Date: September 7, 1945.
Restrictions: Permission and supervision of manuscript curator required for access of original.  Please click Electronic Resource link in catalog record to see document online.

Biography:

Colonel Virgil Sullivan Adkins

Virgil Sullivan Adkins was born on a small farm in Germantown, Shelby County, Tennessee, on June 27, 1898. He was one of three children of Henry Virgil Adkins and Emma Roberta Sullivan Adkins.  His siblings were Charles D. (b. 1900) and Nettie Louise (b. 1904).

Adkins joined the United States Army on April 6, 1917, the same day the U.S. entered World War I. After several months of basic training, he was sent to France, where he earned four battle stars. Adkins boarded the ship S.S. Mauretania on June 4, 1918 with the Headquarters Company 115th Field Artillery.  After the war, he pursued a law degree from the University of Memphis and passed the bar exam in 1921. 

At 23 years old, Virgil S. Adkins married Mary Winona ‘Nona’ Sharp (October 11, 1897-1984) on July 28, 1920 in Memphis, Tennessee. Her parents were James Marshall Sharp and Minnie Johnson Sharp.  The couple had three sons and one daughter: Virgil Sullivan “Tommy” Adkins, Jr. (August 7, 1921-January 9, 2017), Henry Leigh Adkins (August 15, 1923-March 25, 2016), Margaret Roberta (b. January 7, 1925-), and James Marshall Adkins (b. June 2, 1933-).  In 1930, he worked as a drug store salesperson in Clarksdale, Coahoma County, but before 1940 he began work as a general claims attorney for Elgin Joliet & Eastern Railroad in Chicago, a position he held until his retirement in 1963. 

When the United States entered World War II, Adkins was sent to serve in the Pacific.  Two of his sons, Virgil, Jr., and Henry Leigh, also served during World War II in the U.S. Army. 

On September 1, 1945, Lieutenant Colonel Virgil S. Adkins was the acting commanding officer of the 155th Infantry Regiment, 31st Infantry “Dixie” Division, United States Army. On September 7, 1945, he managed to meet with Japanese General Gyosaku Morozumi, and accept the surrender of the Japanese forces of the 35th Imperial Army near Malaybalay, Mindanao, Philippine Islands.  This was the culmination of the final combat operation of the 1st Battalion, 155th Infantry, 31st Division.  This unit, along with about two thousand Pilipino soldiers, was sent into the mountainous back country of Mindanao Island by way of the Agusan River to clear the remaining Japanese troops.  Although Japan had officially surrendered on August 15, forces in remote areas lacked communication and were unaware of the cessation of hostilities.  Virgil S. Adkins commanded the operation, sometimes referred to as the Agusan River Task Force, captured the necessary Japanese staff officer messenger, and sent word to the Japanese command.

At the end of the war, he was promoted to Colonel, and he retired from the Army in 1958.  Colonel Adkins was awarded the Silver Star, the Bronze Star, and the Air medals for his achievements and bravery during World War II. Additionally, he was presented with the Legion of Merit medal, Combat Infantryman’s Badge, and Bronze Service Arrowhead.

Adkins died on July 13, 1998, having reached his centennial birthday in June. He is buried in the Memphis National Cemetery, Shelby County, Tennessee.

Scope and Content Note/Access Restrictions:

This collection contains one document of high historical significance. This item requires division director and/or manuscript curator permission and supervision to view the original document. An electronic resource link is linked in the catalog record so researchers may easily view the document.

Series Identification:

Series 1: Instrument of Surrender, September 7, 1945.

This collection contains an original instrument of unconditional surrender dated September 7, 1945, at Sagunto, Mindanao Island, Philippines, containing signatures of Lieutenant Colonel Virgil S. Adkins, for 155th Infantry Regiment of the United States Army, and Gyosaku Morozumi, Lieutenant General of the Japanese forces of the 35th Imperial Army.  The document is in English and Japanese.

Historians may note that there is a second instrument of surrender signed on September 8, 1945. United States Army Brigadier General Donald Robert Hutchinson accepted the surrender of Lieutenant General Morozumi of 35th Imperial Army near Malaybalay, Mindanao, of the Philippine Islands.  This final surrender document was donated to the Henry S. Sanford Library and Museum, in Sanford, Florida.

Box 1, folder 1