Marine Corps CPL William C Haywood, 23, killed in World War II, remains unaccounted-for.
Born September 1, 1920, Billy was the only child blessed to the union of William Jasper and Leila Mae (nee Short) Haywood.
Tragedy came to Billy's life all too early. The divorce of his parents would be tough for any child; however, that blow was followed by the devastation of his dear mother's death - he was just 8 years old. Many blessings surrounded Billy though in that his was a very large and loving family. Billy was raised in his hometown of Enterprise by his devoted grandmother, Mary, spending a lot of time with his aunts, uncles and cousins; as well as his friends, neighbors and Enterprise High School classmates - where Billy was a star football player for the Bulldogs.
In August of 1940, Billy enlisted in the Marine Corps and left to train in San Diego before being deployed out into the Pacific Theater. Billy was eating his breakfast at Pearl Harbor when the Imperial Japanese Forces struck. Fortunately, he was unharmed and remained there for another year before being sent the New Zealand. Billy was finally going to have a chance to get back at those enemy forces that killed his buddies in Hawaii.
Corporal Haywood was with his brothers in Lima Company, 3rd Battalion of the 2nd Marines (L-3-2) when they landed on Betio. As part of OPERATION: Galvanic, the 2nd Marine Division's mission was to secure the island in order to control the Japanese airstrip in the Tarawa Atoll; thereby preventing the Japanese Imperial forces from getting closer to the United States, and enabling US forces to get closer to mainland Japan. It would become one of the bloodiest battles in the Corps history.
It was November 21st (D+1 for the "Battle of Tarawa"), when young Billy - just 23 years old - perished. He was reportedly soon buried in Cemetery #11 on Betio Island - a temporary location chosen by his fellow Marines, the survivors of the battle, until the Fallen could be recovered and returned to their families.
Having a loved one away from home during the holidays is always trying; however, having a son or husband off fighting in the war left the whole family on edge. The fact that this battle took place just before Thanksgiving meant that most of the families, who had unknowingly earned their Gold Star, would receive their heart-wrenching telegrams on Christmas Eve – some Christmas Day or even New Years Day.
For his service and sacrifice, Billys family accepted the Purple Heart and Presidential Unit Citation.
Despite the heavy casualties suffered by U.S. forces, military success in the battle of Tarawa was a huge victory for the U.S. military because the Gilbert Islands provided the U.S. Navy Pacific Fleet a platform from which to launch assaults on the Marshall and Caroline Islands to advance their Central Pacific Campaign against Japan.
In the immediate aftermath of the fighting on Tarawa, U.S. service members who died in the battle were buried in a number of battlefield cemeteries on the island. In 1946 and 1947, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company conducted remains recovery operations on Betio, but CPL Haywood's remains were not recovered. On February 8, 1949, a military review board declared Billy "non-recoverable".
A few years after CPL Haywood's death, his graduating class established the "Billy Haywood Memorial Award." Since 1952, it has been presented to seniors with outstanding athletic ability, academics and character.
On July 10, 2019, Jennifer Morrison, an independent volunteer forensic genealogist, found the family of CPL Haywood and put them in contact with the Marine Corps POW/MIA Section. This (re)established lines of communication with Billy's family regarding the ongoing recovery and repatriation efforts, and offered his cousins the opportunity to provide a Family Reference DNA Sample, should it be necessary for his identification.
Billy's family had this memorial marker placed in the Enterprise Cemetery, in Enterprise, Mississippi, in hopes that one day he would be found and returned home.
Events honoring CPL Haywood (August 30-31, 2019)
~ Friday at 6:30 p.m.
Billy Haywood Memorial Award recipients recognized at Enterprise High School football game
~ Saturday at 4:00 p.m.
Memorial service for CPL William Haywood held at Enterprise Cemetery
Marine Corps Corporal William Curtis Haywood is memorialized among the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific's Honolulu Memorial. His name is permanently inscribed within Court 4 of the "Courts of the Missing" (56110320, a cenotaph).
