Captain Fred E. Rose, United States Army, was killed as a Prisoner of War during World War II.

Rose moved to Coronado in 1920. By 1940, he was working for the Coronado Fire Department, serving in the Army Reserves, and raising a family. In November 1940, he was called to active duty and assigned to the Coast Artillery Corps at Fort Rosecrans. In August 1941, he was sent to Fort Mills on Corregidor Island in the Philippines to train the Filipino Scouts.

The Japanese attacked the Philippines in December 1941. Rose commanded one battery of his regiment, two 155-millimeter guns. After the initial attack, the remaining gun was pulled off its mount and used as a “roving gun” nicknamed “Battery Rose.” His battery moved daily to evade Japanese fire. Between April 23 to May 6, 1942, his unit endured intense combat conditions and continuous bombing and shelling. After Corregidor fell on May 6, 1942, Rose was taken prisoner and held in several camps in the Philippines, primarily Cabanatuan.

In December 1944, he was transferred to Bilibid Prison in Manila and then placed aboard the “hell ship” Oryoku Maru for transport to Japan. Of the 1,620 prisoners of war aboard, he was among the 125 killed when the ship was bombed in Subic Bay in Luzon. He was posthumously awarded the Silver Star for gallantry in action and the Purple Heart.

Captain Rose left a lasting family legacy in Coronado. His widow, Marie, worked as a dental assistant and lived in Coronado until her death. His daughter, Lena (Lee), was valedictorian and “Girl First Citizen” of the Coronado High School Class of 1946. She married Thomas E. Dawson, who later rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Marine Corps, and after living in numerous locations across the country, returned with him to Coronado in retirement, residing in her childhood home until her death.

One granddaughter, Linda Dawson, and her family still enjoy time in Coronado in the same G Avenue home, which remains in the family. Another granddaughter, Lori Zielinski, resides in Coronado, and Rose’s great-grandson, Greg Zielinski, graduated from Coronado High School in 2000.

VOL. 116, NO. 4 – Jan. 28, 2026