Arthur William Wermuth Jr. (May 3, 1915 – June 13, 1981), dubbed the "One-Man Army of Bataan", was a United States Army officer during World War II and a prisoner of war from April 1942 until August 1945.
Background Wermuth was born in South Dakota, but raised in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood at 3631 N. Janssen Avenue.Southport Neighborhood Association, Chicago. September 2002 Newsletter . His hometown during World War II was listed as Traverse City, Michigan. His father was a doctor and World War I veteran who died in 1937 and his mother was Clara Natalie Lorenz. His sister, Natalie, was a professional dancer in the Chicago in the 1940s using the stage name Talia."Widow Finds Secret of Peace in Small Town in Black Hills," Hal Boyle, Post-Tribune, Jefferson City, Missouri, August 5, 1954. p. 6.
Wermuth graduated from Northwestern Military and Naval Academy, a military boarding school, in 1932.SJNMA Alumni list . He was an athletic youth and participated in many sports at the academy, including crew, football, track, and baseball. His teammates nicknamed him "Satch." He played guard and tackle in football and was an outfielder with a .299 batting average in baseball. In track and field he participated in shot put and discus. The student Log Book described him saying, "Defensively, he was a hard man to get through. Offensively, many gains were made through holes he opened."'Art Wermuth, "One-Man Army of Bataan", Was Known As "Just a Regular Guy" During School,' Burton Benjamin, Ironwood Daily Globe, Ironwood, Michigan. February 25, 1942. p. 8.
He spent two years each at North Park Junior College and Northwestern University, also studying at the Loyola University School of Medicine, He received his Bachelor of Science degree in bacteriology in 1936. Deciding he did not want to be a doctor, Wermuth and his first wife Jean Wilkins, whom he met in 1935 while shadowing his father at the Ravenswood Hospital, relocated to Traverse City, Michigan, where he took a job as a drug salesman."War Hero Maintains Order as Sheriff," Harold Ellithorpe, Anderson Daily Bulletin, Anderson, Indiana, October 3, 1957. p. 11."Wermuth's Wife Receives Letter Written Jan. 15," Chicago Tribune. 12 April 1942
World War II Wermuth received his commission as a second lieutenant in the infantry through the Reserve Officers' Training Corps in 1936 while he was a junior at Northwestern."Capt. Wermuth, "One Man Army" Tells of Heroic Stand on Bataan," Arthur Wermuth, The Coshocton Tribune, September 24, 1945. While stationed at a Civilian Conservation Corps camp near Watersmeet, Michigan, he learned wilderness survival skills.None More Courageous - American War Heroes of Today. by Stewart Holbrook. 1942. He entered active duty in January 1941 at Fort Brady, Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, where he remained until April. He was promoted to captain on December 19, 1941, after the invasion of the Philippines and was one of a handful of Americans in the primarily Filipino 57th Infantry Regiment of the Philippine Scouts. On January 5, 1942, Wermuth organized a group of 185 Filipinos into a group that became known as "suicide snipers" to counter enemy infiltration behind American lines and as a counter-sniper force. Over the next three weeks he and his force claimed over 500 enemy killed while losing 45 of its own."Captain Tells How Snipers Got Japs," Arthur Wermuth, The Coshocton Tribune, September 26, 1945. p. 5. He was shot in the leg in January while on a successful mission to destroy a bridge and burn an enemy encampment.'"One-Man Army" Burns Town, Blows Up Bridge,' Arthur Wermuth, The Coshocton Tribune, September 27, 1945. On February 3, he was shot in the left breast and was carried back to receive treatment. On February 15, he left the medical facility without permission and rejoined his battalion. In early April he fell down a ravine and was seriously injured on a large boulder. He awakened in Field Hospital Number 2 as it was being overrun by Japanese forces."Capt, Wermuth Reveals How He Was Captured," Arthur Wermuth, The Lowell Sun, Lowell, Massachusetts, September 27, 1945.
Wermuth received the Distinguished Service Cross for his actions in January 1942 in the Philippines. He became known as the "one-man army of Bataan" and was widely credited with over 116 kills.Home of the Heroes. Distinguished Service Cross "for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed enemy while serving with the 57th Infantry Regiment, Philippine Scouts, in action against enemy forces from 10 to January 16, 1942", in the Philippine."One-Man Blitz", Time, February 23, 1942. He also received the Silver Star and three Purple Heart decorations."Wonderful Lug", Time, March 16, 1942.
