No World War II battle represents the fighting spirit of the US Marine Corps better than Iwo Jima. In terms of its combat brutality and staggering casualties, it was the worst battle in the history of the Corps.
The Marines’ 3rd, 4th and 5th Divisions led the assault of Iwo Jima with key support from the Army and Navy. Pacific Fleet Commander-in-Chief Admiral Chester W. Nimitz said that among America’s fighters at Iwo Jima “uncommon valor was a common virtue.” The non-profit Stories Behind the Stars (www.storiesbehindthestars.org) has written memorials about each of the eighty-nine PA Marines in the 4th Division who sacrificed their lives during the March portion of the battle’s hostilities. Franklin County was home to one of them: PFC Frederick J. Ricard.
PFC Frederick J. Ricard was born on July 4, 1925 at Beartown, Franklin County, PA to Ira Sr. and Bertha Baker Ricard. His siblings were Pauline, Ira Jr, Dorothy, Florence, Esther, Dale and Eileen. His family moved to Waynesboro, PA in 1940.
Ricard joined the Marines on April 13, 1944 and completed basic training at Camp Lejeune, NC. He was assigned to Company F, 2nd Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division. Ricard and his unit were sent to the Pacific Theatre and participated in the battles of Saipan, and Tinian before conducting final preparations in Hawaii to invade Iwo Jima.
The 4th Marine Division’s casualties at Saipan totaled 5,981 versus the death or capture of 28,000 Japanese military personnel on the island. The capture of Tinian came at a cost of 1,906 4th Division casualties. The resulting strategic control of the Marianas Islands isolated the enemy’s bases and brought Japan’s mainland within striking distance of US B-29 bombers.
D-Day at Iwo Jima was February 19, 1945. Allied military planners anticipated an “easy time” conquering the enemy, predicting victory in a three-day battle. The reality was a gruesome slog of thirty-six days from February 19 – March 26, 1945 that historians have described as “throwing human flesh against reinforced concrete.” The island’s determined Japanese defenders had the most ingenious and deadly fortress in military history. Their miles of interlocking subterranean hideouts, concrete bunkhouses and pillboxes proved to be some of the most impenetrable defenses encountered by the Marines.
The 4th division arrived off the island on February 19 and commenced the assault. In the first two days, the division’s losses already totaled 2,011. By February 26, Ricard’s unit began working its way into the enemy’s main defense line of prepared positions. For the next week, the 4th Division ground forward slowly, suffering bloody losses and engaging in the most savage type of close combat. As of March 3, 1945, it had lost 6,591 troops. On March 6, Ricard’s unit went over to the attack against die-hard Japanese defenders in the Minami pocket. The 4th Division’s combat casualties rose to 8,094. On March 11, the twentieth day after the landing, the 4th Division reached the ocean and overcame enemy resistance. On the division’s right flank, the Japanese chose to make their last stand to exact as heavy a toll of Marines as they possibly could.
Ricard was killed in action on March 14, 1945 during a combat mission at Iwo Jima.
The ultimately victorious 36-day assault resulted in more than 26,000 American casualties, including 6,800 dead. Iwo Jima was the only US Marine battle where American casualties exceeded those of the Japanese. Enemy combat deaths, however, numbered three times as many as American deaths.
Ricard’s final resting place is at Calvary Episcopal Chapel Cemetery, Beartown, PA. There is also a memorial at Calvary Chapel, Waynesboro, PA.
Stories Behind the Stars memorials are accessible for free on the internet and via smart phone app at gravesites and cenotaphs. The non-profit organization is dedicated to honoring all 421,000 fallen Americans from World War II, including 31,000 from Pennsylvania. To volunteer or to get more information, contact Kathy Harmon at [email protected] or visit www.storiesbehindthestars.org.
