DOB/DOD: November 3, 1923 (Rapino, Italy) – March 2, 1945; 21 years old
MARITAL STATUS: Unmarried
LOCAL ADDRESS: 45 Dean Street, Stamford
ENLISTMENT: December 14, 1942, in Springfield, Massachusetts
SERVICE NUMBER: 505931
UNIT: Company B, 1st Battalion, 25th Marines, 4th Marine Division
MILITARY OCCUPATIONAL SPECIALTY: 0521, Basic Marine; and 0522, Guard
NOTE: The last name is misspelled in some resources as “Rottunno.”
FAMILY: Born to Carmine (1891-1965) and Maria Amoroso Rotunno (1898-1981), both born in Italy. Siblings are Rose Rotunno Frangione (1926-1994), George (1928-), and Gloria Jean (1942-). 1 Worked at the New York, New Haven, and Hartford Railroad Company in New York City prior to the service. 2
CIRCUMSTANCES: Boot camp at Parris Island, South Carolina, in early 1943. Assigned to the Naval Supply Depot in Bayonne, New Jersey, from April 1943 to April 1944. PFC Frank Senick from Seymour, Connecticut, was stationed with PFC Rotunno in New Jersey. They would both be reassigned to different infantry units and were killed in the battle on the same day, March 2. 4 Died from wounds to his back. 3
Photo of this painting contributed by Roberta DeCicco.
Photo contributed by Roberta DeCicco.
Telegram contributed by Roberta DeCicco. She said, “Attached is the telegram that a Marine delivered to my grandmother’s house that said her son was killed in Iwo Jima. My father, George Rotunno, saw the Marine walking up the street. He walked past their house, then he came back down the street to my grandmother’s house, and my father met the Marine who then gave him the telegram.
From The Stamford Advocate, March 31, 1945; contributed by Ellen Sullivan, Senior Reader Services Librarian, The Ferguson Library, One Public Library Plaza, Stamford
War casualties announced today include a Stamford Marine killed in action on Iwo Jima… Private First Class Robert A. Rotunno, USMC, 45 Dean Street. The death of Private First Class Rotunno in the historic battle for Iwo Jima has been reported by the War Department to his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Carmine Rotunno of 45 Dean Street. The Marine was killed on March 2nd. Private Rotunno was born in Italy 21 years ago. He came to Stamford when he was an infant. He attended Rogers School and Stamford High School and took employment with the New Haven Railroad. He was a member of the Italian Choral Club. Rotunno entered the service voluntarily on January 13, 1943, and went first to the Marine Corps training school at Parris Island, where he received basic training. He was then transferred in turn to Bayonne, New Jersey, and New River, North Carolina, finally reaching San Diego from where he left for overseas in June of 1944. The young Marine was a member of the Fourth Division and was a veteran of Saipan and the fighting in the Marshals. A letter written to his mother on January 27th spoke of his being transferred to another theatre of operations, which he could not name. Besides his parents, Private First Class Rotunno is survived by his brother George and three sisters: Rose, Louise, and Gloria Jean Rotunno.
Memorialized on the Stamford Veterans Memorial, 138 Atlantic Street, Stamford, Connecticut.
Initially buried in the 4th Marine Division Cemetery on Iwo Jima, Plot 1, Row 27, Grave 1316. At his mother’s request, his remains were repatriated and buried on April 29, 1948, in St. John’s Cemetery, 191 Hoyt Street, Darien, Connecticut, Block 54, Lot 51. 3 Photo by Jeff DeWitt.
Only one grave separates PFC Rotunno from PFC William Malizewski, who also died in the Battle of Iwo Jima.
1 – 1940 census https://www.ancestry.com/cs/1940-census
2 – https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2238
3 – USMC Casualty Report received via FOIA request
4 – USMC Muster Rolls: https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1089/