John Delbert Lester (1922 - 1944)

Biography

382 Regiment 96 Division

Funeral Notice for Delbert John Lester, age 22 who died in WWII Sep 17, 1948 – Funeral of Pfc. Lester Held Sunday P.M. Funeral services for Private First Class John Delbert Lester, who lost his life while in defense of his country, were held the Branscum cemetery, near Culp, Sunday afternoon at 2:oo o’clock with Rev. Hubert Morrow, pastor of the Calico Rock Presbyterian Church in charge. Military rites were conducted by the Veterans of Foreign, of Calico Rock. The Roller Funeral Service was in charge of funeral arrangements. Deceased was the son of Mr and Mrs Tillman Lester of the Culp Community, and was 22 years of age at the time of his death. He was born near Culp and resided there until he was called for military service, October 29, 1942 (He was drafted on 17 Oct 1942). After receiving his preliminary training, he was sent to the Pacific theatre for active service. He was killed in action on Leyte Island, in the Philippines, November 13, 1944. Pfc. Lester wore the uniform of his country with dignity and in the hour of his supreme sacrifice his conduct exemplified the heroic courage which has become the symbol of the American soldier. While in the army, Private Lester made a profession of faith in Christ and united with a church in the state of Oregon. He is survived by his wife Mrs Flora (Acklin) Lester and two children, Barbara and Joe; his father and mother, four brothers, Lloyd, Joe Floyd, Nolan and Edgar; and four sisters, Oma Lillie, Betty and Gay, all of the Culp community.

John died on Leyte Island in the Philippines on November 13, 1944. He left behind his wife Flora and his daughter Barbara. He had a baby boy, Joseph, born October 8, 1944, that he never met. As best I can tell, based on the death date, place he died and the fact John was in the 382 Regiment, 96 Division, of the US Army, and thus, part of land forces; John died in the Battle of Kilay Ridge. This was the situation in the Philippines at the the time of his death:

On November 7, 1944, the 21st Infantry went into its first sustained combat on Leyte when it moved into the mountains along Highway 2, near Carigara Bay. The fresh regiment, with the 19th Infantry's 3rd Battalion attached, immediately ran into strong defenses of the newly arrived Japanese 1st Division, aligned from east to west across the road and anchored on a network of fighting positions built of heavy logs and interconnecting trench lines and countless spider holes, which became known as "Breakneck Ridge" to the Americans, or the "Yamashita Line" to the Japanese. General Krueger ordered the 1st Cavalry to join the 24th Infantry Division in the attack south, and the X and XXIV Corps (96th Infantry Division) to block routes through the central mountain range, anticipating General Suzuki's renewed attack with the arrival of his 26th Infantry Division. Additionally the XXIV Corps had the 7th Infantry Division in Baybay. Plus, Krueger had access to the 32nd and 77th Infantry Divisions, and the 11th Airborne Division, which General MacArthur was staging in Leyte in preparation of the Luzon invasion.

A typhoon began on November 8th, followed by heavy rain and mud slides which greatly impeded American progress. Accompanying this were high winds and falling trees which added enemy defenses and delayed supply trains. Still the 21st Infantry continued with a slow, halting attack, with companies having to withdraw and recapture hills they had previously taken. The Americans seized the approaches to Hill 1525 2 mi (3.2 km) to the east, which enabled Maj. Gen. Frederick A. Irving to stretch out enemy defenses further across a 4 mi (6.4 km) front along Highway 2. Five days of battling followed, against impregnable hill positions and two nights of repulsing enemy counterattacks. Irving decided on a double envelopment of the enemy defenders.

On the east, the 19th Infantry's 2nd Battalion, under Lt. Col. Robert B. Spragins, swung east around Hill 1525 behind the enemy right flank, cutting back to Highway 2, 3 mi (4.8 km) south of 'Breakneck Ridge', blocking the Japanese supply line. On the west, Irving sent the 34th Infantry's 1st Battalion under Lt. Col. Thomas E. Clifford, over water from the Carigara area to a point 2 mi (3.2 km) west of the southward turn of Highway 2, and moved it inland. This amphibious maneuver was made in eighteen LVTs of the 727th Amphibian Tractor Battalion. After crossing a ridge line and the Leyte River, they approached the enemy left flank at 900 ft (270 m) on Kilay Ridge, the highest terrain behind the main battle area. Both battalions reached positions only about 1,000 yd (910 m) apart on opposite sides of the highway by 13 November despite strong opposition and heavy rains. The Americans were aided by the 1st Battalion, 96th Philippine Infantry, a local guide who "owned" Kilay Ridge, and Filipinos carrying supplies.

It took Lt. Col. Clifford's men two weeks of struggle through mud and rain—often dangerously close to friendly mortar and artillery fire—to root the Japanese out of fighting positions on the way up Kilay Ridge. On 2 December Clifford's battalion finally cleared the heights overlooking the road, and 32nd Division units quickly took over. Clifford's outfit suffered 26 killed, 101 wounded and two missing, in contrast to 900 Japanese dead. For their arduous efforts against Kilay Ridge and adjacent areas, both flanking battalions received Presidential Unit Citations. Clifford and Spragins both received the Distinguished Service Cross for their actions. It was not until 14 December that the 32nd Division finally cleared the Breakneck–Kilay Ridge area, and linked up with the 1st Cavalry Division on 19 Dec., placing the most heavily defended portions of Highway 2 between Carigara Bay and the Ormoc Valley under X Corps control.

Throughout this phase, American efforts had become increasingly hampered by logistical problems. Mountainous terrain and impassable roads forced Sixth Army transportation units to improvise resupply trains of Navy landing craft, tracked landing vehicles, airdrops, artillery tractors, trucks, even carabaos and hundreds of barefoot Filipino bearers. The 727th Amphibian Tractor Battalion made daily, often multiple, trips with ammunition and rations between Capoocan and Calubian. From Calubian, the 727th tractors would navigate the Naga River to Consuegra and then traverse overland to Agahang. On their return trip, they would evacuate the casualties. Not surprisingly, the complex scheduling slowed resupply as well as the pace of assaults, particularly in the mountains north and east of Ormoc Valley and subsequently in the ridgelines along Ormoc Bay.

Source: Wikipedia Battle of Leyte: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Leyte

Sources

• "United States Census, 1930", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XM28-TT2 : accessed 16 November 2015), John D Lester in entry for Tillman L Lester, Greenwood, Baxter, Arkansas, 1930.

"United States Census, 1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KQVM-FMP : accessed 16 November 2015), Delbert J Lester in household of Tilliam L Lester, Culp, Greenwood Township, Baxter, Arkansas, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 3-5, sheet 4B, family 63, NARA digital publication T627 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012), roll 118.

"United States World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KMNS-PGZ : accessed 16 November 2015), John D Lester, enlisted 17 Oct 1942, Little Rock, Arkansas, United States; citing "Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, ca. 1938-1946," database, The National Archies: Access to Archival Databases (AAD) (http://aad.archives.gov : National Archives and Records Administration, 2002); NARA NAID 126323, National Archives at College Park, Maryland.

"United States Headstone Applications for U.S. Military Veterans, 1925-1949", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QV1Z-8SB1 : accessed 16 November 2015), John D Lester.