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VINCENT J. STISLOW
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Vincent J.'Peetsy' STISLOW (SCISLOWICZ)

"I" Company, 503d PRCT

18 February 1945

 

As I search these web sites, I look for anyone who may remember my Great-uncle ("Peetsy") Vincent Stislow (Scislowicz) (KIA Corregidor).

Uncle Peetsy rests with his parents (my great grandparents) in Hastings, PA where he was born.  (He never knew his father, a Polish immigrant, as he was killed in a coal mine a few months before Vince was born). I think of him often although my family lost him 13 yrs before I was born. I have pictures of him and wonder what he may have become. Conversations about Peetsy are rare, but when they do come up, I am| usually nearby as mom's relatives always comment how I look and remind them of Peetsy. I guess there is a resemblance. 

If anyone from I Company remembers him, feel free to get hold of me. We have conflicting stories of his death. THE telegram from the Army said he was machine gunned while landing at Monkey Point. One other person I spoke with said he knew him and they were down off the point when they were mortared. Peetsy was killed on 18 Feb., the jump was 16Feb. Correct? I assume he was alive at least one day on The Rock.

 Thanks.
Dominick Kass 
[email protected]|

[Stislow was awarded the Silver Star for an action at Log Crossing #2, Markham Valley.]

Dominic,
The part of the story "while landing at Monkey Point" is not likely to be correct. There was no 'landing' there.  Monkey Pt. had not been reached by the 18th. 50 men were killed at Monkey Pt. but that was some days later. 

Paul Whitman

Paul is absolutely correct. There was no "landing" at Monkey Point and it was more than two days after the 16th, the day of the parachute landing, that we got to Monkey Point. I was a platoon sergeant in B Co. when the 1st battalion "took" Monkey Point. 

Thanks, 
Jack Herzig
"B" Company

This would tend to make sense as my uncle's date of death is the 18 Feb 45, which is 2 days after the jump, correct?

My mother always said that she was told he was killed on Monkey Point, which would show he survived the jump, correct? Am I getting warmer? My mom, aunts, cousins and other relatives did not have the best recollections from this traumatic news. Was "I" Company on Monkey Point at any time? Louis McCarroll and I had a conversation a few years ago and he's pretty sure he was with my uncle coming down a hill when they were mortared. Mr. McCaroll seemed fairly confident of the events. One thing that lead me to believe he knew my uncle was that he remembered Uncle Vincent's brother Tony Scislowicz (Stislow) meeting up before the Corregidor operation. Not many people including family, know of that event. It seems Vincent gave Tony a field jacket and remarked he won't be needing it anymore. 

Thank you all tremendously for any facts and insight.

Dominic Kasmauskas
former HHC 2/327, 101st

4 MAY 2002

I suggest that you call up "The Drop Zone", a site containing a picture album of my adventures as a paratrooper and my stories of several events, including that of what happened at the Monkey Point disaster. This will help to clarify those ancient events and where Monkey Point fits in with your uncle's death. Please don't hesitate to contact me again with any questions.

Jack Herzig

28 OCT 2008

In the book Three Winds of Death by Bennett Guthrie, he mentions the circumstances in which Pfc. Fernando Valdez won his Silver Star.  The 18th Feb saw  I Company slowly working their way around the rim of Topside, cave by cave, building by building, gun emplacement by gun emplacement.  Guthrie writes:

"Pfc. Valdez was leading a patrol when he thwarted an enemy ambush. He killed six of the enemy in rapid succession and wounded two others. An exploding land mine killed one trooper and wounded two others. Pfc. Valdez remained in his precarious position, firing at the enemy, until the dead and wounded could be evacuated."

I cross-referenced that with all the I Company troopers who were killed on Corregidor, and find that the only I Company KIA on 18 Feb is Peetsy Stislow.  

Clearly this is unverified, but you might now have a place to start. 

Paul F. Whitman

30 OCT 2008

Thank you for the cross reference. I had been contacted some years ago by a gentleman in Michigan who was with Peetsy’s squad and thinks they were heading for in the vicinity of Breakwater Point when either a mortar or land mine exploded. He did mention the one killed (Peetsy was listed as DOW, not KIA in the official records) and two were slightly wounded. I have the book and will take a look again.

Great catch! Thank you very much.

Dominic Kasmauskas
former HHC 2/327, 101st

                


 

 

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