#35. Legacy of Valor: A Family’s Stand on Corregidor

Episode 35 – Vicente & Marcos Mocorro – Episode Script

Cold Open
[Narrator] The familiar drone of aircraft gradually intruded itself into Marcos Mocorro’s consciousness. The 22-year-old coast artilleryman, with dark skin, hair, and eyes, stood with the 155 mm guns in Battery Morrison on a hill overlooking the channel separating Bataan Peninsula and Corregidor Island.
He looked up as the aircraft appeared, shading his eyes from the later-morning sun, and saw a large V-formation of Japanese bombers and Zero fighter planes. It was an impressive sight, and Marcos pitied the people who would be target of such a large formation. Around him, other servicemen ran to higher, less tree-covered ground to get a better view of the planes – and perhaps their target.

[Narrator] a fellow private asked?
[Private] “Cavite again? Maybe Manila even? Maybe the Japanese haven’t heard the military’s leaving the city and want to destroy it.”
[Narrator] Marcos shrugged. To him, the planes didn’t seem to be headed toward Manila. Perhaps they were going to Bataan? His friend seemed to mistake his silence for concern.
[Private] “Not to worry, though. This is the rock. If they dare attack us, they won’t get much. Even our barracks are bomb proof.”
[Narrator] But as the other man spoke, Marcos could see the planes weren’t headed for Bataan or Cavite or Manila – no that large V formation was heading their way. The planes broke into smaller groups, increased their speed, and started their runs over Corregidor Island.
Shrill whistling filled the air as 250- and 500-pound bombs fell to earth, exploding on impact and sending shrapnel flying. Men who had sought a better look now scrambled for cover. Marcos ran for cover in the battery’s thick, concrete shelter, covering his ears which were ringing with the bombs’ heavy concussions.
The Japanese fighter planes swooped down, strafing any visible servicemen and other targets. To Marcos, the planes were so low, they seemed on level with the treetops.
But the Filipino and US forces on Corregidor Island weren’t about to let this pass without a fight. Marcos heard the Corregidor anti-aircraft guns come to life with their pop, pop, pop as fired rounds attempted to hit the high-altitude bombers. Overhead, an impact, an explosion, and then a bomber whined as it plummeted to the sea. Servicemen manning 50-calibur Machine guns fired at the low fighter planes, sending several into the water as well.
2 hours later, the final bombers now distant specs on the Philippine horizon, Marcos emerged from his shelter. The air was eerily quiet as he surveyed the damage.
Turns out, Corregidor Island was not bomb proof.
This is Left Behind.

Podcast Welcome
Welcome to “Left Behind,” a podcast about the people left behind when the US surrendered The Philippines in the early days of WW2. I’m your host and researcher, Anastasia Harman. My great-grandfather Alma Salm was one of the POWs, and his memoir inspired me to tell the stories of his fellow captives.
If you appreciate this podcast and believe it’s important for people to know this relatively unknown part of WW2 history, please consider sharing it with a friend. Word of mouth is the main way people find new podcasts, and by sharing, you’re helping to keep these important stories alive.
In this episode, we’re crossing from Bataan to Corregidor Island and stepping back in the war timeline a bit – the first weeks of WW2 on the island fortress. We’ll meet a Filipino father and son who served in the same Coast Artillery unit on the island before and during the war. Helping me tell their story is Jesse Mocorro, who is the son and grandson of these two men.
So, without further ado, let’s jump in.

POW’s Life Story
Before the War
[Narrator] Vicente Mocorro was born in May 1886 on the small, picturesque island of Biliran, nestled in the southern half of the Philippine archipelago. A mountainous island, Biliran has largely relied on fishing for its economy, as well as rice production in its lowlands. This island, which lies just one kilometer off the shore of Leyte, the Philippines' 8th largest island, was home to a population of around 20,000 souls at the time of Vicente's birth. Like most of the inhabitants, Vicente's family was devoutly Catholic.
In November 1910, 24-year-old Vicente, who stood at 5’5” inches with brown skin and eyes and black hair, gave up a teaching career and enlisted in the United States Army. (At that time, as you’ll recall, The Philippines was already a colony of the United States.) I have very few details about Vicente’s early years in the Army. He obviously served during WWI, but I do not believe he left The Philippines Islands, although later newspapers describe him as a WWI veteran.
By 1919, Vicente had married a Filipina named Bernardina Paliete and was living in the city of Angeles, located about 52 miles/84 km northwest of Manila, on Luzon Island (The Philippines largest island). I suspect the Mocorro’s lived in Angeles because it was close to Ft. Stotsenberg and the adjoining Clark Field, which were large US Army locations.
The couple’s son Marcos Mocorro was born there on June 29, 1919.
Roughly 5 years later, in July 1924, the US Army created the 91st Coast Artillery as part of the Philippine Scout units. The Philippine Scouts were US Army units made up of highly trained Filipino servicemen with American officers. Vicente became part of this Unit, joining Battery A, which was assigned to Ft. Mills on Corregidor Island.

