Harold Rosen
Harold enlisted in the Marine Corps on June 8, 1942 at the
age of 17. This was a pretty young age for an enlistee but was not at all
uncommon. After Pearl Harbor was attacked, there was a flood of young men who
went to their local recruiting office and just wanted to do their part. Harold
may or may not have had to get his parent’s permission to join at 17. Some
joined as young as 15, but were found out, and told to come back in a few
years, which most did!
Harold was assigned to the 2nd Division, 8th
Marines and was assigned as a heavy weapons specialist, particularly on the
37mm anti-tank gun.
His unit was actually the first Marine regiment to deploy to
the south Pacific. In 1940, the regiment was sent to Samoa to reinforce that
islands defenses in case war with Japan broke out.
Harold participated in the brutal invasion of Tarawa after
first training in New Zealand for island warfare. Later, he was involved in the
invasions of the islands of Saipan and Tinian. The 2nd Marine
division joined the 1st and 6th Marine divisions in the
battle for Okinawa in the spring of 1945.
He was discharged from the Marine Corps in December 1945
with the rank lieutenant. He received 2 Purple Hearts for wounds received and
his unit received 2 Presidential Unit Citations.
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