thedrifter
10-16-03, 08:37 PM
Oldest Marine Found Living in Syracuse, NY
Submitted by: 1st Marine Corps District
Story Identification Number: 20031016102215
Story by Staff Sgt Jonathan Moor
SYRACUSE, NY(October 16, 2003) -- As Eugene Lee, a native of Liverpool, NY, enlisted in the Marine Corps during World War I, he never thought that he would one day be the Oldest Marine alive at 104 years old, a survivor of the Battle of Belleau Wood and a Silver Star recipient.
According to Maj. Daniel C. Kane, Inspector-Instructor at Marine Corps Reserve Center, Syracuse, NY, who during his tour as I&I has acted as the liaison between Lee and the Marine Corps, Lee's status as the Oldest Marine was discovered only recently.
"I called Headquarters Marine Corps to see who the Oldest Marine alive on record was. They told me a 103 year-old Marine living in Florida was the Oldest Marine. I told them I had them beat," explained Kane, with a sense of pride that indicated he viewed Lee as a cherished member of the local Marine Corps community.
Lee has been a member of the Marine Corps community for well over three quarters of a century.
"I always thought the Marines were wonderful. From a kid up, I wanted to be a Marine," Lee declared boldly. "I became a Marine as soon as I was old enough. I joined the Marines when I was 18 years old and maybe three weeks or so." At that time having a high school diploma or an equivalent degree was not an enlistment requirement of the Marine Corps. Lee, who has seen three centuries, had neither.
"I told my mother I was going in. She said it was okay," he mentioned, reflecting a time when being over 18 did not negate a young man's moral responsibility to honor his mother and father by asking for permission, even if it wasn't legally required.
"I was sworn in three different times: when I was recruited in Syracuse; and then Buffalo; and then down in the Philadelphia Navy Yard."
Lee learned to be a Marine at the Philadelphia Navy Yard just before being shipped to France. "That's when they trained us to do things. They put us on the rifle range. Then we came back, packed up, and they put us on board ship.
"We stayed in New York Harbor for, I dunno, two or three days, I guess. Then we started to cross. It was thirteen days getting over there, on account of the submarines. We were the first convoy over," Lee said of his journey across the Atlantic Ocean.
Lee was with the 51st Company, 5th Marine Regiment. "They put us in with the 2nd Division, the Indian Head."
"After I first got there I had what they called the German Measles. They kept me in the tent."
While Lee's memory stretched back to a distant land and time, his eyes sparkled as youthful scene flashed across his mind. He recalled men, Marines from his unit. He remembered 5th Marines commander Col. Wendell Neville, who would later become Commandant of the Marine Corps from 1929-1930. "I didn't see much of 'em," Lee joked dropping a subtle innuendo about his junior enlisted rank at the time.
Another name that brought up strong memories was his battalion commander Lt. Col. Frederick Wise. "Oh, Yeah! I remember him! I don't know whether the fellas liked him too well."
On the first day of the Battle of Belleau Wood, June 1, 1918, 2nd Division troops dug in along a defensive line just north of the village of Lucy-le-Bocage. Capt. Lloyd Williams when advised by French officers to withdraw, replied, "Retreat, Hell! We just got here!" Williams did not survive the battle.
Lee recalled a time he knew Williams, a face with a name from more than an average lifetime ago. Lee struggled to reconstruct the mental scene that surrounded Williams' face. He seemed to resign the effort though when he looked about at the faces surrounding him and realized that none of them could relate to what he was picturing because, even the oldest was young enough to be his grandson.
As Lee's mind played back the footage of his Marine years, the World War I Battle of Belleau Wood came into focus.
"The way we got to Belleau Wood, they had to transport us from some place. They put us on some road starting to move towards Belleau Wood. We met all these refugees that were coming back, old people and ones they could carry and all. I felt sorry for 'em.
"There was one French soldier. He was walking back. He stopped. He just kept hollering, 'beau coups boche.'
"We got up there and they split us out into formation. They had the first wave go so far. They kept on firing in the woods there. The next wave would come and jump over them and they'd go so far, and would fire till they got in the edge of the woods." Lee explained that the wave would advance in a leapfrog manner. He was in the third wave. It took four waves across the field to make it to the wood line.
Lee stopped talking as the memories brought on a wave of emotions he couldn't withstand. He dropped the dignified air that a man of his years is accustomed to carrying and sobbed uncontrollably for a brief moment.
"I'm a damned fool!" Lee whimpered out, ashamed of his tears.
When Lee regained his composure he returned to his first hand account of the Battle of Belleau Wood. He explained how one wave of Marines would rush forward a number of yards. As that wave dove to the ground and began firing across the field at the German positions imbedded in the woods, another wave would come from behind. The second wave would run past the third wave as far as the first wave had run.
"I remember a sergeant. He was the first man I seen fall. Before we got to the woods, I seen him fall from view."
Lee wasn't sure how many Marines made it to the wood line with him. "When we got to the woods, there was fighting in there." His voice trembled after the comma of the previous sentence as another memory returned him to tears. He recovered more quickly, with the same courage it must have taken to overcome the fear experienced during the up-close fighting in the French woods. What kind of battle caused a Marine's voice to waiver after 86 years?
"When we got fighting in the woods there, we were mixed up," Lee said. The fear that comes from the disorienting confusion know as the fog of war, which Lee must have been experiencing at that moment in time back then, could still be heard in his voice as his few words implied so much.
"After we got settled there, I helped carry some of the fellas back so far," he said modestly.
The Battle of Belleau Wood raged from June 6 to 26, 1918. There were 9,777 U.S. casualties, of which 1,811 were fatal.
