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Memorial Day

Honoring Veterans Who Made the Ultimate Sacrifice

In observance of Memorial Day, the Foundation pays tribute to those who lost their lives in service to our country. We are honored to share the stories of a few heroic service members with connections to Ellis Island.  

Read on to learn about Peter Tomich and his courage to save his fellow sailors during the attack on Pearl Harbor, Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone who received the Medal of Honor during WWII and private First Class Luigi “Lewis” Albanese who was one of few immigrants to receive both the Medal of Honor and Purple Heart.   

Petar Erceg (aka Peter Tomich)

Chief Watertender Peter Tomich (born Petar Erceg Tonic) was a Herzegovinian immigrant that enlisted in the U.S. Army during WWI and the U.S. Navy in 1919. Tomich was processed on Ellis Island in March 1909, arriving under the name Petar Erceg.   

A career navy man, Tomich was aboard USS Utah on the morning of December 7, 1941 when the Imperial Japanese Navy attacked Pearl Harbor. Utah was torpedoed and began to capsize.  

Tomich remained in the engineering spaces, securing the boilers of the ship to allow other sailors to escape at the cost of his own life. The wreck of USS Utah remains visible in Pearl Harbor to this day. 

Luigi “Lewis” Albanese

Born in Vicenza, Italy in 1946, Private First Class Luigi “Lewis” Albanese was one of few immigrants to receive both the Medal of Honor and Purple Heart.  

Lewis immigrated to the U.S. in 1948 with his mother, his father was already in Seattle. He was drafted into the Army during the Vietnam War in 1965.  

Passenger Manifest ID # 9011866094912 

John Basilone

Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone received the Medal of Honor for his heroic acts during WWII. Basilone was born to Italian parents who had settled in Raritan, New Jersey.  

His father Salvatore, immigrated in 1903 aboard S. S. Hohenzollern from Naples.   

Basilone joined the Army in 1934 and served in the Philippines until he was discharged in 1937. In 1940, he reenlisted, this time with the Marine Corps. Basilone fought with distinction at Guadalcanal for which he received his Medal of Honor.  

He was killed during the Battle of Iwo Jima and posthumously awarded the Navy Cross. 

Passenger Manifest ID #102696020149 (John Basilone’s father)

On behalf of the Foundation, we honor all those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our country. 

Discover your own family’s legacy and connection to Ellis Island by checking out the Passenger Search database on our website HERE.  

 

Special thanks to Jonathan Da Silva with our Family History Center on Ellis Island for his expert research and work on this piece.