SOURCE
The Family of William Haywood
Marine Corps POW/MIA Section
DPAA Personnel Profile
American Battle Monuments Commission
Jennifer Morrison, independent volunteer forensic genealogist
Born September 1, 1920, Billy was the only child blessed to the union of William Jasper and Leila Mae (nee Short) Haywood.
Tragedy came to Billy's life all too early. The divorce of his parents would be tough for any child; however, that blow was followed by the devastation of his dear mother's death - he was just 8 years old. Many blessings surrounded Billy though in that his was a very large and loving family. Billy was raised in his hometown of Enterprise by his devoted grandmother, Mary, spending a lot of time with his aunts, uncles and cousins; as well as his friends, neighbors and Enterprise High School classmates - where Billy was a star football player for the Bulldogs.
In August of 1940, Billy enlisted in the Marine Corps and left to train in San Diego before being deployed out into the Pacific Theater. Billy was eating his breakfast at Pearl Harbor when the Imperial Japanese Forces struck. Fortunately, he was unharmed and remained there for another year before being sent the New Zealand. Billy was finally going to have a chance to get back at those enemy forces that killed his buddies in Hawaii.
Corporal Haywood was with his brothers in Lima Company, 3rd Battalion of the 2nd Marines (L-3-2) when they landed on Betio. As part of OPERATION: Galvanic, the 2nd Marine Division's mission was to secure the island in order to control the Japanese airstrip in the Tarawa Atoll; thereby preventing the Japanese Imperial forces from getting closer to the United States, and enabling US forces to get closer to mainland Japan. It would become one of the bloodiest battles in the Corps history.
It was November 21st (D+1 for the "Battle of Tarawa"), when young Billy - just 23 years old - perished. He was reportedly soon buried in Cemetery #11 on Betio Island - a temporary location chosen by his fellow Marines, the survivors of the battle, until the Fallen could be recovered and returned to their families.
Having a loved one away from home during the holidays is always trying; however, having a son or husband off fighting in the war left the whole family on edge. The fact that this battle took place just before Thanksgiving meant that most of the families, who had unknowingly earned their Gold Star, would receive their heart-wrenching telegrams on Christmas Eve – some Christmas Day or even New Years Day.
For his service and sacrifice, Billys family accepted the Purple Heart and Presidential Unit Citation.
Despite the heavy casualties suffered by U.S. forces, military success in the battle of Tarawa was a huge victory for the U.S. military because the Gilbert Islands provided the U.S. Navy Pacific Fleet a platform from which to launch assaults on the Marshall and Caroline Islands to advance their Central Pacific Campaign against Japan.
In the immediate aftermath of the fighting on Tarawa, U.S. service members who died in the battle were buried in a number of battlefield cemeteries on the island. In 1946 and 1947, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company conducted remains recovery operations on Betio, but CPL Haywood's remains were not recovered. On February 8, 1949, a military review board declared Billy "non-recoverable".
A few years after CPL Haywood's death, his graduating class established the "Billy Haywood Memorial Award." Since 1952, it has been presented to seniors with outstanding athletic ability, academics and character.
On July 10, 2019, Jennifer Morrison, an independent volunteer forensic genealogist, found the family of CPL Haywood and put them in contact with the Marine Corps POW/MIA Section. This (re)established lines of communication with Billy's family regarding the ongoing recovery and repatriation efforts, and offered his cousins the opportunity to provide a Family Reference DNA Sample, should it be necessary for his identification.
Billy's family had this memorial marker placed in the Enterprise Cemetery, in Enterprise, Mississippi, in hopes that one day he would be found and returned home.
Events honoring CPL Haywood (August 30-31, 2019)
~ Friday at 6:30 p.m.
Billy Haywood Memorial Award recipients recognized at Enterprise High School football game
~ Saturday at 4:00 p.m.
Memorial service for CPL William Haywood held at Enterprise Cemetery
Marine Corps Corporal William Curtis Haywood is memorialized among the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific's Honolulu Memorial. His name is permanently inscribed within Court 4 of the "Courts of the Missing" (56110320, a cenotaph).
SOURCE
The Family of William Haywood
Marine Corps POW/MIA Section
DPAA Personnel Profile
American Battle Monuments Commission
Jennifer Morrison, independent volunteer forensic genealogist
Marine Corps CPL William C Haywood, 23, killed in World War II, remains unaccounted-for.
