Distinguished Veteran Awardee Blog

By: Dale Gardner

 

George Francis Grady

Pfc. USMC (Posthumously promoted to Corporal)

Navy Cross, 7 August 1942

 

George Francis Grady served in the 1^st Parachute Battalion, 1^st Marine Division, USMC during World War II. He was born in New York City on April 28, 1920. On October 11, 1938, he enlisted in the USMC at the age of eighteen, eventually being deployed to the Pacific theater with the 1^st Marine Division. The battle for Gavutu (Gavutu-Tanambogo are two islets connected by a causeway), during which Grady earned the Navy Cross and was killed in action, was part of the Guadalcanal campaign in the Solomon Islands. Airfields, communications bases, and refueling stations on these islands threatened supplies between America and Australia, therefore, the U.S. decided to use the Solomons to help bring security and to help begin the “island hopping strategy” towards the Philippines and ultimately Japan.

Even though the 1^st Parachute Battalion landed on Gavutu in Higgins boats due to lack of transport planes, the battle for Gavutu was the first combat action of U.S. parachutists. The 1^st Parachute Battalion also suffered the highest casualty rate of any unit in the initial operation in the islands around Guadalcanal with 20% casualties, with the Raiders the next highest casualty rate of about 10%.                                                                                                                                                                

Because he was a rifleman (0311), Grady and others like him would have been on the front lines of the operations on Gavutu and the surrounding islands. This put him in a dangerous position in the notoriously fierce fighting that took place against the determined, generally unwilling to surrender Japanese forces. During the assault on Gavutu, Grady’s weapon malfunctioned while his squad members were under fire from Japanese forces. So, without hesitating, he rushed and engaged three Japanese in hand-to-hand combat. He killed two of the Japanese through his endurance and determination before he was fatally wounded himself. Because of this action of courage and sacrifice, Grady was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross by President Truman, the SPOT Award having been signed by the commander, South Pacific, on December 4, 1943. He is buried in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Sponsored by his sister Margaret Grady, the U.S.S. Grady DE-445 was commissioned September 11, 1944, as a John C. Butler Class Type WGT Destroyer Escort in honor of her brother’s sacrifice. The U.S.S. Grady saw service in the Pacific, escorting fuel tankers, aiding in air strikes, anti-submarine, and anti-aircraft roles. The U.S.S. Grady was involved in operations against Japanese forces in the Chinese mainland, Iwo Jima, Okinawa, and patrols in the Philippines, earning three battle stars. This became a fitting tribute for George F. Grady and his sacrifice on Gavutu.

 

Bibliography

Chant, Christopher. “Operation Battle of Tulagi and Gavutu-Tanambogo.” Codenames: Operations of WWII. https://codenames.info/operation/battle-of-tulagi-and-gavutu-tanambogo/.

“Corp George Francis Grady.” Find a Grave. Maintained by Burnett, R. Originally created by U.S. Veterans Affairs Office. Added March 3, 2000. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/3776347/george-francis-grady.

“Grady DE-445.” History Central. https://historycentral.com/navy/APA/grady.html.

“Grady DE 445.” Naval Cover Museum, October 26, 2016.   https://www.navalcovermuseum.org/wiki/GRADY_DE_445.

“George F. Grady.” The Hall of Valor Project. Sightline Media Group. https://valor.militarytimes.com/hero/8395.

Grady, George F, Private First Class. U.S. Marine Corps Navy Cross Recipients, World War II. Military Awards for Valor – Top 3. U.S. Department of Defense. https://valor.defense.gov/Portals/24/Documents /ServiceCross/USMCNavyCross-WWII.pdf.

Lieutenant Colonel Hoffman, Jon T, USMCR. “Silk Chutes and Hard Fighting: U.S. Marine Corps Parachute Units in World War II.” History and Museums Division Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps Washington, D.C., 1999. https://www.marines.mil/Portals/1/Publications/Silk%20Chutes%20and%20Hard%20Fighting%20%20U.S.%20Marine%20Corps%20Parachute%20Units%20in%20WWII%20%20PCN%2019000314700.pdf.

Sgt. Rutt, Lynn. “Grady, George Francis, Cpl.” Togetherweserved.com. https://marines.togetherweserved.com/usmc/servlet/tws.webapp.WebApp?cmd=ShadowBoxProfile&type=AssignmentExt&ID=272467.

                                                                            Images

                                                                    Picture of Grady.
                              

                                             

Map of Guadalcanal and Florida Island for reference. Gavutu-Tanambogo is directly below Florida Island.

                                             
                                                                               U.S.S. Grady.

                                              

                                                                          Grady’s Tombstone.