William Henry McCartney, Master Sergeant, United States Marine Corps

William Henry McCartney

Master Sergeant, "A" Battery, Tenth 155Mm Gun Battalion, Corps Artillery, Fifth Amphibious Corps, Fleet Marine Force, Pacific, United States Marine Corps, WWII

William Henry McCartney, "Bill", was born in West Orange, New Jersey in the 1920's. Bill McCartney was a teenager when World War Two came and, like any young American boy, he wanted to get into the action. His grandmother, Annie McCartney, however, was set against it. So Bill's parents wouldn't let him join as they didn't want to upset Annie. However, Annie passed away in 1943.

Bill's parents relented and signed for him to enlist early, which he did at the age of 17 in 1943. Bill wanted the Marine Corps and thats what he got. Bill trained in Paris Island. There Bill discovered that he was not a very skilled shot. He trained with various weapons, including the M1 Garand and the M1 Carbine, the second of which Bill would tell me he "couldn't hit the broad side of a barn with". Bill would find out years later that he had Parkinson's Disease and it seems likely that this was an early indicator of that problem. In any case Bill completed his Boot Camp and became a United States Marine, of which he would always be very proud.

Probably due in part to his poor marksmanship wound up as a cook. His unit was an artillery unit, 155 mm Howitzer's, the Long Tom. His unit would I believe he said be attached to the Fourth or Fifth Marines. Bill sailed to the Pacific where his unit moved up behind the front lines on many famous battlefields, such as Guadalcanal, and Guam. There the men would partake in patrols to scout out and root out hidden Japanese soldiers who were hiding in caves in the jungle and who would harass the American troops. Bill would go on these expeditions.

Once Bill told me of a funny incident on Guam, "We were on Guam one night. We were an artillery unit, Long Toms. We were mop up and garrisson, our unit wasn't going to be going into battle first until Japan. Well, This guy from our unit is standing guard duty around the camp when he hears a noise. Halt he calls out, and no one answers. There is another noise. Halt he cries out again. Three times and no answer. There are Japs out there hiding still, so he opens up with his BAR. Browning Automatic Rifle. It was a bleeping pig. He killed it. Woke everybody up."

From archival records, I have learned that Bill enlisted March 17, 1943. By April of 1943, Bill is a private training with the Third Recruit Battalion, Recruit Depot, MB, Parris Island, South Carolina.

July of 1943, Bill is a private with the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, Recruit Depot, Marine Barracks, Parris Island, South Carolina. He is noted as "msm" (messman) Battalion Mess.

October of 1943 Bill is an assistant cook (corporal) with the Service Company, Headquarters Battalion, Training Center, Camp Elliot, San Diego, California.

On January 1, 1944, Bill was an assistant cook (corporal) with the Service Company, Headquarters Battalion, Training Center, Camp Elliot, San Diego, California. On the 8th the Service Company is redesignated Headquarters and Service Company, HQBN, Training Center, Post.

On January 15, 1944 Bill is transferred to the 42nd Replacement Battalion, Transient Center, Fifth Amphibious Corps Camp Elliot, San Diego, which had been formed on the 8th. On the 26th of January, 1944, the 42nd Replacement Battalion embarked on the SS Mormacport.

By April of 1944, Bill, still an assistant cook, occupational specialty 060, cook, is assigned to the Headquarter and Service Company of the Tenth 155mm Artillery Battalion (Gun), Corps Artillery, V Amphibious Corps. The unit's location at this time is not given in the muster (its mailing address "care of Fleet Post Office, San Francisco is for all units in the Pacific). As the unit is in Hawaii in January and has left San Diego, it seems likely that the unit spent the summer in Hawaii. This would then be when Bill's photos of Hawaii were taken.

