 Culpeppers
in World War II
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Marine Sergeant Woodfin Grady
Culpepper, father of three sons who also served in the war: Woodfin Grady, Jr., William
Randle, and Leo Oliver. |
In Memory of Lt. Caughey Branham Culpepper
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Statement
of Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, Commander-in-chief of the Pacific Fleet,
at the signing of the Surrender Instrument by Japan.
Tokyo Bay. Aboard the
battleship Missouri. September 2, 1945.
On board all vessels at sea
and in port, and at our many island bases in the Pacific, there is
rejoicing and thanksgiving. The long and bitter struggle, which Japan
started so treacherously on the 7th of December 1941, is at an end.
I take great pride in the
American forces which have helped to win this victory. America can be
proud of them. The officers and men of the United States Army, Navy,
Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and merchant marine who fought in the Pacific
have written heroic new chapters in this Nation's military history. I
have infinite respect for their courage, resourcefulness, and devotion
to duty. We also acknowledge the great contribution to this victory made
by our valiant Allies. United we fought and united we prevail.
The port of Tokyo, which was
first opened by Commodore Perry in 1853, is now crowded with United
States men-of-war. The process of bringing Japan into the family of
civilized nations, which was interrupted when Japan launched her program
of conquest, will soon begin again.
Today all freedom-loving
peoples of the world rejoice in the victory and feel pride in the
accomplishments of our combined forces. We also pay tribute to those who
defended our freedom at the cost of their lives.
On Guam is a military
cemetery in a green valley not far from my headquarters. The ordered
rows of white crosses stand as reminders of the heavy cost we have paid
for victory. On these crosses are the names of American soldiers,
sailors and marines -- Culpepper, Tomaino, Sweeney, Bromberg, Depew, Melloy, Ponziani --
names that are a cross-section of democracy. They fought together side
by side. To them we have a solemn obligation-the obligation to insure
that their sacrifice will help to make this a better and safer world in
which to live.
To achieve this it will be
necessary for the United Nations to enforce rigidly the peace terms that
will be imposed upon Japan. It will also be necessary to maintain our
national strength at a level which will discourage future acts of
aggression aimed at the destruction of our way of life.
Now we turn to the great
tasks of reconstruction and restoration. I am confident that we will be
able to apply the same skill, resourcefulness, and keen thinking to
these problems as were applied to the problems of winning the victory.
"A
great tragedy has ended. A great victory has been won."
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UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS
3rd Joint Assault Signal Co.
Hq. Bn. 3rd Marine Division
10 October 1944
My Dear Mr. and Mrs. Culpepper,
As Lieutenant Culpepper's company commander, and for his many
friends both officers and enlisted men in Third JAS Co., I want
to extend heartfelt sympathies. His loss has been keenly felt in
the company, for he was one of the best liked, most respected
officers in my command. His fine character, loyalty, untiring
enthusiasm and devotion to duty made him an inspiration to us.
Lieutenant Culpepper landed in Guam with the assault waves
July 21st.
Largely through his efforts air liaison communications in the
regiment to which he was attached functioned smoothly during the
early phase of the attack. He was active every minute, doing
even more than his team's share of the job assigned to them.
On the night he was killed his air liaison team was with the
group furnishing perimeter defense for the battalion in the
vicinity of Mt. Irachleo (sp?). It was a dark night and raining;
and infiltration of attack by the Japs was imminent. Jap snipers
were active, and the Marines occasionally returned the fire.
At about 11:30 p.m. 30 July, Lieutenant Culpepper was hit by
a rifle bullet which entered his abdomen. He immediately went
into shock, lost consciousness, and although every possible
effort to save his life was made by the doctor and corpsmen,
died a few minutes later without any suffering.
He was buried with full military honors in grave number 3,
row 13, Army, Navy and Marine Corps Cemetery No. 1, on Guam.
John H. Ellis,
Commanding
Note: Caughey's body was later reinterred
in Hawaii. This letter provided to Culpepper Connections
by his cousin, Judge George Bryant Culpepper.
Admiral Nimitz's statement provided
by Chip Culpepper from Pages
94-96 of the Congressional Record, September 6, 1945. |
We need your help!
If you can help with any of
the following, please see Sending Us
Information.
 | Unidentified Ancestry. If a name is shown below in red, that individual's ancestry is unknown to Culpepper
Connections. Let us know if you know who one of these veterans are. |
| Photographs. We would welcome the submission of photographs in uniform
of any Culpeppers who have served their country in war. |
| Additional Names. We would particularly welcome the submission of any
names not listed. |
Culpeppers who served the United States in World War II
Culpeppers who served Canada in World War
II
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John Arthur Culpepper,
Petty Officer Stoker, A/3190, H.M.C.S. Alberni
(See:
The Alberni Project), Royal
Canadian Navy Reserve, Died at sea on Sunday, 21 Aug 1944. Age 29. Husband of Edith Adele Culpepper, of Victoria, British
Columbia. He is #36676 and the son of William Louis Culpepper. (Biography)
(Source: The Commonwealth War Graves Commission Web Site)
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Colepepers who served South Africa in World War
II
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John Ernest Colepeper, son of
George Kopper Colepeper who emigrated to South
Africa from Barbados around 1900, was born 22 Sep 1900 and died 18 Nov
1962. He is pictured at the right in 1941 in Egypt when
he was the Regimental Sergeant Major (W.O.2 ) of the 2nd Anti-Tank
which was part of the 2nd South African Division in the Western
desert. Most of these chaps got taken prisoner by Rommel at Tobruk,
but John and his crew sneaked out during the night before Tobruk
fell. John also served in WW-I.
(Source: Son, Ian George
Colepeper) |
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Last Revised:
16 Aug 2008
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