This Day in History: Harold Epperson's bravery in the Pacific

On this day in 1923, a hero is born. Harold G. Epperson would go on to become a United States Marine and a recipient of the Medal of Honor.  His bravery in the Pacific theater during World War II ensured that two of his fellow Marines would live.

“He grew up in a household where morals and values were certainly expected,” his little brother Charles explained. “I think when it came down to it, Harold had no choice. He did what he had to do.”

Epperson grew up, the oldest of 6 children, in Massillon, Ohio. He graduated from high school in 1941, worked at Goodyear Aircraft for a brief time, then enlisted in the Marine Corps in December 1942.

His sister, Mildred, would remember him as the “sweetest, kindest, gentlest, tenderest person I ever knew. . . . Everybody at school called him ‘Epp’ and we did too for a while.”

Epperson’s bravery came in June 1944, on the island of Saipan. Our soldiers and Marines were working to seize the island, knowing that American long-range bombers could use it as a base from which to strike the Japanese mainland.

American forces landed on the shores of that island on June 15 and began fighting their way inland.

Epperson was there, too, fighting with the rest of the 6th Marines. But on the night of June 24-25, he was manning a forward machine-gun post with two other Marines: Cpl. Malcolm Jonah and Pfc. Edward Baily. Unfortunately, the deep darkness of that night provided cover for the Japanese, who launched what Epperson’s Medal citation would call a “fanatic assault” just before dawn.

The three Marines poured fire on the enemy, determined to defend their battalion. For a time, it seemed that they were winning: The Japanese began to retreat.

But the Japanese weren’t entirely done. One of the enemy soldiers had been lying nearby, as if dead. Suddenly, he sprang up and threw a grenade into the position that Epperson, Jonah, and Baily had been using.

“Determined to save his comrades, Pfc. Epperson unhesitatingly chose to sacrifice himself,” his Medal citation concludes, “and, diving upon the deadly missile, absorbed the shattering violence of the exploding charge in his own body.”

It was left to Epperson’s dad to break the news to his son Bruce, then also serving in the Pacific.

“The good God who controls the destiny of all has seen fit to take our ‘Epp’ to heaven,” he wrote Bruce, “to be with him . . . . As surely as God lives, which we truly believe He does, Epp’s soul has gone to heaven to be there forever.”

Epperson would receive a Medal of Honor for his bravery, and his mother accepted it on his behalf on Independence Day, 1945. The Medal was awarded before a crowd of about 8,500 at his old high school’s football stadium. The school’s band was there also, playing to honor the small town’s fallen hero.

Other honors recognize the sacrifice that Epperson made: A destroyer was named for him, and his little brother attended reunions of USS Epperson service members until his own passing in 2019. Charles was 14 years younger than “Epp” and didn’t remember him very well, but he was determined to honor his brother.

“As long as I am alive, I will represent Harold Epperson,” he told a reporter in 2012.

“He knew he was going to die,” Charles concluded. “He was just a boy who became a Marine . . . . His country needed him.”

A sentiment felt by so many in the Greatest Generation. RIP, sir.

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Primary Sources:

• Capt. Jenny Potter, Paying Tribute to a Hero (Continental Marine; Summer 1999) (p. 50)

• Chris Poore, Veterans Honor Marine Who Fell on Grenade During Battle of Saipan (Lexington Herald-Leader; Nov. 12, 1999) (p. B1)

• Chuck Stinnett, Brother Honors Hero Barely Known (The Gleaner; June 1, 2012) (p. 1)

• Epperson (Naval History and Heritage Command)

• Historical Marker Unveiled for Marine Who Fell on Grenade  (Winchester Sun; May 17, 1999) (p. 1)

• Katie Lange, Medal of Honor Monday: Marine Corps Pfc. Harold Epperson (Department of Defense; June 22, 2020)

• Medal of Honor citation (Harold G. Epperson; WWII)

• Private First Class Harold Glenn Epperson, USMCR (deceased) (U.S. Marine Corps website)

• Randy Patrick, Rolling Thunder, Patriot Guard Honor Epperson (Winchester Sun; June 25, 2020)

• VFW Post Renamed to Honor Recipient of Medal of Honor (Winchester Sun; June 15, 1992) (p. 1)