Ft. Mills had been built in the mid-1910s as part of the United States’ coastal defenses of Manila Bay.
Corregidor Island sits within the roughly 12-mile-wide entrance to Manila Bay. The island is 4 miles long and roughly 1 mile wide (at its widest point). It’s shaped like a tadpole swimming, with a 1 to 1.5-mile diameter rough circle on one end, and a 2.5 to 3-mile skinny, tapering tail jutting off one end. (I’ve put some images and maps on Facebook and Instagram, so you can see what it looks like. I suggest taking a look, because we’ll be on Corregidor for the next several episodes.)
The islands “head” faces out of Manila Bay, into the south China Sea. The tail end points into the bay. To the island’s north is Bataan Peninsula, separated by a channel about 2 miles wide. To the south is about 8 or 9 miles of open bay entrance, with a few smaller islands that help protect the bay as well. (We’ll talk about those other islands in future episodes – they’ve got some interesting stories.)
Positioned as it is, Corregidor was a prime candidate for coastal defenses, and, starting in the mid-1910s, the US Army began fortifying the island with artillery to fend off any approaching naval enemies. And, actually, Corregidor had been an important bay defense well before the United States took control of the islands, as Spanish colonial leaders also saw and utilized its strategic importance.

The island fort, which the servicemen came to call “The Rock,” is divided into 3 sections: Topside, Middleside, and Bottomside.
Topside and Middleside were both located in the “tadpole head” portion of the island. This area was at a high elevation, with steep cliffs and ravines dropping into Manila Bay. In time, these areas came to include officers’ quarters and enlisted barracks, a hospital, a movie theater, a couple of schools, numerous gun batteries, underground Army headquarters, a fortified communications center (also underground), and a golf course…for the officers.
There is a large drop in elevation where the tadpole head portion connects to the “tadpole tail” portion. The connection point is at sea level and is called Bottomside. This Bottomside area was a flat, narrow section of land at sea level. There was a small town at Bottomside, as well as a couple of docks so that Naval and other ships could dock on both the north and the south sides of Bottomside.
Next, the island slopes up again to Malinta Hill. Inside this hill, the US Army created a system of labyrinth-like tunnels, appropriately called the Malinta Tunnel. These tunnels cut through the base of the hill with a main tunnel running east to west, and multiple branches off the main tunnel. By the start of WW2, the tunnel system had a hospital as well as headquarters and barracks for various military branches.
The remaining couple miles of “tail” beyond Malinta Hill is hilly with beaches and jungle. It includes a small airstrip and a few gun batteries.

On November 6, 1937, Vicente’s 18-year-old son Marcos enlisted as a Private in Vicente’s unit – Battery A, 91st Coast Artillery. Vicente’s grandson, Jesse Mocorro told me:
[Jesse] “At the time he was, he was a Sergeant. I think they were one of the few who had a father and son in a unit.”
[Narrator] I read that sergeants in the Philippine Scouts were responsible for recruitment. So perhaps Vicente saw Marcos’s potential and encouraged him to enlist. Young Marcos was 5”5’ tall and weighed 115 pounds. He had attended high school for 3 years.
Marcos’s son Jesse recalled:
[Jesse] “Before the war, he was in high school, and he ran track. That’s one thing I remember from talking to him. And he liked to play in a band. He was a drummer at the time before he went into the service.”

[Narrator] In the US Army, artillery units are called batteries, which is equivalent to a company in infantry and other units. The battery grouping of men is also responsible for a specific group or grouping of artillery pieces – which is also called a battery.
As a single enlisted man, Marcos lived in barracks in Corregidor’s Middleside area with his fellow battery members. A new private, Marcos received training on small arms, beach defense maneuvers, machine guns, and the larger artillery guns/cannons. The various batteries of the 91st Coast Artillery held annual target practice competitions, complete with a coveted trophy. I haven’t found whether Battery A ever won the trophy. Jesse Mocorro has had opportunities to retrace his father and grandfather’s steps on the island:
[Jesse] I got a chance to visit Corregidor in 2012 and 2018. And I went to the same barracks where he lived, where the 91st were stationed at. I got to see all the artillery pieces and all that.”

[Narrator] In the years before WW2, Battery A had three responsibilities: lay and operate the mine fields surrounding Corregidor, maintain that mine equipment, and man the artillery guns in Battery Morrison, located on the northern side of the island’s head. Corregidor had more than a dozen physical batteries, the majority located on the island’s head.
Battery A was part of the Submarine Mine Command, which was tasked with planting mines in the channels north and south of Corregidor Island to help protect Manila Bay’s entrance. The Army’s mine fields were controlled mines, rather than contact mines. This meant that mines were manually operated from a remote point, although they could be set to explode on contact. Historian George Munson wrote:
[Munson] “The mine casemate was located in James Ravine. It contained the switches for detonating the mines. The mine fields were observed from a … control station… They had a grid of the minefields with the locations of the mines. As an enemy ship passed over the fields, they would relay the location to personnel in the mine casemate who would throw switches to detonate the mines. … The mine fields facilitated the defense of Corregidor from surprise attacks from fishing boat and disguised merchant ships.”
[Narrator] Battery A worked from June through August 1941 to install these mine fields.

