19 November 2012

22nd Marines Get Coffee Aboard USS Middleton (APA-25) After Battle of Engebi


Image size: 1409 x 1600 pixel. 575 KB
Date: Saturday, 19 February 1944
Place: USS Arthur Middleton, off Engebi, Eniwetok Atoll, Marshalls Islands
Photographer: Ray R. Platnick

Left, USMC Private First Class Faris "Bob" M. Tuohy (1924- ) of the 3rd Battalion, independent 22nd Marine Regiment, take a sip of well-earned coffee with his fellow Marines in the mess aboard USS Arthur Middleton (APA-25) after surviving the two-day fight for Engebi in Eniwetok Atoll. The 1st and 2nd Battalions of the 22nd Marines secured the island, killing 736 Japanese soldiers and Korean laborers. Only nineteen surrendered. This photo was passed by American censors and widely distributed, one of the few wartime releases to show the psychological effects of war. At right, Private First Class Stephen Garboski (1921-1944) of Ringoes, New Jersey, also recuperates with coffee. On Guam in July 1944, Garboski was one of 1,147 men of the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade (which by then included the 22nd Marines) killed in action. Tuohy states he was a victim of friendly fire when USAAF aircraft attacked Marine positions. Tuohy also believes the man in the center was killed by the Japanese on Okinawa. 

Source:
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) 
http://www.worldwar2database.com/gallery3/index.php/wwii1681

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