Warren Beckstrom

6Mar1926 – 27Mar1945

Edison Days

Warren graduated with the Class of June 1944. In school he participated in Hi-Y, German Club, and he was a Hall Guard.

Military Service

Rank: Private First Class

Branch: United States Marine Corps

Unit: Marine Detachment – USS Nevada

Warren joined the Marine Corps soon after high school graduation. In July of 1944 he was in bootcamp in San Diego. After bootcamp Warren graduated from Sea School. Sea School is where a Marine learns to be a part of a Marine Detachment on a ship. The Marine Detachment primarily served as a security force, responsible for protecting the ship against potential threats, conducting boarding operations, and providing immediate force if needed during operations at sea or in port; essentially acting as the ship’s “security detail. The Marine Detachment also manned one (1) naval gun on the ship.

In October 1944 he was at Treasure Island in San Fransico prior to joining the Marine Detachment abord the battleship USS Nevada.

The Nevada arrived off the coast of Iwo Jima on 16Feb1945 to participate in the pre-invasion bombing of the island. Nevada continued to provide fire support until 7Mar1945.

Nevada arrived off the coast of Okinawa on 23Mar1945 to participate in the pre-invasion bombardment of that island. Early in the morning of 27Mar1945 seven (7) Japanese planes attacked the fleet. One (1) plane made it through the anti-aircraft fire and slammed into onto the main deck of Nevada, next to turret No. 3. Warren and ten (10) of his shipmates were killed and forty-nine (49) were wounded.

(Original Caption) Gasoline fires spread across the main deck when a suicide Jap plane crashed into the USS Nevada off Okinawa. Though still burning, the fire was brought under control by repair parties. gunners still stuck by their guns prepared for any further attacks.

Warren, his deceased shipmates, and the Kamikaze pilot, were buried at sea.

Warren’s name is inscribed on Court 2 of the Courts of the Missing which is part of the Honolulu Memorial and located within the National Memorial Cemetary of the Pacific in Honolulu, HI.

The small rosette to the right of Warren’s name indicates that his remains have been accounted for by the U.S. Department of Defense and that they rest in a known gravesite. It appears that his remains were located between 2014 and 2021. Details are unknown at this time.

Warning: Graphic. The video below is US Navy video of the attack in which Warren was killed.