During the War
[Narrator] Corregidor Island was not one of the Japanese military’s primary targets during the first weeks of WW2. Vicente, Marcos, and other members of Battery A experienced their first air raid siren on December 8, the day Japan first attacked The Philippines, but…no enemy planes appeared over the island and no bombs dropped.
And while Japan fought their way toward Manila and the rest of Allied forces on Luzon (the island where Manila is located) withdrew to Bataan Peninsula, Battery A remained on Corregidor and was hard at work with something else: replanting those mine fields.
You see, a mine expert on Gen. MacArthur’s staff arrived on Corregidor in mid-December and discovered that many of the mines the 91st had laid the summer before were inoperative because of corroded cables that operating them. Thus, members of Battery A spent much of December replanting the mine fields.
In fact, some members of Battery A were in the process of replanting mines just before noon on December 29, 1941, when an air raid sounded on Corregidor. The men paid little attention – having become accustomed to sirens being precautionary rather than alerting to an actual threat. Eyewitnesses state that many of the more than 10,000 servicemen on the island moved to better positions from which to watch the large enemy V formation of 18 Japanese twin-engine heavy bombers and 19 Zero fighter planes – and speculate on the intended target – probably something near Manila or on Bataan. But the men were wrong – that large formation was headed for Corregidor.
Historian Lewis Morton wrote:
[Morton] “One officer in the concrete building on Topside which housed USAFFE headquarters mounted to the second floor for a clearer view of the proceedings. Hardly had he arrived there when he heard "an ominous, whirring whistle, which rapidly increased in crescendo." He made a wild jump for the stairway, later claiming that "the whistle of my descent must have rivalled that of the falling bomb." Others were equally surprised and displayed a tendency to head for the corners of the rooms where they fancied they were safer than elsewhere. Fortunately, windows and entrances had been sandbagged and broken glass caused few casualties.”
[Narrator] As the Japanese formation had neared the island, it broke into smaller groupings that passed over the full length of the island – from tail to head – and back again, dropping more than 50 225- and 500-pound bombs in half an hour. The first bombs hit the hospital (which, thankfully, was already empty) and splintered wooden structures that dotted Topside. The Japanese pilots focused on the headquarters buildings and barracks in the Topside and Middleside area – including the barracks occupied by Marcos and the other single men of Battery A. Some bombs tore through three floors of concrete before exploding, leaving massive craters.
The 4th Marines arrived on the island a day or two before and established themselves in those concrete Middleside Barracks. The Army men, perhaps including men of Battery A, 91st Coast Artillery, assured the Marines that the barracks were bombproof. A Marine officer later recalled:
[Officer] "A feeling of safety and security came over us as we reached the Rock. We were told it was impregnable, and that we had nothing to fear from Japanese attack."
[Narrator] So the Marines and Army servicemen in the barracks had paid little attention to the air raid warning -- thinking they were housed in bombproof barracks.
Then a bomb hit directly on the 2nd and 3rd floors. One man on the first floor heard the explosion, felt cement dust rain down on him, then looked up to see blue sky through the hole in the ceiling. Another officer remembered:
[Officer 2] "bombs screaming to earth with shattering explosions, the crack of [anti-aircraft] guns, the neat 'plop plop' of the AA shells bursting all over the sky . . . there we were, the whole regiment flat on our bellies on the lower deck of Middleside Barracks."
American and Filipino artillery forces scrambled to their gun Batteries. Not for nothing had they trained and practiced and honed their antiaircraft and machine-gun skills. An anti-aircraft division from Chicago brought down 3 Japanese bombers.
This initial attack lasted half an hour. But there was no respite because moments later, a second wave hit – this one with 22 Japanese light bombers and 18 dive bombers. The Light Bombers flew the same route, dropping bombs on the same military targets as the heavy bombers. The bombs destroyed the island’s Officer’s Club, leaving only the foundation as a testament to its prior existence. Bombs exploded corrugated iron buildings, sending metal fragments, as dangerous as bomb shrapnel, flying in all directions.
The dive bombers dropped 35-pound bombs from just 3,000 feet – to Marcos and Vicente, though, the planes seemed to be on level with the island’s trees. And fighter planes swooped low to strafe the island. But their low altitude meant gun batteries could hit them with .50-calibur machine guns; and they brought down at least 4 planes during strafing runs.
Marcos would later tell his son, Jesse, about the bombings:
[Jesse] “He talked about a lot of the bombings. When the Japanese aircrafts flew over the islands of The Philippines, Corregidor was one of the ones they hit quite often with their bombs. And then they had to go into the tunnels and hide for a while. And then back out into their battery location. He said that really hurt his ears, getting hit by the bombardment.”
[Narrator] The third wave of bombers came at 1 pm. 60 Japanese naval planes arrived and bombed the island and surrounding area for an hour. Altogether, the planes dropped about 60 tons of bombs during the 2 hours of attack.
Despite the intensity of the attack, relatively few targets of military importance on Corregidor were destroyed. A couple of gun batteries were damaged and the power, communications, and water lines as well – but the damage was rather minor and fixed within 24 hours. 20 Allied men were killed and 80 wounded.

