The Role of Aleuts During WWII
When my husband Paul and I fulfilled a long dream by traveling to Alaska four years ago, we learned so much about this magnificent place.
But when we left, we realized that we had barely scratched the surface of the history and story of our 49th state.
While in Fairbanks, we visited the WWII Memorial, and read several plaques honoring the military who served in Alaska. However, even there I don’t recall any mention of Native Alaskans from the Aleutian Island, the Aleuts, who suffered at the hands of the Japanese. 42 of these proud people and one white woman were taken prisoner by the Japanese when they invaded the islands to the west of mainland Alaska. (source)
I hadn’t realized that the Japanese had actually landed on American soil. And, I had no idea that as a result of the invasion, American citizens were taken to Japan where they lived for three years under harsh conditions. More than half starved or died of diseases. Only a few were returned to Alaska at the end of the war, but they could not return to their home of Attu due to buried explosives left behind by the Japanese. Until a recent news story, I had presumed that the invasion consisted of only a few soldiers easily fended off by US military.
However, headlines and articles describing “carnage”, “fierce combat” “brutal” and “one of the largest banzai charges of the Pacific campaign” spoke of the reality. (source)
Two different garrisons totaling more than 4,000 soldiers invaded Attu and Kiska in the summer and fall of 1942. They began building an airfield and fortifications and became entrenched to fight off attacks from Americans and Canadians. (source) In addition to ground troops, they were bombarded and bombed by the American Army Air Corps when weather permitted . The US Navy attacked from the Bering Sea and protected harbors and bays with many skirmishes with the enemy. Both sides suffered high percentage of losses from not only combat, but the harsh landscape and weather of the Aleutian Islands. Due mostly to weather, however, it was not until the following spring that intense battles for the Aleutian Islands occurred in earnest.
“The final casualty counts were stunningly high for both sides, especially considering that Attu was an island so remote in the North Pacific. Fighting nearly to the last man, the Japanese suffered 2,351 killed as counted by the Americans. The actual number could be hundreds higher because some Japanese bodies might have been blown apart and made impossible to count. Also, the Japanese regularly buried their dead in secret locations to hide their casualty numbers. The Americans suffered 3,929 casualties. Of that number, 549 were killed in combat; many more were killed by friendly fire or by booby traps installed by the Japanese.” (source)
Amazing that so many American soldiers were killed to protect our country from invasion from the north during WW II. Few know about these events that occurred only 6 months after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
If white Americans had been captured on US soil and taken to Japan, I wonder if this part of our history would be basically forgotten. In May of 1945, a woman and five children were killed by a Japanese balloon bomb. The enemy had launched between 9,000 and 10,000, hoping they would start damage and cause damage on the west coast. An article ten years ago stated that, “the only civilians killed on US soil lost their lives 70 years ago yesterday.” (source) If the wife of the radio operator who was killed by the Japanese soon after they landed on Attu had read that, it must have been heart-breaking. After witnessing the murder of her husband, she was taken to Japan along with the Native Alaskans for the duration of the war.
I mentioned earlier an article that re-ignited my interest in Alaska during WW II. This article contained details about the discovery of part of a US Navy destroyer, The USS Abner Read. It was lost in the Bering Sea during the War due to an underwater explosion. You can learn more HERE.
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