Throughout 2020 we have reflected on the 75th anniversary of the end of WWII. As the year comes to a close, we wanted to take a look back at the moment that brought the United States into WWII – the bombing of Pearl Harbor. The attack by Japanese forces occurred 79 years ago this month, and more than 2,400 U.S. personnel lost their lives. There are countless stories of heroism from that day. Here are just a few:
Navy seaman first class Don Stratton, 19, had just finished breakfast aboard the USS Arizona on December 7, 1941. He put some oranges in his hat to go visit a buddy in sickbay and made his way up on deck. Suddenly a Japanese bomb exploded, destroying a part of the ship. A fireball set his shirt on fire and caused 1st and 2nd-degree burns on his face and ear and 3rd-degree burns on his extremities. Despite his injuries, Stratton took up his station and tried to shoot down enemy planes, but the shells could not reach the Japanese aircraft. As the Arizona started to sink, Stratton grabbed hold of a rope and began to climb hand over hand. His hands were raw and burned, but he was determined to survive as he inched across the rope hanging above flaming water. He finally reached safety. Within 25 minutes, the Arizona sank to the bottom of the harbor.
Frank Emond was a French horn player in the band aboard the USS Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania was in dry dock at Pearl Harbor at the time. On December 6, 1941, musicians from the Pennsylvania performed with 21 members of the USS Arizona band. The following morning Frank was getting ready to play for the morning flag-raising when the Japanese attacked. Trained as a stretcher-bearer, Emond went to work removing the injured and dead. Later he learned that all 21 members of the USS Arizona band that he’d performed with the previous evening died in the attack.
Brothers Vernon M. Matney and Claudie A. Matney both served in the Navy and were assigned to two different ships in Pearl Harbor at the time of the attack. Vernon was aboard the USS Arizona and Claudie was nearby on the USS Worden. Vernon served as a fireman first class and died in the attack. Claudie survived. The boys’ parents were not officially notified of Vernon’s death until February 1942, but an earlier letter from Claudie confirmed their fears. Navy censors prevented Claudie from directly telling his parents directly about Vernon’s death, so he relayed the information in a type of code. He wrote, “Tell Mildred (their sister) that she can name her last boy Vernon after Buddy.” In 1944 Vernon was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart.
George W. Blake was playing basketball with a local team on the morning of December 7th when he noticed an unusual sound, like a plane landing on a corrugated metal roof. He ran outside and realized the sound he was hearing was machine gunfire. “I came out and the air was full of planes,” he said. Pearl Harbor was under attack. Blake ran to the barracks where a sergeant ordered him to grab small arms and make his way to the gun park. He ran a half-mile across the base, taking cover under palm trees while firing his rifle at Japanese fighters. After arriving at the gun station, Blake was put in charge of a .30 caliber machine gun. He tilted it toward the sky and fired at attacking planes. “I didn’t hit anything,” he said. Across the harbor, he saw billowing clouds of black smoke. He later realized it was probably the Arizona. Blake said they expected the attack to be followed by a land invasion and he spent the next 24 hours manning a machine gun on the shores near the entrance to the harbor. Following that, he lived for several months in a sand cave dug out on the steep slopes of the beach, positioned with a machine gun facing the beach, waiting for another attack. Looking back at those that were lost, Blake says, “The first thing that comes to mind is they were kids.”
Lauren Bruner was at his battle station in an anti-aircraft gun director, a metal box on the forward mast of the Arizona, when a Japanese bomb ignited the powder magazine. A fireball engulfed six men in the box and trapped them. A sailor threw them a line and the men crawled down the line. Their skin was charred and falling from their bodies. Bruner was the second to last man to leave the Arizona before she sunk. Burned over two-thirds of his body and shot in the back of his leg, he spent months recovering. After being released, Bruner went to work on another ship, the USS Coghlan. He served in the Aleutian Islands and the Battle of Komandorski before finishing out the war in the South Pacific.
To read more stories, see photographs, or leave a tribute, visit our Interactive USS Arizona Memorial and search Fold3 for additional Pearl Harbor records and Memorials.
Thank you for your service to all the WWII veterans deceased and alive. All American soldiers since WWII are also appreciated for their service. God bless all of you!
