Semper Fi and Semper Fido: ‘Always Faithful’ at the National Museum of the Marine Corps
BY KITTY L. | SHIROOKAMI - DOGS.UNITE | 10.30.2021
Each time I go down I-95, it looms ahead. The behemoth of a structure poking out from behind the trees, in the form of a massive pyramid-like edifice. As the sky darkens, it brightens. A sign that I’m almost home.
Within its glass walls, the National Museum of the Marine Corps takes guests down a series of exhibits chronicling the history of the Marines. The museum itself resembles the flag being raised over Iwo Jima during World War II. Behind the Museum is the Semper Fidelis Memorial Park, wherein a peaceful chapel is nestled in the gardens, further enclosed by forests and trails.
While there are so many extraordinary features that I admire within the Marine Corps Museum, there is one tale in particular I would like to highlight today. Walking through Memorial Park, Stella noticed the figure of a fellow dog, a red poppy placed between his paws.
“[Major Richard Tonis] offered me a jeep and told me to take the dog to the graves registration detail on the beach. The dog was a Marine, by God, and he deserved to be buried in the cemetery with the rest of the Marines.”
- Excerpt from Willam Putney’s “Always Faithful”
The bronze statue is alert, against the backdrop of the Museum, watchfully gazing towards the chapel. This is the immortalization of Kurt, a brave war dog who saved hundreds of Marines during World War II. His statue represents the National War Dog Museum, the first of its kind.
Kurt was one of 25 Marine war dogs who lost their lives in the Battle of Guam in 1944. The war dogs of the 2nd and 3rd War Dog Platoons, Doberman Pincers, bravely dashed into caves to detect traps set by the enemy, as well as explosives and hidden enemies. The war dogs also protected Marines, carrying medical supplies, and guarding the soldiers when sleeping they needed to rest in the trenches.
Together, these dogs executed a total of 450 patrols, assisting in the dispatch of 301 enemy soldiers to the loss of one Marine. According to William Putney, Virginia native and CO of the 3rd Wardog Platoon, Kurt and his handler were crucial in detecting the approach of the enemy who was greater in number.
In his book, Always Faithful, he writes, “[Allen Jacobson and Kurt] had been scouting in front of an advancing unit of the 21st Marines when Kurt alerted to a Japanese soldier in the bush. Jacobson told Kurt to stay while he snuck up to, and killed with his carbine, that Japanese soldier and another who sprang up beside him. It was then the mortar shell had burst near them.”
Jacobson and Kurt were fired upon. Hand grenades were lobbed against the pair. Chaos ensued, but Americans emerged victorious. Had Kurt and Jacobson not noticed the well-hidden enemy, the Marines climbing the hill over the beachhead would have missed the secret outpost and marched straight into the Japanese force, who had a surplus of 100 men.
However, Jacobson and Kurt suffered greatly. On the Marine and war dog, Putney stated, “One of the other units had been less lucky. In a stretcher jeep, just in front from the field, lay a dog that had been hit by a mortar blast. The handler, also wounded badly, refused to be evacuated until he was assured that the Marines would bring his dog to the vet.”
Kurt was mortally wounded. Putney, who desperately tried to save Kurt amidst the fog of war, recalled the brave war dog’s final moments.
“Kurt had a wedge-shaped hole in his back about three inches wide, strangely with very little blood. The shrapnel and blast had sealed the vessels… During the night, Kurt began to have convulsions from the pressure of the swollen back muscles forcing themselves against his spinal cord, so I added Nembutal to the IV to sedate him. […] Sixteen-inch shells were still coming in from battleships offshore and shaking the earth as they hit. To protect Kurt’s fragile back from the impact. I gathered him in my arms. At 3 A.M., Kurt stopped breathing.”
At that moment, the legacy of Kurt and his canine comrades laid the foundation for the War Dog Memorial.
“[Major Richard Tonis] offered me a jeep and told me to take the dog to the graves registration detail on the beach. The dog was a Marine, by God, and he deserved to be buried in the cemetery with the rest of the Marines. […] I told Ski and Quillen to wrap Kurt in a poncho and take him to the cemetery. If anyone gave them any trouble, they were to look for Major Tonis. It was the beginning of what would become Guam’s Marine War Dog Cemetery.”
Because of the efforts of the Marines that day, America was able to regain control of its lost territory and provide an operational base for strategic bombers that would eventually help end the bloodshed once and for all. For a time, the war dogs were forgotten, being buried underneath jungle overgrowth that was wrecked by typhoons over the years. But Putney fought hard to bring their remains home and bury them with a 21-gun salute at Orote Point 50 years later.
Putney also brought about the creation of the memorial we see today. Designed by Susan Bahary Wilner, the bronze statue was originally placed in the United States Marine Corps War Dog Cemetery in Guam. An original casting of the monument was donated by General Mundy, 30th Commandant of the Marine Corps.
Kurt was the first war dog casualty from the two platoons. Others followed him, and harbored a deep relationship with their handlers and their fellow Marines. Their names are forever inscribed.
KURT
SKIPPER
NIG
MISSY
BLITZ
BURSCH
YONNIE
PONCHO
PRINCE
CAPPY
ARO
PEPPER
KOKO
TUBBY
FRITZ
DUKE
SILVER
LUDWIG
BUNKIE
HOBO
EMMY
MAX
BROCKIE
RICKE
TAM
I'll never know if Stella understood the gravity of the monument. But I do know if she had met them, that they would be united in their dedication and devotion to the ones they called friends.
