In my book, all our WWII Vets are heroes, with stories that deserve to be told and honored, but the story of Second Lieutenant Curtis Addison Tatum, USMC, is one the whole world would recognize as a hero. For his actions in battle on the island of New Georgia, Lt Tatum was awarded the Silver Star, third highest among USMC honors for valor, behind only the Medal of Honor and the Navy Cross.

But lets start at the beginning, Curtis Addison Tatum as born 3 Dec 1917 in Converse, Sabine Parish, Louisiana, the first child of Sallie C (Cates) Tatum and Curtis Winfred Tatum. With his father also a Curtis, he was known to friends and family as Addison. He would have four younger sisters and three younger brothers. The family owned their home and farm in Sabine Parish. In 1920 his father is working as a farmer and by 1930 he is also working as carpenter.

Marriage. About Aug 1939, Addison marries Miss Gladys Jones in Northern Virginia. In the 1940 census Addison and Gladys are shown living with her family in the D.C. Suburbs and Addison is listed as a Marine Guard. By 1943 Gladys Jones Tatum is not shown as next of kin or mentioned in news reports, so the marriage apparently had ended prior to 1943.

Military. In Feb 1937 Addison enlisted in the Marine Corps. and after basic training is assigned to the 1st Marine Brigade, Quantico, Virginia. In Oct 1941, Corporal Tatum is assigned to the Marine Barracks, London, England to work as a guard at the American Embassy there. In Aug 1942, with the county at war, now Sergeant Tatum is assigned as a Platoon Sgt, Company N, 4th Marine Raider Battalion, 1st Marine Raider Regiment, training in California. The Marine Raiders would soon become one of the most storied units of the Pacific War. In early 1943 Sgt Tatum and 1st Marine Raiders deploy to Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands, Southwest Pacific, to assist in mopping up operations and training for tropical warfare. In Feb 1943, Sgt Tatum is given a battlefield commission, and is now a 2nd Lieutenant. On 30 Jun 1943 the Raiders land on south end of the island of New Georgia with the primary goal of capturing the airfield at Munda Point. By 20 July 1943 2nd Lt Tatum is with 2 Battalions of Marine Raiders, and 2 Battalions of Army Infantry (about 1,100 total troop strength), as they launch an attack to capture the port of Bairoko on New Georgia.

Death. 2nd Lt Tatum is killed 20 Jul 1943 during the vicious Battle of Bairoko, the circumstances described in the Citation for the Silver Star Medal, excerpted below. (Full citation in the Gallery):

“For gallantry in action at New Georgia, Solomon Islands, on 20 July 1943. During the entire course of an attack lasting about six hours Second Lieutenant Tatum continued to lead his platoon aggressively against extremely heavy opposition from the enemy who were occupying strong positions. Disregarding his personal safety he directed the platoon's fire in the destruction of two hostile machine-gun emplacements which he had personally located. In doing so Second Lieutenant Tatum sacrificed his life.”

Burial. 2nd Lt Tatum was buried in a Marine Cemetery on New Georgia and after the war moved to the American Cemetery in Manila, Philippines. In 1950, at the request of his family his remains are reinterred at the Sardis Cemetery, Sabine Parish, Louisiana.

In addition to the Silver Star, 2nd Lt Tatum was also awarded the Purple Heart Medal, posthumously.

Based on the records available, I believe Lt Tatum, would be entitled to display the following commendations:

★Silver Star Medal, ★Purple Heart Medal, ★Combat Action Ribbon

★World War II Victory Medal, ★American Campaign Medal

★Marine Corps Presidential Unit Citation, ★Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal

★Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, ★Marine Corps Expeditionary Medal,

★ European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal

★Expert Marksmanship Badge, ★American Defense Service Ribbon,

Stories Behind the Stars Contributing Author – TOM GORHAM

SBTS Project/Louisiana/Sabine Parish

Resources:

This story was written by Tom Gorham, Lt Col USAF-Ret, son, son-in-law, and nephew of WWII Greatest Generation Vets.

This story is part of the Stories Behind the Stars project (see www.storiesbehindthestars.org). This is a national effort of volunteers to write the stories of all 400,000+ of the US WWII fallen. Can you help write these stories? Related to this, there is now a smart phone app (Find a Grave) that allows people to visit any war memorial or cemetery, scan the fallen's name and read his/her story. If you have suggestions to improve this story, please contact me through Fold3 at the link (Tomg66) below.

2nd Lt Curtis Addison Tatum, USMC