M1910 canteen used by PFC Michael Sofranoff, 4th Marines, while POW in Pacific War
notes: label: Description
content: Born in Waterloo, Iowa, Michael "Mike" Sofranoff (9 February 1916 – 3 October 1999) moved with his family to Gary, Indiana in 1937 where he found work at the Gary Works steel mill. Sofranoff enlisted in the Marine Corps on 1 August 1940. After completion of his basic training, in November he joined first duty station was in Shanghai, China with B Company, 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment. The regiment was evacuated from Shanghai on 28 November 1941 aboard the transport President Harrison and arrived at Olongapo, Philippines on 2 December 1941. Following the Imperial Japanese Navy’s attack on Pearl Harbor, at large portion of the 4th Regiment moved to the naval station at Mariveles. Later in December, Sofranoff was transferred to the island of Corregidor where he remained until its surrender on 7 May 1942. Taken prisoner, Private First Class Sofranoff was a POW in the Philippines until he and approximately 550 prisoners boarded the the Hell Ship Nagato Maru brought him and approximately 550 prisoners to Moji, Japan on 24 November 1942. Once disembarked, Sofranoff was held at the Umeda Bunsho branch prison camp in the Osaka area where he and other prisoners were employed by the Japanese as slave laborers, loading and unloading rail cars as stevedores for the Nippon Tsuun transport company. After the prison camp was destroyed by an American bombing raid, he and other prisoners moved on 20 May 1945 to the Tsuruga 20-B sub prison camp nearby. Liberated after the Japanese surrender on 2 September 1945, he boarded a ship back to the United States three days later. He returned home to his family in Indiana in October.
label: Description
content: Sofranoff kept a record of his overseas and wartime movements on his canteen, which remained with him until his discharge from the Marines in 1958 with the rank of Master Sergeant. The canteen is engraved on the front with the previous owner’s name, John A. Burns, USMC, followed by Sofranoff’s name. On the reverse, Sofranoff lists his periods of service overseas with the 4th Marines as follows:
label: Description
content: Shanghai – Nov. 14, 1940
label: Description
content: “ 28, 1941
label: Description
content: Olongapo – Dec. 2 – 7, 1941
label: Description
content: Marivales P.I. – Dec. 7 – 28, 1941
label: Description
content: Corregidor P.I. – Dec. 28, 1941
label: Description
content: May 25, 1942
label: Description
content: Cabanatuan P.I. “ “ “
label: Description
content: Nov. 6, 1942
label: Description
content: Manila P.I. to Osaka Japan
label: Description
content: Nov. 8 – 26, 1942
label: Description
content: Tsuruga, Japan – May 20, 1945
label: Description
content: Sept. 3, “
label: Description
content: War – End August 16, 1945
label: Description
content: Yokahama [sic] – Sept. 4-9, 1945
label: Description
content: San Fransisco [sic] – Oct. 2, “
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
setName: label: See more items in
content: Military and Society: Armed Forces History, Naval
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: AF.59406-N(14A)
label: catalog number
content: 59406-N(14A)
label: accession number
content: 260092
objectType: label: Object Name
content: canteen
physicalDescription: label: Measurements
content: overall: 8 in x 5 in x 3 in; 20.32 cm x 12.7 cm x 7.62 cm