Soldier with local ties was killed in WWII battle

By Chad Koenen

Publisher

Memorial Day came a bit early for the family members of the late Private First Class Mervin Galland. 

As approximately 40 people gathered around a casket draped with American flag there were a few tears, a few smiles and plenty of time for reflection on the life of a man that no one in attendance actually met during his life. With representatives from the United States Marine Corps standing nearby, Galland was finally laid to rest in Mentor, Minn.—some 80 years after he was killed on the Gilbert Islands on November 22, 1943. 

Some of those in attendance were the Evan and Joye Peterson family of Henning. Galland was a first cousin to Joye’s grandpa. 

“It was really surreal being there and thinking it was 80 years ago,” said Peterson. 

Though she never met her grandpa’s cousin, Peterson felt it was important to show support and honor the life of a man who was killed defending the United States during World War II. Approximately 40 people attended the funeral, including the person who discovered his remains half a world away. 

Peterson said she didn’t hear a lot about her grandpa’s cousin growing up, but she went to their family’s cemetery with her mother in 2018 when her mom said a few words about Galland. Since he was killed 80 years ago, there are no close family members who have ever met the solider who served his country in World War II. 

“That’s why I felt it was important to go, because everyone who knew him was no longer here,” she said. “It was important to honor his service and the sacrifice he made.”

Galland’s remains were located by the non-profit organization History Flight. 

How the History Flight was able to track down the Galland family is still a bit of a mystery, but Peterson said a nephew of Galland attended a meeting that the military hosted about soldiers who have never been found. It is common for surviving family members who attend these meetings to donate DNA to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) to help with the identification process when missing soldiers are located. 

In March of 2019, the non-profit organization History Flight located a burial trench west of Cemetery 33 on Betio, which is part of the Gilbert Islands. The burial trench was identified as Row D. Remains recovered from the site were accessioned to the DPAA laboratory for identification. One set of the remains recovered from Row D were positively identified as PFC Galland. 

Peterson said over 30 remains were identified in the grave, which also included a Bible and leather equipment that looked like it was just dropped and was well preserved. 

Galland’s nephew took a DNA test and it was determined that he was a close match to the remains of his uncle. 

One of the challenges in locating the grave was that a home was built over the area where the grave was thought to be located. Since the home was in good shape it could not be taken down to look for the remains of the soldiers.

However, a recent storm damaged the home and when it was taken down, representatives from the History Flight began searching the area for the remains of missing soldiers. 

PFC Mervin Galland

A Private First Class in the United States Marine Corps, Mervin Galland was born in Eveleth, Minn. on March 20, 1921 to Roy and Ida (Mitchell) Galland. He joined the Marine Corps shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor. 

Galland enlisted in Minneapolis, Minn., on Jan. 17, 1942 and was assigned to San Diego, Calif., for boot camp. He was initially assigned to Company D, 1st Battalion, 6th Marines for training with a heavy mortar or machine gun.

Galland saw combat in the Guadalcanal campaign in January and February of 1943, before spending time training in camp at New Zealand to train for Operation GALVANIC. The operation focused on the small island of Betio in the Tarawa Atoll of the Gilbert Islands and its vital airfield. When the Marines landed on the island the group anticipated being able to stroll ashore after a punishing naval bombardment. 

Galland’s regiment, in reserve, reportedly thought that they might miss out on the fighting altogether. This proved not to be the case as they met stiff Japanese resistance in several days of intense fighting. Approximately 1,000 Marines and sailors were killed with another 2,000 soldiers being wounded. Meanwhile, the Japanese soldiers were virtually taken out during the battles. 

Galland was killed on the third day of the battle on November 22, 1943 due to a gunshot wound. He was buried in Row D at Cemetery 33 on Betio; however, his remains were not located during the post-war investigations of the cemeteries on the island. He was buried alongside some 30 other soldiers in a large trench on the island. 

The History Flight

A non-profit organization, the History Flight has recovered and identified over 160 servicemen, while 385 remains have been recovered and are awaiting identification. The organization has visited over 15 countries in its quest to bring missing servicemen home. 

The History Flight is dedicated to researching, recovering and repatriating America’s service members back to United States of America. These individuals have been listed as Missing in Action (MIA) or deemed non-recoverable during the past American conflicts of WWII, Korean War, Cold War, and Vietnam War.

The task is not a small one as there are currently over 81,900 missing American service members around the world. The organization relies on donations to continue its quest to bring soldiers home to their long-lost family members. 

For more information about the History Flight, or to make a donation to further its quest, visit the non-profit organization online at www.historyflight.com.