Roy Thomas Cowell
Sergeant Roy T. Cowell served with HQ Company, Second Battalion, 27th Marines.
He was reported missing in action at Iwo Jima on 19 February 1945.
Branch
Marine Corps Reserve
Service Number 308645
Current Status
Remains Not Recovered
Pursuit Category
DPAA has not publicized this information
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth
August 13, 1916
at Ponca City, OK
Parents
Roy Thomas Cowell, Sr. (d. 1917)
Ida Jane (Piper) Cowell
Education
Details unknown
Occupation & Employer
International Harvester Company
Service Life
Entered Service
June 25, 1941
at Des Moines, IA
Home Of Record
3171 Adams Avenue, Apt. #1
San Diego, CA
Next Of Kin
Wife, Mrs. Lorraine Nannette (Jones) Cowell
Military Specialty
Heavy Weapons NCO
(MOS 812)
Individual Decorations
Purple Heart (Iwo Jima)
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
Roy Cowell was one of the veterans in the ranks of the new Fifth Marine Division. The former Paramarine fought at Choiseul and spent long months in the Solomon Islands; when the Paramarines were disbanded, Cowell was recalled to the United States. After some rest and retraining, Cowell was posted to HQ/2/27th Marines as a senior NCO in the 81mm mortar section, along with his former Raider comrade PFC Dale McKee.
On 19 February 1945, members of the 81mm and communications platoons boarded their assigned tractor (an LVT(4) of the 11th Amphibian Tractor Battalion) and rumbled down the LST ramp into the sea. They were scheduled to land in the fifth wave – seventeen minutes after the first – and, as support troops, expected a slightly easier time than the rifle companies. Instead, the preceding waves had been enveloped in smoke and flame. The men from HQ/2/27 could plainly see what lay ahead on Beach Red 1.
Japanese artillery started targeting the approaching LVTs. Most of their shells fell harmlessly into the water – but one scored a direct hit on the HQ/2/27 tractor. The LVT sank quickly, and nearby boats picked up a few survivors. Eight men – including Sergeant Cowell – were never seen again.
All Marines aboard the LVT were initially reported as missing in action, then declared dead as of 20 February 1946.
Burial Information or Disposition
None; remains lost at sea. A 1948 Graves Registration Service review of the case stated “it is presumed that [he] was killed and carried out into [the] sea by the undertow which prevails in the water surrounding Iwo Jima.”
Next Of Kin Address
Address of wife, Mrs. Lorraine Cowell.
Roy and Lorraine were married in February, 1944.
Location Of Loss
The LVT was hit approximately 400 yards from Beach Red One.