Captivity Wermuth's injuries forced him to remain in a Japanese hospital until May 25, 1942, when he was transported to New Bilibid Prison. His injuries spared him from the Bataan Death March. After Bilibid, he was transported via boxcar to a camp near Cabanatuan. In September, he was sent to Lipa City, Batangas and placed in charge of a 500-man work detail to construct a runway. During the construction, his crew deliberately sabotaged the runway so that it buckled under the weight of landing bombers. His injuries forced him to be sent back to Bilibid in January 1943, where he was operated on in April 1943 by an American surgeon who was also in captivity. In June, he was sent back to Cabanatuan to join a farming detail. In January 1944 his detail was being worked to the point where men were collapsing in the manure. When he demanded that the Japanese commander take it easy on his men, he received a severe beating, damaging his kidneys and sending him back to a hospital."Gallant Captain Tells How He Felt When He Was Captured," Arthur Wermuth, The Lowell Sun, September 28, 1945.
On October 13, 1944, he was transferred back to Bilibid until December, when he boarded the "hell ship" Oryoku Maru as one of 1620 prisoners. Because the prison ship was unmarked, it was bombed December 15, 1944, at Olongapo in Subic Bay by aircraft from USS Hornet who mistook it for a troop transport, killing several hundred POWs. Wermuth survived the bombing and was transported by boxcar to San Fernando. 160 men were placed in his car and as there was no room to move or sit, were forced to stand for the duration of the 26-hour trip. According to Wermuth, the man beside him died on his feet and was held in place by the crowd for the rest of the trip since there was no room to remove the corpse. In January 1945, he was transported to Formosa aboard the Enoura Maru."Horrors of Trip Aboard Jap Ship Carrying U.S. Prisoners Described," Arthur Wermuth, The Coshocton Tribune, October 4, 1945. Wermuth received his fourth Purple Heart due to the injuries sustained when bombers from the USS Hornet attacked Enoura Maru.Deposition of Major Arthur Wermuth .west-point.org Oryoku Maru Roster. Next he was transported to Japan, then to Pusan, Korea, then to Mukden, where his prison camp was liberated by the Russians in August 1945. When he was found, he weighed , having weighed earlier in the war. Wermuth returned to the United States on the transport SS Marine Shark, arriving November 1, 1945, in San Francisco. On his return, he modestly credited the Filipino scouts for many of his exploits saying, "Ninety percent of the credit for what I did was due to them. They're the best soldiers in the world. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time."'Bataan's "One-Man Army" Arrives, Disclaims Credit for Soldiering Feats,' Billings Gazette, Billings, Montana, November 2, 1945.
Post war Shortly after the war ended, Olivia Josephine Oswald, a Filipino nurse, claimed to have married Wermuth December 7, 1941, on the rooftop of the Great Eastern hotel in Manila, though this was disputed by Wermuth."Marriage claims", Time, February 11, 1946. His divorce to Jean was finalized June 4, 1947, and the same day he married Patricia Steele, a 23-year-old parachutist from Denver, Colorado."War Hero Divorced and Wed in an Hour [on June 4, 1947]" Joplin Globe, June 5, 1947."Marriage", Time, June 16, 1947. He and Patricia adopted an 8 year old named David about 1956.
In 1948, Wermuth was elected Marshal of City Court in Wichita, Kansas."Marshal of City Court, Wichita" Time, November 15, 1948. and subsequently arrested L. Ron Hubbard in 1951."Dianetics leader found in Wichita", Los Angeles Daily News, April 15, 1951. He was appointed sheriff of Jefferson County, Colorado, by county commissioners in 1957 following the indictment and resignation of Sheriff Enlow for federal income tax evasion."One-Man Army Named Sheriff [of Jefferson County, Colorado]," Daily Globe, Ironwood, Michigan. January 12, 1957. Page 1. Wermuth resigned as sheriff on May 1, 1962, in lieu of prosecution on an embezzlement charge and was replaced by Harold E. Bray."Hero of Bataan Facing Charges," The Progress-Index, Petersburg, Virginia. September 19, 1961. p. 7. (indicted for "illegally obtaining $3,673 in county funds over a two-year period.")"Sheriff Fined For Paint Theft," Daily Capital News, Jefferson City, Missouri, March 6, 1962, p. 1. (Fined $240 for personal use of $37 worth of county paint, was set to resign May 1, 1962, as Sheriff.)Turbulent Sixties 1960-69 . - (Wermuth resigned in lieu of prosecution on indicted charges.) As sheriff of Jefferson County, Colorado, Wermuth led searches for and investigated the disappearance of Coors Brewing Company CEO and heir Adolph Coors III within his county.
References
Further reading Achen, Norman and Lee Smart. Go With God Holbrook, Stewart H. None More Courageous - American War Heroes of Today. 1942. Ramsey, Edwin Price and Stephen J. Rivele. Lieutenant Ramsey's War: From Horse Soldier to Guerrilla Commander. Brassey's, 1996. . page 72.
External links Wermuth, Home of the Heroes. The Story of the Enoura Maru and the Men Who Died. Taiwan POW Camps Memorial Society.