Touring Manila - The Pearl of the Orient

By the night of the February 4th, 1945, the 511th had moved to the Paranaque River Bridge, on the southern boundary of Manila. The Japs were not sleeping here. The bridge partially destroyed left the Japs on the north bank with machine-gun nests, pillboxes and Jap naval guns. Here is where we got into a battle that took some time, for this was the Jap Genko Line. Heavily fortified concrete pillboxes three stories deep, with 5 or 6 inch Naval guns, single, double and triple 40mm, 20mm guns, 150mm mortars and lets throw in some 20 and 50mm machine guns. Not counting the scores of 13mm or smaller machine guns, add to that thousands of Jap riflemen. This will not be a walk in the park, you can bet on that. Some of these pillboxes had only one Jap in them and he was not leaving till we killed him. Add to this some 100 pound bombs and anti-submarine depth charges used as land mines. Every road leading to this heavily defended line was mined with 500-pound aerial bombs with low-pressure detonators.

The Japs could not blow up the bridge due to the heavy fire that the 511th poured into them. While looking for a way around this Jap firepower, our Chief of Staff, Colonel Schimmelpfennig was killed by machine-gun fire. Camp Schimmelpfennig in occupied Sendai, Japan was named in honor of him. We needed something to chop the Japs down a little, the 674th and 675th were given that job. With a great forward observer to spot for the artillery, they punched a big hole in the line. By the end of the day we killed over 400 Japs and lost 28 of our guys KIA, 154 WIA and we cut into the right flank of the Genko Line. Once over the Paranaque Bridge it became the 11th Airborne against the Jap Marines.

On the line was the 511th, flanking them was the 188th on the right flank, along with the 2nd Battalion of the 187th. While the 511th was pushing on the line, 188th went up the right flank shoving all the way to Nichols Field. Stopped by heavy Jap fire, 187th, 2nd Battalion scooted around the 188th into Nichols Field. Then the 511th pushed hard on the left flank till they got to Libertad Avenue in Manila proper. The fighting was hard and mean, we use everything at our disposal, air strikes, artillery, flame-throwers and demolitions. Air strikes were very accurate and saved many a man's life that day. Almost every house in Manila was torn apart by either Jap or American artillery. For all of this heavy stuff it still came down to the dogface Infantryman to do the main job. House to house fighting took place with rifles against machine guns, hand grenades against Naval guns. Nichols Field was heavily defended with gun positions connected by underground tunnels. The area was open with clean fields of fire for machine-gunning Japs, along with barbed wire to stop a quick attack on their positions. The Japs had a lot of 5 inch naval guns, enough so that one company commander who was being hit by them called back to the Division Command Post stating, "Tell Admiral Halsey to stop looking for the Jap Fleet. It's beached on Nichols Field."

Advance patrols were moving passed our holding lines and met up with units of the 1st Cavalry Division on February 11th, somewhere close to the Philippines Racing Club. On the 12th 188th, with the 1st and 2nd Battalions of the 187th, took over the beat up administration building at the north runway, then started the process of mopping up the left flank. The 511th moved to the east to take Fort McKinley. As always continuous air strikes and artillery played a very important part in keeping the Japs from moving, allowing us to get in close to them and fight them with hand grenades, .45 pistols, trench knives, rifle butts and bayonets. On that same day the Japs tried a line drive into us, we beat them off and they paid a heavy penalty for it. All three regiments were now headed for Fort McKinley. Both of the artillery battalions, 674th and 675th were in support 24 hours a day, firing till they had a mountain of brass piled behind the guns. The Artillery saw their share of Banzai attacks. One of the rumors that went around was, that one of the commanders of the artillery was willing to trade a Howitzer for 12 bayonets. We knew for sure that the artillery was fighting as infantry on many occasions.

Not to forget the other units that were supplying us, Division Special Troops, the band put up their musical instruments, personnel sections were running the railroad. Not one person in the division were resting, all were working their butts off. A division hospital was setup in a church very close to the front lines, ambulance drivers were under fire coming and going. 127th Engineers worked at night with the light of jeeps till they had completed an airstrip at Imus, so that C-47's could land, making it more available to fly out our wounded faster.

