Samuel Charles Grashio (April 1, 1918 – October 3, 1999) was a

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

pilot who was captured by the

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. He survived the

Bataan Death March The Bataan Death March (Filipino: ''Martsa ng Kamatayan sa Bataan''; Spanish: ''Marcha de la muerte de Bataán'' ; Kapampangan: ''Martsa ning Kematayan quing Bataan''; Japanese: バターン死の行進, Hepburn: ''Batān Shi no Kōshin'') wa ...

and participated in the only successful mass escape from a Japanese prison camp. Grashio was born and raised in

Spokane Spokane ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It is in eastern Washington, along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south of the Ca ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

. He enlisted in the

Army Air Corps Army Air Corps may refer to the following army aviation corps: * Army Air Corps (United Kingdom), the army aviation element of the British Army * Philippine Army Air Corps (1935–1941) * United States Army Air Corps (1926–1942), or its p ...

in September 1940. After training, he was sent to the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, arriving in

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

on November 20, 1941, to join the 24th Pursuit Group's 21st Pursuit Squadron as a second lieutenant.

World War II

On December 8, the same day as the

attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii ...

(on the other side of the International Date Line), he flew from

Nichols Field Nichols Field was a U.S. military airfield located south of Manila in Pasay and Parañaque, Metro Manila, Luzon, the Philippines. The complex is located at Andrews Avenue by the north, Domestic Road by the west, NAIA Road and Ninoy Aquino Avenu ...

to engage in aerial combat against the Japanese in his Curtis P-40E fighter airplane. Along with the rest of the 24th Group, he ended up at

Bataan Bataan (), officially the Province of Bataan ( fil, Lalawigan ng Bataan ), is a province in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Its capital is the city of Balanga while Mariveles is the largest town in the province. Occupying the enti ...

, where he flew the last combat mission on April 8, 1942. The

Battle of Bataan The Battle of Bataan ( tl, Labanan sa Bataan; January 7 – April 9, 1942) was fought by the United States and the Philippine Commonwealth against Japan during World War II. The battle represented the most intense phase of the Japanese inva ...

ended the next day with an Allied surrender. Grashio joined the other prisoners of war in the infamous Bataan Death March. He was imprisoned first at

Camp O'Donnell Camp O'Donnell is a former United States military reservation in the Philippines located on Luzon island in the municipality of Capas in Tarlac. It housed the Philippine Army's newly created 71st Division and after the Americans' return, a Unit ...

, north of Manila. Two months later, he was transferred to a camp at Cabanatuan. Finally, in October, he was among 1000 prisoners judged fit to work; they were moved to a

lumber camp A logging camp (or lumber camp) is a transitory work site used in the logging industry. Before the second half of the 20th century, these camps were the primary place where lumberjacks would live and work to fell trees in a particular area. Many ...

Mindanao Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of ...

( Davao Region) to engage in manual labor. Grashio and his squadron commander, Lieutenant

Ed Dyess William Edwin Dyess (August 9, 1916 – December 22, 1943) was an officer of the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. He was captured after the Allied loss at the Battle of Bataan and endured the subsequent Bataan Death March. After ...

, eight other Americans, including

Austin Shofner Brigadier General Austin Conner Shofner (March 3, 1916 – November 13, 1999) was a United States Marine Corps officer who was captured during the Battle of Corregidor and then part of the only successful escape from a Japanese prisoner of war c ...

,Dyess, W.E., 1944, The Dyess Story, New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons and two Filipinos escaped into the jungle on Sunday, April 4, 1943. One of the other Americans was USMC Lt.

Jack Hawkins John Edward Hawkins, CBE (14 September 1910 – 18 July 1973) was an English actor who worked on stage and in film from the 1930s until the 1970s. One of the most popular British film stars of the 1950s, he was known for his portrayal of mil ...

, who had organized the escape. After wandering for three days in the swamp, they contacted a band of Filipino guerrillas. They then joined the Mindanao guerrillas under the command of Lt. Col.

Wendell Fertig Wendell Fertig (December 16, 1900 – March 24, 1975)Brooks 2003, p. 37. was an American civil engineer, in the American-administered Commonwealth of the Philippines, who organized and commanded an American-Filipino guerrilla force on the Jap ...

. Over the course of the next few months, seven of the men were transported a few at a time by submarine to Australia while three stayed behind to continue fighting with the guerrillas. One of these, an Army Air Corps engineering officer named Leo Boelens, was eventually killed by the Japanese. Grashio and Luis Morgan escaped to Australia via submarine. Grashio was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and the Silver Star with cluster during the war.

Later life

He rose to the rank of colonel before retiring in 1965. He then became the assistant to the President of

Gonzaga University Gonzaga University (GU) () is a private Jesuit university in Spokane, Washington. It is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. Founded in 1887 by Joseph Cataldo, an Italian-born priest and Jesuit missionary, the ...

in Spokane. He co-authored ''Return to Freedom: The War Memoirs of Colonel Samuel C. Grashio U.S.A.F.'' (1982, ) with Bernard Norling. Grashio died in 1999. He was survived by his wife Devonia Grashio. She died in 2015. They had six children: daughters Patricia Ohlidal (deceased), Marilyn (Jim) Cline of Yakima, Judith Dawson, Mary Elizabeth Grashio, Celene (Tony) Riccelli and son Samuel (Laurie) Grashio, all of Spokane.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grashio, Samuel 1999 deaths American prisoners of war in World War II Bataan Death March prisoners Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United States) Recipients of the Silver Star United States Army Air Forces pilots of World War II 1918 births United States Army Air Forces officers United States Air Force colonels Military personnel from Spokane, Washington Aviators from Washington (state) Gonzaga University faculty

World War II

Later life

See also

References