Appreciate your doing this. My Dad was mine detecting close by when Ernie Pyle was killed. Among many stories, he told us about an instance where a kamikaze flew overhead and the rear gunner tried to strafe them. He said he could see the gunner’s scarf flapping in the wind. I was stationed on Okinawa, as was my son. We took the whole family (his children, grandchildren and great-grand-children) to Ie Shima on the ferry and had a picture taken - just like he had at age 19 - by the Ernie Pyle Memorial. The circle of life is amazing.

Very well done presentation.

My dad was a combat MP in the Liberty Division. He saw combat on Lete, Ie Shima and Okinawa. He was with and driving Ernie Pyle when Ernie was killed. I was about 7 or 8 yrs old when he told me that story. It was a machine gun that forced them from the jeep, into a foxhole/crater. They were pinned down for a while, Ernie kept raising his head to look around. My dad said "Ernie, these boys are shooters, keep your head down".... "Ernie,... keep your head down!"..... "ERNIE,... KEEP YOUR HEAD DOWN !" I'll never forget my dad's voice changed, he hung his head, rubbed his hands and said "the sniper shot him in the temple". My dad passed away in 1975. It wasn't until smartphones and internet that I could find out anything about Ie Shima.

My dad was in the 77th. He had previously invaded Gaum and Leyte. The Okinawa fighting was medieval, he saw things that he never talked about until just before his passing.

@anibalcesarnishizk2205

2 ай бұрын

When he said medieval he meant no one took prisoners or each other mangled the enemy's body.

Thanks for posting. I have been doing some research on this. My grandfather was part of the 106th Seabees that came in on April 23. He left me with a number of pictures including the shelled out goverment building, Sherman tanks and many of the tents erected afterwards. Also many pictures of the Japanese surrender delegates that landed on the island for transfer to Manila for the surrender. So wish i could of heard the story from my Grandfather personally.

My father served with the 306 Regiment of the 77 Infantry Division. As a combat infantry veteran, I Corp 1968 sometimes my dad and I spoke. To all my brothers, welcome back from Hell.

Thank you for posting this. My father was in the engineers on Ie Shima. I have a lot of photos.

@coreyscorner9092

2 жыл бұрын

Is there any way you could send me some of these picture? I’m doing research on the battle

@mikez4528

Жыл бұрын

@@coreyscorner9092 I also have pictures if you need them.

@coreyscorner9092

Жыл бұрын

@@mikez4528 hi friend I'd be very interested! do you have a way I could contact you such as email?

@JoeJones-nc7dh

Ай бұрын

My Grandfather was a combat engineer in the 77th. Got all kinds of interesting photos and things he left behind. He helped build the memorial to Ernie Pyle

My grandfather, John Joseph Diehl was 77th ID, 305th Regiment. I appreciate the work, and research like you wouldn’t believe. It’s unimaginable what all these men, women, and children had to witness. Out of curiosity, how did you find your photos?

My Great Uncle named Pfc Paul E. Yex fought and died on le shima. He was apart of the 307th and passed on April 21, 1945. My family knows he was there because we have documentation from his veteran compensation papers noting when and where he passed. My grandfather when his memory was still good told me that paul was decapitated and the Japanese soldier who took his life proceeded to climb up a palm tree before being shot down by another American Soldier. That same American soldier than took a knife from that same dead Japanese soldier and mailed it back to my family. I have seen the knife it kind of resembles a kukari knife in shape but the sheath is wooden and has Japanese writing on it.

My great-grandfather was on Ie Shima with the 93rd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion. They landed on April 16th and fought through the entire battle. On May 24-25 they were credited with shooting down 15 1/3 Japanese bombers that attacked Ie Shima which set a record for most planes shot down in a single action by one AAA battalion. They received a citation from Admiral Nimitz which I have with my great-grandfathers things from the war.

My 2nd Great Granduncle Lieutenant Cary Braddy Company K 305th INF REG (I sadly do not know what battalion) received the Silver Star for heroism and leadership at the Battle of le town le Shima, RI on April 17th, 1945. He was mortally wounded by an artillery shell later that night, a brother of his would also be killed at the Battle of the Bulge

My grandpa flew a P-51D in WW2 and was stationed on Ie Shima. In his flight log on the day of one of the atomic bombings, he noted seeing a tiny mushroom shaped cloud in the far distance towards Japan.

PFC Jack Davis, my great uncle gave his life there on 18 APR 1945. Jack intentionally fell onto a grenade to save his friend PFC Carl W. Witt. Witt later became a minster, he died in 1982. Witt is buried in Riverside National Cemetery.

Hey, where's the next video?!?

Good stuff

My father was on the amphibious assault ship USS Clearfield and made many trips ashore to land the soldiers and engineers as crew member of a LCVP.

@jamesdunn9609

Жыл бұрын

My Dad was on one of the LST's that landed the 706th amphibious tank battalion on Ie Shima. They played a role in this fight that isn't well-documented here. He said they were one of the first to hear that Ernie Pyle had been killed. It was the only time in the entire war where he saw grown men openly weeping at their battle stations.

At that time two heroes were caring for the soldiers:Charles Whittlesey and Cher Ami.

This is lit

I hope you are doing well.

When is part 5?

What happened to ''The sub that sunk itself'????

Holland Smith called the 77th, the 77th Marine division.The respect he had for this division never existed for the 27th inf.div.Will the latter get some justice?.

@redaug4212

2 ай бұрын

Holland Smith never directly commanded the 77th like he did the 27th. Had he been in command of the Guam invasion he probably would have mistreated the 77th as well. The man was mentally unfit to lead troops in combat.

@anibalcesarnishizk2205

2 ай бұрын

@@redaug4212 Wow!!, really!?.I thought he disliked only the 27th infdiv or the New York division also called "O'Ryan's Roughnecks".What happened to this division that was mistreated as a Cinderella?.No one has talked about her.

@redaug4212

2 ай бұрын

@@anibalcesarnishizk2205 Holland Smith disliked any Army unit that fell under his command. He gave the 7th Infantry Division crap for not taking Kwajalein fast enough in early 1944, and he detested the 27th because he was forced (by the Navy) to tag along with them during the Makin invasion instead of going with the Marines on Tarawa. Things only got worse when he fumbled his first big operation on Saipan and had to bring in Army reserves to salvage his "Marine" operation. So that is why he denigrated the 27th in particular; to distract from his own leadership failures. He probably didn't have anything bad to say about the 77th because he wasn't there to mismanage the Guam operation. That was Roy Geiger's battle, and he was a much better leader and got along much better with the Army.

@anibalcesarnishizk2205

2 ай бұрын

@@redaug4212 I had read that both Geiger and Buckner were always in good terms, one of the reasons that Lt.Gral Simon B.Buckner stated had something happened to him the X Army was to be delegated to Geiger.When Gral.Buckner was killed, Geiger took command for a few days of the X Army.The only moment a Marine was in charge of such a huge element just to be replaced by Joe Stilwell.