After that initial bombing, attitudes on Corregidor changed – quickly. No longer were men running to get a better view of the enemy formation. As a couple of survivors put it:
[Captain] “All of us were too careless of bombs and bullets at first.”
[Colonel] “Now they all stampede for the nearest cover and get as far under it as possible.”
[Narrator] Vicente and Marcos had good reason to run for cover – over the next week they were bombed intermittently. Then, on January 2, Japanese air forces began a 5-day assault “during which hardly a yard of the island did not feel the effects of the enemy bombs.”
There was a pattern to these attacks. Photo Joe – the nickname Allied servicemen and women gave the Japanese reconnaissance plane – would circle over Corregidor for a time. At 12:30 the bombers arrived, flying above the reach of anti-aircraft guns, and bombed the island for 2 hours. Then they’d fly off.
The damage for this 5-day stretch of bombings was extensive. Two water tanks on Topside were eradicated, the docks and infrastructure at Bottomside, including the town there, were all but destroyed. A barge caught fire and drifted ashore into a diesel oil dump. The Fort Mills’ fire department couldn’t handle the bomb-created fires, and building materials, medical supplies, and many other needed items were destroyed when the wooden buildings they were housed in burned.
Then, on January 6 – the bombings stopped.
That was the day that fighting began on Bataan.
General Homma – the commander of all Japanese forces in The Philippines during this time – had expected to put Corregidor Island out of commission easily. But he was wrong; and by the time the Battle of Bataan began in early January –Japanese military command needed their air forces for attacks in Thailand.
Thus, for the next two months, Corregidor Island was left alone – for the most part. Occasional raids of 3-4 planes dive bombed or strafed the island. However, shots did continue to be fired at Corregidor. The Japanese moved their Coast Artillery guns into Cavite province, directly across the bay from Corregidor. And those artillery guns could reach Corregidor, although hits were sporadic and didn’t cause much damage.
No, the real issue was the annoyance factor. Historian J. Michael Miller wrote:
[Miller] “Japanese harassing artillery fires, conducted every 25-30 minutes throughout the night, caused the Marines to dub the annoying cannon ‘Insomnia Charlie.’”
With the majority of above-ground infrastructure damaged, life on Corregidor became almost mole-like with barracks, headquarters and nearly everything else moving underground. It was a monotonous existence – men were either preparing fortifications, repairing damage, or bored. And, food, medical and other supplies were becoming scarce.

The north-facing artillery batteries, however, did have something else to keep them busy – aiming for targets on Bataan, which you’ll recall was just a couple miles north of Corregidor. The men of Battery A moved two 155mm guns up a hill to form a new battery location called Stockade. From this position and Battery Morrison, they inflected heavy damage on Bataan.
The guns in Battery Morrison were in fixed positions, mounted on a concrete pedestal. I believe the guns at Battery Stockade were portable, ie, on wheels – since they were pushed up there (by trucks or tractors, at 28,000 pounds / 13,000 kilograms, they definitely weren’t pushed uphill by a human crew). Also I’ve found little additional information on Battery Stockade, I suspect, because it was created during the war and seems to have been destroyed not too long afterward.
The guns Battery A moved up the hill to Stockade were very likely WW1-era, French designed guns called “Canon de 155 GPF.” These guns had 20-foot (5.9-meter) long barrels, fired 155 mm shells (that’s 6.1 inches), and could fire 2 rounds per minute. They had a maximum firing range of around 12 miles (19 km). Thus, the Allied forces on Bataan could use the north facing Corregidor artillery (like Battery Morrison and Battery Stockade) to target and bomb Japanese positions on the peninsula.
Jesse recalls conversations about the war with his grandfather and father:
[Jesse] “They used to talk about fighting the Japanese and all that brought by conversation I had with them when he was still alive. He just talked about bits and pieces.”
[Narrator] One example of such fighting was during the so called “Naval Battalion’s” fight against Japanese invaders in southern Bataan in what became known as the Battle of the Points. On the night of January 25, the Naval Battalion asked the Corregidor artillery for help eliminating an enemy landing force on Longoskawayan Point, which is on the very southwestern part of Bataan and was well behind American lines.
The batteries began shelling at midnight and into the next day. This was “their first real shoot of the war,” because the enemy position was way out of the guns’ range before. It was also, apparently, “the first hostile heavy caliber American coast artillery fire since the Civil War.”
The artillery men had been impatiently waiting orders to open fire on the Japanese, and they showed how good their training was: They hit their targets dead on and a Bataan lookout reported that the first shells to hit Longoskawayan Point started such large fires he could no longer see the target.
A Japanese soldier later wrote:
[J. Soldier] “We were terrified. We could not see where the big shells or bombs were coming from; they seemed to be falling from the sky. Before I was wounded, my head was going round and round, and I did not know what to do. Some of my companions jumped off the [100-foot-tall] cliff to escape the terrible fire."
[Narrator] (BTW -- I cover the story of the Naval Battalion in episode 13 about Frank Bridget. It’s one of my all-time favorite WW2 stories about a little-known battle that may have prevented Bataan’s early demise.)

After Bataan fell on April 9, 1942, Japanese forces turned their full attention to Corregidor Island. The island was the last bastion of hope and freedom in The Philippines, the home of the Allied forces Philippine headquarters and top brass – and once it fell, all allied forces in The Philippines would surrender. For a month, the island was subject to constant artillery and aircraft bombardment.
But, on the morning of May 6, Japanese ground forces landed on the island. By mid-afternoon the American flag was lowered, replaced with a white flag.
Marcos and Vicente were now prisoners of war. And Jesse shares a unique story of his father’s actions that day:
[Jesse] “From what he told me, he said during the fall of Corregidor, he escaped and stole a Navy motorboat. And said, “By the time I reached the beach, it was full of Japanese.” And he said he got caught there. And was interred in a school for at least three weeks. And he said they fed us a bowl of rice and brown sugar. Only fed them twice a day.
“And then he escaped again. And then they captured him and put him in a jail. Kept him there for a month or something like that. And then he got transferred to Camp O'Donnell. They said you're not gonna run anymore. That's what he told me. He was laughing, explaining when he told me that. I saw his name there on the monument.”
[Narrator] I find it amazing that the Japanese didn’t kill Marcos for the escape attempts; other POWs were killed for much more minor infractions. And his experience during the early days as a POW was quite different from that of other Filipinos captured on Corregidor – including his father Vicente.

