World War II Honoree

Harry Robert Bartl

Branch of Service

U.S. Marine Corps

Hometown

Sacramento, California

Honored By

Orville L. Kline

RANK: 1ST LIEUTENANT. SERVED AS A UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS FIGHTER PILOT, WHO FLEW THE F4U-1A CORSAIR FIGHTER-BOMBER ASSIGNED TO THE ‘BLACK SHEEP’ MARINE ATTACK SQUADRON TWO ONE-FOURTEEN ‘VMF-214’, COMMANDED BY COLONEL GREGORY ‘PAPPY’ BOYINGTON, MARINE AIRCRAFT GROUP-THIRTEEN, THIRD MARINE AIRCRAFT WING. HIS SQUADRON WAS BASED AT BARAKOMA AIRFIELD LOCATED ON VELLA LAVELLA, AN ISLAND IN THE WESTERN PROVINCE OF THE SOLOMON ISLANDS LOCATED IN THE PACIFIC THEATER OF OPERATIONS. ON TUESDAY, DECEMBER 28, 1943 HE FLEW A COMBAT SORTIE OVER RABAUL, NEW BRITAIN, PAPUA, NEW GUINEA AND FAILED TO RETURN FROM THE MISSION. HE WAS REPORTED AS MISSING IN ACTION, LOST AT SEA MONDAY JANUARY 14, 1946 AND MEMORIALIZED IN THE TABLETS OF THE MISSING, MANILA AMERICAN CEMETERY AND MEMORIAL LOCATED AT FORT BONIFACIO, PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. DECORATION AND CITATION: PURPLE HEART. THE LIEUTENANT, AN AMERICAN PATRIOT, WAS AWARDED THE PURPLE HEART FOR HIS SUPREME SACRIFICE IN DEFENSE OF HIS COUNTRY.