Miller Payne “Boots” Warren Jr. was born on January 2, 1909, in Midlothian, Ellis County, Texas. He was the son of Miller Payne Warren and Mattie Keith Moffat Warren. He was married to Hazel Pratt Hancock. After attending Austin College, he entered the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, graduating in 1933 and commissioning into the Infantry. Appointed from the 5th Texas Congressional District, he graduated in June 1933 and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant of Infantry. His first assignment was with the 17th Infantry at Fort Crook, Nebraska. After serving at Fort Crook, Major Warren was transferred in May 1935 to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, where he continued duty with the 17th Infantry. In 1937, he attended the Regular Course at Fort Benning, Georgia, graduating in May 1938, and was then assigned to Fort Sam Houston, Texas, with the 9th Infantry Regiment.

Warren served with distinction in the Philippines during World War II. Stationed at Fort William McKinley with the 57th Infantry (Philippine Scouts), he was known for his rigorous training and leadership, earning promotion to Captain in 1940. In August 1941, he became Executive to the Senior Instructor of the 21st Division (Philippine Army), training its officer corps and shaping an effective fighting force that later delayed Japanese advances from Lingayen Gulf to Bataan. When war began, he also served as Assistant to the Senior Instructor of the 21st Infantry Regiment, leading its defense at Lingayen Gulf, strengthening fortifications, and guiding a disciplined withdrawal down Highway 3 under fire. Promoted to Major, he continued leading and inspiring his men through the Battle of Bataan and Mount Samat, assuming command duties after his superior’s death. Even after Bataan’s surrender, Warren escaped to Corregidor, where he advised Marine beach defenses until the island’s fall on May 6, 1942, when he was captured and became a prisoner of war.

As a POW, Warren was held at Cabanatuan and later Davao, where he endured extreme conditions with courage and faith. In December 1944, he was among the prisoners placed aboard the Japanese “hell ships” being transferred to Japan to prevent their liberation. The first ship was bombed and beached at Subic Bay, but Warren survived. He was later loaded onto another transport that was bombed by American aircraft at Takao Harbor, Formosa, on January 9, 1945, where he was killed instantly.

Maj Warren's name is memorialized in the Tablets of the Missing in the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, Manila, Capital District, National Capital Region, Philippines. He also has a cenotaph in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Honolulu County, Hawaii, USA.

Silver Star Citation:
(Citation Needed) – SYNOPSIS: The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress July 9, 1918, takes pride in presenting the Silver Star (Posthumously) to Major (Infantry) Miller Payne Warren, Jr. (ASN: 0-19280), United States Army, for gallantry in action while serving as Senior Instructor, 21st Division, Philippine Army, in action against the enemy on 3 January 1942, near Porac, Pampangua, Luzon, Philippine Islands. A strong enemy force, screened behind a large moving column of civilian evacuees, infiltrated the defense position and launched a sudden and vicious attack. Major Warren stepped into the ensuing breach and, by his vigorous action and heroic example, inspired the troops and organized the defense so that the position was stabilized and the line was held. The gallant actions and dedicated devotion to duty demonstrated by Major Warren, without regard for his own life, were in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself and the United States Army.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, valor.militarytimes.com, alumni.westpointaog.org