thedrifter
12-06-05, 05:57 PM
USS Arizona epitomizes memory of Pearl Harbor
By Doug Murphy
Staff Writer
Nothing symbolizes the death and destruction that rained onto Pearl Harbor 64 years ago as much as the bright, white USS Arizona memorial.
The structure straddles the remains of the mighty battleship that sank early on the morning of Dec. 7, 1941, taking 1,177 sailors and Marines with her.
The surprise attack by the Japanese planes damaged or destroyed 12 U.S. ships and killed 2,403 service members. In comparison the Japanese lost 64 fliers and sailors.
The devastating attack united the nation.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt called it, "A date that will live in infamy," and while the number of people who remember hearing the news that day is dwindling, their memories are still vivid.
"I know it was cloudy, gloomy day," said Jane Milburn who was 11 years old when the news came to Ohio.
Greta Rogers and her family had just returned from church.
"My dad turned on the radio and all of a sudden I heard a stream of profanity. We were at war," Rogers said.
Joe Leshay was a college senior and remembers hearing about the attack at Pearl Harbor, and wondering where that was.
"No one knew where Pearl Harbor was," Leshay said.
But newsreels and magazines quickly answered the question of Pearl Harbor's location, with stark black-and-white photographs of the USS Arizona burning in the harbor.
The ship was, and in many ways still is, Arizona's battleship. At her commissioning ceremony in 1915, both a bottle of champagne and a bottle of water from the newly constructed Roosevelt Lake were broken on her bow.
Currently, in the Arizona Capitol, 1700 W. Washington St., the ship's silver service is on display, along with memorabilia from her 26 years of active duty. One of her two anchors and a mast are also on permanent display nearby in Bolin Memorial Park.
The attack launched what had been a hesitant United States into war.
Gasoline and food were rationed and most consumer products were unavailable as the country geared up for an all out war.
"This present generation knows nothing about real war," said Milburn who remembers the boys who were drafted or who joined the armed forces, leaving the community and mothers to juggle rationing coupons to keep meals on the table.
The USS Arizona was damaged beyond repair and left on the bottom of Pearl Harbor. In 1980, a shoreside museum was built, housing a giant mural of the ship along with displays and memorabilia. The National Park Service operates the museum where 1.4 million visitors a year are ferried from the museum out to the memorial above the ship.
But the museum is sinking and in need of replacement.
Gov. Janet Napolitano is the honorary chairwoman of the Pearl Harbor Memorial Fund that has a goal of raising $34 million, including $3 million from Arizona.
For information, visit www.pearlharbormemorial.com or e-mail acc@peralharbormemorial.com.
The reporter can be reached at (480) 898-7914 or by e-mail at dmurphy@aztrib.com.
Ellie
By Doug Murphy
Staff Writer
Nothing symbolizes the death and destruction that rained onto Pearl Harbor 64 years ago as much as the bright, white USS Arizona memorial.
The structure straddles the remains of the mighty battleship that sank early on the morning of Dec. 7, 1941, taking 1,177 sailors and Marines with her.
The surprise attack by the Japanese planes damaged or destroyed 12 U.S. ships and killed 2,403 service members. In comparison the Japanese lost 64 fliers and sailors.
The devastating attack united the nation.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt called it, "A date that will live in infamy," and while the number of people who remember hearing the news that day is dwindling, their memories are still vivid.
"I know it was cloudy, gloomy day," said Jane Milburn who was 11 years old when the news came to Ohio.
Greta Rogers and her family had just returned from church.
"My dad turned on the radio and all of a sudden I heard a stream of profanity. We were at war," Rogers said.
Joe Leshay was a college senior and remembers hearing about the attack at Pearl Harbor, and wondering where that was.
"No one knew where Pearl Harbor was," Leshay said.
But newsreels and magazines quickly answered the question of Pearl Harbor's location, with stark black-and-white photographs of the USS Arizona burning in the harbor.
The ship was, and in many ways still is, Arizona's battleship. At her commissioning ceremony in 1915, both a bottle of champagne and a bottle of water from the newly constructed Roosevelt Lake were broken on her bow.
Currently, in the Arizona Capitol, 1700 W. Washington St., the ship's silver service is on display, along with memorabilia from her 26 years of active duty. One of her two anchors and a mast are also on permanent display nearby in Bolin Memorial Park.
The attack launched what had been a hesitant United States into war.
Gasoline and food were rationed and most consumer products were unavailable as the country geared up for an all out war.
"This present generation knows nothing about real war," said Milburn who remembers the boys who were drafted or who joined the armed forces, leaving the community and mothers to juggle rationing coupons to keep meals on the table.
The USS Arizona was damaged beyond repair and left on the bottom of Pearl Harbor. In 1980, a shoreside museum was built, housing a giant mural of the ship along with displays and memorabilia. The National Park Service operates the museum where 1.4 million visitors a year are ferried from the museum out to the memorial above the ship.
But the museum is sinking and in need of replacement.
Gov. Janet Napolitano is the honorary chairwoman of the Pearl Harbor Memorial Fund that has a goal of raising $34 million, including $3 million from Arizona.
For information, visit www.pearlharbormemorial.com or e-mail acc@peralharbormemorial.com.
The reporter can be reached at (480) 898-7914 or by e-mail at dmurphy@aztrib.com.
Ellie