75 Years Ago Today US Marines Claimed Mount Suribachi And Raised The American Flag At Its Summit

Seventy-five years ago today during the Battle of #IwoJima75, Marines claimed Mount Suribachi and raised the American flag at its summit, creating an unforgettable and iconic moment in American history and patriotism. #WeAreIwo. pic.twitter.com/6oNg5MEPhP

— U.S. Marines (@USMC) February 23, 2020

Seventy-Five Years Ago United States Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone Was Killed At Iwo Jima

United States Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone

WNU Editor: For more on United States Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant John Basilone go here .... John Basilone (Wikipedia).

The Marines Who Raised The American Flag At Iwo Jima Have Been Finally Identified

The men are, from left to right, Ira Hayes, Harold Henry Schultz, Michael Strank, Franklin Sousley, Harold 'Pie' Keller and Harlon Block. Keller was confirmed this week, while Schultz was confirmed in 2016

Daily Mail: Marine Corps admit they misidentified a SECOND soldier in iconic flag-raising photo of the Battle of Iwo Jima in 1945 after a 'digital' FBI investigation

* Photographer Joe Rosenthal shot the photo in 1945 on Mount Suribachi but failed to get the men's names
* President Franklin Roosevelt told the military to identify the men and after some confusion, the Marines named them as John Bradley, Rene Gagnon, Ira Hayes, Harlon Block, Michael Strank and Franklin Sousley
* But now the Marine Corps say the man thought to be Rene Gagnon was actually Corporal Harold 'Pie' Keller
* Gagnon was a United States Marine Corps corporal who participated in the Battle of Iwo Jima, but in a case of mistaken identity it now appears that it was Keller who was also with the Corps, who was in the photograph.
* In 2016 the man identified as John Bradley was actually found to be Harold Henry Schultz
* It took a group of three historians studying video footage and photos from other angles to reach the findings
* Iwo Jima island, 660 miles south of Tokyo, was the site of a 36-day battle between about 70,000 Marines and 18,000 Japanese soldiers

The Marine Corps have admitted that a second man in the iconic Iwo Jima photo taken in 1945 was misidentified.

NBC News reports that an investigation by the Marines and the FBI's Digital Evidence Lab confirmed that it was Corporal Harold 'Pie' Keller and not Private first corporal Rene Gagnon who was captured in the Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph 74 years ago.

The classic image - taken by Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal - shows six Marines erecting a US flag during a bloody battle on the Japanese island of Iwo Jima in February 1945.

Read more ....

Update #1: Warrior in iconic Iwo Jima flag-raising photo was misidentified, Marines Corps acknowledges (NBC)
Update #2: Marine Corps again corrects who was in iconic Iwo Jima flag-raising photo (ABC News)

WNU Editor: Wikipedia has a good post on the battle of Iwo Jima .... Battle of Iwo Jima (Wikipedia).

U.S. Marines Reinvestigating Identity Of Man In Famous Iwo Jima Photo

USA Today: Marine Corps investigating claims about iconic Iwo Jima photo

The Marine Corps is investigating whether one of the men in an iconic World War II photo taken at Iwo Jima was misidentified, Marine Corps spokeswoman Capt. Sarah Burns confirmed Tuesday.

The investigation comes years after amateur historians Eric Krelle, of Omaha, Neb., and Stephen Foley, of Wexford, Ireland, began raising questions about the identity of one of the men in the photograph, The Omaha World-Herald reported. The photo was taken on Feb. 23, 1945, by Associated Press photographer Joe Resenthal, and showed a group of men raising the American flag atop Mount Suribachi, on the Japanese Island of Iwo Jima.

The duo alleges that the man identified as John Bradley, a Navy corpsman, was actually Harold Henry Schultz of Detroit, who passed away in 1995, AP reported.

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More News On The U.S. Marines Reinvestigating Identity Of Man In Famous Iwo Jima Photo

Marines investigate claim of mistaken identity in famous Iwo Jima photo -- FOX News/AP
Marines reinvestigating identity of man in iconic Iwo Jima photo -- The Hill
Iwo Jima flag raising: Curious historians prompt Marine Corps investigation -- CSM
Marines Investigate Possible Misidentification in Iconic Iwo Jima Photo -- ABC News
Marines Investigate Possible Error in Iconic Iwo Jima Photo -- Time
Marine Corps may have misidentified man in iconic Iwo Jima flag photo -- New York Daily News
Iwo Jima, Misidentified? -- Matt Vasilogambros, The Atlantic

The Marine Who Led The Charge To Place The First American Flag Above Iwo Jima Has Died

Marine Times: Marine who led WWII charge up Mount Suribachi on Iwo Jima dies

The Marine who led the charge to place the first American flag above Iwo Jima has died.

First Lt. John Wells, 94, died Feb. 11 at the Arvada Care Rehabilitation Center in Arvada, Colorado.

Wells received the Navy Cross, Bronze Star and Purple Heart after leading his Marines in a frontal assault up the slopes of Mount Suribachi during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II.

He didn’t make it to the top after taking multiple enemy rounds, but continued to command, leading his men to victory. His platoon raised the first flag atop the mountain, hours before the iconic photo of the second flag raising was captured.

“He was a very warm, sensitive, spiritual man, all the way to age 94,” Connie Schultz, Well’s daughter, told ABC affiliate Denver 7. “He honored and loved the Marine Corps with all his heart and soul. He loved his family, and his last words were, ‘My family.’ ”

Read more ....

