Nyal H. Bennett
Service # 269445
Rank: Corporal, U.S. Marine Corps
Unit: Company A, First Battalion, Fourth Marines
Entered Service From: Colorado
Date of Death: Unknown, sometime in 1942 in the Philippines. He was officially declared dead on 07 January 1946
Status: Missing In Action
Memorialized: Tablets of the Missing – United States Marines at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.
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1920 United States Federal Census (10 January 1920): Hogan Township, Mayes County, Oklahoma (sheet 2A, family 27) – Nyal Bennett (1 3/12 Oklahoma).

1930 United States Federal Census (24 April 1930): Center Township, Washington County, Arkansas (sheet 8B, family 193) – Nyal H. Bennett (11 Oklahoma).

Nyal H. Bennett enlisted as a Private (S/N 269445) in the United States Marine Corps on 12 December 1938 while living with his sister, Lorene Bennett Houston, and brother-in-law in Denver, Colorado. He was sent to San Diego for training.

Marine Corps Muster Rolls – 14 December 1938 to 03 March 1939
Recruit Depot Detachment, Recruit Depot, Base Troops, MCB, San Diego, California
Private Nyal H. Bennett. He joined from WRD, Denver, Colorado. On 03 March 1939 he was transferred to Company "A".

Marine Corps Muster Rolls – 03 March 1939 to 02 March 1940
Company "A", 1st Battalion, 6th Marine , 2d Marine Brigade, Fleet Marine Force, MCB, San Diego, California.
Private/Private First Class Nyal H. Bennett. On 21- 30 November 1939 he had a furlough. On 13 February 1930 Nyal was promoted to Private First Class. On 02 March 1940 he was transferred to Navy Yard, Mare Island, California via U.S.S. BRIDGE, FFT to Asiatic Station for general assignment via U.S.S. HENDERSON. The HENDERSON left Mare Island, California on 22 March 1940.

Private First Class Nyal H. Bennett was sent to Shanghai, China where he was assigned to Company "A", First Battalion, Fourth Marines. They were responsible for protecting the International Settlement in Shanghai. Their mission was to prevent fighting between Japanese and Chinese forces from spilling over into the International zone and protect American interests. Source: U.S. Marine Corps Muster Rolls; A Brief History of the 4th Marines by James S. Santelli (Historical Division, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps, Washington, D.C. 1970).

Marine Corps Muster Rolls – 01 May 1940 to 28 November 1941
Company ''A'', First Battalion Fourth Marines, Shanghai, China
Private First Class/Corporal Nyal H. Bennett. He arrived (and disembarked) aboard the U.S.S. HENDERSON at Shanghai, China on 01 May 1940. On the 26th of June 1940 he qualified as a sharpshooter. In December 1940 he had temporary duty at the Riverside Power Station, Shanghai, China. By October 1941 he had been promoted to Corporal.

On the 14th of November, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt announced that "The Government of the United States has decided to withdraw the American Marine detachments now maintained ashore in China..." Clouds of war were quickly closing in on the China Marines as Japan and the United States edged ever closer to active hostilities.

On Friday, 28 November 1941, the 1st Battalion boarded the SS PRESIDENT HARRISON bound for Olongapo Navy Yard, Philippines. On 01 December the HARRISON arrived at Subic Bay. With relations between the United States and Japan deteriorating, the 4th Marines were given the task of protecting the Olongapo Naval Station. Source: From Shanghai to Corregidor: Marines in the Defense of the Philippines by J. Michael Miller.

On 08 December 1941 war with Japan broke out. That same day the 1st Battalion was moved Mariveles. "The men prepared positions in the surrounding jungle, but also worked 10 to 12 hours a day unloading the many barges bringing rations, ammunition, and equipment." On 09 December, the regiment was ordered to "be fed only twice a day, breakfast before daylight and dinner after dark to conserve supplies."

On 28 December 1941, the 1st Battalion was taken over to Fort Mills, Corregidor, P. I. On 29 - 30 December the 4th Marines moved from their barracks into field positions. The 1st Battalion took the east sector (where Bennett was sent), from Malinta Hill to Hooker Point on the tail of the island. The 2nd Battalion was moved into the west sector and the 3rd Battalion was assigned the middle sector. Source: From Shanghai to Corregidor: Marines in the Defense of the Philippines by J. Michael Miller.

Marine Corps Muster Rolls –28 December 1941 to 06 May 1942
Company A, First Battalion, Fourth Marines, Fort Mills, P. I.
Corporal Nyal H. Bennett.

On 09 April 1942, Filipino and U.S. forces on Bataan were surrendered and the Japanese were able to mass artillery for an all-out attack of the Rock from just 2 miles away.

On the night of 05 May 1942, Japanese forces landed on the island (in the area Bennett was stationed) and overwhelmed the garrison, which surrendered at 1200 hours the following day.

Corporal Nyal Bennett was wounded during the siege and hospitalized in Malinta Tunnel. He was last known to be at the hospital when the island was surrendered.

Bennett was reportedly captured and imprisoned at an unstated location in the Philippines. One report says that he was taken to Old Bilibid Prison. One veteran remembered that Nyal was beaten to death by Japanese troops because his wounds rendered him "of no use." He was listed as "Missing in Action" on U.S. Marine Corps Muster Rolls through January 1946. The date of his death is unknown; Nyal was officially declared dead as of 07 January 1946.

Corporal Nyal Hogan Bennett is memorialized on the Tablets of the Missing - United States Marine Corps at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines.

For more about this missing Marine visit: https://missingmarines.com/nyal-h-bennett/