Returned WWII Marine Mail - Captured on Corregidor

Description: Returned WWII Marine Mail - Captured on Corregidor - Died in an Osaka POW Camp Description Returned WWII Marine Mail - Captured on Corregidor - Died in an Osaka POW Camp Returned mail sent to a World War II Marine who was captured on Corregidor and died in a Japanese prison camp. Sent by Mr. & Mrs. A. Mikucki from Chicago to Private First Class Walter Mikucki at the Osaka Yodogawa Bunsho POW Camp in Japan. 1944-1945. Envelope only, no letter. The envelope was addressed to Private First Class Walter Mikucki at the Osaka Yodogawa Bunsho POW Camp in Japan. It has a typed “Prisoner of War Postage Free” free frank in the upper right corner and has received a Chicago “War Savings machine postmark dated Jan 13, 1944. The envelope was opened by a U.S. censor and resealed using censor tape annotated, “Examined by 6587.” The address was subsequently obliterated with a red cross and black bands using grease pencil or crayon. It has a circular handstamp in the lower right corner dated Nov 20 1945 with text that appears to read “[LIBER]ATED HQ. USMC., WASH., D.C.” Ther is a USMC “pointing finger” return-to-sender hand stamp that point to the return address. Pfc. Mikucki was a member of the 4th Marine Regiment when, as war clouds rumbled in the Pacific, the unit was sent from China to Corregidor to help defend Manila Bay in the Philippines. Shortly after its arrival, Japan launched its sneak attack on Pearl Harbor and allied bases throughout the Pacific. Corregidor was bombed continuously from late December 1941 until May 5, 1942, when an overwhelming force of Japanese soldiers landed on the island. After tanks were brought ashore the following day, Lt. Gen. Johathan Wainwright realized defeat was imminent and surrendered fearing the thousand or so wounded men and bedraggled defenders would be annihilated. Although most of the 4th Marine Regiment had been killed, the remaining men were transported to prison camps in Japan. The Yodogawa Bunsho Camp near Osaka was one of the smallest Japanese prisoner of war camps, and records in the National Archives identify only 12 prisoners that were known to have been held there. Pfc. Mikucki’s name is not on that list. Other records show that Mikucki may have been imprisoned at various times at the Itchioke, Chikko, and Umeda Bunsho camps. He died from unknown causes on March 11, 1943. Clearly, this information was not provided by the Japanese to the Red Cross as Mikucki’s parents sent this letter ten months later. Examples of mail sent to American prisoners held in Japan are very scarce, and this example may be unique for as os 2017, I am unable to find any record of other returned mail for Corregidor Marines who died in Japanese prisoner of war camps in philatelic or ephemera auctions records, for sale in the trade, or held by institutions per OCLC. Also, there is no mention of anything similar in Gruenzner’s Postal History of American POWs. #8825 View My Other Items For Sale Payment PayPal is preferred for both US and international payments. Other methods of payment may be possible. Shipping Domestic Shipping. Most orders are shipped to locations in the US at no additional cost. If not, shipping costs are set at a flat rate on an item-by-item basis. Media mail shipping--when available and appropriate--is inexpensive but may take between two and four weeks, especially if delivery is to the west coast. If a quick delivery is important to you, please request USPS Priority Mail or some other expedited delivery service before paying. International Shipping. International shipping is usually done through the eBay Global Shipping Program. I know that this can be expensive, but I've switched to this method because I've had too many claims of non-receipt by international buyers. If you contact me in advance of purchase it may be possible for me to ship directly to you. If I ship directly, I will only ship overseas using a trackable method; this can be expensive, and it is non-negotiable. Also, I will only enter true information on customs forms; if you have a problem paying your nation's customs fees, that is beteen you and your government, I have nothing to do with it. If you pay by PayPal, I will only ship to the shipping address specified by PayPal. All shipments are covered by my business insurance at my expense, however if you would like to purchase additional USPS insurance at your expense, let me know, and I'll adjust your invoice accordingly. Terms of Sale Please don't assume anything that is not specifically stated or shown on this listing page. Ask any questions before you bid or make an offer. If you win this item, you are legally bound to complete the purchase. Unless specifically indicated otherwise in the page, returns will be accepted for full refund less shipping for any reason if the item is returned to me within 30 days in the same condition as it was sent. Buyers are responsible for paying all return postage costs. About Us This is a Read'Em Again Books sale. Read'Em Again books is a member of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America (ABAA), the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers (ILAB), the Ephemera Society, the Manuscript Society, the American Philatelic Society (APS), the U.S. Philatelic Classics Society, and the Military Postal History Society (MPHS). We hope that you'll take some time to visit both our eBay store and our larger Read'Em Again Books on-line bookstore. We think that you'll find our prices to be very competitive with other internet book sellers. In addition to a nice selection of Americana, diaries, journals, photograph albums, and other unique personal narratives, we also maintain a small stock of children's books, illustrated books, unusual non-fiction as well as ephemera, philatelic items, prints, sheet music, maps, and occassionally postcards, antique toys & games, tobacciana, and breweriana. View My Other Items For Sale Images sell! Get Supersized Images & Free Image HostingCreate your brand with Auctiva's Customizable Templates. Attention Sellers - Get Templates Image Hosting, Scheduling at Auctiva.com.

Price: 750 USD

Location: Dumfries, Virginia

End Time: 2023-12-09T22:06:28.000Z

Shipping Cost: 0 USD