Correspondent Dave Richardson writes from the field. Rather than just covering their story, Dave Richardson became one of Merrill's Marauders. DAVE RICHARDSON   Believed to be the most highly decorated correspondent in uniform during World War II, T/Sgt. Dave Richardson was known for becoming an active part of the unit he was writing about.  A reporter before the war, initially rejected as being underweight, Dave and eight other correspondents set up "Press Headquarters" under the wing of a disabled C-47 during the battle for Myitkyina. UNDER SIEGE AT MYITKYINA. he enlisted in the Army and was assigned to  YANK - The Army Weekly  as a reporter in Australia.   Instead of writing from behind a desk, he volunteered to cover the war from the field, from the GI's point of view.  He was soon in battle in New Guinea, carrying his typewriter and camera in addition to a standard issue rifle.  On a B-24 flight over the Pacific, he manned a 50-caliber machine gun when the bomber came under attack from Japanese fighters.  Later he was aboard a PT boat engaged in a night-time gun battle.   He is best known for his coverage of the China-Burma-India Theater.  He was with Merrill's Marauders as they fought their way through northern Burma, all the way to Myitkyina.  David Quaid, a colleague, said of him, "When it got dicey, the only correspondent there was Dave Richardson."  He again manned a machine gun while on a tank that helped secure the route of the Ledo-Burma Road (later named Stilwell Road), the first American tank to enter China on the Burma Road.  He parachuted behind enemy lines to meet agents of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) training Burmese guerrillas.  He accompanied the Gurkhas, a fierce fighting group from Nepal, as they parachuted into Rangoon and routed the last Japanese forces from the Burmese capital.   As a fighting correspondent, Richardson received the Legion of Merit, two Bronze Stars, two Presidential Unit Citations and the Combat Infantryman's Badge.  He almost qualified for a Purple Heart after being wounded near the eye in action in New Guinea.  He refused to stay overnight in the hospital, thereby passing up the medal.  Instead, he returned to action wearing an eye patch.   After the war, the editor of  YANK  wrote, "Richardson was remarkable among soldier reporters in that he actually used weapons and made himself a valuable and welcomed member of whatever unit he was writing about." In Memoriam    David B. Richardson  (1917-2005)     Arlington National Cemetery  A few stories by Dave Richardson...  MERRILL'S MAKESHIFT ARTILLERY       MARAUDER MAGIC   TRUCK CONVOY TO CHINA       CONVOY SIDELIGHTS   YANK - THE ARMY WEEKLY   TOP OF PAGE       CLOSE THIS WINDOW  COPYRIGHT © 2014 CARL W. WEIDENBURNER