Framingham's Decorated Medic; Earl E. Bailey, US Army

Earl Eldrige “Bus” Bailey was born on 29 July 1916. His parents, Earl B. and Loretta (Smith) Bailey lived on Learned Street in Framingham. They would later reside at 22 Myrtle Street for several years. Earl E. was a member of the Framingham High School (FHS) Class of 1934. Following graduation,he worked as a technician at the Fidelity Dental Lab on Hollis Street.

 

Earl E. Bailey, FHS Class of 1934

Image: FHS

On 16 October 1940,Earl registered for the draft. He was not alone; 2,539 other Framingham men registered with him. He enlisted in the Army on 10 January 1942. Earl was selected to be a Medical Technician -- a Medic. His initial assignment was to Company A,First Medical Training Battalion at Fort Devens in Ayer, MA. The First Medical Battalion would soon become the “in-house” (in US Army terms,"organic") medical support for the storied First Infantry Division (1st ID). Medical Detachments were “attached” to each of the Division's Infantry Regiments (in his case,the 16th Infantry). They were responsible for initial medical actions in combat situations,including emergency treatment in the field, collection of battle casualties, and set up of aid stations for triage of the wounded.

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WWII US Army Technician Rank Chevrons 

 

                        

Tech 5 Tech 4         Tech 3    Tech Sergeant 

               

       First Infantry Division     16th Infantry Regiment (16th IR)

Images: United States Army Institute of Heraldry 

On 02 August 1942,Earl and the rest of the 1st ID departed for England aboard the RMS Queen Mary. After a period of intensive training and complex maneuvers the 1st would head off for the Invasion of North Africa,or “Operation Torch” (November,1942). Following this baptism of fire and successful amphibious assault the “Big Red One” would play significant roles in the hard-fought Tunisia Campaign (November 1942-May 1943),the Battle of Sicily (“Operation Husky,” July 1943-August 1943) and the Normandy Invasion and Campaign (“Operation Overlord,” 06 June 1944-30 August 1944). The 1st would later participate in the Battle of the Bulge, the Invasion of Germany and the Central Europe Campaign. 

During WWII,in 443 days of combat the First ID would suffer 3,616 men Killed in Action (KIA), 15,208 Wounded in Action (WIA), 499 Missing in Action (MIA) and 1,366 taken Prisoner of War(POW) for a total of 20,659 casualties. During the same period, the 16th IR saw 1,400 men KIA and 5,000 WIA. 

 

Troops of the 16th IR head for Omaha Beach, 06 June 1944 

 Image: US Coast Guard 

Earl went above and beyond the call of duty during both amphibious landings. He would receive a Silver Star Medal for gallantry during each operation. The Silver Star is the third-highest military combat decoration that can be awarded to a member of the US Military.

 

Silver Star Medal 

Image: Public Domain 

For his first award (North Africa and Sicily) he was cited for consistently risking his life to aid and evacuate wounded soldiers (Source: General Order No 12, Headquarters, 1st Infantry Division, 1944). The second award was for his gallantry on D-Day (Normandy, 06 June 1944) where he repeatedly crossed open terrain under heavy enemy fire to treat and rescue wounded soldiers (Source: General Order No 33, Headquarters, 1st Infantry Division, 1944). This day was dangerous for all Americans, but perhaps more so for medics. Major Charles Tegtmeyer, the Commander of the 16th Infantry Regiment Medical Detachment stated in his 24 June 1944 After Action Report (provided in Joseph Balkoski’s “Omaha Beach, D-Day,June 6, 1944," pg. 331) ...

“The Geneva Convention is a failure. Many of our wounded aid men were shot intentionally. The white brassard draws fire. The landing craft bringing in the Collection Company, all of whom were wearing brassards,received more direct enemy fire than any other craft. Since the landing on the beach,several aid men have been wounded by sniper fire. The Geneva Convention brassard makes the company aid man’s job the most hazardous in the Army.”

Of note: The 16th Infantry’s D-Day Meritorious Service Unit Commendation would later state...

"Coming in with the initial assault troops, the first section of the detachment established their first aid station on the beach within thirty minutes after “H” hour. Within 90 minutes after the initial assault, four aid stations had been put into operation and the entire detachment was functioning on the beach of Normandy, France. These four aid stations represented the only medical installations in this area for a period of twenty-four hours."

Medics Caring for a Wounded GI--Note Brassards on Left Arms

Image: Public Domain

Tech Sergeant Earl Bailey, Europe 1944-1945

Mr. Earl Bailey

Images: From The Bailey Family Tree (Public), Ancestry.com

Earl was discharged from the Army on 24 June 1945. On 19 June 1946,he married Pauline "Paula" Kocyk (1924-2003) at St. Andrew's Church in Framingham. He would return to his dental technician job with Fidelity Dental Lab. Earl passed away on 18 December 1990 in Flagler Beach, Florida where he had settled. He was 74.

Sources

The Bailey Family Tree (Public), Ancestry.com

D-Day: The Battle for Normandy,  Antony Beevor

The Dead and Those About to Die; D-Day - The Big Red One at Omaha Beach, John C. McManus 

The First Infantry Division Museum

Framingham High School

The Military Times, "Hall of Valor" 

National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)

The National World War II Museum

Omaha Beach,D-Day,June 6, 1944, Joseph Balkoski

The Society of the First Infantry Division

The 16th Infantry Regiment Association

The US Army Center of Military History

The US Army Medical Department,Office of Medical History

 

 

 

 

 

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Framingham's Alfred Joseph Michaud, USN; FHS Class of 1942 and The Ultimate Sacrifice

 

 

 

“Sounds of battle draw near,came to Michaud loud and clear. He left us at F.H.S. -- Went to fight for the U.S.”  

