Hiram Tarkington

Hiram W. Tarkington
Hiram W. Tarkington
Birth name	Hiram Wendell Tarkington
Born	March 15, 1896; North Carolina, USA
Died	October 5, 1996 (aged 100); Orange Park, Clay, Florida, USA
Buried	Arlington, Arlington County, Virginia, USA
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/branch	United States Army
Years of service	1918 - 1945
Rank	Colonel
Unit	24th US Field Artillery Regiment
Commands	61st Field Artillery Regiment (Philippines)
Battles/wars	Battle of Mangima Grand Canyon Battle of Bugo;
Alma mater	The Citadel
Other work	Author

Hiram Wendell Tarkington (March 15, 1896 - October 5, 1996) was a Colonel in United States Army known for commanding 61st Field Artillery Regiment of the Philippine Army from November 1941 to May 1942. He was captured and became POW after the surrender of US Forces in the Philippines. He was imprisoned in Mukden, Manchuria in 1942 and released in 1945.

Background

Tarkington was born on March 15, 1896, in North Carolina, USA to parents William Benjamin Tarkington and Mary S. Lougee. His siblings are sisters Esther, Mary, and brothers Ernestine and Woodrow. He attended Citadel Military College in Charleston, South Carolina and graduated in 1918.

Military

He enlisted to US Army upon graduation in 1917 and fought in France during World War I. He was commissioned as Second Lieutenant of Field Artillery on July 1, 1920.

World War II

In 1941 he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and was sent to the Philippines to help train the Philippine Army who was expanding in anticipation of Japanese aggression in Asia. He arrived in November along with other officers mostly reserve. He was sent to Panay to command 61st Field Artillery Regiment a component of 61st Infantry Division under Colonel Bradford Chynoweth.^[1]

His regiment was still waiting for the guns so he shifted to trained it into infantry. What is more disappointing was their guns 8 M1918 75mm Guns and 4 QF 95.2 inch Mountain Guns went to bottom of Manila Bay when SS Corregidor sunk upon hitting a mine. Full infantry training was in effect when a sudden order came to transfer his regiment to Mindanao. His regiment was posted in Bugo, Misamis Oriental to defend Bugo Port north of Cagayan de Oro.

Combat in Mindanao

On May 6, 1942 Kawamura Detachment landed in beaches south of Macajalar Bay. His regiment fought hard but was pushed back and had to retreat towards Sayre Highway afraid of being cutoff as 81st Field Artillery under Lieutenant Colonel John Woodridge at their right was pushed back and have to retreat. This retreat also forced 103rd Infantry under Major Joseph Webb to withdraw although his regiment made successful attack on the beachhead that almost thrown the Japanese back to the sea. 61st Field Artillery now posted in Mangima Grand Canyon in Tankulan, Bukidnon.^[2] His regiment fought hard in Tankulan as Japanese made an intrusion during the night. His XO was wounded at the end of the engagement.

Retreated in Puntian to mount another defensive line but on May 11, 1942, he was visited by Colonel William F. Dalton, Somilao Sector Commander and was ordered to surrender at daybreak.

Prisoner Of War

He assembled his regiment to Camp Casisang, Bukidnon along with other units for formal surrender. All Americans were separated from Filipino soldiers who were released in August 1942. He and other Americans officers in Mindanao were brought to Cagayan to board a ship Luzon. They were imprisoned in Cabanatuan. Again they were brought to Subic Bay to board a ship and was brought to Manchuria and was imprisoned there until released in 1945 at the end of the War when Japan surrendered.

Personal and Later Life

His wife is Thelma B. Tarkington (1895 - 1978) and have 3 Children. Tarkington died on October 5, 1996, at the age of 100 in Orange Park, Clay, Florida. He was buried in Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington County, USA.^[3]

References

^ Tarkington, Hiram. There Were Others. pp. 1–14.
^ Morton, Louis (June 26, 1953). The Fall of the Philippines (1st ed.). Washington, D.C: US Government Printing Press. p. 517.
^ https://www.ancestry.co.uk/genealogy/records/hiram-wendell-tarkington-24-1l917xc

External links

There Were Others, Unpublished Papers of Colonel Hiram W. Tarkington
Graveyard

[1] Tarkington, Hiram. There Were Others. pp. 1–14.

[2] Morton, Louis (June 26, 1953). The Fall of the Philippines (1st ed.). Washington, D.C: US Government Printing Press. p. 517.

[3] ttps://www.ancestry.co.uk/genealogy/records/hiram-wendell-tarkington-24-1l917xc

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