Captain Hugh Corrigan

 It's true, I haven't read every book written by Marines or about Marines in combat.  There simply is too many to get to them all.  That doesn't mean I'm not aware of them. Robert Leckie, a WWII Marine penned A Helmet for my Pillow about his service in the war.  

Leckie's story is partially depicted in the HBO series "The Pacific."   What I didn't realize was there was a local (local to being where I grew up in the Finger Lakes of Upstate NY) connection to this story.  I only found it out because I follow the local hsitorical societies and organizations on Facebook.

This morning, I found out that the character of "Lieutenant Ivy League" in Leckie's book was based on Hugh Corrigan who lived in the Ithaca area for 54 years after WWII.  The post by The History Center in Tompkins County posted a short piece about Corrigan with a link to his 2005 obituary.  

From his obituary, we know that Hugh was born in Yonkers, N.Y. on February 4, 1920. He graduated from Charles E. Gorton High School in Yonkers in 1938 and from Dartmouth College (in absentia) in 1942. At Dartmouth he played on the varsity football and baseball teams and enlisted in the Marine Corps ROTC.

Called up to duty following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hugh was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant and in 1942 saw action with the 1st Marine Division, which was cited for valor by the Secretary of the Navy for its combat operations in Guadalcanal with 2d Battalion, 1st Marines. His platoon participated in the successful defense of Henderson Field against a superior Japanese force during the battle of the Tenaru River, the first victory over the Japanese in World War II.

He also commanded Company C, 6th Tank Battalion (per muster rolls) in action with the 6th Marine Division on Okinawa and was awarded the Purple Heart for wounds received on May 15, 1945. Hugh was honorably discharged from the Marine Corps in 1946 as a Captain.

His obituary  goes on to tell you about Captain Corrigan after the war, his wife, his kids, and his activities.  Captain Corrigan died on 3 October 2005. Thank you Captain for your service.

Finding his story on a local Facebook post randomly this morning, I'm reminded of how many times these Marines come out of nowhere to get me to tell their stories.  I'm honored to do so.