Albert Luke Ireland (February 25, 1918 – November 16, 1997) was a staff sergeant in the United States Marine Corps who was wounded five times during World War II in the

Pacific theater The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

and four times during the Korean War. He received nine

Purple Heart Medal The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, w ...

s, the second most of any single individual in the United States Armed Forces (Curry T. Haynes – 10).

Military career

Ireland enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1941 after serving in the Royal Canadian Air Force during the same year. Ireland's military awards also include two

Bronze Star Medal The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

s and campaign and service medals with eight battle stars. He spent 27 months overseas during World War II, serving as a machine gunner, and was wounded once in the

Guadalcanal Campaign The Guadalcanal campaign, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal and codenamed Operation Watchtower by American forces, was a military campaign fought between 7 August 1942 and 9 February 1943 on and around the island of Guadalcanal in th ...

and four times in the

Battle of Okinawa The , codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa by United States Army (USA) and United States Marine Corps (USMC) forces against the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). The initial invasion of ...

. As a result of his wounds, Ireland received five Purple Hearts. Ireland became a Marine Corps Reservist after the end of World War II, and attended the School of Health and Education at Ithaca College between 1948 and 1949, the University of Arizona, and the University of Notre Dame. He was called back to active duty in the fall of 1950 after the outbreak of the Korean War, completing refresher combat training at Camp Lejeune in early January 1951 and applying for combat duty. However, the first sergeant there who was creating the list of Marines to be sent to Korea attempted to prevent him from going as he had received more than two Purple Hearts, in accordance with Marine Corps regulations, but was overruled after Ireland appealed to

Commandant of the Marine Corps The commandant of the Marine Corps (CMC) is normally the highest-ranking officer in the United States Marine Corps and is a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Joint Chiefs of Staff: composition; functions. The CMC reports directly to the secr ...

General

Clifton B. Cates Clifton Bledsoe Cates (August 31, 1893 – June 4, 1970) was a United States Marine Corps four-star general who served as the 19th Commandant of the Marine Corps from 1948 to 1951. He was honored for his heroism during World War I at the Battle ...

in Washington, D.C. He was flown from Washington to San Francisco en route to Korea. In 1953, Ireland was honorably discharged from the Marine Corps after being wounded in the leg, hand, neck and face in Korea.

Personal life

Ireland was born in Cold Spring, New York. He was a lifetime member of the Cold Spring Fire Department. A section of

New York State Route 301 New York State Route 301 (NY 301), also known as the Hudson River Turnpike, is an intra-county state highway stretching across three-quarters of Putnam County, New York, in the United States. The western terminus of NY 301 is at an ...

was named after Ireland on August 20, 2002. His place of death was Kansas. Ireland is buried in Cold Spring Cemetery. The Putnam County Sheriff's Dept. named a Marine Patrol Boat after Ireland; it currently patrols the Hudson River.

Military awards and decorations

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ireland, Albert Luke 1918 births 1997 deaths United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II United States Marine Corps personnel of the Korean War Royal Canadian Air Force personnel of World War II People from Putnam County, New York United States Marines Military personnel from New York (state)