I am looking for information on my great uncle who spent WWII in Japanese prison camps. I will provide the following information, which is all I have at this point.
Name - John Edward Carnes
Rank - Ship's Cook First Class
Serial Number - 2794038
Assigned to the USS Canopus AS-9
Captured on Corregidor May 6, 1942
Repatriated October 15, 1945
Last prison camp - Tokyo POW Camp Shinjuku, Tokyo Bay area 35-140
John lived through three years of imprisonment, but was left with a crippled body. He continued to suffer from the effects of malaria and berry berry (I'm sure I spelled that inclorrectly)until his death in 1954.
The family story tells us that he was assigned to a submarine that went to Bataan to evacuate senior officials. John was left on the Canopus to make room for senior evacuees.
I would like to track John's progress through prison camps. I would also like to know which submarine he was assigned to when he was left on the Canopus.

Hi
I know a man who was a young sailor on Canopus,
Captured on Corregidor, was freed in Japan at wars end.
If you would care to email me at rshockey1@msn.com
I may be able to help you.

Shockey

Moose,

Good job young man ! Your brave uncle deserves to be remembered. There are so many real life heros from WW 2, regretfully some history has been lost. Your uncle went through one of the most terrible examples Japanese atrocities. Personally it's one of the reasons I feel Hirohito should of been hanged !

The best way for you the honor him is to never forget about him ! Best of luck!

Steve

Hello Mooseek53,

Seems we have something in common i to had an uncle at Shinjuku it was from what i have found a hospital camp for POW. Also from a source in Japan said some of the POW were used to help lanscape the imperial park (after all the bombing raids). In 1989 they dugup the bodies of about 100 chinese whom maney believe died from live experiment from the notorious "unit 731" there biological main branch was located in shinjuku not far from the POW camp.

Also have found a little info on your Uncle he was also at the Hitachi/Tokyo camp 8-b and Bilibid in the Phillipines. He most likely did slave labor at the Hitachi copper mines.

Will get back with more and some contacts for you as well. Be sure to check the web site "Battling Bastards of Bataan"

Also am checking for a roster on the"Taikaku Maru" this may be the hellship he was brought over to japan from manila.


Bryan

moosek53,

It was not until February 10, 1996 former POWs held prior to 1962 were authorized to be awarded the Purple Heart for mistreatment, (beaten, etc.) by the enemy while in captivity.

Was your great uncle awarded the medal?

Robert

Get the exact information from the National Archives. They have a database listing all kinds of info on POWs who were repatriated or died while in POW camp.

You can search by many different criteria. perhaps even by the prison camp he was in.

BTW...you uncle is eligible to be buried (when his time comes) at Arlington National Cemetary...an honor bestowed on all POWs.

but you need to have the paperwork in order BEFRE the time arrives!

This is my list of helpful people and web pages.

American Defenders of Bata’an and Corregidor
http://www.west-point.org/family/adbc/

the descendants group of the ADBC
http://www.west-point.org/family/japanese-pow/DG_Form.htm
There is a researcher/descendant in this group whom I have asked to read your post.
Your uncle and her dad were together.

the west point family, Japanese POW
http://www.west-point.org/family/japanese-pow/

the Japanese POW listserve
http://www.west-point.org/family/japanese-pow/Japanese-pow%20Listserv.htm

the message board at the Philippine Scouts Heritage Society
http://www.philippine-scouts.org

the Battling Bastards of Bata’an
email Fred. from the site’s link
http://home.pacbell.net/fbaldie/Battling_Bastards_of_Bataan.html

CENTER FOR RESEARCH : ALLIED POWS UNDER THE JAPANESE
http://www.Mansell.com links to two sites
http://www.mansell.com/pow-index.html
http://www.mansell.com/pow_resources/camplists/rg331-bo...ap%20pow%20camps.htm

http://home.comcast.net/~winjerd/Page01.htm#Index
This is an extensive site with data -and more data- from Wes Injerd.