My uncle, Thomas Charles Thompson, was stationed aboard the submarine, USS Triton, out of Pearl Harbor at the time of the attack. They were not in port at the time, though, they were already out on a patrol. The Triton is credited with the first torpedo hit on a Japanese ship after the attack. She was sunk in April of 1943 with all hands lost.
Thank you for sharing that story!
My daughter is currently serving at Pearl Harbor. Her workspace has bullet holes in the walls which have been preserved from the 1941 attack. Just as the physical reminders remain, we must also remember those who paid the ultimate price.
I have never heard that. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you so much for this info. My father is Harold DeVere Staples. He was a freshman at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah studying to become a doctor. When he received word of Pearl Harbor attack, he immediately enlisted in the Marine Corp and fought the Japanese in the South Pacific in the Pelelieu Islands . His brother, Alton Crane Staples, also joined the Marine Corp and fought in the battle of Hirojima. Both survived their years of service but suffered from PTS Syndrome the rest of their lives.
We owe such a debt of gratitude to people like your father. Thank you!
I had a friend in the Marines, Bob Alsup, who survived the attack on Pearl Harbor, only to die on Iwo Jima.
I don’t have the words to convey my sadness for our losses and my anger towards the Japanese government and Hitler.
Robert Berry, Jr. was my cousin who was in the U. S. Navy. All I know is that family stories say that he was probably drowned when Japanese planes were over his ship, and he jumped (probably trying to go to another deck) and he was never seen again. I have other family information which is available to other family members.
The man above was son of Robert Berry and Lura Moore. I have been researching the Moore family for over 40 years.
I was privileged to work on a commercial Pearl Harbor Tour boat out of Kewalo Basin for a year in 1969 to 1970, during the Viet Nam war. Besides other tourists many of our passengers were couples on R&R leave. Every day going to the Memorial was a solemn portion of the cruise. While I was privileged to work with many men who were there on that day of infamy reading these stories of heroism and bravery brings even more humanity to my experience. Thank you to all the good men and women who serve and their families.
I was only 10 years old and remember so much of that time. I was riding my bicycle when a neighbour came out and told us what had happened. One thing I do remember was that there were sever things we couldn’t buy and no one ever complained. Like tires, some meat , sugar, shoes, ladies stockings just a few. But no one complained. There was a house in Pacific Beach and when I visited my aunt and Uncle I said what happened to that house. My Uncle said an old Jamanese lady lived there and the authorities took her away because they found radio equipment in her walls of the house. She was used as a spy. Another lady lived next to my Cousin and we went to vivit her one day. My Cousin said she did not like people going around inside her house so I should just sit. She was nice. but later on she was taken away also because she had shortwave equipment in her house,.
I was four years old when Pearl Harbor happened and can recall listening to the news on the radio with my parents. In later life I would teach students in my history classes about the “Day that will live in Infamy,” as FDR called it. The blog is poignant in telling individual’s stories, and particularly how young many of the men were.
I was 4 1/2 years old? I was on the sidewalk of my grandparents house making
Mud pies…..Water and dirt….would let them harden in the sun. A way of keeping me busy.
My grandmother came to the kitchen door and said “If you hear Airplanes come in the house right away”. We had radio, but no TV in 1944.
Sunday nights we always listened to a radio show “We. the People”. That’s how I learned
About Pearl Harbor and what had happened, and why my grandmother told me to
come in the house right away if you hear Airplanes…….
That is an incredible memory. It kind of reminds me of 9/11. We didn’t know what would happen next. Thanks for sharing.
As a child, born during WWII, I was often told of the terrible loss of lives at Pearl Harbour and the bravery of those who died and survived. People should read history and learn from it … you can’t possibly go forward in life WITHOUT knowing where you came from, and by that I mean people from all parts of this world should know their background and the people who walked on earth before them. Lest We Forget
Lest We Forget relates to those who died in WWI and WWII. It is an ANZAC tradition
Never Forget
My dad was a survivor of Pearl Harbor.
I asked him, “where he was when The Japanese Attacked?”. He said, “in the Mess”. I asked him, “what did he do?”. He said, “I went up and got on one of the guns”. I asked him, “did he shoot down any planes?” He said, “I don’t know but we were sure putting them up”.
He went on to serve in the Korean War and served 20 years in The Navy. He retired as Chief Petty Officer Antonio Jioia.
Your dad was a hero!
