George Shigeru Sameshima was born on 18 Feb 1915 in Spreckels, Monterey County, California.

His parents, Taizo Sameshima and Kiye Kato, were both born in Japan. His father worked as a laborer on truck farms. George had 3 brothers and 5 sisters when his father died in 1939.

In Feb 1942 FDR issued Executive Order 9006 which resulted in the internment of almost all Japanese-Americans in the western US. The Sameshima family was sent to the Topaz Internment Camp in Central Utah.

When George enlisted on 10 July 1943, he had finished high school and was working for the Eddington Canning Company in Springville, Utah.

After training he was assigned to G Company, 2nd Battalion, 442nd Infantry Regimental Combat Team.

The 442 Infantry Division was in combat when he arrived. They would go on to be one of the most decorated units in WWII. In July 1944 George’s unit was in the Rome to Arno campaign fighting to liberate Belvedere, Italy and the surrounding mountains.

Pfc. George S Sameshima was killed in action on 6 July 1944 during fighting for Hill 140. He was awarded the Purple Heart.

His grave is at Lynn Grove Cemetery in Greeley, Colorado.

References:

https://www.100thbattalion.org/learn/timeline/

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 here on Fold3. Can you help write these stories? Related to this, there will be a smart phone app that will allow people to visit any war memorial or cemetery, scan the fallen's name and read his/her story.