World War II

Following in the long military tradition of the Clan Maclean, nearly 1,000 of its American cousins served as military and civilian personnel during World War II in both the European and Pacific theaters. Of the 915 men and 42 women who served, the American Macleans are known to have sustained 229 casualties during the war, 179 of whom died as a result of the war and 12 were taken as Prisoners of War. 89 Macleans are known to have participated in Operation Overloard, commonly remembered as D-Day; only 17 casualties were sustained on D-Day, 16 of whom were killed or missing in action, and 1 was captured as Prisoners of War. The Macleans’ casualties represent .02% of all American casualties in WWII, and Maclean D-Day casualties represent .26% of all American casualties on D-Day.

Researchers at the Maclean History Project have confirmed that at least 26 American Macleans were present when Pearl Harbor was attacked. One of our cousins, James McLain, also fought at the Battle of Midway. Only two Macleans, brothers Edward and Mancel Lane who served aboard the U.S.S Arizona, were listed among the casualties. Macleans served at the U.S. Navy Yard, in the Naval Hospital, in the Patrol Squadrons 12 and 13, and aboard the following ships: U.S.S. Arizona, U.S.S. Castor, U.S.S. Dobbin, U.S.S. Honolulu, U.S.S. Maryland, U.S.S. Medusa, U.S.S. Pelias, U.S.S. Pennsylvania, U.S.S. Phoenix, U.S.S. Raleigh, U.S.S. San Francisco, U.S.S. Tennessee, U.S.S. Utah, U.S.S. Vestal, and U.S.S. Vireo.

Verified Statistics of American Macleans in World War II