As his platoon leader ordered his soldiers to pull back, Pvt. Mullins rose from the ground. A Japanese sniper shot him.
Pvt. Mullins fell to the ground and died instantly. It was 6:15 a.m.
Forty-five minutes later, the end of World War II was announced. Pvt. Mullins, who had a wife, Mary, and a 2-year-old son in Morrow, had earned the tragic distinction of being the last American soldier killed in combat during that war.
Today, Pvt. Mullins will be honored at a special Veterans Day ceremony at Salem Township Cemetery in Morrow, in central Warren County.
A shiny black 6-foot-high granite marker was placed at his grave Sunday, replacing a small flat stone marker.
''Over the years, we've had World War II veterans from all over the country come to town to see his grave, and we've had a hard time telling them where to find it,'' said Judy Neal, a trustee of the Morrow Historical Society.
Now it will be easy to spot. The tall black marker, which bears Pvt. Mullins' image, stands high above the other gray and white markers surrounding it. It mentions his Army company and identifies him as the last American soldier killed in combat during World War II.
''The sacrifice Pvt. Mullins made truly needs to be honored,'' said Mrs. Neal, a friend of the Mullins family who spearheaded the drive to buy a distinguished marker. ''It's taken a long time for this to be done.''
Two years ago, the historical society began working on this project and organized the ceremony. The Warren County commissioners paid $5,900 for the marker.
At 10:15 a.m. today, there will be a Veterans Day parade in Morrow. The dedication of Pvt. Mullins' marker will be at 11 a.m.
The ceremony will feature an honor guard, a 21-gun salute and the Little Miami High School band. Gov. George Voinovich will send a proclamation honoring Pvt. Mullins.
His son, James Mullins, who lives in Morrow, will be there along with two of his three children and all three grandchildren. Pvt. Mullins' wife died two years ago.
James Mullins said he's deeply gratified that his father will be honored. ''He went to war and gave his life for his country,'' he said. ''You've got to be proud of that.''
Pvt. Mullins could have avoided military service because he was eligible for a farm laborer's deferment.
But he enlisted in the Army in November 1944 and was sent to the Philippines in May 1945.
In July, while his platoon was under attack, he wiped out two machine-gun nests of Japanese soldiers with his automatic rifle and a hand grenade. For his heroics, he was promoted that month to private first class and was awarded a Bronze Star.
He also received a posthumous Purple Heart, an Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with one Bronze Service Star, a World War II Victory Medal, a Combat Infantryman Badge, a Philippine Liberation Ribbon with one Bronze Service Star and the Philippine Presidential Unit Citation Badge.
All his medals have been lost, but the Mullins family hopes to have them replaced.
James Mullins remembers nothing about his father except for his funeral. ''I just remember the soldiers, the flags and the rifles that were shot saluting him,'' he said.
His grandparents, who raised him, and other relatives told him little about Pvt. Mullins' Army service or the circumstances of his death.
Pvt. Mullins' brother-in-law, Oscar Barton, was killed in Germany in March 1945, and his brother, Marcellus Mullins, was killed in an automobile accident in England in October 1945.
''My grandparents and aunts didn't want to talk about the war because it brought up bad times,'' Mr. Mullins said. ''Every man in our family who went to war didn't come back.''
Mrs. Neal said she hopes the large black grave marker will help children in the area appreciate what Pvt. Mullins and many other armed services veterans have done for their country.
''It's easy enough to sit in a classroom and hear that so many soldiers were killed in the war,'' she said. ''It's another thing to stand here and see this marker.''
IF YOU'RE FREE, THANK A VETERAN Peter Bronson column
