61st Infantry Regiment (Philippines)

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61st Infantry Regiment (Philippines)

The 61st Infantry Regiment was a Philippine Army unit activated in August 1941 on Panay Island as part of the 61st Division. It later fought in Mindanao during World War II and surrendered in May 1942. The regiment was briefly reactivated after the war and a hunters battalion operated in Panay in 1980.

Background
- Activation and training: The regiment was raised in August 1941 as the defense of the Philippines expanded. It trained on Panay and then moved to Negros Island in October 1941.
- Early leadership: Captain Floyd Forte led the unit at activation, with Captain William S. Van Nostrand as his executive officer. Major Carter McClennan briefly commanded during expansion. Lieutenant Colonel Eugene Mitchell, sent from Manila, became commander in November 1941 to continue training the regiment.
- American officers and Filipino staff: Three American officers served as battalion commanders—Captains John Moran (1st Battalion), Edward Childress (2nd Battalion), and Ernest McLish (3rd Battalion). Major Richard Hill was the regimental executive officer. Filipino Captain Legaspi was adjutant with other officers filling key staff roles.

Transfer to Mindanao
- Movement and command: In January 1942, the division moved the 61st Infantry Regiment to Mindanao. It landed at Iligan and came under the 81st Infantry Division and the Mindanao Force, led by Brigadier General Guy Fort.
- Ground duties: The regiment moved to Malabang to guard Polloc Harbor and help protect Dansalan. The unit continued training while protecting key installations and supporting visiting Philippine leaders, including President Manuel L. Quezon and Vice President Sergio Osmeña as they passed through the area.

Combat narratives
- Invasion and defense: By April 1942, Japanese forces approached Cotabato and Polloc Harbor. The 61st Infantry Regiment organized defenses at Malabang, Ganassi, and Dansalan. Its units, including Major John Moran’s 1st Battalion and Major Ernest R. McLish’s 3rd Battalion (with Captain Harry Katz in regimental staff roles), fought to delay the Japanese advance.
- Resistance and retreat: The Japanese, reinforced with artillery, tanks, and air support, pressed northward. The 61st offered stubborn resistance at times, but the better-equipped invaders continued their advance, and the regiment could not stop the Japanese breakout.

Disintegration and surrender
- Loss of leadership and collapse: Near Pualas, Colonel Eugene Mitchell was captured, breaking the regiment’s leadership. Soldiers dispersed into the mountains or joined other units such as the 73rd Infantry Regiment in Ganassi.
- Change of command and surrender: Lieutenant Colonel Calixto Duque, a former commander of dispersed forces, was appointed to take command as the regiment reorganized. On May 11, 1942, orders to surrender were issued, and the regiment became prisoners of war. Some members escaped to the mountains and organized guerrilla forces.

Postwar
- Brief reactivation: After liberation of Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago, guerrilla groups from the area were merged with the 61st Infantry Regiment, which was briefly reactivated under Lieutenant Colonel Alejandro Suarez in September 1945. Its headquarters were in Pasonanca, Zamboanga City.
- Later developments: The regiment was later deactivated, but a 61st Infantry (Hunters) Battalion based in Miagao, Iloilo, was activated in 1980 as part of the Philippine Army’s effort to combat the New People’s Army in Panay.

American members
- Notable Americans who served with or alongside the regiment included Captain Ernest McLish, Captain Clyde Childress, Major Richard Hill, Lieutenant Colonel Eugene Mitchell, Captain John Moran, Captain Edward Childress, and Captain Albert Price. Others, such as Robert Strong Jr. (US Navy), also contributed in staff and liaison roles.

See also
- 61st Division (Philippines)
- 81st Division (Philippines)
- Guy O. Fort
- Japanese invasion of Malabang

References
- Historical accounts of the regiment’s activation, battles, surrender, and postwar activities are drawn from World War II memoirs and Philippine Army histories.