Eugene B. Sledge Biography

Jesus Garza III

HIST 1302-03

With The Old Breed At Peleliu And Okinawa

By Eugene B. Sledge AKA “Sledgehammer” Eugene B. Sledge was born to Edward S. Sledge (father) and Mary F. Sturdivant (mother) in Mobile, Alabama on November 4th, 1923 and died on March 3rd, 2001. Eugene died at the age of 78 due to stomach cancer and was buried in Pine Crest Cemetery in Mobile, Alabama. Eugene’s father (Edward) was a physician with an undergraduate and medical degree from University of Pennsylvania. Eugene grew up in a cottage in Georgia, as a boy he would spend multiple hours exploring the outskirts of Mobile. He loved to explore nature and loved to challenge himself by attempting to survive alone in the wilderness. He was the related to two Confederate

He then entered MMI (Marion Military Institute) in Marion, Alabama that same fall he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in December 1942. He then attended boot camp at the recruit depot in San Diego, California. Boot camp for Marines is the longest and the toughest military branch out of the five branches if you consider the Coast guard a military branch. Marine Corps boot camp will test you both mentally and physically through 13 weeks of strenuous obstacle courses and many sleepless nights in order to mentally prepare Marines for future assignments that they may encounter. After successfully completing boot camp comes MOS training (Military Occupational Specialty) this is where Marines gain their knowledge within the field they choose to pursue. Believe it or not, but the Marine Corps has many different fields that most civilians are oblivious of their existence. Some examples would be Combat camera a fancy name for a photographer; another would be Firefighting, which just specializes in firefighting. Yes everyone in the Marine Corps is a rifleman, but not everyone has this as their primary occupation. In Eugene’s case he was a Mortar man. He would insert a 60mm round into a pipe that would dentate the round and cause it to impact within meters of the enemy. He was known to be one of the best during his time while enlisted. His training was located at Camp Pendleton in Southern

This is when Eugene decided to attend Auburn University and was an active member to a fraternity. Sledge had a difficult time adjusting to civilian life while attending school, however this is a normal characteristic for many combat veterans. Eugene eventually pushed though himself through this rough patch in his life and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration in 1949. Soon after graduation, Eugene would meet his bride to be, Jeanne Arceneaux also from Mobile they married in 1952. The couple would carry on to have two sons John Sledge who was born in 1957 and Henry Sledge who was born in 1965. Sledge, with is strong leadership skills that he harvested though his time through the Marine Corps did not allow himself to be mediocre, so he carried on to pursue a higher education. He was not satisfied with a Masters degree so he went on and accomplished his doctorates in zoology from the University of Florida in 1960. Eugene B. Sledge is well known for