The Hellships
http://www.hellshipsmemorial.org/


Tom Moore’s Santo Tomas (STIC) site has links to his many other POW camp web pages.
This is the page I wrote for Tom’s site, for my mom http://www.cnac.org/emilscott/lewey01.htm

added 22 Sept 2007:
The STIC site began as a small site and has grown. Every one of the Philippine and other POW camps can do the same with the support of friends and families who send information and photos. Author Robin Prisig has recently contributed many new photos to the The Santo Tomas (STIC) opening page at
http://www.cnac.org/emilscott/santotomas01.htm

The list of POW camps, "the Underground", etc, is at
http://www.cnac.org/emilscott/powcamps01.htm

This message has been edited. Last edited by: rainbowtrout,

Do you have any information on the nurses and other women on Bataan? One of my friends aunts was there and they never found out what happened to her

Hi Stormer,

Yes, I do have some information about the Bataan and Corregidor Army nurses. I am in contact with three of the five remaining ladies; one of whom is in contact with "all" and serves as "Nurse Central Information."
What would you like to know, about whom? Or about the nurses in general ...

9.23 What is the woman's name? I will ask the group of reaeardhers I deal with and you will go to Tom Moore's Santo Tomas site where you will link to Tom's email. Drop him note with her name, and ask for his help. Your message will reach a large group of former Santo Tomas internees who will write back if they know anything.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: rainbowtrout,

I am looking for information on Camp Shinjuku. I have an uncle that was there, and he won't talk about his time there. I guess I was hoping to find out information on life in the camp, etc. Does the name Adanto D'Amore ring any bells with anyone?

KalonaO7, follow this link http://www.west-point.org/family/japanese-pow/Japanese-pow%20Listserv.htm .Use the link at the bottom of the page and send a message asking to join, to John, who runs the list-serve. After John replies, send your question to the list. You will receive the help you seek.

This is from Congressional Record of November 20, 2004.

RECOGNIZING ADANTO D’AMORE
FOR HIS SERVICE TO OUR COUNTRY
HON. JEFF MILLER
OF FLORIDA
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Mr. Speaker, it is a great honor for me to rise today in recognition of Adanto D’Amore, a patriot who served his country with distinction.

Born in Italy, Dr. D’Amore came to the United States in 1919 as a young child knowing no English. Realizing the importance of education, Adanto went on to graduate from Ohio State Medical School at the age of 23.

Adanto joined the U.S. Army in 1938 and shortly thereafter became the second U.S. doctor to earn his parachute wings in the First Provisional Parachute Battalion. Transferring to the Army Air Corps in 1940, he became a flight surgeon and went on to serve his country during time of war in the Philippines.

In 1942, Dr. D’Amore was taken prisoner by Japanese troops and forced to participate in the infamous Bataan Death March. Nearly 25 percent of the allied troops did not survive. Many of these soldiers that were fortunate
enough to live were then forced onto death ships to Japan. A great number more of the allied troops died on these ships, some from oppressive living conditions and some from ships that sunk during the voyage.

Beaten by his captors like so many others, Dr. D’Amore was also forced to use his medical skills to treat the same captors who tormented him and his fellow prisoners-of war. He used his skills as best as he could to obtain
provisions for the other prisoners. His help no doubt helped many to survive a long and miserable time in the POW camp. Over three years later, Dr. D’Amore was liberated from a work camp near Mount Fuji at the end of
World War II. (More)

Thank you rainbowtrout and Wailuna, I have asked to join the other group. Unfortunately this geneology stuff usually leads to more questions than answers, but it sure is a lot of fun, almost like solving a mystery. Thank you again.

quote:

Originally posted by Stormer:
Do you have any information on the nurses and other women on Bataan? One of my friends aunts was there and they never found out what happened to her

Stormer - I'm still waiting, I have not forgotten. If you can get her name to me, I can find out. If I don't have the answers, I have contacts who should have the information.