Two places were left to take, they were Fort McKinley and Mabato Point. A special force under Colonel George Pierson was formed on February 14th, to take out the Mabato Point stronghold and then to attack Fort McKinley from the south. Pierson's Task Force was composed of the 187th 1st Battalion, the 19th Infantry 3d Battalion, 44th Tank Battalion A Company, 127th Engineers, a platoon from C Company and a platoon of the 221st Medical Company. The 457th, less C Battery, would provide artillery support for the task force. The 188th, 511th and 2d Battalion, 187th, supported by the 674th and 675th FA Battalions would be the forces to attack Fort McKinley from Nichols Field. On the 15th, Pierson's Task Force advanced north toward McKinley along the east side of the Manila Railroad. The 188th, with 2nd Battalion of the 187th and the 511th, attacking east into heavy automatic weapons and artillery fire from Fort McKinley to form a line to the left flank of Pierson's Task Force.

About this time we lost another Medal of Honor Winner, Private First Class Manuel Perez Jr. Read his story at:

Manuel Perez Jr. Medal of Honor Winner

Pierson's Task Force who had moved north past Mabato Point, which was south of Fort McKinley, and cut off the Japs stronghold at Mabato. The land was small hills and open, and the Japs held the high ground at Mabato Point. The Japs were in a perfect position to look down our throats. Just like the rest of the Genko Line, the Japs had from 1942 to build this fortification. They were dug into the hills like groundhogs. They had tunnels laid out hundreds of yards underground, the Japs could move hundreds of yards without ever being seen or coming up for air. First thing the task force did was surround it, then blasted it with everything we could get our hands on and a few things we could dream up. Air strikes, artillery, tanks and mortars, and then hit it with flame throwers and rifle fire. The 19th Infantry, 3d Battalion, hit the Japs from the north, the 187th, 1st Battalion, from the west. The 511th, 3rd Battalion and Filipino guerrillas lined up across the south road. Laguna de Bay was on the east. Air attacks did little damage to them, bombs just bounced off the rock ground defense. Finally the Air Corps dropped Napalm. It did two things, it burned the camouflage off the cave entrances and when a bomb landed near the opening of a cave, it sucked up most of the oxygen leaving the Japs dead in their holes.

We offered the Japs a chance to surrender. They were completely surrounded and we were beating up on them bad, they had about as much chance as a snowball in hell. None of the Japs gave up. From then on it was no holds barred, we hit them with everything including the kitchen sink. About 200 Japs made a beeline to escape that night to the south, ran smack into the ambush by the 511th and the Filipinos guerrillas. It was a turkey shoot, not one made it, all of the Japs were killed.

Technical Sergeant Mills T. Lowe had a light machine gun section of twenty-four men from the 511th Infantry, located near Bagumbayan just south of Haganoy, three hundred yards from any supporting troops. Continuous Banzai attacks were made on his positions by an enemy force of about three hundred screaming Japs. Sergeant Lowe mans a machine gun and directed fire of the others. The section drove off four attacks, ammunition was low. After the fourth attack was held off, Lowe led a raiding party outside the perimeter and captured seven Jap machine guns, two mortars, and an ample supply of ammunition. Manning the captured guns, Lowe and his men broke the fifth homicidal charge. The crazy Japs then launched a sixth attack from both front and rear. Lowe, constantly exposing himself to the hostile fire, coordinated the fire of the section and personally killed eight Japs in hand-to-hand combat. After this sixth attack was beaten off, the Japs quit, dragging their wounded, and leaving behind a large number of dead. During the action Lowe himself killed over fifty Japs. His outstanding leadership and heroic actions were unquestionably responsible for repelling six fanatical attacks by an enemy force outnumbering his own twelve to one. For his heroic action, Sergeant Lowe was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.

Over nine hundred Japs had been killed in the Mabato Pocket alone. After that it was minor battles with small groups of Japs refusing to give up, one by one we shot, burned and blew them out. We had killed off over 5,000 Japs in 16 days of fighting.

© Copyright C. J. Johnson & Associates 1998
All Rights Reserved. Reproduction, adaptation,
or translation without prior written permission
is prohibited, except as allowed under the
copyright laws. 07/98




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