IN MEMORY OF MELFORD JOSEPH PELLETIER (April 1, 1924-March 19, 1945, the only soldier from Allagash,ME to die in combat) Posted by Cathie, for Melfords brother, Louis Pelletier, Sr., and all his family members.) During the Civil War, four men whose residence was “One Hundred Twenty-Fourth Sub-District, No 16, R 10 (Allegash)” volunteered to represent this district in the war effort. They were boarding at Samuel Bolton’s and their names were Richard Decourcey (who died in Missouri) Alexander McNear and Owen Fitzgerald. A fourth man, Neal McEgral, signed up later. In World War I, seven Allagash-born men left for the military. Two of them, Joe O’Leary and Duncan McBreairty, went overseas, with O’Leary seeing combat in the Argonne Forest. Since then, the town of Allagash has sent many of its sons, and now daughters, to serve in the military. Despite the many men who saw combat, some coming home with wounds and medals to prove their bravery, the town lost only one to war. Melford Pelletier, who joined the Navy, was aboard the USS WASP off the coast of Japan when a Japanese pilot, the red sun of Japan emblazoned on the side of his plane, dropped a 540-pound semi-armor-piercing bomb onto the ship. The next morning, as taps played and survivors lined the deck to say good-bye, Melford and his fallen comrades were buried at sea. Nine days later, a telegram with the awful news arrived in St Francis, addressed to his parents, Tom and Edith Pelletier. Among the 11 medals he was awarded posthumously was the Purple Heart, which hung on his parents’ wall until their deaths. His military marker is in St. Paul’s Catholic Cemetery. (NOTE: This piece about Melford is taken from CHRISTMAS IN ALLAGASH: The Early Years, a book we did to raise funds for the Allagash Historical Society. The earlier photo of Melford belongs to his sister, Albertine Pelletier OLeary.)
Posted on: Tue, 11 Nov 2014 18:52:32 +0000
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