My dad was a BM3 in WW2 was not at PH but served in the Pacific theater with CASU 1. 1943-1946
Does anybody have any questions about saying “I thank you for your service”? These young men are stellar examples of what heroes really are.
Thank you for remembering these men and their unbelievable bravery. They and many others need to be remembered for the horror they endured and the sacrifices they made. In addition, their devotion to their fellow service members should never be forgotten. Heroes they are.
Thank you for running this story. I was born in February 1940 so I was almost two years old when Pearl Harbor was hit. My earliest memories where of World War II. My dad was in the US Army Air Corps (later the US Air Force). My mother’s brother was in the Army medical corps, he would never speak of the experience. My dad’s first cousin was in the Infantry shooting heavy artillery-he was deaf because of it. My dad’s best friend was killed flying the Hump-he brought me a grass skirt from Hawaii. It was a very scary time for this small person-I had a nightmare that is stillm vivid today. I tell my grandsons about rationing, the news reels, and a trip to my dad’sbase over Raton Pass with no brakes and the lights having a non-functioning dimmer switch. Of course, they don’s understand but they do listen-one of them is in the Air Force today and just returned from six months in a “desert somewhere in east Asia” flying old, old planes.
I am so very grateful for the men and women that do serve and have served this country. It is very difficult to know that a lot of people today will never know how much the people of that era loved this country. I love the USA.
My father served as a Liet. JG as a flight instructor in the states. He never saw combat but some he of the instructor were killed with the men they were teaching. To all of the men and women who have given their lives then and now God bless and thank you. My dad’s name was Nicolas Francisco Veloz.
Remembering with tears in my eyes. Not enough thank you’s can be said and somehow don’t seem appropriate to thank someone for giving their own lives or surviving the loss of a loved one. God Bless….
My Dad……101st airborne over France….survived and never spoke of the horrors he saw.
The stories of the 101st airborne are amazing!
They were so very young; God Bless them all for their service.
God Bless them….heroes all
Thank you for offering this information. It really helps me understand what the war was about & the sacrifices our soldiers made.
My father, Philo Nelson Kelley (P. N. K., “Pinky”) Englesby, originally from Mondovi, WI, and later Augusta, WI, where he served as Chief of Police for 22 years, was a Navy Pearl Harbor survivor. He was a medical corpsman, a pharmacist’s mate in Navy rank terminology, serving ashore with the US Naval Mobile Hospital No. 2, one of the first MASH-type medical units, later of movie and TV fame, in all of the military. He had been transferred from the USS West Virginia to the mobile hospital located on Aiea Heights in the mountains above the harbor only ten days before the attack. Since the hospital was not fully set up yet, the mobile hospital had to house the many patients, most of whom were horribly burned, in its own barracks, which were the only buildings erected when the attack came. Dad would tell how he looked at the Japanese planes over the harbor and said to Captain Stone, “What’s that, sir?!” And Captain Stone replied, “That’s war, son, that’s war.” He also described how as the Jap planes rose following their bombing and strafing of the ships, their bullets would go right up the mountain to where his unit was. Between the bombings, dad would relate — only infrequently and when pressed a bit to talk about it all — that they would go down the mountain to retrieve the wounded and the dead. And some time after the attack, dad and his fellow pharmacist’s mates would go onto, and even down into when possible, the sunken ships in the harbor in order to retrieve the dead, if they could do that without the bodies coming apart into too many pieces. He would say that he could never forget the smell of the decomposing bodies. Some years later during the war, the entire unit was decorated by Admiral Nimitz and President Roosevelt for its service before, during, and after the attack. Dad later volunteered for the submarine service and served in the Pacific first and then the Atlantic towards the end of the war. He had become a Chief Pharmacist’s Mate, invariably called “Doc” on his subs, as the only qualified medical provider for the 70 plus men aboard. I’ve searched many years trying to find information about the Naval Mobile Hospital No. 2 and the men who served in it at Pearl Harbor. Does anyone out there reading this have any information on this mobile hospital or its staff? I sure would appreciate hearing anything you may have. So far, I’ve run across online only two other descendants of men who served at Pearl Harbor with the mobile hospital. Those men who were also there with Pinky Englesby are Thomas Tippin and Whit Bryan. Is there anyone else who has a connection, too? I’d sure like to hear from you! Oh, one more thing: I recall that around 1970 when the movie about Pearl Harbor, “Tora! Tora! Tora!” (meaning “Tiger! Tiger! Tiger!”, the Japanese code for having achieved total surprise in their sneak attack) was on TV at home, Dad suddenly became very agitated, and he yelled, “Yeah, and we tora, tora, tora, your ass off!” Thanks very much.
