Bradley, John Henry

1923 - 1994  (70 years)    Has 20 ancestors but no descendants in this family tree.

• Name	Bradley, John Henry
  Born	10 Jul 1923	Antigo, Langlade, Wisconsin, USA
  Gender	Male
  Education - High School	1941	Appleton, Outagamie, Wisconsin, USA
  Appleton High School Class of 1941
  Education - High School	1941	Appleton, Outagamie, Wisconsin, USA   [1]
  Appleton High School Class of 1941
  Military Service	Bef 1946
  WWII,
  	Bradley, John Military
  Biography	Bef 1994
  by Kit and Morgan Benson
  Iwo Jima Flag Raiser. During the Battle for Iwo Jima he was a US Navy Corpsman (Pharmacist's Mate Second Class) assigned to E Company, 2nd Battalion, 28th Marine Regiment, 5th Marine Division, and one of six men who were immortalized in Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal's photo of the US Flag raising on Mount Suribachi, Iwo Jima, just after noon on February 23, 1945, for which Rosenthal was awarded the Pulitzer Prize. The six men were Corporal Harlon Block, Private Rene Gagnon, Private Ira Hayes, Private Franklin Sousley, Sergeant Mike Strank, and US Navy Corpsman John Bradley. Author James Bradley described his life's story in the bestseller, "Flags of Our Fathers" (2000). The flag in the famous photo is the second US flag raised over Mount Suribachi; the first flag was raised there at 10:20 am by Sergeant Henry Hansen, Platoon Sergeant Eugene Thomas, Corpsman John Bradley, Private Philip Ward, Private James Michels and Corporal Chuck Lindberg, and photographed by Sergeant Lou Lowery. Corpsman John Bradley is the only one in both flag raising photos. Born in Antigo, Wisconsin, the son of James J. and Kathryn Bradley, he moved with his family to Appleton, Wisconsin where he grew up. His father worked as a railroad engineer. In 1942, as World War II raged, 19 year old Jack enlisted into the US Navy, to become a medical technician, happy to have what he thought would be a non-combat job. Following training, he was assigned to the Navy Medical Hospital in San Francisco. In January 1944, he was sent to the Marine Corps Field Medical School to become a corpsman. After completing the school, he was assigned to the 5th Marine Division, then forming up at Camp Pendleton, California, and slated for the upcoming invasion of Iwo Jima. The Invasion of 70,000 marines landed on February 19, 1945, on the south side of the island, with Bradley landing at Green Beach, closest to Mount Suribachi. On the second day of the invasion, Bradley was pinned down with his unit under heavy enemy fire when an unidentified marine was cut down by crisscrossing Japanese machine guns and mortar fire. Braving the intense enemy fire, Bradley ran thirty yards over exposed bare ground to reach the downed marine, inserting plasma to save his life, then covered the wounded marine with his own body to protect him from fire while the plasma dripped into the downed marine. When the plasma bottle finally emptied, Bradley then carried the wounded marine back to safety, an action for which he was later presented the Navy Cross (second highest award for valor). On the fourth day of the invasion, the Marines captured Mount Suribachi and raised the American flag. Following the capture of Mount Suribachi, the 28th Regiment was redeployed to continue the attack along west coast of the island. Bradley was hit by Japanese shell fire on March 12, while aiding other wounded Marines. Ignoring his own wounds, he helped another wounded marine to the aid station, where doctors there noticed his own severely damaged legs. Despite his protests to remain with his unit, Bradley was immediately air evacuated to Guam and then to Hawaii; his war was over. Upon his return to the US at the end of the war, Bradley left the military to return to Antigo, where he married his high school sweetheart, Elizabeth Van Grop, and became a funeral director. He and Betty would have eight children. He refused to discuss the war, and refused to participate in the fame that would be directed to the Flag Raisers. Whenever told he was a war hero, he would always tell his praisers that the real heroes were the men who didn't come back. His family only learned of his Navy Cross and Purple Heart medals, and the details of his role in the raising of the flag after his death. In one of his very few comments about the flag raising, he stated: "It took everyone on that island and the men on the ships offshore to get the flag up on Suribachi." (bio" target="_blank">http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=mr&MRid=46483611">(bio by: Kit and Morgan Benson)
  Died	11 Jan 1994	Antigo, Langlade, Wisconsin, USA
  Obituary	12 Jan 1994
  Appleton Post Crescent
  Section B, Page 6
  Buried	Queen Of Peace Cemetery, Antigo, Wisconsin, USA
  Person ID	I188221	1FamilyTree
  Last Modified	11 Oct 2017

  
  

  Father	Bradley, James,   b. 27 May 1894, Ironwood, Gogebic, Michigan, USA ,   d. 31 Dec 1953, Appleton, Outagamie, Wisconsin, USA  (Age 59 years)
  Mother	Kamps, Kathryn,   b. 7 Sep 1895, Appleton, Outagamie, Wisconsin, USA ,   d. 27 Nov 1961, Appleton, Outagamie, Wisconsin, USA  (Age 66 years)
  Family ID	F45064	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Vangorp, Elizabeth,   b. 23 Jan 1924, Appleton, Outagamie, Wisconsin, USA ,   d. 12 Sep 2013, , , New Hampshire, USA  (Age 89 years)
  Married	4 May 1946	Appleton, Outagamie, Wisconsin, USA
  Last Modified	14 Sep 2013
  Family ID	F42703	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Event Map	Load the map	Born - 10 Jul 1923 - Antigo, Langlade, Wisconsin, USA Education - High School - 1941 - Appleton, Outagamie, Wisconsin, USA Education - High School - 1941 - Appleton, Outagamie, Wisconsin, USA Married - 4 May 1946 - Appleton, Outagamie, Wisconsin, USA Died - 11 Jan 1994 - Antigo, Langlade, Wisconsin, USA Buried - - Queen Of Peace Cemetery, Antigo, Wisconsin, USA  = Link to Google Earth
  Pin Legend	: Address       : Location       : City/Town       : County/Shire       : State/Province       : Country       : Not Set

  
  

• Photos » Slide Show

  
  

• Sources

  [S1399] Appleton High School Class of 1941 Clarion Yearbook, (Appleton High School Class of 1941 Clarion Yearbook). 188221 - Appleton High School Class of 1941