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Robert F. Needham

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Robert Forrest Needham (8 October 1916 in Washington - Missing in action 26 December 1941 near Lucban) was an American Second Lieutenant in the United States Army during World War II.

Early life[]

Robert was born on October 8, 1916 in Washington to James F. Needham & Maude L. Jones-Needham. With his two brothers (George and James), he grew up in Hanford, Washington.

Military service[]

He attended Washington State University and was a member of the Army ROTC program. After college, Robert was an adding machine salesman. With his wife, Patricia, he lived at Spokane, Washington. When he was inducted, he entered the army as a second lieutenant (ASN: 0-385930). He was assigned to C Company, 194th Tank Battalion during its training at Fort Lewis, Washington.

Receiving orders that they were being sent overseas, the 194th traveled to San Francisco. At 9:00 PM on September 8, 1941, the 194th sailed for the Philippine Islands from San Francisco. The ship reached Hawaii at 7:00 AM on September 13. At 5:00 PM the same day, they sailed for the Philippines and arrived at Manila on September 26.

Death[]

Robert was Killed in Action outside of Lucban on Friday, December 26, 1941. Since his final resting place is unknown, his name appears on the Tablets of the Missing at the American Military Cemetery at Manila. He was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and the Silver Star.

After the war, a United States Recovery Team was sent to the Barrio of Piis in the Philippine Islands to recover remains. Local residents claimed that the remains of two Americans were still inside an American tank which had been destroyed during a tank battle in December 1941. One man was found in the tank driver's side of the tank and the other was found in the assistant tank driver's position. The residents did not bury the soldiers but filled the tank with dirt. When the bodies were removed, remains of both men were found in each position. They were buried at Batangas as Unknowns X-7 and X-8. In addition, the remains of a third American were found outside the tank and buried by the team.

The remains of one soldier were exhumed from Plot: 1, Row: 11, Grave: 323, and reburied in Plot: 4, Row: 8, Grave: 999 as Unknown X-3677 at Manila #2 on August 13, 1947. He was designated as Unknown X-4702 when the remains were moved to the new American Cemetery at Manila.

Since there was no way, at the time, to know if the remains found at the tank were those of Needham or another member of the crew, Robert's name appears on the Tablets of the Missing at the new American Military Cemetery at Manila.

Awards & decorations[]

Sources[]

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