The Japanese soldiers rounded up all the American and Filipino POWs and marched them a couple miles to a beach location known as the 92nd Garage. The area had several “garages” which were actually sea planes hangers. The area was roughly the size of 13 American football fields, grouped together. And for the next 3 weeks, it became home to Vicente and the 11,000-14,000 American and Filipino POWs who were captured on Corregidor.
A shallow well was the only water source – and that went dry after a dozen or so bucketsful were drawn. The Japanese laid a small pipe to the area, but it offered little relief from the constant thirst. The Japanese didn’t give the POWs food, and POWs had to scrounge for what food supplies they already had and forage for more.
The POWs crowded together under small bits of canvas to escape the sun. Some POWs would stand in the sea water up to their necks, to escape the sun, in the little cove where the garage area met the water. POWs also bathed there. And many POWs also used the cove to relieve themselves. Soon the water was foul and polluted.
[Narrator] In early June, Vicente Mocorro and the other Filipino Corregidor POWs were sent to Camp O’Donnell. This is the camp where the Bataan Death March ended. It was a sick-infested camp with little water, shelter, and other basic needs. By the time Vicente and Marcos arrived there, the American Bataan Death March survivors had been transferred out of the camp.
Jesse recalled his father, Marcos, talking about Camp O’Donnell:
[Jesse] “He said he would get beat up by the Japanese. For one of the punishments, they would get two by fours and hit him in his back. Imagine getting hit by a two by four.”
[Narrator] The Japanese military decided to release all the Filipino POWs because they didn’t have the resources to house and feed them. I don’t know exactly when Marcos and Vicente were freed, but it would have been sometime in the later end of 1942 because by January 1943, all Filipino POWs who survived O’Donnell had been freed. Most of the POWs were sent to their hometowns.
Vicente’s post-release war-time experiences aren’t known.
[Jesse] “I couldn't find out much about my grandfather. He just mentioned they were captured and that was about it. They kind of lost touch during the war.
[Narrator] I haven’t been able to find information about Vicente’s war-time experiences either.
However, liberation for a determined man like Marcos didn’t include going back home. Jesse told me:
[Jesse] “He decided to enjoin the guerillas during the war. He said, ‘Oh, I just am with a bunch of former Filipino military or Scouts.’ He said they were led by some Americans or sometimes some Filipino officers.
“He said one time they tried to blow up a bank because the headquarters of the Japanese was on top of the bank. And at that time, He mentioned that my mother was working there, and he didn't know my mother at the time. She was a teller. And they try to blow the bank.
“I verified that with my mom. She said, ‘Yeah, I was at the bank your dad tried to blow up, I mean, the Japanese headquarters on top of this, tried to blow up.” They didn't want to hurt the civilians. So, they had to figure a way to take care of the Japanese on top of the second floor. So, they did something at night or something like that.
“The first time they tried it, they tried it during the daytime. But the second time they tried it, they did it at 10 at night. So, they limit civilian casualties.”
[Narrator] Neither Jesse nor I know where this bank was located or what guerilla group Marcos joined. That was a bit frustrating to Jesse:
[Jesse] “He didn't say a lot of locations where all that happened. Cause I was kind of curious too where that place was located and if it was still there or not. Because when I went back to the Philippines, I wanted to retrace some of the areas.”
[Narrator] Marcos remained with the guerillas until war’s end. And then he was given an option:
[Jesse] “They gave the former Filipino Scouts a chance to decide if they want to join the regular US Army or staying home at the regular Army or become civilians in the Philippines. My dad took the latter. He wanted to join the US Army.”

After the War & Legacy
[Narrator] Shortly after war’s end, Marcos met a bank teller who had worked at the bank his guerillas tried to blow up. She was 24-year-old Domeleta Mondoniedo.
[Jesse] “He saw her at some function or something like that and tried to, in those days, court her. Try to date her. He would take a guitar and go out there and serenade and all that. Which nobody does now.”
[Narrator] Well, his courting worked because on May 2, 1946, 27-year-old Marcos married Domeleta in Manila. The next year, their first child was born, they named him Jesse. And he, of course, is the son you’ve been hearing from throughout this episode.
After some time training in the United States, Marcos was sent to Korea where another war – or conflict as it was deemed – was waging. While there, a shell exploded near Marcos, and a piece of shrapnel embedded itself near his ear. The explosion also broke one of his thumbs, which caused a bone infection. He remained in a Korean field hospital for 2 months and returned to active duty.
After coming to the US, Marcos began going by the name Mark. On November 23, 1951, his wife, Domeleta, and their son Jesse arrived in San Francisco, enroute to Ft. Ord, where Mark was stationed at the time. Mark and his family spent the 1950s and 60s moving from station to station – including in Barstow, California, and in Germany.
[Jesse] He was a very nice dad when I was growing up. He was fatherly and enjoyed being with the children and my siblings when we were growing up. When he was deployed, my mom had to takeover as head of the household. When he came back from deployment, we all ran to my dad and did the normal thing, you know hugged him and were glad that he was home.
“We had to stay in New York city about a year and a half before we were sent over to be with my dad in Europe.
“I remember when my dad was supposed to be transferred to Fort Lewis. We came back from Germany, and we went to New York, and we drove from New York to Tacoma in the wintertime. The first time my dad did that and he said, ‘I'll never do it again.’”
[Narrator] In 1965, after nearly 28 years of military service, Mark retired from the US Army and took a civilian job at the Family Housing Division at Ft. Lewis and McChord AFB in Tacoma, Washington, where his family settled.
[Narrator] Mark was a determined man, but he also struggled with a familiar post-war issue:
[Jesse] “If he has a goal, he tries to attain it, if he can. I knew that when I was growing up with him. If he had a project or a task to do, he said, ‘I'm going to finish it.’ So, that's where I got mine too.”
“He suffered from PTSD most of his life. He was still recalling battle scenes and stuff like that.”

