Ahoy Marines!
About That Flag On Suribachi...First Flag On Suribachi!
The famous picture of the Iwo Jima flag raising on February 23, 1945 is very familiar and stirs the hearts of us all. But how many Americans really know the details of that flagraising, or of the battle itself for Iwo Jima and its significance within the big picture of the Pacific war? How many know that there were two flags raised that day on Suribachi? There is more to the story than just the pictures shot by Rosenthal and Genaust.
Who were these men, and what were their names? Who were the men who filmed the pictures that are now so familiar to us, and what were they doing there? Who was the Marine lieutenant (a former Carlson Raider) who led the patrol up Suribachi to raise the first flag? How many of them survived the battle for Iwo Jima, if any at all? What information is known regarding these men, and what are their stories? What became of them? Are any of them still alive today?
For those of you who have ever wondered about these things, be advised, many have stepped forward, written books, authored websites, been interviewed, etc. And many there are that have now painstakingly set down in writing for all of us their experiences, thoughts and research concerning these events.
And, there may be other questions also: Were there flags raised on Iwo Jima at locations other than Suribachi? If so, where and when? Were the names and units of those who witnessed such events ever recorded?
You will find information related to the above in the following information links, and/or links thereof, books, etc.; and you will be both informed and amazed. Most of you, already proud Americans, will be even more so and you will have the honor of knowing why!
To those men and women of WW II, my most sincere thanks.
-RWG
James Bradley's IwoJima.ComNow "TWO" Living Flag Raisers-The Sgt Ray Jacobs Story!
Charles W. Lindberg-Last Surviving Flag-raiser!
Info: The First Flag Raised and The Last Living Flag Raiser-Cpl Chuck Lindberg--Please Read!
Sgt Bill Genaust -Who Filmed The Famous Flag-Raising (motion-picture version)
Memorial Day 2000, Lest We Forget, by Bob Allen, BCo/28thMarines
Charles W. Tatum's Iwo Jima Site
James R. Enright's Iwo Jima Page
Bizarre Conversation On The House Floor
Bomber Veterans Return To Iwo Jima
The Battle For Iwo Jima (Audio)
Google.Com Search (Suribachi Iwo Jima)
"...and the flag was up. Six men raised it: Schrier, Platoon Sergeant Ernest I. Thomas Jr, Sergeant Henry O. Hansen, Corporal Charles W. Lindberg, Private First Class James R. Michels, and the Crow Indian, Private Charlo. This was the flag raising on Iwo Jima that thrilled the troops. The one that thrilled the world was still to come, nearly two hours later.""On the sandy terrace below, tired men wept in their foxholes, unshaven men on the beaches thumped each other on the back and shouted.
Across the ships, whistles, horns, and bells rang out."...
"And near the base of Suribachi, a few feet from the surf, a man said, 'This means a Marine Corps for the next 500 years.' He looked like any other Marine, but he was Secretary of the Navy Forrestal. Chance placed him on the beach just as the flag went up..."
From The Book, Iwo Jima,
by Richard F. Newcomb,
1965, Holt, RhineHart&Winston
"Landing a machine gun platoon of 1/27 past the southern end of the airfield, heading for the west coast, was a big-eared Italian boy,
handsome and dark. It was 'Manila John' or, more formally , Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone, and there were few things he liked better than soldiering. He never tried high school, but he did a hitch in the Army, and by 1940 was in the Marines.One night on Guadalcanal in October , 1942 he " held off a Japanese assault with two machine guns and a pistol, hauling his own ammunition. His Medal of Honor was the first won by an enlisted Marine in World War II...'I'm justa plain soldier, I want to stay one,' he had said, turning down a commission...."
For Manila John there was now only one objective, the west coast, and he ran for it, his men behind him. It was barely 10:30 am. A mortar shell thudded and burst, and five men were dead, one of them Manila John. As he lay on his face, his arms sprawled in front of him, one could almost see the tatoo on his left arm--"Death Before Dishonor." The Navy Cross was awarded to him posthumously."
--From the book, "Iwo Jima, "
by Richard E. Newcomb,
Holt, Rhinehart and Winston 1965
