World War II Honoree
Killed In Action
Walter Keith York
Branch of Service
U.S. Marine Corps
Hometown
Mount Vernon, Illinois
Honored By
Orville L. Kline
Rank: Private First Class. He was inducted into the United States Marine Corps September 3, 1940 at Salt Lake City, Utah, with recruit training at the Marine Corps Base in San Diego, California. After his graduation from boot camp, he was transferred to Camp Pendleton Oceanside, California for combat training. He served as a Rifleman, assigned to Kilo Company, Third Battalion, Second Marine Regiment and an element of the Second Marine Division. His division participated in the amphibious assault, and occupation of Saipan Island Location: Northwestern Pacific Theater of Operations. On Friday, June 16, 1944 he was reported missing in action, after a combat engagement against the Imperial Japanese Armed Forces. In remembrance of the brave, his name is permanently inscribed in the tablets of the missing, memorialized at Honolulu National Memorial Location: Honolulu, Hawaii. In his Memory and Honor, this American Patriot was awarded the Purple Heart posthumously, for his Heroism and ultimate sacrifice.