World War II · United States Army
Private First Class
Company L, 168th Infantry Regiment, 34th Infantry Division
Killed by enemy shelling near Cisterna di Littoria · 6 April 1944
His story
Peter Rocco, born in Dormont, Pennsylvania, served as an infantryman with Company L, 168th Infantry Regiment, during the Italian campaign. His complete Individual Deceased Personnel File now anchors the record: it places his death near Cisterna di Littoria during enemy shelling on 6 April 1944, records his burial at Nettuno the following morning, preserves details of the personal effects found with him, and documents Mary Rocco’s effort to have Peter and Anthony permanently buried together.
Explore the archive
Long-form sources are kept in separate reading rooms so Peter Rocco’s profile can remain a clear guide to his life, service, and surviving records.
At a glance
Every statement is phrased according to the strength of the evidence currently held or identified.
Operational timeline
A Stories Behind the Stars biography identifies Peter as the son of Italian-born parents Joseph Rocco and Maria De Sensi. It reports that he grew up with four brothers and four sisters and graduated from Dormont High School.
The TogetherWeServed biography reports that Peter registered in Dormont. It associates him with employment at Bootli and Flyn in Pittsburgh, while noting uncertainty about that employer, and says he later worked for Mesta Machine Company.
The profile reports that Peter enlisted as an infantry private and records service number 33440162.
TogetherWeServed places Peter’s deployment to Italy in October 1943 with the 168th Infantry Regiment and 34th Infantry Division.
The profile reports that the division landed at the Anzio beachhead and maintained defensive positions. This is unit-level context and does not establish Peter’s precise location or company activity that day.
Peter’s Report of Burial gives his place of death as the vicinity of Cisterna di Littoria, Italy, and records ‘KIA Enemy Shelling—Direct Hit.’ It documents catastrophic leg and arm injuries. The hospital-admission-card index independently records artillery-shell fragment wounds to the leg and forearm, while the Company L morning report establishes the 6 April casualty date.
T/4 Clifford Van Meter of Company L made the personal identification. Peter was buried at 1000 hours in the American Military Cemetery at Nettuno, Plot T, Row 13, Grave 2594. The burial report also lists the personal effects found with him and records a Catholic ceremony.
The report ending 11 April records Peter Rocco and Private Bennie L. Dufour as killed in action after previously being carried as missing in action, and notes that both were dropped from the company rolls. The entry applies the KIA date of 6 April 1944.
Attorney Esther Israel Katten wrote that Peter had made no known will, that Mary was the beneficiary of his War Risk Insurance, and that Joseph and Mary Rocco had been separated for twelve years. She stated that all of the children had lived with Mary and that minor brothers and sisters still remained at home.
Mary Rocco asked the Army to leave both sons overseas but to move Anthony from Mirandola so the brothers could rest together at Nettuno. Because Joseph was then the legal next of kin, he executed a waiver of his disposition rights; Mary’s request could then be followed.
Peter was disinterred on 7 April, prepared for reburial on 9 April, and permanently interred on 20 September 1948 in Plot E, Row 1, Grave 11. Anthony followed on 17 November in Grave 12. The Army notified Mary on 20 December that her sons had been buried side by side.
Beyond the uniform
A military file can record a rank, unit, wound, or death—but not a laugh, a favorite story, an occupation, or the way a person was known at home. This section is reserved for photographs, letters, memories, and the details of Peter Rocco’s life outside his service.
Documents & evidence
Read the original records beside selected transcriptions, then follow their evidence directly into the timeline.
Document 01
Ending 11 April 1944 · Page 2 of 2
Names PFC Peter Rocco and records his casualty status as changed from missing in action to killed in action effective 6 April 1944, confirming his service number and Company L assignment.
Selected transcription
Station: [distance unclear] miles east of Borgo Montello, Italy. Organization: Company L, 168th Infantry Regiment.
33440162 — Rocco, Peter — Pfc.
38387557 — Dufour, Bennie L. — Pvt.
Above 2 KIA fr MIA 6 Apr 44 & drpd fr rolls per Cir 10 Hq NATOUSA 9 Apr 44 to KIA 6 Apr 44.
Expanded reading: The above two men were recorded as killed in action, changed from missing in action on 6 April 1944, and dropped from the rolls under Circular 10, Headquarters NATOUSA, dated 9 April 1944; effective status, killed in action, 6 April 1944.
Document 02
Admission and discharge recorded in April 1944
Identifies Peter Rocco by Army service number and records an in-line-of-duty battle casualty involving artillery-shell fragment wounds to the leg and forearm, followed by death.
Selected transcription
Full name: Rocco, Peter.
Admission age: 21. Admission date: April 1944.
Admission type of injury: Casualty, battle.
Military service number: 33440162. Rank: Enlisted Man. Branch: Infantry, General or Unspecified.
Injured in line of duty: In line of duty.
Medical diagnosis: First location—leg; second location—forearm; causative agent—artillery shell, fragments; afoot or unspecified.
Discharge type: Died. Discharge date: April 1944.
Conflict period: World War II. Served for: United States of America.
Further records
Supports his unit, status, place, and date of death.
A detailed volunteer biography with census, family, service, Anzio, burial, and award information; useful as a secondary source and research guide.
Directly confirms Peter’s service number, Company L assignment, change from MIA to KIA, and 6 April 1944 casualty date.
Identifies Peter by service number and records battle wounds to the leg and forearm caused by artillery-shell fragments, with a disposition of death in April 1944.
Reports immediately before and after 6 April may add unit movements or context, though this report does not state the cause of death.
A sixty-page primary-source file documenting Peter’s death, battlefield burial, identification, personal effects, family correspondence, disinterment, and permanent grave beside Anthony.
Two general casualty and effects forms use ‘North African Area,’ but the more specific battlefield burial report places Peter’s death near Cisterna di Littoria, Italy, and his Company L record also situates the unit in Italy. The archive treats ‘North African Area’ as an administrative theater label or filing error, not Peter’s literal death location.
Needed to confirm the reported Purple Heart, MOS 521, service number, enlistment details, and complete unit chronology.