By January of 1945, Bill is promoted to Field Cook. His unit is now called "A" Battery, Tenth 155mm Gun Battalion, First Provisional Field Artillery Group, Fleet Marine Force, Pacific, C/O Fleet Post Office, San Francisco, California

21 January 45 First rob Field Artillery Group is redesignated Corp Artillery 5th Amphibious Corps.

On January 13th much of Bill's unit embarked aboard the liberty ship USS De Grasse and sailed from Hilo to Honolulu arriving and debarking on the 14th and 15th. There they awaited transport to Guam. Bill and part of the unit embarked on the 16th on the Liberty ship SS George W. Julian (others in the unit apparently remained on the De Grasse and others boarded the liberty ship SS Clark Howell, all bound for the same destination). They sailed on the 17th for Eniwetok Atoll in the Marshall Islands. They arrived there on the 26th and and were anchored there through January 31st. Bill's photo of himself by the rail of a ship at sea is presumably on this Liberty ship.

April 1945 finds Bill still in Battery A of the Tenth 155mm Gun Battalion, but its muster shows no affiliation to a higher unit beyond Fleet Marine Force. No location is given in the battery A muster nor the battalion HQ and Service Battery, but battery B's muster ends with the note that the unit is at the V Amphibious Corps Base Camp, Guam. As the HQ unit has two men disciplined for 'wasting carbine ammunition' and given Bill's story about boars on the island, it seems likely the entire Tenth Battalion is on Guam at this point.

By October 1945, with the war over, Bill is still with the Tenth 155mm Gun Battalion, apparently still on Guam, but he is now a Chief Cook, master sergeant equivalent, 536228 (later its given as 536288 in one record but every other one with the number shows 228) is a number listed with him, I think that might be his service number.

On October 10th, he is transferred to the Twelfth 155mm Gun Battalion, Guam. The majority of the personnel of that unit, including Bill, embarked on October 27th on the attack transport USS Broadwater (APA-139) enroute for the USA. The voyage home lasted from October 17th to October 31st. The USN photo on wikipedia for the ship shows the Broadwater in San Francisco in October 1945. Since she arrived on the 31st, Bill is either still on board in this photo, or had disembarked hours before this photo was taken.

From there, at some point, Bill is sent to join Headquarters Company, 2nd casual Battalion, R&RRegt (Rest and Recreation Regiment presumably), Marine Training and Replacement Command, San Diego Area, Camp Pendleton Oceanside, California.

On January 2, 1946 Bill returned to his home state, assigned to the Barracks Detachment, Marine Barracks, Naval Ammunition Depot, Earle, New Jersey. He immediately goes on furlough through January 31st. Whether that was the end of his service then and there or not I do not know. He does not appear on any other Marine Musters, so he leaves the Marine Corps around this time.

The bomb had saved Bill and his comrades from facing the Japanese on their homeland. Bill came home, dyed his uniform into a blue suit and entered civilian life.

After the war Bill became an accountant, being the first in his family to get a college degree, graduating from Fairliegh Dickinson. He met and married the love of his life, Marge. They had two daughters and many grand children. Bill was always an active and funny man. A true life of the party. Sadly, Bill passed away on August 30, 2000. Semper Fidelis.

----- Curator, Nephew of Bill McCartney

famjustin@aol.com

LINKS

Boot Camp Portrait, M/Sgt William H. McCartney, USMC

Garand at Boot Camp, M/Sgt William H. McCartney, USMC

Fatigues, William McCartney, Fatigues with Buddy, M/Sgt William H. McCartney, USMC

Unknown Marine on Bill's Ship Bound for South Pacific, M/Sgt William H. McCartney, USMC

Bill McCartney and friends near Barracks, M/Sgt William H. McCartney, USMC

Briefing Room, Guam, (old page), M/Sgt William H. McCartney, USMC

Marines with Japanese Flag and Rifle, M/Sgt William H. McCartney, USMC

Hut, Guam, M/Sgt William H. McCartney, USMC

D'Amico and Galao in San Diego, California, M/Sgt William H. McCartney, USMC