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Attu the Forgotten Battle

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Attu the Forgotten Battle ATTU THE FORGOTTEN BATTLE John Haile Cloe soldiers, Attu Island, May 14, 1943. (U.S. Navy, NARA 2, RG80G-345-77087) U.S. As the nation’s principal conservation agency, the Department of the Interior has responsibility for most of our nationally owned public lands and natural and cultural resources. This includes fostering the wisest use of our land and water resources, our national parks and historical places, and providing for enjoyment of life through outdoorprotecting recreation. our fish and wildlife, preserving the environmental and cultural values of The Cultural Resource Programs of the National Park Service have responsibilities that include stewardship of historic buildings, museum collections, archeological sites, cultural landscapes, oral and written histories, and ethnographic resources. Our mission is to identify, evaluate and preserve the cultural resources of the park areas and to bring an understanding of these resources to the public. Congress has mandated that we preserve these resources because they are important components of our national and personal identity. Study prepared for and published by the United State Department of the Interior through National Park Servicethe Government Printing Office. Aleutian World War II National Historic Area Alaska Affiliated Areas Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author and contributors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of the Interior. Attu, the Forgotten Battle ISBN-10:0-9965837-3-4 ISBN-13:978-0-9965837-3-2 2017 ATTU THE FORGOTTEN BATTLE John Haile Cloe Bringing down the wounded, Attu Island, May 14, 1943. (UAA, Archives & Special Collections, Lyman and Betsy Woodman Collection) TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF PHOTOGRAPHS .........................................................................................................iv LIST OF MAPS .......................................................................................................................... vii PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ..............................................................................ix FOREWORD .................................................................................................................................x INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................xi Chapter One - the Setting ..............................................................................................1 Terrain ............................................................................................................................................. 1 Weather ........................................................................................................................................... 8 Chapter twO - the iSland and itS hiStOry ........................................................ 13 Russian Period .............................................................................................................................13 American Purchase ....................................................................................................................13 Attu Village, the Last Vestiges of the Aleuts in the Western Aleutians ..........................................................................................................14 Strategic Interest ........................................................................................................................15 Chapter three - war COmeS tO the aleutianS ................................................. 21 The Midway-Aleutian Plan ......................................................................................................21 Occupied by the Enemy .............................................................................................................23 Forced to Leave, the Aleut Ordeal .........................................................................................28 Advance Down the Aleutians ..................................................................................................30 Captives in Japan ........................................................................................................................32 The Japanese Reoccupation of Attu ......................................................................................33 Chapter FOur - deCiSiOn tO retake attu ............................................................. 39 Planning ........................................................................................................................................39 Commitment .................................................................................................................................46 The Japanese Prepare ...............................................................................................................50 Chapter Five - day OF Battle ...................................................................................... 65 May 11, Landings ........................................................................................................................65 May 12-13, Stalemate in Massacre Valley, Success in Holtz Bay ................................76 May 14, Failure in Jarmin Pass ..............................................................................................81 May 15, Relief of General Brown ...........................................................................................88 May 16-17, Holtz Bay Taken, Jarmin Pass Secured .........................................................90 May 18, Transition to Mountain Warfare ..........................................................................93 May 19-20, Clevesy Pass Secured ..........................................................................................96 May 21-22, Sarana Nose and Prendergast Ridge Captured .........................................99 May 23-25, Attack to Take Holtz Bay-Chichagof Harbor Pass on Fish Hook Ridge ......................................................................................................... 101 May 26, Joe Martinez, Medal of Honor.............................................................................. 104 May 27-28, Buffalo Ridge Taken ......................................................................................... 106 May 29, Engineer Hill ............................................................................................................. 108 Chapter Six - aFtermath ........................................................................................... 113 The Costs ..................................................................................................................................... 113 Burying the Dead ..................................................................................................................... 114 The Impact on Japan .............................................................................................................. 114 U.S. Media Coverage ................................................................................................................ 114 Lessons Learned ....................................................................................................................... 114 Lessons from Tarawa, a Comparison ................................................................................ 118 Chapter vii - miSSiOn tO the kurilS ..................................................................... 121 Bridge to Victory ...................................................................................................................... 121 Attu as a Major Base ............................................................................................................... 123 Chapter vii - COld war and rememBranCe ...................................................... 127 Abandonment of the Island .................................................................................................. 127 You Can’t Go Home Again, Repatriation of the Attu Aleuts........................................ 127 Repatriation of Remains ....................................................................................................... 130 Cold War ..................................................................................................................................... 131 The Environmental Legacy ................................................................................................... 134 Designation as a Historic Landmark and Valor in the Pacific Site Memorials .................................................................. 134 Memorials .................................................................................................................................. 135 APPENDICES a. geographical names, Battle of attu ......................................................................... 138 B. abbreviated Census, attu village, 1940 .................................................................. 148 C. Order of Battle, Battle of attu, american Forces .................................................. 150 d: Order of Battle, Battle of attu, Japanese Forces .................................................. 160 by Ephriam D. Dickson III e. Order of Battle, Battle of attu, Japanese Forces ................................................... 166 by John Cloe F. Japanese weapons Captured on attu ......................................................................
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