Paul Bunker

Football By Michael Walsh

Remembering College Football’s Military Heroes: Paul Bunker

An All-American at two positions, Bunker served 40 years in the Army before making the ultimate sacrifice for his country.

Paul Bunker's classmate at West Point, General Douglas MacArthur, described Bunker by stating that, "his service was characterized by highest devotion to the tradition of [West Point's] Alma Mater: Duty, Honor, Country. He kept the soldiering faith." Bunker's story is one of perseverance and grit which was reflected from his remarkable football career at West Point, to his last moments in a Japanese Prison Camp during World War II. 

Bunker was born on May 7, 1881 in Alpena, Michigan, before spending the majority of his childhood in Massachusetts. After graduating from high school in Massachusetts, Bunker made the decision to enroll at West Point and pursue his talents as a football player. Weighing in at over 215 pounds, he was a halfback that relied on his strength and ability to break tackles which led him to incredible success in his football career. Bunker was able to make the varsity team in his first season at West Point, playing both halfback and tackle. 

Bunker proved in his four years at Army that he was not a one-dimensional player, as Walter Camp recognized his talents as an All-America tackle in 1901 and as an All-America halfback in 1902. He remains one of just a few football players to ever be named an All-American at more than one position. Bunker's passion and competitive spirit on the football field was transcendent to a level that is rarely matched. 

With all of the success that Bunker had during his playing career, his true strength and toughness was shown in the time he spent in the military. After graduating from West Point in 1902, he began a 40-year career as an officer in the United States Army. During World War I, he served in the coastal artillery regiment at Fort Mills on Corregidor Island in the Philippines, foreshadowing his return to the island during World War II.

Between the World Wars, Bunker would command troops at Fort Amador in Panama; help develop an impregnable defense for the city of New York; and serve in a coastal artillery regiment unit in Los Angeles. In 1940, Bunker, who had reached the rank of Colonel, returned to the Philippines and assumed command of the 59th Coast Artillery Regiment at Fort Hughes in Manila Bay, and was soon after transferred to Fort Mills on Corregidor with his old colleague General MacArthur. 

As the Japanese began their offensive operations in the Philippines, President Roosevelt ordered MacArthur to evacuate the islands. MacArthur promised to return with reinforcements, which never came to fruition. MacArthur later wrote in his autobiography that one of his last memories of leaving the Philippines was, as he wrote, "up there, in command, was my classmate, Paul Bunker. Forty years had passed since Bunker had twice been selected by Walter Camp for the All-American team. I could shut my eyes and see again that blond head racing, tearing, plunging - 210 pounds of irresistible power. I could almost hear Quarterback Charley Daly's shrill voice barking, 'Bunker back.' He and many others up there were old, old friends, bound by ties of deepest friendship." 

In May 1942, the Japanese offensive caused General Jonathan Wainwright to surrender at Corregidor. As he surrendered, Wainwright ordered Bunker to lower the U.S. flag and burn it to prevent it falling into the hands of the Japanese forces. Instead of burning the entire flag, Bunker cut off a piece and concealed it under a patch on his shirt. After the surrender, Bunker, at age 61, and many of the men at Corregidor were taken by the Japanese as Prisoners of War. He cut the flag remnant from Corregidor into two pieces, giving Colonel Delbert Ausmus one of the remaining pieces. Bunker did not expect to survive the prison camp and told Colonel Ausmus that it was his duty to take his piece of the flag back to the Secretary of War.

Soon after this act, Bunker's health began to rapidly deteriorate. He had been 220 pounds at the time he was taken prisoner by the Japanese in May 1942 and by March 1943 he only weighed 150 pounds. In March of 1943, Bunker died of starvation and disease in the Japanese prison camp in Karenko, Taiwan, with his piece of the Corregidor flag still under his shirt. Ausmus delivered his own piece of the flag to the Secretary of War and it was unveiled during a speech on the event of Flag Day in June 1946. This remnant of the U.S. flag from Corregidor first saved by Bunker and then given to Ausmus is on display in the West Point museum. 

Bunker received many accolades for his courage and his devotion to his service in the Army as well as on the football field. In 1944, he was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Medal and the Purple Heart. Bunker also had earned the World War I and World War II Victory Medals, Philippine Defense Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, American Defense Service Medal, and later the Prisoner of War Medal. In 1969, Bunker was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame for his remarkable football career.

Paul Bunker was more than just a historic collegiate football player. He carried himself with the determination and strength of a true hero and constantly strived for greatness. The impact that Bunker left behind on the football field and the world is one that will forever be remembered. 
 
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