PFC Thomas Vernon “Louie” Long
Thomas Vernon Long was born Jan 21, 1915 to Mr. and Mrs. Oscar Long. He was raised in Portales NM and graduated from Portales HS in 1933. He then went on to Eastern NM Junior College before transferring to NMAMC in 1937. He attended school for two years majoring in Agriculture. He was an outstanding football player. In March 1941 he was inducted into the 200th Coast Artillery as it was in training at Fort Bliss.
In August, the 200th CA was dispatched to the Philippines.
On December 8, 1941, only nine hours after the Japanese attack of Pearl Harbor, the 200th CA engaged Japanese bombers at Clark Field and Fort Stotsenberg, becoming the first unit to go into action in defense of the U.S. flag in the Philippines. That evening, 500 soldiers from the original regiment of 1800 men were sent to provide additional air defense in Manila. This provisional force was christened the 515th Coast Artillery and became America’s first war-born regiment in World War II. PFC Louie Long was assigned to Battery B of the 515th.
On April 9, 1942, the weakened survivors from the combined American and Filipino forces were unconditionally surrendered to the Japanese.
Most POWs were assembled in Mariveles at the southern tip of the Bataan peninsula and forced to march to San Fernando, Pampanga. Wounded men were assisted by able-bodied prisoners or carried on crude stretchers. Stragglers were beaten or killed. Civilians who showed mercy to the prisoners endured a similar fate. The incident covered a distance of 104 kilometers (65 miles) and became known as the Bataan Death March.
The final leg of the northward journey was completed inside stifling railway boxcars that took them to the prison set up at Camp O’Donnell. Most of the American POWs were eventually transferred to Cabanatuan. The captured soldiers were subjected to inhumane conditions. Death from malnutrition, disease and abuse was a common occurrence. More than 4,000 American POWs and 25,000 Filipino POWs died in these two camps alone.
PFC Thomas Vernon “Louie” Long died at Camp Cabanatuan, most likely from disease and malnourishment, on or about August 28, 1942 at the age of 27. Today his remains rest at Portales Cemetery.
Historical Source: Bataan Memorial Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Jack W. Bradley, 515th Coast Artillery, who, despite a debilitating illness, wrote the history — engraved on three of the columns