.
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
October 20, 1918
at Germantown, MD
Parents
John Lester Clark Watkins
Bessie (Wallich) Watkins
Education
Grammar school
Occupation & Employer
Cement worker
Service Life
Entered Service
March 29, 1938
at Rockville, MD
Home Of Record
Rockville, MD
Next Of Kin
Wife, Mrs. Helen Watkins
of Boston, MA
Military Specialty
—
Primary Unit
I/3/8th Marines
Campaigns Served
Tarawa
Individual Decorations
Purple Heart
Additional Service Details
—
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
PFC James Watkins served with Item Company, 8th Marines in the battle of Tarawa.
The amphibious assault on Betio, Tarawa atoll – Operation GALVANIC – commenced on 20 November 1943. The Third Battalion, 8th Marines were in reserve for the landing operation, but were ordered to stand by in their LCVPs and were afloat by 1015. At 1200, the battalion’s first wave began heading towards Beach Red 3 to support the heavily-engaged BLT 2-8.
Nothing went as planned. Item Company approached in the fourth wave; one boat was hit causing “considerable casualties,” and the rest pulled back and attempted to land on Beach Red 2. They intermingled with the fifth wave, grounded on the coral reef, and once again took casualties. The surviving boats waited in the water outside of small-arms range, and finally managed to disembark the rest of Item Company between 1630 and 1800 hours. Those who reached shore were attached to battered Love Company and participated in an attack south towards the main airfield.
PFC Watkins was one of hundreds of Marines to lose his life on the first day of the battle. He was killed in action by gunshot wounds during the landing operation; no further details of his death are known.
Burial Information or Disposition
A day or two after his death, James Watkins’ body was located, identified, and buried. Multiple sources place him in Grave #42, Row B, Division Cemetery #1. Also known as “Central Division Cemetery” or “Beach Red 2 Cemetery,” this burial ground was one of the largest on the island of Betio. Layout and interment of remains was overseen by Chaplains W. Wyeth Willard and Francis W. Kelly; Watkins’ name was recorded on Willard’s list of burials, and on a personal casualty card in the chaplain’s file.
In 1944, the Betio Island Commander directed that all temporary cemeteries be reconstructed and “beautified” in accordance with regulations and to better suit the needs of the expanding air base. Cemetery 1 was transformed into a memorial (designated “Cemetery 26”) and new markers were emplaced. However, the new layout did not match the original, and hence there was no correlation between the order of markers and location of bodies. (Watkins’ memorial marker was in Plot 2, Row 1, Grave 5.)
The 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company exhumed Cemetery 26 in 1946, and found the remains of 123 individuals. Identification proved extremely challenging, however, and to this day there are still several unresolved cases awaiting laboratory analysis. In 2014, non-profit group History Flight conducted a dig at the old cemetery site and retrieved additional remains, several of which were subsequently identified.
There is a strong possibility that one of the unresolved cases may be PFC James Watkins.
Next Of Kin Address
Address of wife, Mrs. Helen Watkins.
Location Of Loss
Watkins’ battalion landed at various locations between Beach Red 2 and Red 3.
