Pearl Harbor 1941

Pearl Harbor
December 7th, 1941 "A Day that will Live in Infamy"

Pearl Harbor is "ground zero" where World War II began for the United States.
The event where Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto stated:
"I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant..."

Photos

PHOTOS

HOME

Unaware of the approaching Japanese flotilla, the U.S. Navy (185 U.S. vessels) was moored in small groups throughout Pearl Harbor in defense of possible sabotage attempts.

HISTORY

The attack on Pearl Harbor was the culmination of a decade of deteriorating relations between Japan and the United States over the status of China and the security of Southeast Asia.

PEOPLE

The bond between USS Arizona shipmates went beyond being comrades; there were 37 sets of brothers assigned to the USS Arizona on December 7, 1941.

Commander Mitsuo Fuchida, sent the coded messages
"Tora, Tora, Tora"
telling the fleet that complete surprise had been achieved.

The images which follow, capture some of the events that occurred on that fateful day. But photos fail to capture the courage, the bravery, the self-sacrifice, along with the horror and panic that greeted the island's inhabitants on that sleepy Sunday in December 1941. Nor can photos begin to show the suffering felt by the loss of friends and colleagues and the shock and dread that seized the nation. As we reflect upon the tragic events of September 11, 2001, and the images of that terrible day, so too view these images from six decades before with an appreciation that snapshots in time still fail to capture the emotions and bravery of those who were a part of the event.