Jeep Awarded Purple Heart in 1943 by USMC

[jdcaples]

I thought this was an excellent distraction from work.

So I was watching Bloomberg News and I saw this cross my screen:



I looked on youtube for the video and found it:

Musk and Ford - Car makers Who Changed the Auto World - YouTube

Then I started looking for other sources and found:



and



Finally, I found a few news paper articles that cited this:

Actually, a wounded jeep on Guadalcanal's bloody Lunga Beach was formally awarded the Purple Heart by the Marine Corps in 1943

Free Lance-Star June 8, 1983



Another paper said the jeep had actually survived two battles on Guadalcanal. I guess the Jeep is in the USMC Museum at Quantico.

Anyone seen it?


-Jon

 

[PaRenegade]

I don't know what it is but Marines and Jeeps have deep ties. I loved Jeeps way before becoming a Marine.... but maybe that's why it happened. (key the Rod Serling/Twilight Zone theme music)

 

[jdcaples]

I don't know what it is but Marines and Jeeps have deep ties. I loved Jeeps way before becoming a Marine.... but maybe that's why it happened. (key the Rod Serling/Twilight Zone theme music)

My Jeep was purchased new by a retired Marine working at Boeing in 1980. He sold it to another retired Marine working at Boeing.

Owner two sold it to another Boeing employee (never served). Owner three then sold it to me (medically unfit for service).

If I ever sell it, it'll have to go to a current or mustered-out Marine just to keep it more in the family than out.

Heck, when I can't care for the Jeep any more, I might just give it to a Marine, in the memory of my late Uncle Glen who jumped out of a perfectly fine plane, to fire his USMC-issued rifle down on the battle field from his parachute somewhere in the Pacific theater.


-Jon

 

[Eagle1983]

My name is Lee Ekstrom and I wrote the 70th anniversary copy for the jeep.com history site that referenced the Willys MB being awarded a purple heart. I extensively researched the matter and found many references to the "faithful and distinguished service" offered by this Willys MB on the beaches of the Pacific.

The original AP press release states:
"Old Faithful," first Marine Corps jeep to land on Guadalcanal and among the first on Bougainville, stands beside a fighter plane on Bougainville on March 7, 1944, after receiving a "Purple Heart decoration" for bullet holes in its windshield, and hearing a retirement order read. The jeep was "injured" when a Japanese battle ship shelled Quadalcanal. The jeep will be retired to the Marine Corps Museum at the Marine Corps Base, Quantico, Va. (AP Photo/U.S. Marine Corps)."

My hope was to track down the Jeep and spotlight the story for the 70th anniversary of the Jeep brand.

I had Ashley Ray, Collections Manager of the Walter P. Chrysler Museum contact Stefan Rohal, Registrar of the National Museum of the Marine Corps, to check the Marine Corps Museum records so we could track it down. Ray responded:

"Unfortunately, it appears that the Jeep never made it to us. It is not in our collection database. We only have one WWII Jeep in the collection, and it was a Willy's produced in 1944. Reading the story, I definitely wish we did have it. I wonder what happened that it did not make it to us like the article suggests."

So it is clear a Jeep vehicle was awarded a purple heart, but the whereabouts to this historical 4x4 are still a mystery today.

 

[jeepman123]

Hey Lee,

Working on a commercial for the 70th anniversary as well.

Just wondering for authenticity's sake: what precise color was the Willy (just standard military green?) and the placard on the grill (I hear it was red)?

Let me know if you have any leads, thanks!

Best,
Mike