Born: October 15, 1925
Died: June 1, 1977
Campaigns Served: Namur, Saipan, Tinian, Iwo Jima (wounded)
Highest Rank Attained: Corporal
Decorations: Purple Heart
Peter Colombo was born in Endicott, New York, to Leonard and Anna Colombo. After enlisting in the Marine Corps and attending boot camp at Parris Island, Colombo was assigned to the Headquarters Company of the First Separate Battalion (Reinforced)
With HQ Company:
Private Colombo's duties with Headquarters are unknown. He was transferred to Able Company on September 9, 1943.
With Able Company:
Colombo was assigned to a machine gun crew; the weapons platoon had expanded to include additional mortar and machine gun teams, and Colombo was one of the men tapped to fill in the gaps. He did not have the same exhaustive training in the operation of the light Brownings as his comrades, and struggled to make up the difference.
Although promoted to PFC on January 1, 1944, Colombo's abilities were still questioned by the other enlisted men in his platoon. One veteran remembered him as an "eightball," or Marine who did not have his act together. "He was a sullen individual, I honestly don't think anyone in the guns really got close to him or the othe way round. He was out on Cloud Nine." Charged with maintaining an MG on Saipan, Colombo neglected to adjust the headspace, causing the weapon to jam after one round. George Smith and Cease Stafford were both wounded while fixing the jam under fire. Colombo himself was slightly wounded during the fighting for the Marianas.
PFC Colombo was promoted to corporal after the battle of Tinian; whether his foul-up had been the impetus needed to straighten out, or whether because he was one of the few original remaining men in the platoon us unknown. He remained with the machine gun section through the battle of Iwo Jima, where he was again wounded in March, 1945.
After the war, Peter Colombo returned to civilian life in New York State. He died in 1977, at the age of fifty one.