December 2004 - Military Order of the Purple Heart - Texas Capital ...

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Page 8PATRIOT BULLETINJACK SALTERMarine Corps, WWII, PacificPatriot, Chapter 1919Jack Salter was born in Newton, Massachusetts on August 17, 1924.He enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve on June 4, 1942 in Phoenix,Arizona. When he was barely 18, he became part of an elite raiding forcein the Pacific that specialized in hit-and-run attacks deep in Japanese heldareas; and he was wounded on one of the many combat operations that heparticipated in. Here is Jack’s story.Jack Salter completed basic training at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot inJuly 1942, and upon graduation was assigned to a rifle company in 3 rdBattalion, 9 th Marine Regiment, 3 rd Marine Division at Camp Elliot,California. Subsequently, the division moved to Camp Pendleton, California,which was then a newly established training base. Jack volunteered for theMarine Raiders and in October 1942 was transferred to the 4 th Marine RaiderBattalion as it was being organized and was conducting intensive training atCamp Pendleton. He was further assigned to the 60mm mortar section inCompany D. Jack says at that time, “Colonel James Roosevelt, son of thePresident of the United States was my battalion commander, and Captain BillFlake was my company commander. All of us were in our late teens and earlytwenties, eager to add further glory to the annals of the U.S. Marine Corps.”COLONEL JACK SALTERUSMCR, RETIREDMARINE RAIDERS IN TRAINING1943 PHOTO1ST MARINE RAIDERREGIMENT PATCHThe 4 th Marine Raider Battalion sailed for the South Pacific on February 9, 1943, andarrived at Espiritu Santo in the New Hebrides Islands on March 1, 1943. On March 15,1943 the 1st Marine Raider Regiment was officially organized on Espiritu Santo,composed of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Raider Battalions (each with strength of 700 to900 men) and the regimental Headquarters and Service Company. The raidercompanies of the regiment were re-designated later that month, and from that time on,Jack’s unit was known as Company Q. The 4 th Raider Battalion moved to Guadalcanal,established their base there and continued intensive training until their first action. TheMarines struck hard in numerous places, with a suddeninsertion of troops by submarine or fast warships, in raidsvarying in size from small units up to multiple battalions.On June 28 th , Companies N and Q loaded aboard two destroyers, the USS Schleyand USS McKean that took them to Wickham Anchorage on Vangunu Island inthe British Solomon Islands. They landed, then seized and occupied theanchorage. Jack says, “Shortly after our arrival Captain Flake was wounded byshrapnel in the stomach. He was standing only about four feet from me. Thisended the war for him. He survived his wound and continued his Marine Corpscareer.” The operation on Vangunu ended July 10, 1943 and the two companiesthen returned to base, arriving back at Tetere Point, Guadalcanal on Jul 13, 1943.DESTROYER USS MCKEAN.COMPANY Q SAILED TOVANGUNU IN THIS VESSEL INTHE JUNE 1943 OPERATION.SHIP PHOTO IS DATED 1942.Jack’s service record shows he was in action again almost immediately. The 4 th Raider Battalion loadedaboard destroyers and sailed for Enogai, New Georgia Islands, British Solomon Islands (also known as the“Dragon’s Peninsula”). On July 20 th and 21 st , the 1 st and 4 th Raider Battalions and an Army InfantryBattalion fought what was known as the “Battle for Bairoko.” Jack described the action in a paper that he
PATRIOT BULLETINPage 9has written, “At 0800 the Battle for Bairoko began. The two Raider Battalions moved in a northerlydirection. It was not long before their artillery opened up on us. The noise became deafening. Japaneseartillery shells detonated at treetop level, causing shrapnel to go in all directions. Friendly casualtiesmounted. Our heaviest crew served weapons were our machine guns and mortars. As the morning wore on,enemy fire became more intense. We had no air or artillery support. The overhead jungle was so thick thatit was very difficult to use our mortars. About noon, I was hit by shrapnel in the right leg and was sent backto a rear aid station. The next day, July 21 st , I was flown out with other casualties in a PBY aircraft to theU.S. Naval Hospital at Tulagi, an island across from Guadalcanal. (While in the air) we saw three or fourJapanese fighter planes, but they did not bother us, they were heading in the direction of Bairoko. We heardlater that these planes strafed another PBY aircraft at Bairoko as wounded Marines were being loadedaboard. I spent about two weeks in the hospital at Tulagi and returned to my unit on Guadalcanal.It was on Bairoko that a Japanese sniper had put a rifle round about 6 inches from my head. It hit coral rockand spun around. Although it was hot from being shot, I picked it up and put it in my jacket pocket only tolose it later. Obviously, I changed my position pretty damn fast, not wanting to give the sniper a secondchance for a shot at me. Perhaps this was the bullet that had my name on it and I would not have to worryabout another one.On July 21 st , the raiding force disengaged from the enemy. All our wounded had been evacuated. EachRaider Battalion had suffered battle casualties of more than 25 percent. Malaria and dysentery claimed alike percentage. After the New Georgia Campaign, including the Bairoko action, the 1 st Raider Battalionhad 245 effectives and the 4 th Raider Battalion had only 154. Replacements eventually filled the ranks.Later the Japanese abandoned Bairoko and a U.S. airfield was constructed there enabling American aircraftto strike targets further north in the Pacific. (By that time) the progress of the war in the South Pacific had,to a great extent, eliminated the need for hit-and-run commando type tactics. In general the northwardmovement, toward the Central Pacific and points beyond, required a more conventional type of warfare...”The Marine Raiders, no longer needed, were organized into the re-established 4 th Marine Regiment onFebruary 1, 1944, bearing the lineage and honors of the original 4 th Marine Regiment that had been lost withthe fall of the Philippines in 1942. The 1 st , 3 rd and 4 th Raider Battalions became respectively the 1 st , 3 rd , and2 nd battalions, and the 2 nd Raider Battalion became the Weapons Company of the 4 th Marine Regiment. Withthat reorganization, Jack’s Raider Company Q became Company F, 2 nd Battalion, 4 th Marine Regiment.Jack was promoted to Sergeant and was in charge of the 60mm Mortar Sectionof Company F. He noted that the promotion jumped his pay up to $75 permonth. His records show that while he was in Company F, he sawsubsequent action against the enemy on Emirau Island, St. Matthias Group,from March 20 1944 to April 11, 1944; and on Guam in the Marianas IslandGroup from July 21, 1944 to August 27, 1944, but fortunately he sustainedno further wounds.Jack Salter was discharged in April 1945 and then commissioned in theMarine Corps Reserve. He remained continuously in the USMCR untilretired in the grade of Colonel on June 1, 1977, after 35 years of faithfulservice.60 MILLIMETER MORTAR READYTO FIRE. COMPONENTS, MORTARTUBE, BASEPLATE, AND BIPOD.
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December 2004 - Military Order of the Purple Heart - Texas Capital ...

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