Roy Matsumoto
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Roy Hiroshi Matsumoto (May 1, 1913 – April 21, 2014) was an American soldier of World War II. A Nisei, Matsumoto was born in Laguna, California. When he was 8, his parents sent him to live with his grandparents in Hiroshima, Japan. He returned to California nine years later, attending and graduating from Long Beach Polytechnic High School in 1933. He remained in Long Beach when his parents took his brothers and sisters back to Hiroshima.
Matsumoto was interned with other Japanese-Americans in the Jerome, Arkansas concentration camp at the beginning of the Second World War. In 1942, he volunteered for the United States Army. He served as a Japanese-language intelligence specialist with Merrill's Marauders in the Burma Campaign during World War II, earning a Bronze Star and the Legion of Merit. Matsumoto remained in the Army for 20 years, retiring after a career in military intelligence as a master sergeant in 1963. At the time of his death, he lived with his wife on San Juan Island, Washington.
In 1993, Matsumoto was inducted into the U.S. Army Rangers Hall of Fame and four years later was inducted into the Military Intelligence Corps Hall of Fame. Matsumoto received the Congressional Gold Medal, along with other surviving Nisei World War II veterans, in November 2011. He turned 100 in May 2013[1] and died in April 2014.[2]
See also[]
References[]
- ^ "Timeline" (PDF). History. Honor & Sacrifice: The Roy Matsumoto Story. May 2013. Retrieved 2013-06-08.
- ^ "One hundred years of 'Honor'; WWII war hero Matsumoto dead, at age 100 - Journal of the San Juan Islands". Sanjuanjournal.com. 2013-04-24. Retrieved 2014-04-25.
External links[]
- Japanese Americans Veterans Association biography of Matsumoto
- Go For Broke National Education Center biography of Matsumoto
- [1]
- "Densho interview links: Roy Matsumoto". Retrieved 2021-06-15.
- 1913 births
- 2014 deaths
- American centenarians
- American military personnel of Japanese descent
- Japanese-American internees
- Men centenarians
- Recipients of the Legion of Merit
- United States Army personnel of World War II
- United States Army Rangers
- World War II United States Army personnel stubs