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Columbus
Darwin
Smith
POW (WWII) Escapee

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Columbus Smith was Commanding Officer of the River Gunboat U.S.S. Wake, which was captured on December 8, 1941 (still December 7 in Pearl Harbor), on the Yangtze River in China. He escaped his initial internment at the Woosung POW camp but was recaptured, enduring deprivation and torture. In September 1944 he escaped again along with Marine Corporal Jerold Storey and, after a 700 mile trek through Japanese-controlled areas of China, was recovered by Chinese Nationalist Troops and returned to U.S. Military control.

Awards Received

  • Prisoner of War Medal

    Service:

    United States Navy

    Rank:

    Lieutenant Commander

    Division:

    Prisoner of War (China)

    Action Date:

    December 8, 1941 – September 1944
    NARA Database: Records of World War II Prisoners of War, created, 1942 – 1947

    Lieutenant Commander Columbus Darwin Smith (NSN: 0-56415), United States Navy, was captured when the Japanese seized his gunboat U.S.S. WAKE (PR-3) on the Yangtze River, China, on 8 December 1941. He was interned as a Prisoner of War until his return to U.S. Military control at the end of hostilities in August 1945.