It’s hard to imagine the things your father saw.
my great great uncle was at Schofield Barracks when the Japanese attacked. Mel Mc Kinney died at 100 years of age in 2018.
My mom’s older brother, then Sgt. Waldemar Hobratsch, was standing on the front porch of Schofield Barracks when the Japs dropped the first bombs. He ran to the arms locker and broke the lock with a fire extinguisher. He was the senior NCO present and ordered the men who gathered around him to grab .30 cal. machine guns, BARs, and ’03-A3 Springfields. They set up a defensive position on the roof and tried to bring down enemy planes. After the attack ended, they were ordered to set up defensive positions on the beach to prepare for an anticipated land invasion. Sometime in January, 1942, he was sent to OCS at Ft. Benning. He hadn’t been home to Texas in 4 years and was given a weeks leave enroute. He was commissioned as an Infantry 2nd Lt. in the Big Red One. He was in Operation Torch, Operation Husky, and Operation Overlord.
Your uncle was a hero!
Every year we recognize the lives lost on the Arizona and other ships at Pearl Harbor. This is a good thing to do.
My Father was stationed at Wheeler Air Base on December 7, 1941. This at that time was a Army/Air Force base. There was over 1,000 lives lost between the bases and civilians. The bases were hit first so planes would not be able to get in the air. Fortunately some did get air born and helped in the fighting.
Have you ever over the years remember to acknowledge the lives lost at the 2 Army Air bases, Wheeler Army Air Base and Hickam Air Base along with the civilian lives that were lost on that day.
I think it is past time to include them in the remembrance of December 7, since they were the first hit and some of the pilots that did get a plane up perished in the flight. There were others that returned to the bases.
This is my thoughts on the remembrance of December 7, because I had a Father that was based at Wheeler Field and survived to tell us about what happened. We attended the 50th Anniversary on Hawaii, with my Father, and was able to see the bullet holes left in the buildings on that eventful day.
I hope future December 7 remembrances will talk about the beginnings of the shooting prior to heading for the ships. Along with the reasons why they targeted the bases.
We salute you all with our hearts….thank you….
My father, Charles Raysor Salters, jr, was on the deck of the Tennessee when the bombing started. He said in a letter to my mother ,but didn’t mail until he reached California so as to not censored, that he saw the plane’s overhead and knew we were under attack so headed to his battle station. I am in possession of the letter.
What a treasure you have in that letter.
I believe you have the stories of Don Stratton and Lauren Bruner mixed up. Stratton was the sailer inside the gun director with the other 5 boys when the attack started. He was not a gunner. After the massive bomb explosion they were engulfed in fire and they went hand over hand to the Vestal which was tied up alongside the Arizona.
My home town of Hanska Minnesota was Home of Herb C. Johnson Furniture and Funeral Home. Herb was a Navy Corman at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 and that he helped with all the casualties that followed the attack at Pearl Harbor.
Lan Evenson
You have the stories of Don Stratton and Lauren Bruner mixed up. Don Stratton was one of the six men inside the towering gun director when the attack occurred. He was not a gunner. He climbed the rope over to the Vestal tied up alongside the Arizona. He is still alive and lives in Northen California. God bless him.
My Father Machinist Mate Vernon “Wick” Davis was stationed on the U.S.S Medusa, a repair ship docked between Pearl Island and Pearl Harbour right next to the U.S.S.Curtiss.
My father in law was also there when Pearl Harbor was attacked. His name is Arnhold Schwichtenberg.
May God bless each and every one of them and they will not be forgotten thank you for those serving our country
Wish we really remembered Pearl Harbor , so that the 911 catastrophe would not if happen.
