Ishmiel Joseph DuPrey, Jr PFC E-2 US Marine Corps

Ishmiel was born on 7 Oct 1926 at Burlington, VT, the firstborn child, son of Ishmael Joseph Duprey and Agnes Josephine Bergevin. He was baptized at St Joseph church on 11 Dec 1926 as Joseph Ishmael Dupre, son of Ishmael Dupre and Agnes Bergevin. The 1930 census has the family at 55 Bright Street, Father, Wife and son. The father is a laborer on City Roads. In the 1940 census they are living at 155 Archibald Street, and the father is an Oven Man at Wholesale Bread Company. He graduated from Nazareth School and attended Burlington High School. Before going into service, he was employed for a time by the American Woolen Company in Winooski, Vt. where his father also worked.

Enlisted 12 Jan 1944 at age 17 – service number is 533501 – PFC Burlington Free Press: 4 Jun 1945 - Enlisted 14 Mar 1944 and sent overseas in Oct 1944 – His father in the Armored Tank Division stationed at Fort Knox, KY

Muster Rolls 12 Jan 1944 – 15 May 1945 PFC, COC-1Bn 29Mar-6MarDIV FmF Jan 1944 Headquarters, Eastern Procurement Division, Philadelphia, PA Apr 1944 Third Recruit Battalion, Parris Island, Beaufort, SC Oct 1944 Camp Lejeune, NC Infantry Training Battalion and then to Camp Pendleton, Oceanside, CA.

He was Killed in Action on May 15th 1945 in Okinawa during World War II fighting with the 6th Division, U.S. Marine Corps., he landed on Okinawa on Easter Sunday and had since been in the thick of the fight, his first major campaign. (source: findagrave.com)

26 Apr 1949 His body arriving today by train at Union Station. There will be a Mass at St Joseph church with a burial later at the Resurrection Park cemetery in So. Burlington.

REFERENCES: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/109091868

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.

Ishmiel J. Duprey Jr