Uhlan Gillman was born October 22, 1919 in Barnabus, Logan County, West Virginia to Comfort Gillman and Roxie Curry.
Uhlan enlisted in the United States Army on August 2, 1940 at Fort Thomas, Kentucky. He was sent overseas to the Pacific theater on September 8, 1943 to serve as a private with the 17th Ordinance Company in the Philippines. He served gallantly in the Philippines, but was captured as a prisoner of war when the troops on the islands were forced to surrender to the enemy in 1942.
Uhlan was held as a prisoner of war in the Philippines for two years. While being transported to Japan on the Shinyo Maru, Uhlan lost his life on September 7, 1944 when the unmarked ship was torpedoed by an Allied submarine. His death was received by the War Department on February 14, 1945.
Uhlan was awarded the Purple Heart and his body was buried at sea. In recognition of his honorable service in World War II, and for his ultimate sacrifice, Uhlan Gillman's name is inscribed on the Tablets of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery in Manila, Philippines, and Uhlan's was one of the original names inscribed on the West Virginia Veterans Memorial.