My Grandfather, Robert Glen Burns, was a prisoner at Camp Shinjuku. He survived the Bataan Death March, prison camp in the Philippines, and then was sent via a hell ship to Japan. I have spent extensive time talking to him about his memories there. I'll tell you what I know. Please forgive me if my vocabulary isn't up to par (I wasn't in the military, so I don't know the lingo.)

My Grandpa was a Staff Sergeant in the US Army Air Corps. Because of his rank he was put in charge of a squad. Every day they had to gather for "roll call". If anyone in your group was missing, they would kill all of you. The guards were brutal. They regularly beat the prisoners with rifle butts. My grandpa was hit so many times in the head that he lost hearing in his ears and has had to wear hearing aids ever since.

Grandpa had to learn some Japanese, because they guards did not know very much English. The men were put to work building some kind of airfield, according to my grandpa. They had to chop up stones with pick axes and carry them in wheel barrows. It was back breaking work. For punishment, they would make the men kneel down on the pick axe handles (behind their knees) until they lost all feeling in their legs. Then they would make them try to walk and beat them when they couldn't.

The food was abysmal. My grandpa was dangerously thin when he got back to the states, finally. In addition to it being rotten, bad, etc. it was largely a diet of rice. This caused blocked bowels in some of the men. Grandpa recalled the story of one of his buddies who died of a blocked bowel. It was literally so agonzing that the man crawled under one of the barracks to die. They could hear him moaning in pain for hours.

A funny story: Grandpa said they were sometimes allowed to watch movies. There was a guard that they nick-named "Donald Duck" I guess something about the way he looked reminded them of this. This particular guard could speak some English, so he asked them who Donald Duck was, and they told him, "A famous movie star." The guard was so pleased he strutted around like a peacock for days. Then one night they watched a movie and the animated short at the beginning of the film was, you guessed it, a Donald Duck cartoon. The guard was furious! My grandpa and his buddies thought it was hilarious.

Grandpa said that one day they woke up and all the guards had vanished. They didn't know what was going on, and were scared to leave, until the American planes started flying overhead. Then they knew they were liberated. Grandpa said he was never so happy as to see the planes bomb the heck out of the airstrip he just spent years building!

I hope that this helps give you an idea of what life was like for them. My Grandpa is still alive, by the way. He's 88 years old, living in a nursing home in Shreveport, LA. He and my grandma just celebrated their 60th anniversary. He's truly a hero.

Wailuna,

My Grandfather told me a story about his time on the Bataan death march. During one of the very brief rests that they gave the men, he sat down next to "a doctor." This doctor was trying to get rid of the quinine he was carrying.

My grandpa took a bottle. It later saved his life in a prison camp when he had malaria, and saved the lives of many of his buddies, as my grandpa passed around the quinine to whomever he could.

I don't know if this doctor was Adanto D'Amore, but it was the brave acts of doctors like him who truly saved lives.

>My grandpa was hit so many times in the head that he lost hearing in his ears and has had to wear hearing aids ever since.

No doubt he was awarded the Purple Heart. During research, I've discovered substanial number of Bataan veterans have not received full recognition for their combat service.

If you don't mind identifying your grandpa, I will share what he is entitled.

Robert

Hi Robert,
I know my grandfather finally received a Bronze Star sometime in the early 1990s. This was the first recognition he received. I'm not sure about a purple heart, but I can ask my grandmother. In addition to hearing loss, there was permanent nerve damage to his feet. The psychological toll was also horrible, although as a grandchild I saw very little of that. The first time I even knew what he had suffered was when,as a kid, I went to Epcot center with my grandparents one year, and Grandpa refused to go into the "Japan" part. I was totally confused until my grandma pulled me aside and explained it to me. After that, I started talking to him about it a lot, and sometimes taped him.

My dad has had to fight for years with the VA to get them to classify my grandfather as "disabled." It's truly a miracle that he lived. We'll never know everything he saw or lived through, but I've been trying to piece it together, little by little.