[Narrator] Back in 1947, two years after the war’s end, Mark’s father Vicente concluded his own military career, retiring from the US Army with the rank of Sergeant, after 37 years of service. A couple years after that, Vicente remarried. His first wife and Mark’s mother, Bernardina, had passed away sometime before 1945. 63-year-old Vicente married 44-year-old Vincinta Paliete in November 1949. Vincenta was Bernardina’s sister.
Twenty years later, in August 1967, Vicente's wife Vincenta arrived in Seattle, Washington. Her and Vicente’s daughter had come to the city the previous October. I don’t know when Vincente arrived, but he did immigrate to Seattle, Washington, where he would spend the remainer of his years.
In December 1975, Vicente wrote to the commanding officer of Ft. Lewis near Tacoma. A newspaper article reported, [37:55]
[Newspaper 1] "Mocorro, a retired Army sergeant, expressed his wish to be an Army Captain in a letter to . . . [the] commander of the 9th Infantry Division at Ft. Lewis…. [The commander] recognized officer timber in Sergeant Mocorro, and a dream came true."
[Narrator] On Friday, May 28, 1976, the beginning of Memorial Day weekend, 90-year-old Vicente attended a ceremony at Ft. Lewis. The local newspaper provided coverage:
[Newspaper 2] "By the time Vicente Mocorro retired from the Army in 1947, he had been a sergeant for 25 years. But he always wanted to be a captain. Friday, he got his wish. Mocorro, 90, not only got a pair of captain’s bars but also an appointment as an honorary battery commander."
[Narrator] Another article shared:
[Newspaper 3] "Vincente Mocorro … yesterday took command of his first artillery battery... For Mocorro, yesterday’s ceremony was the reward for a life devoted to the military, to a US Army he joined first in 1910 and from which he retired 29 years ago.
[Vicente] “I am very glad I can again serve my country.”
[Narrator] Vicente told the newspaper. He also told the paper that he planned to live to be 100 years old.
Nonetheless, time is unyielding, and on February 24, 1981, at the age of 94, Vicente succumbed to cardiac arrest at the VA Medical Center in Seattle, Washington. He was laid to rest at Calvary Cemetery in Seattle. His wife and 4 children, including Mark, survived him.

Around the time of his father’s death, 62-year-old Mark retired from his civilian job at Ft. Lewis. But retirement didn’t stop his work.
[Jesse] “He enjoyed working in the Filipino community. He started a lot of community organizations after he retired. He was involved with church. He helped build a church where we grew up at. He enjoyed doing volunteer work.”
[Narrator] Since the mid-1970s, Marcos had been involved with various Filipino and Philippine Scout societies, roles he increased participation in after his retirement.
He would become President of the Am-Fil Brotherhood Society, Commander of the American Ex-POW’s Tacoma Chapter, Commander of the Veterans of Foreign War Post #1428, and President of the Philippine Scout Heritage Society, Capt. Jose Calugas Chapter. (You may recall Capt. Jose Calugas’s story from Episode 19. Calugas was the only Filipino to receive the Medal of Honor during WW2.)
On October 4, 1997, 78-year-old Marcos passed away from lung cancer in his home in Lakewood, Washington, leaving behind a family of six children, ten grandchildren, and one great-granddaughter. Today he rests at Mt. View Memorial Park in Tacoma, alongside his beloved wife, Domeleta, who passed away a decade later in 2007.
Vicente and Mark Mocorro – a father and son who devoted much of their lives to the Coast Artillery’s motto – “We defend.” And after defending their homeland from atrocious invasion and imperial rule, came to the United States to live their version of the American dream.

Back on Corregidor in early 1942, while Mark and Vicente were manning the large artillery guns and assisting, as best they could, with the fight on Bataan from their remote location – the Corregidor Marines were hard at work setting up beach defenses in preparation for a ground invasion of the island.
More on that next time.
This is Left Behind.

Outro
Thanks for listening! You can find pictures, maps, and sources about Mark and Vicente Mocorro’s stories on the Left Behind Facebook page and website and on Instagram @leftbehindpodcast. The links are in the show description.
If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe so you’ll know when I drop a new episode and consider leaving a review wherever you listen to podcasts.
Left Behind is researched, written, and produced by me, Anastasia Harman.
- Voice overs by: Paul Sutherland, Mike Davis, and Tyler Harman
- Special thanks to: Jesse Mocorro for his time, information, and pictures – without which I could not have told his father and grandfather’s story.
- Dramatizations are based on historical research, although some creative liberty is taken with dialogue.
I’ll be back next time with the 4th Marines on Corregidor Island.

