Paul Delmont Bunker Sr. was born on May 7, 1881, in Alpena, Alpena County, Michigan. He was the son of Washington Foss Bunker and Amelia Ann Kunze Bunker. He was a graduate of West Point and a classmate of Douglas MacArthur. He was also a pioneering American football star. He became the first Army player to earn All-American honors, selected by Walter Camp in 1901 as a tackle and again in 1902 as a halfback. He served as a Colonel in the United States Army and commander of the 59th Coast Artillery during World War II.

Bunker commanded artillery units in Panama, New York, California, and the Philippines. In World War II, he led coastal defenses at Corregidor alongside his classmate Gen. Douglas MacArthur. When U.S. forces surrendered in May 1942, Bunker preserved part of the American flag, secretly passing a piece to a fellow officer before his death. Captured by the Japanese, he endured harsh imprisonment in Taiwan POW Camp #1 (Taihoku) Formosa, ultimately dying of starvation and disease on March 16, 1943. He is now buried in the United States Military Academy Post Cemetery, West Point, Orange County, New York, USA. Posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Medal, Bunker was honored with the publication of his wartime diary, the naming of military sites and roads, and his 1969 induction into the College Football Hall of Fame.

Source of information: en.wikipedia.org