Update: Marine Who Led Charge to Place American Flag Over Iwo Jima Dies (Washington Free Beacon).

WNU Editor: His last words were .... "my family".

70 Years Ago The U.S. Flag Was Raised At Iwo Jima

Stars and Stripes: The Battle of Iwo Jima: 70 years later

At Iwo Jima’s southern tip stands its tallest point, Mount Suribachi, peaking at 554 feet. The morning of Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal’s arrival, amid fierce fighting across the island, a Marine platoon climbed to the summit. As a handful of its members lifted a 20-foot-long water pipe topped with a small American flag, Forrestal, watching from the beach below with Gen. Holland Smith, spoke the line that enshrined him in military mythology.

WNU Editor: Stars and Stripes is doing a special on remembering Iwo Jima. The link is here.

The Flag Of Iwo Jima

Marines raise the American flag atop Mt. Suribachi, Iwo Jima, Japan, Feb. 23, 1945. Alan Wood, who died April 18, was the Navy communications officer who supplied the American flag. (AP PHOTO/Joe Rosenthal)

Alan Wood, US Veteran Who Provided Flag For Iwo Jima Picture, Dies Aged 90 -- The Guardian

Wood, who was a 22-year-old navy officer in second world war, credited with finding the flag for the iconic photograph

Alan Wood, a second world war veteran credited with providing the flag in the famous flag-raising on Iwo Jima, has died. He was 90.

Wood died 18 April of natural causes at his Sierra Madre home, his son Steven Wood said on Saturday.

Wood was a 22-year-old US navy officer in charge of communications on a landing ship on Iwo Jima's shores 23 February 1945 when a marine asked him for the biggest flag that he could find.

After five days of fighting to capture the Japanese-held island, US forces had managed to scale Mount Suribachi to hoist an American flag.

Wood happened to have a 37-square-foot flag he had found months before in a Pearl Harbor navy depot.

Five Marines and a navy corpsman later raised that flag in a stirring moment captured by Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal.

Steven Wood says his father was always humbled by his small role in the historic moment.

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Update #1: Iwo Jima World War II flag provider passes -- CBS/AP
Update #2: Alan Wood dies, leaves legacy of Iwo Jima flag -- Christian Science Monitor

My Comment: It is a proud legacy to be remembered for.

Remembering Iwo Jima

WNU Editor: The Battle for Iwo Jima started on February 19, 1945, and ended on March 26, 1945. 6,821 Americans killed and 19,217 wounded. 21,844 Japanese killed, only 216 taken prisoner. 27 Medal of Honor's were awarded, plus an untold number of other medals.

Wikipedia's entry on the battle of Iwo Jima is extensive. The link is here.

Original Iwo Jima Monument To Be Auctioned

Ceremonial Marchers and Silent Drill Platoon of Marine Barracks Washington, Sunset Parade at the Marine Corps War Memorial, Rosslyn (Arlington County), Virginia, USA. Wikipedia

Original Iwo Jima Monument, Which Used To Be Housed At The Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum, To Hit The Auction Block -- New York Daily News

The 10-ton piece, inspired by the iconic photo taken at the Battle of Iwo Jima in 1945 and the model for the flag-raising Marine Corps War Memorial statue in Arlington, Va., will be up for sale at Bonhams auction house on Feb. 22. It is listed for sale for $1.3 million to $1.8 million.

A cherished piece of U.S. history may be an expat by this time next month.

The original Iwo Jima monument — the model for the famous flag-raising Marine Corps War Memorial statue in Arlington, Va., — will be put up for sale at a Bonhams auction house in New York on Feb. 22, and its owner said “it's more likely than not” the piece he salvaged may be sold to a foreign collector unless an American buyer steps up.

“I hope sincerely the original Iwo Jima monument stays in the United States,” said owner and memorabilia collector Rodney Hilton Brown, 70.

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Update #1: Original Iwo Jima monument coming to NYC auction -- Wall Street Journal/AP
Update #2: Auction to Feature Iconic World War II Statue -- ABC News

My Comment: This should be in a museum for everyone to look at and admire. The original Iwo Jima monument looks like this.

Remembering The Japanese Dead At Iwo Jima

Entrance to the 5th MarDiv cemetery on Iwo Jima with Mount Suribachi in the background. USMC Photo

Report: Graves That May Hold Remains Of 2,000 Japanese Soldiers Found On WWII Battleground -- Canadian Press

TOKYO — Two mass graves that may hold the remains of up to 2,000 Japanese soldiers have been discovered on the island of Iwo Jima, one of the bloodiest and most iconic battlesites of World War II, a report and officials said Friday.

A team of Japanese searchers has discovered 51 remains in two areas listed by the U.S. military after the war as enemy cemeteries, one of which could contain as many as 2,000 bodies, Japan's Kyodo news agency said Friday.

The team was to report its findings later Friday to the prime minister's office.

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More News On Japanese Graves At Iwo Jima

Bodies, mass graves found on Iwo Jima -- Yahoo News/AP
Grave Containing Up to 2,000 Bodies Found on Iwo Jima -- AOL News
Iwo Jima grave could hold 2,000 Japanese soldiers -- Toronto Star/AP

My Comment: The Americans were not the only ones who got slaughtered in Iwo Jima. The Japanese were also decimated, but at levels that pale in comparison to what were U.S. casualties at the time.