My Father, Jacob Oliver Siegmund, was an Aircraft Sheetmetal Mechanic and Forward Port Machine Gunner aboard the USS Enterprise, the most decorated ship of WWII. They were a few hours at sea, heading for Pearl harbor when the bombing started, but they were very involved in recovery of bodies, etc. immediately after the bombing, and transporting survivors to other ports for treatment of their wounds, etc. The USS Enterprise was involved in multiple other battles with the Japanese during the war and I of course do consider my Father a Hero as He and his crewmates definitely played a very decisive part in the U.S. Victory of WWII. He was nearly burned to death when trapped in his machine gun port for several hours after a Kamikaze Japanese Zero crashed onto the deck above his gun port during one of the battles; I believe it was either the Battle of Saipan or possibly Midway. He was ultimately Honorably Discharged after the war and went on to live a rewarding life until he reached the age of 93 years 7mos. and died on June 23, 1993; the day after My Birthday! I was fortunate enough to be at His bedside that last night!!!
Thank you for sharing these memories of your father.
These stories need to be told to today’s young people. This could happen again but with more devastating effect by an enemy with nuclear weapons . There are enemies in overpopulated countries out there that salivate at taking over our land.
Very interesting.
These men were just “kids” when they signed up to defend our American way of life, but they rose up to be not just men, but giants. As an American, I can never repay the debt of gratitude I owe to all the men and women who served so honorably during WWII.
Thank you for posting about these heroes! What history, bravery, and legacy.
What about the soldiers stationed at Scofield Barracks, as my father was? He recalled that the Japanese planes flew so low he could see the faces of the pilots. Dad served the rest of the war in Europe where he was at the Battle of the Bulge.
I just cannot begin to imagine what these young men endured. We must never forget the sacrifices they made and how determined they were to overcome the enemy. They truly loved their country and they truly are our heroes.
Such senseless killings thank you for your service to our country
I visited the Memorial in 2008. It’s beautiful.
Thank you for that message and sharing the names of those young men who lost their lives fighting to keep America a strong and free Nation.
They were just kids. I was 9 at the time my dad came and told us. Two months later my brother was on his way over.
Awesome Stories. My Father was a Staff sergeant in the Army, after being mistakenly confused with another fellow by the same name, as a private serving in the Battle of the Bulge. His ability to talk of those days was very limited, just bringing up a few good memories he had with the fellow soldier friends he made.
We owe these patriots more than we could ever repay. May God Bless them all.
don c.
thanks for this. Not yet seeing anything at all elsewhere to remember 7 December 1941. But I don’t blame the Japs for attacking: Roosevelt and Co. cornered Japan – by cutting off the fuel supply – and forced the Pacific War in order to backdoor America into the larger World War. And, given the state of that war in the summer and fall of 1941 – it looked to all concerned that the the Germans were about to knock Russia out of the war again, as in 1917/18 – I don’t much blame FDR for doing what he did.
My uncle, Revis Stanley Sirmans, was aboard the USS Vestal, a repair vessel that was tied up to the USS Arizona on Dec 7, 1941. He was blown out of the gun mount that was his general quarters station. He was picked up by boat and returned to the ship to help treat his shipmates even though he was a Machinist Mate by rate. He and the crew of the Vestal helped save many sailors that day. His Commanding officer refused to abandon ship and was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his efforts to save as many as they could.
Thanks for sharing your uncle’s story. That is amazing!
God Bless your Uncle, Revis Stanley Sirmans as well as ALL the Men and Boys that gave some and some gave all. I wish to thank you for sharing your Uncles story and may God Bless you and your Family.
The tragedy of war is overwhelming. Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.
Thank you so much for this treasured memorial to those who saved the U.S. WE are eternally grateful to these great soldiers.
When I was 19 years old in 1969, I was in college and had just been accepted into the Naval aviation ROTC. I was on my way to Lakehurst, NJ to get sworn in and left my home in Farmingdale ny. My mother was crying and my father could not say a word. My father’s family was ravaged by ww2 and they were tired of war. Vietnam was raging and I was going to war. I made it to NYC and turned around. I regret not serving but I did become a FBI in nyc for 24 years.
Before I got out of college, I worked as a bartender in a restaurant on the south shore of Long Island owned by a WW2 vet named Joe Hydrisko. He went through the attack on Pearl Harbor and never forgot the horrible experience. On the anniversity of the attack, he would fly his plane over the Pearl Harbor and drop hundreds of flowers over the water. He has since died but he will always be remembered.
What a sweet memory!