FHS Class of 1942 Yearbook 

Alfred Joseph Michaud was born in Framingham in 1924. At the time,his mother Rose (1894-1976) lived on Coburn Street. Alfred was one of seven children. He attended St. Stephan’s Parochial School,followed by Framingham High School (FHS). He was a member of the FHS Class of 1942. He enlisted in the Navy on 10 December 1941,likely as part of the wave of patriotism following the 07 December Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Interestingly,he was one of two young men awarded FHS Diplomas with his classmates in 1942 while already serving his country.  

Alfred attended Navy “bootcamp” in Newport, Rhode Island. After completing this initial training,he was assigned to the USS QUINCY (CA-39). He was noted aboard QUINCY on 01 June 1942. 

 

 

USS QUINCY (CA-39) 

Image: US Navy History and Heritage Command 

The QUINCY was built at the Bethlehem Shipbuilding Fore River Shipyard in Quincy, MA. The 588-foot-long ship was classified as a Heavy Cruiser (based on its armament, speed, range and armor, etc.). It was launched on 19 June 1935 and commissioned in Boston on 9 June 1936. 

 

 

USS QUINCY (CA-39) 

Image: US Naval Institute Photo Archive 

On 05 June 1942, QUINCY sailed for San Diego via the Panama Canal. The ship arrived on 19 June. She departed for the South Pacific in July with other vessels assembling for the Invasion of Guadalcanal ("Operation Watchtower"). 

 

Image: EmersonKent.Com 

On 07 August 1942,QUINCY destroyed several Japanese installations and an oil depot during the pre-invasion bombardment of Guadalcanal. She also provided Naval Gun Fire Support to the Marines during the landing on the 7th. 

In the very early morning of 09 August 1942, while on patrol in the channel between Florida Island and Savo Island (the “Northern Patrol Area”),QUINCY, and the heavy cruisers USS ASTORIA (CA-34) and USS VINCENNES (CA-44) were attacked by a large Japanese Navy surface group consisting of five heavy cruisers,two light cruisers and a destroyer. The US ships were providing a screen for the US invasion force. This night action would become known as the Battle of Savo Island. 

 

 

QUINCY’s Pre-Battle Operating Area (Northern Force) 

Image: US Navy 

The Japanese cruisers penetrated the screen and sank four US cruisers in under one hour. QUINCY suffered numerous,deadly shell and torpedo hits. At 2:38 AM, QUINCY went down bow first into the depths that would eventually become known as “Iron Bottom Sound.” 

 

USS QUINCY Illuminated by Japanese Spotlights and Burning  

Photographed from a Japanese cruiser during the Battle of Savo Island, 9 August 1942  

Image: US Navy History and Heritage Command  

Based on the 16 August 1942 after-action report submitted by the ship's senior surviving officer,Lieutenant Commander Harry B. Heneberger,the number of crew members aboard at the time of sinking was 1,017. Of this number,QUINCY suffered 370 Killed or Missing in Action,including Seaman Second Class Alfred J. Michaud. A total of 167 men from the 480 survivors were wounded.  

In addition to the QUINCY,the ASTORIA and VINCENNES were also lost. The Australian cruiser CANBERRA was so significantly battered it had to be scuttled. The USS CHICAGO (CA-29) was also damaged. The total number of deaths from the defeated Allied units was 1,023 killed or died of wounds and 709 wounded (Source: S.E. Morrison). Japanese casualties were considered light/minimal.  

During the battle,the Japanese displayed a superior night fighting capability,and a technologically advanced torpedo. This was a decisive, tactical victory for the Japanese. However,the victorious surface group did not press on towards the US invasion fleet,choosing to retreat from the battle space rather than engage additional US units. One factor in this decision was reported to be fear of daylight attack by US carrier aircraft. One can argue this to be a significant strategic blunder.

 

Initially, Alfred was listed as Missing in Action (MIA) 

 

    

Image: Believed to be from the Boston Globe  

On 10 August 1943,he was declared Killed in Action (KIA). His name is memorialized on Wall of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial in the Philippines. At 18,he paid the ultimate price. 

 

         

 US NAVY Memorial                                                       Purple Heart 

Of note, the USS QUINCY was located and explored by Robert Ballard and his crew in July and August of 1992. The ship sits upright in approximately 2,000 feet of water. 

 

Wreck of the USS QUINCY (CA-39), 1992 

Image: National Geographic Society 

 

Sources 

 

American Battle Monuments Commission: Manila American Cemetery 

Callahan, R.J. “Framingham Men in Action,” (Lecture, Jonathan Maynard School, February 2,1944) 

Framingham History Center 

Framingham: Historical Reflections, edited by Martha E. Dewar and M. Joan Gilbert 

Frank, Richard B. Guadalcanal: The Definitive Account of the Landmark Battle. New York: Random House, 1990.  

Hornfischer, James D. Neptune’s Inferno: The US Navy at Guadalcanal. New York: Bantam, 2012. 

Morison, Samuel Elliot. The Struggle for Guadalcanal, August 1942 – February 1943, vol.5: History of United States Naval Operations in World War II. New York: Little, Brown, 1949. 

 

“Report of the Engagement the morning of 09 August 1942, off Guadalcanal Island in which the USS Quincy participated” (by Lieutenant Commander Harry B. Heneberger). Serial 004, August 16,1942. National Archives and Records Administration. 

US National WWII Museum 

Department of Analysis (Richard Bates and Walter Innis). “The Battle of Savo Island, August 9th,1942, Strategical and Tactical Analysis.” Newport, R.I.: US Naval War College, 1950 

US Navy History and Heritage Command