Lee received the Silver Star for his actions at Belleau Wood.
continued..................
Submitted by: 1st Marine Corps District
Story Identification Number: 20031016102215
Story by Staff Sgt Jonathan Moor
SYRACUSE, NY(October 16, 2003) -- As Eugene Lee, a native of Liverpool, NY, enlisted in the Marine Corps during World War I, he never thought that he would one day be the Oldest Marine alive at 104 years old, a survivor of the Battle of Belleau Wood and a Silver Star recipient.
According to Maj. Daniel C. Kane, Inspector-Instructor at Marine Corps Reserve Center, Syracuse, NY, who during his tour as I&I has acted as the liaison between Lee and the Marine Corps, Lee's status as the Oldest Marine was discovered only recently.
"I called Headquarters Marine Corps to see who the Oldest Marine alive on record was. They told me a 103 year-old Marine living in Florida was the Oldest Marine. I told them I had them beat," explained Kane, with a sense of pride that indicated he viewed Lee as a cherished member of the local Marine Corps community.
Lee has been a member of the Marine Corps community for well over three quarters of a century.
"I always thought the Marines were wonderful. From a kid up, I wanted to be a Marine," Lee declared boldly. "I became a Marine as soon as I was old enough. I joined the Marines when I was 18 years old and maybe three weeks or so." At that time having a high school diploma or an equivalent degree was not an enlistment requirement of the Marine Corps. Lee, who has seen three centuries, had neither.
"I told my mother I was going in. She said it was okay," he mentioned, reflecting a time when being over 18 did not negate a young man's moral responsibility to honor his mother and father by asking for permission, even if it wasn't legally required.
"I was sworn in three different times: when I was recruited in Syracuse; and then Buffalo; and then down in the Philadelphia Navy Yard."
Lee learned to be a Marine at the Philadelphia Navy Yard just before being shipped to France. "That's when they trained us to do things. They put us on the rifle range. Then we came back, packed up, and they put us on board ship.
"We stayed in New York Harbor for, I dunno, two or three days, I guess. Then we started to cross. It was thirteen days getting over there, on account of the submarines. We were the first convoy over," Lee said of his journey across the Atlantic Ocean.
Lee was with the 51st Company, 5th Marine Regiment. "They put us in with the 2nd Division, the Indian Head."
"After I first got there I had what they called the German Measles. They kept me in the tent."
While Lee's memory stretched back to a distant land and time, his eyes sparkled as youthful scene flashed across his mind. He recalled men, Marines from his unit. He remembered 5th Marines commander Col. Wendell Neville, who would later become Commandant of the Marine Corps from 1929-1930. "I didn't see much of 'em," Lee joked dropping a subtle innuendo about his junior enlisted rank at the time.
Another name that brought up strong memories was his battalion commander Lt. Col. Frederick Wise. "Oh, Yeah! I remember him! I don't know whether the fellas liked him too well."
On the first day of the Battle of Belleau Wood, June 1, 1918, 2nd Division troops dug in along a defensive line just north of the village of Lucy-le-Bocage. Capt. Lloyd Williams when advised by French officers to withdraw, replied, "Retreat, Hell! We just got here!" Williams did not survive the battle.
Lee recalled a time he knew Williams, a face with a name from more than an average lifetime ago. Lee struggled to reconstruct the mental scene that surrounded Williams' face. He seemed to resign the effort though when he looked about at the faces surrounding him and realized that none of them could relate to what he was picturing because, even the oldest was young enough to be his grandson.
As Lee's mind played back the footage of his Marine years, the World War I Battle of Belleau Wood came into focus.
"The way we got to Belleau Wood, they had to transport us from some place. They put us on some road starting to move towards Belleau Wood. We met all these refugees that were coming back, old people and ones they could carry and all. I felt sorry for 'em.
"There was one French soldier. He was walking back. He stopped. He just kept hollering, 'beau coups boche.'
"We got up there and they split us out into formation. They had the first wave go so far. They kept on firing in the woods there. The next wave would come and jump over them and they'd go so far, and would fire till they got in the edge of the woods." Lee explained that the wave would advance in a leapfrog manner. He was in the third wave. It took four waves across the field to make it to the wood line.
Lee stopped talking as the memories brought on a wave of emotions he couldn't withstand. He dropped the dignified air that a man of his years is accustomed to carrying and sobbed uncontrollably for a brief moment.
"I'm a damned fool!" Lee whimpered out, ashamed of his tears.
When Lee regained his composure he returned to his first hand account of the Battle of Belleau Wood. He explained how one wave of Marines would rush forward a number of yards. As that wave dove to the ground and began firing across the field at the German positions imbedded in the woods, another wave would come from behind. The second wave would run past the third wave as far as the first wave had run.
"I remember a sergeant. He was the first man I seen fall. Before we got to the woods, I seen him fall from view."
Lee wasn't sure how many Marines made it to the wood line with him. "When we got to the woods, there was fighting in there." His voice trembled after the comma of the previous sentence as another memory returned him to tears. He recovered more quickly, with the same courage it must have taken to overcome the fear experienced during the up-close fighting in the French woods. What kind of battle caused a Marine's voice to waiver after 86 years?
"When we got fighting in the woods there, we were mixed up," Lee said. The fear that comes from the disorienting confusion know as the fog of war, which Lee must have been experiencing at that moment in time back then, could still be heard in his voice as his few words implied so much.
"After we got settled there, I helped carry some of the fellas back so far," he said modestly.
The Battle of Belleau Wood raged from June 6 to 26, 1918. There were 9,777 U.S. casualties, of which 1,811 were fatal.
Lee received the Silver Star for his actions at Belleau Wood.
continued..................