DOB/DOD: October 28, 1919 (Northville, MI) – March 2, 1945; 25 years old
MARITAL STATUS: Unmarried
LOCAL ADDRESS: 398 Ocean Avenue, West Haven
ENLISTMENT: June 5, 1942, in Springfield, Massachusetts
SERVICE NUMBER: 403610
UNIT: Company A, 1st Battalion, 25th Marines, 4th Marine Division
MILITARY OCCUPATIONAL SPECIALTY: 0745, Rifleman and 0746, Automatic Rifleman
FAMILY: Born to Thomas F. (1890-1923) and Henrietta “Hattie” Barnes Dermody (1894-1922). Fourth born of six children. Siblings are Victor (1913-1972), sister Jessie (1915-1992), Virginia Dermody Muscott (1918-1985), Joseph (1920-2006), and Frederick (1922-1999).
OTHER: Their mother, Henrietta, died 20 days after Frederick was born of “General Septicemia.” It is unknown if his birth and her death are related. James Dermody and his brother Joseph were adopted by an Uncle and Aunt, Thomas and Mary Shanley of West Haven, Connecticut. The other four siblings were raised by a grandmother, Bertha E. Dermody (1860-1945), and an Aunt, Louise Dermody (1897-?), in Detroit, Michigan. 1, 2 James worked as a painter for Ernest Michel in Devon, Connecticut, prior to the service. 4
CIRCUMSTANCES: Boot camp at Parris Island, South Carolina. Training at Camp Lejeune, New River, North Carolina. Permanently assigned to the 4th Marine Division, 25th Marines, 1st Battalion. Participated in the battles on Saipan and Tinian. 5 Officially listed as “Died of Wounds.” The nature and severity of the wounds are unknown. PFC Dermody, Corporal James Duffy, Corporal John Moscoe of New Haven, PFC David Phaneuf of Taftville, and Private Richard Wilkinson Jr. of Waterbury were all in the same company. All were killed in action between February 19 and March 12, 1945.
Honored on a plaque at Painter’s Park, 251 Kelsey Avenue, West Haven, Connecticut. Photo by Jeff DeWitt.
Initially buried in the 4th Marine Division Cemetery on Iwo Jima, Plot 1, Row 18, Grave 877. At his family’s request, his remains were repatriated and buried in Rural Hill Cemetery, 215 West Seven Mile Road, Northville, Michigan; Section 2. 5 Photo from FindAGrave.com. 3
1 – 1930 census https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6224/
2 – 1940 census https://www.ancestry.com/cs/1940-census
3 – https://findagrave.com
4 – https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2238/
5 – USMC Casualty Card received via FOIA request
6 – USMC Muster Rolls: https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1089/