Born September 1, 1920, Billy was the only child blessed to the union of William Jasper and Leila Mae (nee Short) Haywood.
Tragedy came to Billy's life all too early. The divorce of his parents would be tough for any child; however, that blow was followed by the devastation of his dear mother's death - he was just 8 years old. Many blessings surrounded Billy though in that his was a very large and loving family. Billy was raised in his hometown of Enterprise by his devoted grandmother, Mary, spending a lot of time with his aunts, uncles and cousins; as well as his friends, neighbors and Enterprise High School classmates - where Billy was a star football player for the Bulldogs.
In August of 1940, Billy enlisted in the Marine Corps and left to train in San Diego before being deployed out into the Pacific Theater. Billy was eating his breakfast at Pearl Harbor when the Imperial Japanese Forces struck. Fortunately, he was unharmed and remained there for another year before being sent the New Zealand. Billy was finally going to have a chance to get back at those enemy forces that killed his buddies in Hawaii.
Corporal Haywood was with his brothers in Lima Company, 3rd Battalion of the 2nd Marines (L-3-2) when they landed on Betio. As part of OPERATION: Galvanic, the 2nd Marine Division's mission was to secure the island in order to control the Japanese airstrip in the Tarawa Atoll; thereby preventing the Japanese Imperial forces from getting closer to the United States, and enabling US forces to get closer to mainland Japan. It would become one of the bloodiest battles in the Corps history.
It was November 21st (D+1 for the "Battle of Tarawa"), when young Billy - just 23 years old - perished. He was reportedly soon buried in Cemetery #11 on Betio Island - a temporary location chosen by his fellow Marines, the survivors of the battle, until the Fallen could be recovered and returned to their families.
Having a loved one away from home during the holidays is always trying; however, having a son or husband off fighting in the war left the whole family on edge. The fact that this battle took place just before Thanksgiving meant that most of the families, who had unknowingly earned their Gold Star, would receive their heart-wrenching telegrams on Christmas Eve – some Christmas Day or even New Years Day.
For his service and sacrifice, Billys family accepted the Purple Heart and Presidential Unit Citation.
Despite the heavy casualties suffered by U.S. forces, military success in the battle of Tarawa was a huge victory for the U.S. military because the Gilbert Islands provided the U.S. Navy Pacific Fleet a platform from which to launch assaults on the Marshall and Caroline Islands to advance their Central Pacific Campaign against Japan.
In the immediate aftermath of the fighting on Tarawa, U.S. service members who died in the battle were buried in a number of battlefield cemeteries on the island. In 1946 and 1947, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company conducted remains recovery operations on Betio, but CPL Haywood's remains were not recovered. On February 8, 1949, a military review board declared Billy "non-recoverable".
A few years after CPL Haywood's death, his graduating class established the "Billy Haywood Memorial Award." Since 1952, it has been presented to seniors with outstanding athletic ability, academics and character.
On July 10, 2019, Jennifer Morrison, an independent volunteer forensic genealogist, found the family of CPL Haywood and put them in contact with the Marine Corps POW/MIA Section. This (re)established lines of communication with Billy's family regarding the ongoing recovery and repatriation efforts, and offered his cousins the opportunity to provide a Family Reference DNA Sample, should it be necessary for his identification.
Billy's family had this memorial marker placed in the Enterprise Cemetery, in Enterprise, Mississippi, in hopes that one day he would be found and returned home.
Events honoring CPL Haywood (August 30-31, 2019)
~ Friday at 6:30 p.m.
Billy Haywood Memorial Award recipients recognized at Enterprise High School football game
~ Saturday at 4:00 p.m.
Memorial service for CPL William Haywood held at Enterprise Cemetery
Marine Corps Corporal William Curtis Haywood is memorialized among the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific's Honolulu Memorial. His name is permanently inscribed within Court 4 of the "Courts of the Missing" (56110320, a cenotaph).
SOURCE
The Family of William Haywood
Marine Corps POW/MIA Section
DPAA Personnel Profile
American Battle Monuments Commission
Jennifer Morrison, independent volunteer forensic genealogist
Born September 1, 1920, Billy was the only child blessed to the union of William Jasper and Leila Mae (nee Short) Haywood.
Tragedy came to Billy's life all too early. The divorce of his parents would be tough for any child; however, that blow was followed by the devastation of his dear mother's death - he was just 8 years old. Many blessings surrounded Billy though in that his was a very large and loving family. Billy was raised in his hometown of Enterprise by his devoted grandmother, Mary, spending a lot of time with his aunts, uncles and cousins; as well as his friends, neighbors and Enterprise High School classmates - where Billy was a star football player for the Bulldogs.
In August of 1940, Billy enlisted in the Marine Corps and left to train in San Diego before being deployed out into the Pacific Theater. Billy was eating his breakfast at Pearl Harbor when the Imperial Japanese Forces struck. Fortunately, he was unharmed and remained there for another year before being sent the New Zealand. Billy was finally going to have a chance to get back at those enemy forces that killed his buddies in Hawaii.
Corporal Haywood was with his brothers in Lima Company, 3rd Battalion of the 2nd Marines (L-3-2) when they landed on Betio. As part of OPERATION: Galvanic, the 2nd Marine Division's mission was to secure the island in order to control the Japanese airstrip in the Tarawa Atoll; thereby preventing the Japanese Imperial forces from getting closer to the United States, and enabling US forces to get closer to mainland Japan. It would become one of the bloodiest battles in the Corps history.
It was November 21st (D+1 for the "Battle of Tarawa"), when young Billy - just 23 years old - perished. He was reportedly soon buried in Cemetery #11 on Betio Island - a temporary location chosen by his fellow Marines, the survivors of the battle, until the Fallen could be recovered and returned to their families.
Having a loved one away from home during the holidays is always trying; however, having a son or husband off fighting in the war left the whole family on edge. The fact that this battle took place just before Thanksgiving meant that most of the families, who had unknowingly earned their Gold Star, would receive their heart-wrenching telegrams on Christmas Eve – some Christmas Day or even New Years Day.
For his service and sacrifice, Billys family accepted the Purple Heart and Presidential Unit Citation.
Despite the heavy casualties suffered by U.S. forces, military success in the battle of Tarawa was a huge victory for the U.S. military because the Gilbert Islands provided the U.S. Navy Pacific Fleet a platform from which to launch assaults on the Marshall and Caroline Islands to advance their Central Pacific Campaign against Japan.
In the immediate aftermath of the fighting on Tarawa, U.S. service members who died in the battle were buried in a number of battlefield cemeteries on the island. In 1946 and 1947, the 604th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company conducted remains recovery operations on Betio, but CPL Haywood's remains were not recovered. On February 8, 1949, a military review board declared Billy "non-recoverable".
A few years after CPL Haywood's death, his graduating class established the "Billy Haywood Memorial Award." Since 1952, it has been presented to seniors with outstanding athletic ability, academics and character.
On July 10, 2019, Jennifer Morrison, an independent volunteer forensic genealogist, found the family of CPL Haywood and put them in contact with the Marine Corps POW/MIA Section. This (re)established lines of communication with Billy's family regarding the ongoing recovery and repatriation efforts, and offered his cousins the opportunity to provide a Family Reference DNA Sample, should it be necessary for his identification.
Billy's family had this memorial marker placed in the Enterprise Cemetery, in Enterprise, Mississippi, in hopes that one day he would be found and returned home.
Events honoring CPL Haywood (August 30-31, 2019)
~ Friday at 6:30 p.m.
Billy Haywood Memorial Award recipients recognized at Enterprise High School football game
~ Saturday at 4:00 p.m.
Memorial service for CPL William Haywood held at Enterprise Cemetery
Marine Corps Corporal William Curtis Haywood is memorialized among the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific's Honolulu Memorial. His name is permanently inscribed within Court 4 of the "Courts of the Missing" (56110320, a cenotaph).
SOURCE
The Family of William Haywood
Marine Corps POW/MIA Section
DPAA Personnel Profile
American Battle Monuments Commission
Jennifer Morrison, independent volunteer forensic genealogist
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