Sources
“91st Coast Artillery (TD)(Philippine Scouts) Regiment,” in “Coast Artillery Organizational History, 1917-1950, Part 1, Coast Artillery Regiments 1-196,” The Coast Defense Journal, 23:2, found online at Wayback Machine (archive.org), accessed 24 October 2023.
91st Coast Artillery Regt. (PS) Roster Apr. 1942 — Philippine Scouts Heritage Society, accessed 17 October 2023.
Anita Palicte Mocorro entry, “Washington, U.S., Petitions for Naturalization, 1860-1991,” database on-line, Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011, Original data: Idaho, Oregon, and Washington Petitions for Naturalization, 1932–1991. Records of the District Courts of the United States, RG 21. The National Archives at Seattle, Seattle, Washington, accessed 20 October 2023.
“Bataan Survivor Dies,” Seattle Daily Times, 27 February 1981, page 56, online at GEnealogyBank.com, accessed 18 October 2023.
Canon de 155 mm GPF - Wikipedia
Capt. Earl L. Sackett, “An Account of the Last Voyages of The USS Canopus,” manuscript, 1943, PDF transcript, online at American Ex-Prisoners of War, accessed 27 February 2023.
“Captain Decided to Live to 100,” 20 May 1976, Page 2, Columbian-Progress, Columbia, Mississippi, online at Newspapers.com, accessed 20 October 2023.
Col. William F. Prickett, USMC, “The Naval Battalion on Bataan” | United States Naval Proceedings, November 1960, Vol. 86/11/693, online at US Naval Institute, accessed 27 February 2023.
Dometela M Mocorro, 1951, "California, San Francisco Passenger Lists, 1893-1953," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KXHN-Z4K : 19 February 2021); citing San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States, NARA microfilm publication M1410 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); FHL microfilm 2,381,210.
Dometela M. Mocorro (1921-2007) - Find a Grave Memorial, accessed 17 October 2023.
Email conversation with Jesse Mocorro, 20 October 2023, in possession of Anastasia Harman.
George Munson, “The Mine Command: 91st Coast Artillery,” 91st C.A. (The Mine Command) (corregidor.org), accessed 24 October 2023.
Geroge Munson, “The Best of the Best: 91st Coast Artillery, Philippine Scouts,” 91st COASTAL ARTILLERY (PHILIPPINE SCOUTS) (corregidor.org), accessed 23 October 2023.
J. Michael Miller, “Corregidor” and “First Bombing” in “From Shanghai to Corregidor: Marines in the Defense of the Philippines,” online at From Shanghai to Corregidor: Marines in the Defense of the Philippines (Corregidor/First Bombing) (nps.gov)Louis Morton, “Chapter XXVII: The Siege of Corregidor,” in The War in the Pacific: The War in The Philippines (Washington, DC: Center for Military History, 1953), found online at https://history.army.mil/books/wwii/5-2/5-2_29.htm, accessed 24 October 2023.
Marcos P Mocorro, 1938, "United States, Enlisted and Officer Muster Rolls and Rosters, 1916-1939”; Vicente Mocorro entry, “U.S., World War II Prisoners of the Japanese, 1941-1945,” database online: Ancestry.com, Provo, Utah, 2010, original data: National Archives and Records Administration, World War II Prisoners of the Japanese File, 2007 Update, 1941-1945. ARC ID: 212383, World War II Prisoners of the Japanese Data Files, 4/2005 - 10/2007, ARC ID: 731002, Records of the Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor, Collection ADBC, ARC: 718969, National Archives at College Park. College Park, Maryland, accessed 20 October 2023.
Marcos P Mocorro entry, “U.S., World War II Prisoners of the Japanese, 1941-1945,” database online: Ancestry.com, Provo, Utah, 2010, original data: National Archives and Records Administration, World War II Prisoners of the Japanese File, 2007 Update, 1941-1945. ARC ID: 212383, World War II Prisoners of the Japanese Data Files, 4/2005 - 10/2007, ARC ID: 731002, Records of the Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor, Collection ADBC, ARC: 718969, National Archives at College Park. College Park, Maryland, accessed 17 October 2023.
Marcos Mocorro and Domeleta Mondoniedo entry, "Philippines Marriages, 1723-1957", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:HB3Z-MBW2 : 15 February 2020), accessed 17 October 2023.
Marcos P Mocorro, 1938, "United States, Enlisted and Officer Muster Rolls and Rosters, 1916-1939", atabase, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:68R7-XLTS : 28 January 2022), accessed 17 October 2023.
Marcos P Mocorro entry, “U.S., World War II American and Allied Prisoners of War, 1941-1946,” database online: Ancestry.com, Provo, UT, 2005, original data: World War II Prisoners of War Data File [Archival Database], Records of World War II Prisoners of War, 1942-1947, Records of the Office of the Provost Marshal General, Record Group 389, National Archives at College Park, College Park, Md., accessed 17 October 2023.
Marcos P Mocorro, 1939, "United States, Enlisted and Officer Muster Rolls and Rosters, 1916-1939", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:68RR-8Z6Z : 28 January 2022), accessed 17 October 2023.
