A Boy from Gallup
Hiroshi “Hershey” Miyamura was born in Gallup, NM, on October 6, 1925. His family operated a diner, the kind of place that served hearty meals to working families. Because there were fewer Japanese Americans in New Mexico at this time, Hiroshi didn’t grow up surrounded by his ancestral culture. That is going to matter later in his career.
Hiroshi picked up his nickname Hershey in school when one of his teachers couldn’t pronounce his name. He wanted to play football in high school, but the coach said he was too small. Instead, he joined the track team.
All in all, he seemed to have a fairly typical childhood—until December 7, 1941.
War Comes Home
While there are stories circulating that the Miyamura family escaped internment when Gallup refused to comply, that does not appear to have strong documentation—as much as I wish it did. The fact is that Roosevelt’s order gave the military broad powers to designate where removals would occur. In practice, this led to Japanese Americans along the West Coast facing mass relocation. Because of that, the Miyamura family would not have been included in those removals.
However, Hiroshi’s parents would have been classified as enemy aliens, and Hiroshi would not have been able to enlist, at least until 1943. At that point, the Army formed the 442nd Regimental Combat Team (RCT), a segregated unit composed almost entirely of Japanese American soldiers. In 1945, Hiroshi joined the Army and trained as a machine gunner. He was associated with the 442nd, but did not see combat during World War II.
A Different Army
After the war, he remained connected to the military through the U.S. Army Reserve. He married Tsuruko “Terry” Tsuchimori and reenlisted in the Reserve in 1949. He was called to active duty in Korea in 1950.
Joining his unit in Korea was a new experience for him. As he said:
there was a new experience for me because during my term in World War II I was with a segregated unit, nothing but Japanese-American young men… but it was easy for me to get to know people because I…had experience just trying to get along with my fellow Americans where a lot of these other boys never left California and they grew up only with mainly with their own nationality.
This was also where he met his very good friend, Joe Annello, who was also a machine gunner.
The Night of April 24, 1951
Hiroshi and Joe were among the troops manning the line that separated the UN forces from the Chinese forces. On the night of April 24, 1951, Chinese forces attacked with overwhelming strength. It soon became clear that the UN forces were not going to be able to hold their position.
As Hiroshi put it:
We were being overwhelmed with the enemy…and I eventually had to make a decision being a squad leader. I was hesitant because my superiors never told me I had to hold this position at any cost or anything… so I said I can’t see them getting killed over this position here when I wasn’t even told anything about it. So I said okay, I told them to leave and head back toward the company area.
Hiroshi remained behind to cover their retreat. He fought fiercely and alone, determined to give his men time to get away.
Captured
An enemy soldier threw a grenade in his direction. Hiroshi kicked it away, but when it exploded, shrapnel lodged in his leg. He attempted to follow his men’s retreat, but ran into barbed wire strung across the road. Already wounded, he became entangled and further injured. He managed to crawl free, but soon collapsed.
When troops approached, Hiroshi could not tell which side they were on. He chose to remain still and pretend to be dead. Eventually, a soldier realized he was alive and said simply, “You are my prisoner.”
Hiroshi was taken with a group of prisoners, and there he found his friend Joe Annello, badly wounded and unable to walk. For miles, Hiroshi carried him as the prisoners were forced to march, until Chinese soldiers separated them at gunpoint. Each believed the other would not survive.
Two Years in Captivity
The treatment of prisoners of war was brutal, but Hiroshi survived more than two years in captivity. When the war ended, he crossed back to American lines physically weakened, but alive.
Only after his return did he learn the full extent of what had happened on that hillside.
He had been awarded the Medal of Honor.
In a rare move, the military kept the award classified while Hiroshi was a prisoner of war. The Army feared that if the enemy learned of it, he might be singled out and executed.
A Medal Revealed
Dwight D. Eisenhower personally presented the Medal of Honor at the White House. Hiroshi later recalled how nervous he was during the ceremony. Of all that happened that day, one moment stayed with him. As he stepped forward, Eisenhower said:
“I know you’re nervous, but so am I. This is the first Medal of Honor I’ve presented at the White House.”
There were parades and public attention, but eventually Hiroshi returned home to Gallup, New Mexico, where he took a job in an auto parts store.
A Friendship That Survived War
One day, he looked up and saw his friend Joe Annello.
Joe had survived. He had been taken to a different camp, where he later escaped. Each man had believed the other dead—until Joe saw a photograph of Hiroshi in a magazine and made the journey to Gallup to find him.
The two men picked up their friendship as if it had never been interrupted.
Forged in Fire, by Vincent H. Okamoto, tells the story of their friendship. Unfortunately, I have not yet been able to find a copy, but I may have to see if my library can get it on loan.
Learn More About the 442nd
Earlier in this blog post, I mentioned the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. If you would like to learn more about this all–Japanese American unit, you can read my blog post here.
