thedrifter
08-14-08, 07:38 AM
V-J Day remembered
Local veterans recall their participation in Pacific Theater.
By MICHAEL MITSEFF
mmitseff@lakecityreporter.com
Published: Thursday, August 14, 2008 6:15 AM EDT
On today’s 63rd anniversary of V-J Day, the commemoration of Japan’s
unconditional surrender that ended the carnage of World War II, Lake City residents Charles Tooley and Thomas A. Lowder look back on the war that changed their generation forever.
The Allies had delivered Japan an ultimatum to surrender on July 28, 1945, but when this was ignored, the U.S. dropped two atomic bombs, one each on Hiroshima (Aug. 6) and Nagasaki (Aug. 9).
Japan’s surrender was first announced at noon Japan standard time on Aug. 15,1945 (Aug. 14 is the North American date).
In one of those ironic moments in which history is replete, it seems fitting that the country that precipitated America’s entry into the war by its sneak attack on the U.S. Navy base at Pearl Harbor on
Dec. 7, 1941, also be the last to surrender.
“The Japanese could have taken the United States, but they didn’t realize it,” U.S. Marines Platoon Sgt. Lowder said. “We didn’t have anything to fight with — nothing.”
Though the United States got off to a slow start, once its manufacturing might gained momentum, it overwhelmed the enemy with ships, submarines, fighters, guns and ammunition. The United States out-manufactured her enemies.
However, for the men and women who served in the Pacific Theater of Operations (PTO) and witnessed the ferocity and the never-say-die tenacity of the Japanese soldier, retaking the Pacific islands was a major undertaking that cost tens of thousands of American and Allied lives, and many more wounded.
Lowder, a veteran of the PTO, said he believed that if it wasn’t for the two atomic bombs that had been dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, that he and millions of other soldiers would have died in the inevitable invasion of Japan’s homeland.
On June 4, 1942, the Japanese were defeated by the U.S. at the Battle of Midway.
The U.S. sent three aircraft carriers, The Enterprise, The Hornet and The Yorktown, to defend the island. In the fierce fighting, the Japanese Navy lost four aircraft carriers, two cruisers and more than 200 planes. This was the first defeat of the Japanese Navy since 1592, according to historical documents.
The eventual advance through the Central Pacific got under way in November 1943 with the seizure of two islands, Tarawa and Makin in the Gilberts.
“When we boarded the ship we never knew where we were going — they never told us,” Lowder said. “On Nov. 20, 1943, at dawn, I was on top deck when I saw the island of Tarawa, it was our first campaign. It was quiet until daylight, then all hell broke loose and bullets were hitting the ship, and I could hear one go past my head.
“I was to be in the fourth wave going over with a half-pack and weapons; we would go down the rope ladders and drop into the landing craft,” he said. “We got word we were losing the battle, but we had too many men on the island to back out now. As we approached the island, we had to go up over the reefs and the enemy guns were trained right there and just picked us off.
“There were 40 men in my bunch and 20 got killed outright,” he said. “Almost all of the first three waves of men were killed. I had two buddies that were killed in the war and one of them was at Tarawa,” Lowder said, relieving the moment.
“The men who fought at Tarawa and fought in all the campaigns didn’t care if we died or not, we were all scared but we did our job,” Lowder said. “We didn’t back down, that was the thing, we just didn’t back down.
“The heroes are dead, they were the ones who really won the campaigns,” he said. “When they would jeopardize their lives to go up and take out a big gun, and in the end they get killed.”
Radarman Charles E. Tooley joined the U.S. Navy at the age of 17, six weeks before the attack on Pear Harbor.
Tooley’s first battle would come less than a year later. Assigned to the destroyer USS Perkins for duty, Tooley became part of the new radar division.
“We were at Espiritu Santos in the New Hebrides Islands when suddenly ordered to sail,” Tooley said.
Two days later, Tooley said he and his crew met other warships near Guadalcanal.
“On the night of Nov. 30, 1942, we were told that we would engage the famed Tokyo Express in battle.”
Once the Perkins new SG-1 radar detected the enemy, Tooley said, that information was radioed to his superiors who notified the task force commander and other warships.
“Soon the waters were full of death-dealing torpedoes and the night sky was full of colored tracers going in both directions,” Tooley said. “The battle lasted only 20 minutes, but they had hurt us severely.”
Tooley said that the cruiser Northampton had been sunk, the bows blown off the cruisers Minneapolis and New Orleans, and the cruiser Pensacola was nearly sunk. Arriving at Tulagi Island for repairs they camouflaged against air attacks.
“I went on board the Pensacola and saw burned black bodies on the deck,” Tooley said.
Reassigned to the destroyer USS Downes, Tooley became the senior Radarman in its Combat Information Center.
“On this ship we covered a lot of war-theater areas: Guam, Saipan, Tinian, Iwo Jima and the Philippines, you name it,” Tooley said.
Tooley said it was the teamwork of the various servicemen, all of whom did their jobs, that won the war in the Pacific.
“I’m glad that I was there and where I was needed, but there was no heroism to it,” Tooley said. “We just did what we had to do to remain a free country.”