Marcos P Mocorro, entry 6 Nov 1940, “US, World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946,” database online: Ancestry.com, Provo, Utah, 2005, original data: National Archives and Records Administration, Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, 1938-1946 [Archival Database], ARC: 1263923, “World War II Army Enlistment Records,” Records of the National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 64, National Archives at College Park, College Park, Maryland, accessed 17 October 2023.
Marcos P Mocorro entry, Sept 1950, “U.S., World War II Hospital Admission Card Files, 1942-1954,” database online: Lehi, Utah: Ancestry.com, 2019, original data: Hospital Admission Card Files, ca. 1970 - ca. 1970, NAID: 570973, Records of the Office of the Surgeon General (Army), 1775 – 1994, Record Group 12, The National Archives at College Park, MD, accessed 17 October 2023. (Note Marcos P Mocorro has two entries for September 1950 in the database. Each includes different diagnosis.)
Marcos P Mocorro entry, “U.S., Korean War Casualties, 1950-1957,” database online: Ancestry.com, Provo, Utah, 2005, original data: Korean War Casualty File, 2/13/1950-12/31/1953 [Archival Database]; Records on Korean War Dead and Wounded Army Casualties, 1950-1970; AAD: TAGOKOR AAD; Records of the Adjutant General's Office, Record Group 407; National Archives at College Park, College Park, MD, accessed 17 October 2023.
Mark P Mocorro entry, “U.S., Public Records Index, 1950-1993, Volume 1,” database online: Ancestry.com, Provo, Utah, 2010, Original data: Voter Registration Lists, Public Record Filings, Historical Residential Records, and Other Household Database Listings, accessed 17 October 2023.
Mark P Mocorro entry, “Washington, US, Death Index, 1940-2017,” database online: Ancestry.com, Provo, Utah, 2002 original data: Washington State Department of Health. State Death Records Index, 1940-1996. Microfilm. Washington State Archives, Olympia, Washington, accessed 17 October 2023.
Mark P. Mocorro (1919-1997) - Find a Grave Memorial, accessed 17 October 2023.
Mark P. Mocorro obituary, 07 Oct 1997, page 8, The News Tribune, Tacoma, Washington, online at Newspapers.com, accessed 17 October 2023.
Mocorro, Vicente entry, 1910, page 496, “US, Army Register of Enlistments, 1798-1914,” database online: Fold3, accessed 20 October 2023; Vicente Mocorro entry, “Washington, US, Death Index, 1940-2017,” database online: Ancestry.com, Provo, Utah, 2002 original data: Washington State Department of Health. State Death Records Index, 1940-1996. Microfilm. Washington State Archives, Olympia, Washington, accessed 20 October 2023.
Mocorro Birth Announcement, 28 Nov 1952, Page 50, The San Bernardino County Sun, online at Newspapers.com, accessed 17 October 2023.
“Mocorro Takes Presidency of Filipino Society,” 12 Jun 1973, page 24, The News Tribune, Tacoma, Washington, online at Newspapers.com, accessed 17 October 2023.
“Old Soldier Takes Command after 6 Decades of Service,” 29 May 1976, page 2,The News Tribune, Tacoma, Washington, at Newspapers.com, accessed 20 October 2023.
“Richard Marin, “Battery Morrison,” Battery Morrison - details (corregidor.org), accessed 26 October 2023.
“Roster of the 91st Coast Artillery Regiment (PS),” 91st Coast Artillery Regt. (PS) Roster Apr. 1942 — Philippine Scouts Heritage Society, accessed 23 October 2023
“Sergeant to Captain,” 01 Feb 1976, page 2, The Bellingham Herald, Bellingham, Washington, online at Newspapers.com, accessed 20 October 2023.
“U.S. seeking ex-POWs for Payoff,” 24 Aug 1954, page 16, Daily News, Los Angeles, California, online at Newspapers.com, accessed 17 October 2023.
Vicente Mocorro entry, “U.S., World War II American and Allied Prisoners of War, 1941-1946,” database online: Ancestry.com, Provo, UT, 2005, original data: World War II Prisoners of War Data File [Archival Database], Records of World War II Prisoners of War, 1942-1947, Records of the Office of the Provost Marshal General, Record Group 389, National Archives at College Park, College Park, Md., accessed 20 October 2023.
Vicente Mocorro entry, “US, World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946,” database online: Ancestry.com, Provo, Utah, 2005, original data: National Archives and Records Administration, Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, 1938-1946 [Archival Database], ARC: 1263923, “World War II Army Enlistment Records,” Records of the National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 64, National Archives at College Park, College Park, Maryland, accessed 20 October 2023.
Vicente Mocorro, 1949, "Philippines Marriages, 1723-1957", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:H15Q-T83Z : 15 February 2020), accessed 20 October 2023.
Vicente Mocorro entry, “U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014,” database online: Ancestry.com, Provo, Utah, 2014, original data: Social Security Administration, Social Security Death Index, Master File, Social Security Administration, accessed 20 October 2023.
Vincenta Palicte Mocorro entry, “Washington, U.S., Petitions for Naturalization, 1860-1991,” database on-line, Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011, Original data: Idaho, Oregon, and Washington Petitions for Naturalization, 1932–1991. Records of the District Courts of the United States, RG 21. The National Archives at Seattle, Seattle, Washington, accessed 20 October 2023.