Dean E. Stover with medals, Salina

It is a story right out of the movie “Raiders of The Lost Arc”. Dean E. Stover of Salina was a Marine Lieutenant leading his platoon down a jungle path in Guadalcanal when suddenly a Japanese officer jumped out in front of him brandishing a sword. He was only a few feet away striking at Dean with the sword. Dean ducked, pulled his .45 caliber pistol out and fired three times killing him. It was an unnerving close call and it was the Japanese officer’s last desperate attack knowing he would die.

The Japanese officer was the last of a detachment that had attacked the E Company (of the 1st Marine Division, 2nd Battalion, 1st Regiment) that previous night. The Japanese had parachuted in the day before from Rabaul, Capitol of New Britain Island, Papua New Guinea. Dean’s platoon set up a perimeter defense where the Tenaru River exited into the ocean. There was a 25 to 30 foot wide sand bar where they put barbwire up and set up machine guns. The F platoon flanked them on their right. The Japanese battalion -sized force named the Ichiki Detachment attacked the Marines across the river sand bars at night and shooting started. They failed attempting to cross the river. The next morning revealed the multitude of dead Japanese piled up against the barbwire.

Dean picked up the sword to save for after the war. He took it to his beachside foxhole (covered by a tent) and kept it there. A few days later the E Company Commander sent for Dean to have a meeting. While there bombing started and after the meeting and returning to the beach, Dean found his foxhole had received a direct hit nearly destroying everything. The sword was damaged with two chunks taken out of the blade and the handle was nearly destroyed. After thanking God for preserving his life, Dean decided to still keep the sword. Years later he gave it to his daughter.

Dean was awarded the Bronze Star for seizing and holding the left flank of the battalion by setting up the perimeter defense in one of the weakest spots of the battalion defense perimeter. It ensured security for the entire landing team (and commended him for his “superb professional skill organizing the defense”) and proved to be a very successful operation.

Dean’s voyage to Guadalcanal started when he traveled to San Francisco where a convoy was formed for the Pacific trip, Dean’s platoon landed in Wellington, New Zealand where they were to train for a few months. In July they made practice jumps in the Fiji Islands and this became the time that Dean exercised strong leadership skills. Coming in for the landing on Higgins boats, he noticed F Company going over the side in deep water and struggling to get on shore. “I refused to allow my platoon to disembark”, he said. “We sat there for a short period and I felt I was probably in trouble”, he went on, “but the word came to call the landing off, so I got lucky”. From that point, training was cut short and he and his platoon were sent to Guadalcanal.

Dean was transported to Guadalcanal on the USS George F. Elliot (AP-13). After debarking, the ship continued to unload supplies and then had to move out due to repeated attacks. Unfortunately, one Japanese bomber, after being nearly shot down, veered into the ship sinking it. That meant all the E Platoon’s supplies went down with it. Dean and his men stayed on Guadalcanal until late December of 1941. Guadalcanal was the first major American offensive of World War II. Launched on August 7, 1942, this operation won the division its first of three World War II Presidential Unit Citations. After this first campaign they were sent to Melbourne, Australia for a rest.

The next campaign for Dean was Cape Gloucester on the island of New Britain, part of the Territory of New Guinea. Resting at Pavuvu followed that. Owned by a British company, the 600-acre island of palm trees. “It was filled with rats”, Dean said. Dean returned to Australia where he was promoted to Captain and took over the company. After his rest he participated in three more campaigns for a total of five campaigns before returning to the United States in 1945.

After returning to the United States he went to the Philadelphia Navy Yard to serve there. During his time there, he returned home to Salina and married his wife Betty. They are celebrating their 62nd wedding anniversary this year. He also was promoted to the rank of Major and then Lieutenant Colonel before being discharged and returning home.

Dean was born and raised on a farm between Salina and Avonmore. Graduating from Bell Township High School and Penn State University in 1940 with an accounting degree, he was 23 years old when he volunteered for the Marine Corps and Officers School. He was placed in the 7th ROTC class at Quantico, Virginia in 1941. When Pearl Harbor was attacked he was commissioned a Second Lieutenant and became First Platoon Leader of E Company. This was his rank all through the Guadalcanal campaign.

Dean and Betty have four children and reside in the Salina home his wife was raised in. They have four adult children. He is a member of the American Legion.

Be sure to watch the video interview of Dean Stover at: