DOB/DOD: August 25, 1926 (West Hartford, CT) – February 19, 1945; 18 years old
MARITAL STATUS: Unmarried
LOCAL ADDRESS: 22 Keeney Avenue, West Hartford
ENLISTMENT: April 19, 1944, in Hartford, Connecticut. Entered active duty on June 30, 1944, at 17 years old
SERVICE NUMBER: 569214
UNIT: 31st Replacement Draft, 5th Marine Division
MILITARY OCCUPATIONAL SPECIALTY: 0521, Basic Marine
FAMILY: Born to Samuel (1883-1957) and Alice Gardiner (1893-1977). Youngest of four children. Siblings are Yvonne Gardiner Barry (1913-2011), William (1919-2006), and Lorraine Gardiner Gilman (1921-2009). 1, 2
CIRCUMSTANCES: Boot camp at Parris Island, South Carolina, in the summer of 1944. Assigned to the Infantry Training Regiment, Camp Lejeune, then to the 31st Replacement Draft. 6 Killed by a wound to the right arm. 5
Hall High School, Class of ‘44
From The Hartford Courant on March 18, 1945
Private John S. Gardiner, 18, son of Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Gardiner, 22 Keeney Avenue, West Hartford, was killed in action on February 19, on Iwo Jima, according to word received from the War Department by his parents. A native of Hartford, Private Gardiner was a student at William Hall High School when he enlisted in the Marines on June 30, 1944. Trained at Parris Island, South Carolina, and New River, North Carolina, he was sent overseas in December and spent Christmas in Hawaii with his brother-in-law, Private First Class Michael J. Barry. Private Gardiner was a member of the Fleet Marine Force. Besides his parents, Private Gardiner leaves his grandmother, Mrs. Carrie G. Greene; two sisters, Mrs. Yvonne A. Barry, and Mrs. Lorraine A. Gilman of West Hartford; and one brother, Private First Class William H. Gardiner, who has participated in three major battles in the European area and is now in Luxembourg. A memorial service will be held in honor of Private Gardiner on Palm Sunday, March 25, at 4 p.m. at Christ Church Cathedral.
From The Hartford Courant on April 17, 1948
Funeral services for Private John Samuel Gardiner, who was killed in action in the Pacific on February 1, 1945, will be held Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. at Christ Church Cathedral. Burial will be in Fairview Cemetery, West Hartford. Private Gardiner is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Samuel J. Gardiner of 22 Keeney Avenue, West Hartford. The body will arrive in Hartford on Monday and will be taken to the Newkirk and Whitney Funeral Home, 776 Farmington Avenue. Friends may call at the funeral home after 7 p.m. Monday. A Marine Corps honor guard will be in attendance. Private Gardiner was a senior at William H. Hall High School when he enlisted in the Marine Corps in April 1944. He was called to active duty on July 1 of the same year. Less than a year after his enlistment, he was killed by a Japanese mortar shell on Iwo Jima. Besides his parents, he leaves two sisters, Mrs. M.J. Barry of East Hartford and Mrs. Walter H. Gilman of West Hartford, and a brother, William H. Gardiner of West Hartford.
From The Hartford Courant on June 2, 1948
A new flagstone pavement, the result of memorial gifts during the past year, has been laid at the Main Street entrance to Christ Church Cathedral. Funds for the pavement were given in memory of the late Samuel R. Colladay, the first dean of the cathedral, and of Private John S. Gardiner, who died in the Marine Corps during the Battle of Iwo Jima.
Memorialized with a plaque at the entrance to Christ Church Cathedral, 45 Church Street, Hartford, Connecticut. Photos contributed by Katherine Frisoli, Administrative Assistant to the Dean of Christ Church Cathedral.
Initially buried in the 5th Marine Division Cemetery on Iwo Jima, Plot 2, Row 8, Grave 448. At his mother’s request, his remains were repatriated and buried on April 20, 1948, in Fairview Cemetery, 200 Whitman Avenue, West Hartford, Connecticut; Section 1, Lot 196S, Grave 1. 5Photo by Jeff DeWitt.
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.cemeteryfind.com/PublicSearch/BurialSearch
5 – USMC Casualty Report received via FOIA request
6 – USMC Muster Rolls: https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1089/