My mother, Janet Gill Perry’s brother, Lt./LCDR. Orin Francis Perry lll was a gunnery officer aboard USS Pennsylvania during attack. Went to Survivor reunions until age prevented it
Mary Martin
My aunt Katherine was a nurse there at the time. She survived and spent the rest of her service working for UNRRA.
So wonderful to hear women’s stories!
I was always proud of her part. Her sister was also a military nurse, she was a WAAF.
My Father, William H. Craddock was on BB46 The U.S.S. Maryland the day of the attack on Pearl Harbor. He served the entire war in the Pacific on her.
TEARS. Five Brother in it. One did not return. RIP all.
Wow!
I turned 4 yrs old two weeks before the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. I lived with my Mother, Father, and two older sisters in Naval Housing on Ford Island where the ships were anchored.
My mother was polishing my little white shoes because I was going to Sunday School for the first time. I was a big girl now.
We lived directly across from the USS Oklahoma
We heard the noise immediately. Smoke was everywhere, then fire . My father had to leave us and run for his ship the, Ogalala, which was on the other side of Ford Island. We hid and waited for someone to help us. It seemed like a very long time, to a four yr old, but the Marines came in an open stake truck, got everyone in the back and tried to find a place for us. Planes were still flying overhead and my sister said she could see their faces. My eyes were closed as I hid underneath my mother. Eventuality they dropped us off at the BOQ. My eight yr old sister and I are put in the hall and my mother and twelve yr old sister went to help with the wounded.
I remember it was very dark and busy. We were by a door to one room were someone was moaning and being a very snoopy little girl I peeked into the room and saw a grown man with his arms and head covered in bandages. He hurt so much. I was so afraid and so ashamed for peeking in his room. We stayed there for one or two nights, I don’t know for sure.
We finally went back home and then my father came home. A few days later we all walked down Battleship Row and viewed the damages still smoking.
I remember our cat had to wear a bell or he might be shot by patrolling Marines at night. We had to keep the windows covered at night. I never got to Sunday School in Hawaii. My mother, sisters and I were evacuated from the territory of Hawaii Dec 30
Thank you for sharing those incredible memories!
I’m looking to find info on A A Woodward, on the Arizona 12/07/1941. Status MIA etc>
Keith,
Look on the USSArizona.org web page under casualties list page 47. He is one of the men that is still on board the USS Arizona.
R/Debbie
Kieth there is a plaque on the memorial that is over the Arizona with the names of those who died aboard her that day. Maybe someone who is stationed there can check the names and send you a picture? I was aboard the USS Bryce Canyon AD36 and was on Ford Island when they started cutting the focal off the Arizona. Was back 11 months and was watching them start building the memorial. Went back several years later and took a tour there and was reading names. I’d one great memorial and very moving to those who ever served in the service. Good luck
Hello from the Uk I’m a disabled hobbyist writer of 74 May I put this story in my new A5 book called Wings of Freedom and putting Fold3.com in the bibliography. My website is http://www.jdbbooklets.org.uk you will read all about me and my testimonials and it will show you I’m a caring gentleman. I wait to hear from you .
Yours sincerely
David banks
Truly our Greatest Generation, we need these stories to continue to be told. The sacrifices made by these brave soldiers should be forever remembered!
December 7 should be a national holiday to honor these soldiers! May they all Rest In Peace.
Thank you for your service!
Barb Fornoth
My heart goes out to the many sacrifices made by all Americans during that war but especially the Armed Services and my Uncles Thomas and William.
Thank you for these very personal and significant stores, and also for the wonderful photos of these servicemen.
If I may make one small correction: Frank Emond did indeed play on December 6th in the “Battle of the Bands,” but the USS Arizona Band did not. They played on another day and were in the audience that night to watch their fellow bandsmen perform. This is a common misconception.
Thank you again for sharing this information,
Thank you for the clarification Russ. I got that information from several old newspapers. I appreciate your comment.
I have met one survivor of Pearl Harbor, my recruter at Ft. Schuyler when I joined the Naval Reserve. He didn’t say much about it. Now I say God bless all that died then and inWW 1. God bless all serving now and who have served.
Why is there no mention of the Black sailor, Dorie Miller,(whose job was a cook) who manned an anti-aircraft gun during the invasion of Pearl Harbor??