Ellie
Local veterans recall their participation in Pacific Theater.
By MICHAEL MITSEFF
mmitseff@lakecityreporter.com
Published: Thursday, August 14, 2008 6:15 AM EDT
On today’s 63rd anniversary of V-J Day, the commemoration of Japan’s
unconditional surrender that ended the carnage of World War II, Lake City residents Charles Tooley and Thomas A. Lowder look back on the war that changed their generation forever.
The Allies had delivered Japan an ultimatum to surrender on July 28, 1945, but when this was ignored, the U.S. dropped two atomic bombs, one each on Hiroshima (Aug. 6) and Nagasaki (Aug. 9).
Japan’s surrender was first announced at noon Japan standard time on Aug. 15,1945 (Aug. 14 is the North American date).
In one of those ironic moments in which history is replete, it seems fitting that the country that precipitated America’s entry into the war by its sneak attack on the U.S. Navy base at Pearl Harbor on
Dec. 7, 1941, also be the last to surrender.
“The Japanese could have taken the United States, but they didn’t realize it,” U.S. Marines Platoon Sgt. Lowder said. “We didn’t have anything to fight with — nothing.”
Though the United States got off to a slow start, once its manufacturing might gained momentum, it overwhelmed the enemy with ships, submarines, fighters, guns and ammunition. The United States out-manufactured her enemies.
However, for the men and women who served in the Pacific Theater of Operations (PTO) and witnessed the ferocity and the never-say-die tenacity of the Japanese soldier, retaking the Pacific islands was a major undertaking that cost tens of thousands of American and Allied lives, and many more wounded.
Lowder, a veteran of the PTO, said he believed that if it wasn’t for the two atomic bombs that had been dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, that he and millions of other soldiers would have died in the inevitable invasion of Japan’s homeland.
On June 4, 1942, the Japanese were defeated by the U.S. at the Battle of Midway.
The U.S. sent three aircraft carriers, The Enterprise, The Hornet and The Yorktown, to defend the island. In the fierce fighting, the Japanese Navy lost four aircraft carriers, two cruisers and more than 200 planes. This was the first defeat of the Japanese Navy since 1592, according to historical documents.
The eventual advance through the Central Pacific got under way in November 1943 with the seizure of two islands, Tarawa and Makin in the Gilberts.
“When we boarded the ship we never knew where we were going — they never told us,” Lowder said. “On Nov. 20, 1943, at dawn, I was on top deck when I saw the island of Tarawa, it was our first campaign. It was quiet until daylight, then all hell broke loose and bullets were hitting the ship, and I could hear one go past my head.
“I was to be in the fourth wave going over with a half-pack and weapons; we would go down the rope ladders and drop into the landing craft,” he said. “We got word we were losing the battle, but we had too many men on the island to back out now. As we approached the island, we had to go up over the reefs and the enemy guns were trained right there and just picked us off.
“There were 40 men in my bunch and 20 got killed outright,” he said. “Almost all of the first three waves of men were killed. I had two buddies that were killed in the war and one of them was at Tarawa,” Lowder said, relieving the moment.
“The men who fought at Tarawa and fought in all the campaigns didn’t care if we died or not, we were all scared but we did our job,” Lowder said. “We didn’t back down, that was the thing, we just didn’t back down.
“The heroes are dead, they were the ones who really won the campaigns,” he said. “When they would jeopardize their lives to go up and take out a big gun, and in the end they get killed.”
Radarman Charles E. Tooley joined the U.S. Navy at the age of 17, six weeks before the attack on Pear Harbor.
Tooley’s first battle would come less than a year later. Assigned to the destroyer USS Perkins for duty, Tooley became part of the new radar division.
“We were at Espiritu Santos in the New Hebrides Islands when suddenly ordered to sail,” Tooley said.
Two days later, Tooley said he and his crew met other warships near Guadalcanal.
“On the night of Nov. 30, 1942, we were told that we would engage the famed Tokyo Express in battle.”
Once the Perkins new SG-1 radar detected the enemy, Tooley said, that information was radioed to his superiors who notified the task force commander and other warships.
“Soon the waters were full of death-dealing torpedoes and the night sky was full of colored tracers going in both directions,” Tooley said. “The battle lasted only 20 minutes, but they had hurt us severely.”
Tooley said that the cruiser Northampton had been sunk, the bows blown off the cruisers Minneapolis and New Orleans, and the cruiser Pensacola was nearly sunk. Arriving at Tulagi Island for repairs they camouflaged against air attacks.
“I went on board the Pensacola and saw burned black bodies on the deck,” Tooley said.
Reassigned to the destroyer USS Downes, Tooley became the senior Radarman in its Combat Information Center.
“On this ship we covered a lot of war-theater areas: Guam, Saipan, Tinian, Iwo Jima and the Philippines, you name it,” Tooley said.
Tooley said it was the teamwork of the various servicemen, all of whom did their jobs, that won the war in the Pacific.
“I’m glad that I was there and where I was needed, but there was no heroism to it,” Tooley said. “We just did what we had to do to remain a free country.”
Ellie