The sea was my last chance : memoir of an American captured on Bataan in 1942 who escaped in 1944 and led the liberation of Western Mindanao / by Donald H. Wills ; with Reyburn W. Myers
Title
The sea was my last chance : memoir of an American captured on Bataan in 1942 who escaped in 1944 and led the liberation of Western Mindanao / by Donald H. Wills ; with Reyburn W. Myers
Subject
Escapes--Philippines--History--20th century.
Soldiers--United States--Biography.
Soldiers--United States--Biography.
Wills, Donald H., 1918-.
World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--Philippines--Mindanao.
World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American.
World War, 1939-1945--Prisoners and prisons, Japanese.
Description
Personal account of an officer with the 26th Cavalry Regiment on Bataan.
Wills begins his story with the last days on Bataan, where, in the day before the surrender, he had to be hospitalized. Spared from the Death March, he remained in the hospital for a few weeks, was transferred to Bilibid Prison and then to Cabanatuan. Later in 1942, Wills was moved to Davao Penal Colony; in June 1944, he was placed on a prison ship and taken out of Mindanao when a US submarine torpedoed it (this was the Shinyo Maru); Wills and several other prisoners were able to escape and join the guerrillas.
Over two thirds of the book details Wills’ activities on Mindanao, particularly life with the guerrillas and offensive operations from late 1944 until the end of the war. He was active in guerrilla campaigns in Misamis, Malabang, Dipolog and other areas, and helped advancing US infantry by pinpointing Japanese positions from the air.
Wills begins his story with the last days on Bataan, where, in the day before the surrender, he had to be hospitalized. Spared from the Death March, he remained in the hospital for a few weeks, was transferred to Bilibid Prison and then to Cabanatuan. Later in 1942, Wills was moved to Davao Penal Colony; in June 1944, he was placed on a prison ship and taken out of Mindanao when a US submarine torpedoed it (this was the Shinyo Maru); Wills and several other prisoners were able to escape and join the guerrillas.
Over two thirds of the book details Wills’ activities on Mindanao, particularly life with the guerrillas and offensive operations from late 1944 until the end of the war. He was active in guerrilla campaigns in Misamis, Malabang, Dipolog and other areas, and helped advancing US infantry by pinpointing Japanese positions from the air.
Creator
Wills, Donald H.
Myers, Reyburn W.
Publisher
Jefferson, NC : McFarland & Co., c1992
Date
1992
Format
24 x 16 cm.
Type
Hardbound
Identifier
899507603
Call Number
D 767.4 .W55 1992
Accession Number
13611
Pagination
xvii, 169 p.
Illustration
ill., maps
Files
Collection
Citation
Wills, Donald H. and Myers, Reyburn W., “The sea was my last chance : memoir of an American captured on Bataan in 1942 who escaped in 1944 and led the liberation of Western Mindanao / by Donald H. Wills ; with Reyburn W. Myers,” FHL-Roderick Hall, accessed November 11, 2025, https://fhl.omeka.net/items/show/586.