Miller’s heroics during the Pearl Harbor attack were initially forgotten—until the press got wind of the story. On May 27, 1942, Admiral Chester Nimitz, commander of the US Pacific Fleet, personally pinned Miller with the Navy Cross, the navy’s second-highest honor. Miller was the first black sailor ever to earn the award. Wikipedia
We have written about Dorie Miller before. He truly was a hero!
My Uncle, Glenn L. Brasell was in the Navy. He told me once, that he was on shore when he heard the planes , and when he looked up, he saw the bombs coming down and hit the USS Arizona. He said it was one of the horrific sites and he could never forget it. He passed away about 6 years ago.
My father, James S. Brasell, was in the Army and was in the battle of the Bulge.
It sounds like you come from a family of service. Thank you!
Very interesting stories. There are so many of them.
Love these memories. I had two first cousins on different george Dewey porter jr. And john herman porter cant find them but their story but it made the news paper because one ship was hit and my uncle went a month before he knew they were alive they were from logan wv
I was one month old when the attack took place,my father was at sea with the British Merchant Navy on Atlantic Convoys. It is history to me but I have never forgot it!! !I taught history to High School students.
My dad, Paul Anderson joined the US Navy the day after Pearl Harbor attack. He severed aboard the USS Washington until the end of the war. He served 7 years, then went into the Air Force reserve for four years then the Coast Guard Reserve for 32 years. He retired as a WO 4. He also was a police officer for Louisville Ky. and retired as a Lieutenant.
God bless these brave souls my Dad’s cousin went down on the Arizona, he was so right they were just kids. My Dad served in Germany. He was always my Hero. So young but so brave.
Amen!
God bless our wonderful service people and their families. ❤️
GOD BLESS EACH AND EVERYONE OF THESE BRAVE MEN!!! I HAVE 11 FAMILY MEMBERS WHO HAVE SERVED IN THE MILITRY AS FAR BACK AS THE THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR IN 1763, REVOLUTIONARY WAR….TO VIET NAM SERVICE
There were also the wives and children stationed at the military bases. We ran for cover or stood terrified as husbands and fathers ran to their duty stations. Sgt. Blakey’s wife stationed on Hicham field lay with their son in the bath tub seeking protection from the three bombs that fell across the street. Shrapnel and bullets flew in the air.
Hard to imagine!
i didn’t anything 0n the news morning to day about it. i knew today is the seven day of december . you are the only one so far. maybe i turn on the tv news they may show a report.
God Bless them all. We cannot ever thank our veterans enough or express how grateful we are for every single one them and for their bravery and sacrifices they went through for our freedom.
My father-in-law was a B29 pilot and stationed in Guam 316th Airborne, Army Air Corp. We love him and miss him.
I lived in Hickman for several years with my husband. I was just four years old when Japan hit Hawaii bur I remember my mother crying and my dad saying he was going to join in the morning. However, he never got to do that. He worked at Gates Rubber Company for 56 years and at the time of the way he was told he was needed where he was. He made belts for the tanks and they needed all they could get. I am still so proud of my dad, he may not have fought but, he did his part. I remember mom had a victory garden and we raised Chickens and ducks for us and our neighbors.
My husband served 24 years in the Air Force and served in Viet Nam, and the first desert storm. He passed away in June of this year. We had been married 50 years and boy, do I miss him. He was my love and my life. But I am proud of my hero’s.
Bless all who serve our nation.
Nancy
Thank you for their service and your sacrifice!
What a tribute to those who told the stories of that Day in infinaly.
I was just a little too young to serve, but a few years later i did serve in Korea for 13 mo.
yes I have memories of that time in my life, now at 86 years young.
Last year I met a Veteran in Oregon who was a B17 Bomber Pilot, he was 96 and still walk with Pride, we spent a few minutes visiting, memories will always be there.
Thank you for the time to share.
Does anyone know of a place that recorded the names of those injured (but not died) in the Pearl Harbor attack? Specifically, I’m looking for records of those injured at Hickam Field. Wikipedia lists that 303 were wounded there, but no reference is given.
I’m Lena Taylor, day of Lonnie Gibby & stepdaughter of James Lovett Piland, both of Texas. My dad enlisted in the Navy but due to frail health was given an Honorable medical discharge. I had just been born Jan., 1944. My step-father was just as much my Dad. He was a Army, a foot soldier with Patton. He must have been with Patton before Patton was removed from command. But he told me he was somewhere in Italy when he was wounded. He allowed me to shoot his German Lugar. After he showed me how to use the sight I never missed a target.
