[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 160 (Thursday, November 6, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2256]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E2256]]
           MAJOR HENRY A. COMMISKEY, SR. POST OFFICE BUILDING

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                            HON. GENE TAYLOR

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 4, 2003

  Mr. TAYLOR of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, it is my honor to present 
H.R. 2438, a bill to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 115 West Pine Street in Hattiesburg, Mississippi as 
the ``Major Henry A. Commiskey, Sr. Post Office Building''. The 
Hattiesburg City Council and the Forrest County Board of Supervisors 
requested through official resolutions that the downtown Hattiesburg 
Post Office be named for the late Major Commiskey, who received the 
Medal of Honor during his lifetime.
  Henry Alfred Commiskey, Sr. was born in Hattiesburg on January 10, 
1927. He attended the Sacred Heart School there and worked as a 
brakeman on the Illinois Central Railroad before joining the Marine 
Corps on January 12, 1944, two days after his 17th birthday. Commiskey 
participated in the February 1945 invasion of Iwo Jima during World War 
II, where he earned the Purple Heart for being wounded in action. He 
also received the Letter of Commendation for ``exhibiting high 
qualities of leadership and courage in the face of a stubborn and 
fanatical enemy.''
  Commiskey remained in the Corps after the war and rose to the rank of 
staff sergeant to become a drill instructor at the Parris Island boot 
camp in South Carolina. He later graduated from Officer Candidate 
School and was commissioned a second lieutenant on September 10, 1949. 
He volunteered for combat service at the outbreak of the Korean War and 
was sent to Korea with the 1st Marine Regiment in August of 1950, where 
he participated in the Inchon landing. A few days later, on September 
20, 1950, Commiskey earned the Medal of Honor for his heroism atop Hill 
85 near Yongdungp'o, Korea, on the outskirts of Seoul.
  Serving as a platoon leader in Company C, First Battalion, First 
Marines, First Marine Division (reinforced), Second Lieutenant 
Commiskey spearheaded the assault that was ordered on forces that were 
well dug in on Hill 85. Charging up the steep slopes on the run into 
heavy enemy machine-gun and small arms fire, he ran ahead of his men 
and was the first to reach the crest of their objective. Armed only 
with a pistol, he jumped into a hostile machine-gun emplacement 
occupied by five enemy soldiers, engaged in hand-to-hand combat, and 
killed them all. He then moved to the next emplacement, where he killed 
two more enemy soldiers before leading his men on further to route 
their adversaries and take the hill.
  Although Commiskey miraculously escaped harm during the assault on 
Hill 85, he was wounded a week later and then again on December 8, 
1950. He was then returned to the United States for hospitalization and 
later promoted to first lieutenant in June of 1951. Commiskey was 
presented the Medal of Honor by President Truman at a White House 
ceremony on August 1, 1951, becoming the first Marine to be so awarded 
for extraordinary heroism in the Korean conflict. Commiskey then became 
a student naval aviator in September of 1951 at the Naval Air Station 
in Pensacola, Florida. He received his wings at Corpus Christi, Texas 
in June of 1953 and later completed jet training at El Toro, 
California. He was promoted to captain in July of 1953. In April of 
1954, Commiskey returned to Korea as a pilot with Marine Attack 
Squadron 21, Marine Aircraft Group 12, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.

  Commiskey returned to the United States in September of 1954 and 
continued his service as a recruitment officer and as an instructor for 
the Marine Corps School at Quantico, Virginia. He was promoted to the 
rank of major in July of 1959 and retired from active duty in August of 
1966. Major Henry A. Commiskey, Sr. died in Meridian, Mississippi on 
August 15, 1971.
  Last year, I originally introduced House Resolution 5495, a bill that 
was identical to the measure currently before us. The previous bill 
passed the House at the very end of the 107th Congress, but did not 
make it through the Senate before time ran out and the session ended. 
Due to that fact, I then reintroduced the bill for the 108th Congress, 
and it was designated with a new number. The entire Mississippi House 
delegation signed on as original cosponsors of both bills, for which I 
am very grateful. I also thank both the majority and minority 
leadership of the House of Representatives and the Government Reform 
Committee for shepherding the bill through the House once more.
  On behalf of our Nation, the State of Mississippi, the citizens of 
the Hattiesburg area, the local officials there, and the Commiskey 
family, it is my privilege to present this legislation to the United 
States Congress in honor of Major Henry A. Commiskey, Sr., his 
sacrifice, and his awe-inspiring service to his country.

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