Ernest Ivy Thomas, Jr.

Infobox Military Person
name= Ernest Ivy Thomas, Jr.
born= birth date|1924|3|10
died= death date and age|1945|3|3|1924|3|10
placeofbirth= Tampa, Florida
placeofdeath=Iwo Jima


caption= Thomas (sitting in front) with 1st Lt. Harold Schrier on Suribachi
nickname=Boots
allegiance=flagicon|United States United States of America
branch=United States Marine Corps
serviceyears= 1942-1945
rank= Sergeant
commands=
unit=2nd Battalion, 28th Marines
battles= World War II *Battle of Iwo Jima
awards=Navy Cross Purple Heart
laterwork=

Platoon Sergeant Ernest Ivy "Boots" Thomas, Jr. (March 10 1924–March 3 1945) was one of the six United States Marines who raised the first American flag [On February 23 1945, the American flag was raised twice on Mount Suribachi. The first (smaller) flag was raised in the morning and captured on film by U.S. Marine photographer Staff Sergeant Louis R. Lowery. The iconic second flag raising occurred around noon and was captured on film by Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal. See Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima.] on Mount Suribachi, Iwo Jima on February 23 1945. He was awarded the Navy Cross for his fearless leadership during an assault on Mount Suribachi three days earlier. Thomas was killed in action eight days after the first flag raising.

Biography

Ernest Thomas was born in Tampa, Florida, and moved with his family to Monticello, Florida as a child."Boots Thomas", Jefferson County.] He was attending Tri-State University, studying aeronautical engineering, when in early 1942 he decided to enlist in the Marine Corps. [cite news
title=TSU Remembers Thomas
work=Thunderbolt TSU Alumni Newsletter
date=April/May 2005
url= http://www.tristate.edu/thunderbolt/aprilmay05.htm |accessdate= 2007-01-17] Being color blind, in order to pass the medical test allowing him to enlist, he memorized the patterns provided by a man sitting next to him in the testing station.Snowden, 2005]

On February 19 1945, Thomas was a platoon sergeant with Company E, 2nd Battalion, 28th Marines, 5th Marine Division, and was part of the first wave of Marines who landed on Iwo Jima. On February 21 1945, when the 28th Marines were attacking the base of Mount Suribachi, Thomas called for fire support and exposed himself repeatedly to enemy fire, called for tank support to try to knock out a heavily fortified bunker at the base of Suribachi.Navy Cross Awards, HomeofHeroes.com.] He was awarded a Navy Cross for his "initiative [and] fearless leadership" in the attack. In the absence of his wounded platoon commander, Thomas led the combat patrol up the back side of Suribachi. When they got to the top, it was Thomas who managed to find a piece of Japanese water pipe that became the flag pole. [Bradley, J., Powers, R. "Flags of Our Fathers: Heroes of Iwo Jima".]

He was later killed in action ten days after his Navy Cross action and eight days after the flag raising. He was buried at Roseland Cemetery in Jefferson County, Florida. ["Boots Thomas, Jr.", FindAGrave.]

For his actions on Iwo Jima on February 21 1945, Thomas was awarded the Navy Cross. His citation reads:Navy Cross Awards, HomeofHeroes.com.]

Honors

A monument on U.S. Highway 90, Monticello, Florida honors Plt Sgt Thomas. It is inscribed with the following words:"Boots Thomas", Jefferson County.]

Portrayal in film

In the 2006 film "Flags of Our Fathers", Thomas was played by American actor [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0454020/ Brian Kimmet] .

ee also

*portal|United States Marine Corps|USMC_logo.svg

Notes

References

*cite web|url=http://www.co.jefferson.fl.us/history/#bootst |accessdate=2007-01-18
title=Boots Thomas and Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima
work=History and Culture
publisher=Jefferson County, Florida

*cite speech
url=http://www.marineclub.com/Events/SpeechTranscripts/Transcripts.asp?speech=GenSnowdenSpeech
accessdate=2007-01-17
author=Snowden, LtGen. Larry
location=Commemoration of the 60th Anniversary of the Battle of Iwo Jima, Marines Memorial Club and Hotel, San Francisco, California
date=February 23, 2005.

*cite book|title=Iwo Jima: Monuments, Memories, and the American Hero.
author=Marling, Karal Ann Marling and John Wetenhall
year=1991
publisher=Harvard University Press|location=Cambridge
id=ISBN 0674469801

*cite web|url=http://www.homeofheroes.com/valor/1_Citations/03_wwii-nc/nc_06wwii_usmcT.html
accessdate=2007-01-17
title=Navy Cross Awards to members of the U.S. Marines in World War II
publisher=HomeofHeroes.com

*cite web|url=http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=6210602|accessdate=2007-01-17
title=Boots Thomas Jr.
publisher=FindAGrave.com

Persondata
NAME=Thomas, Ernest Ivy Jr.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Boots
SHORT DESCRIPTION=United States Marines
DATE OF BIRTH=March 10 1924
PLACE OF BIRTH=Tampa, Florida
DATE OF DEATH=March 3 1945
PLACE OF DEATH=Iwo Jima