He told this story about Patton. Lovett & his squad were resting under a shade tree in front of a Red Cross refreshment station. Along comes a motorcycle courier who went inside, leaving it unattended. Then Patton comes along & see that. He stopped & with his driver loaded it in the back of the keep. Patton jumped in front with his driver. As they spun off he overheard Patton say to his driver, “Let him explain THAT to his commanding officer!!! I am trying to find which battle in Italy Lovett participated in & under whose command when he was wounded. I know he was in the Africa campaign because Lovett despised “Ike” as a “political animal”.
Ike lead the first US troops to arrive in North Africa. Many of the troops thought that the US had he best tanks and other equipment. This as not true they soon found out. I Nazarene Pass the Germans under Rommel destroyed most of our tanks and killed many U.S. soldiers. It was a hard learn for the U.S. I do not blame Ike for this debacle. Also all Service leaders at Ike’s level are to a degree political. It is part of the way all leaders of large organizations arise to that level. But Ike was a great diplomat and held everything together during the invasion of Fortress EUROPE. He also had to deal with Montgomery! For that I give him five stars!
My uncle Duene ” Shorty” Allen, at 16 (lied) signed up for the U.S.N. after P.H. & spent the war in the Pacifice theater. He stayed in the Navy till after Vietnam. I never knew, until just before he past I saw a FULL page article about him & the things he did.I cry thinking , 1. I never told him ” thank you for your service”. 2. The thoughts of thinking this gentle uncle of mine, just a simple farm boy, from central KS, went to war at 16 yrs old. He got vetrens parades started in Ohio, & was a beloved P.D. officer for many years. He is greatly missed, as he was greatly loved. I & my whole family stand tall & salute ALL who has, who is & who will serve this great nation, we call home, Odin bless all you warriors men ,& women!!!!!
War is HELL. I can only speak of Vietnam, but everyone that I talked too, said they were never the same when they came home. God bless all vets
I was not quite 6 mo old the day Pearl Harbor was bombed. We had just returned from church and Mother turned the radio on. Daddy was holding me and when he heard the news he literally threw me toward Mother and took off to enlist. They always said afterwards that that experience was my “first Flight, without wings”.
Daddy returned shortly. They would not let him enlist because of his job. He personal manager for Island Creek Coal Co. in WV, and they told him his role in keeping the coal flowing was more important (at that time) than going off to fight. Need less to say, Mother was very relieved.
I am so grateful for all of our military. They are all valuable. Those who were in the Pearl Harbor attack were unbelievable heroes. I was just a baby then. I wonder how many of us now could be that tough. I surely hope we could be so courageous.
While Pearl Harbor was under attack, Wake Island was also. I knew two men who were employed by Morrison Knudson Co (heavy construction). Harry Morrison had just flown back to the States, but his men were captured (I think they helped in the fight). They spent the war in POW camps in Japan. Both were (functioning) alcoholics. Morrison wrote into his Co charter that they would always have a job when they wanted one.
My dad was a dirt poor kid growing up in East Grand Forks MN. When war was declared, all his buddies vacated the schools and streets and enlisted. No one walked the streets except my dad. He had a hip deformity which was discovered in his physical. He then went to work for Occident Flour Mill in Grand Forks ND for 16 hrs. a day, till he saved up enough money for a corrective surgical operation. He then passed the physical with flying colors and enlisted in the USN. Never, ever, ever talked about his experiences in the Pacific, North Africa, the Mediterranean and Italy. Never knew anything about his wartime experiences till his death when we cleaned out his USN Trunk. What an eye opener. Terrible experiences. Like most returning vets, went to college, got married and lived a full life. Funeral was hard, with taps and all, and of course the folded flag. I gave it to my oldest son (LTC Rasmussen). I served USAF (O3). Gotta quit, but just remember…..history is not being taught anymore, either in HS or College.
I think history is still being taught, but the people who experienced WWII aren’t around to teach it anymore, so the personal connection is lost. But worse, it’s the lack of Civics being taught that’s getting us into trouble nowadays. Civics is what teaches you what your role is, as a citizen (and a voter), in making sure that callous, cruel and inhumane history is never repeated.