76th Anniversary of the Attack on Pearl Harbor

Today marks the anniversary of the event that acted as the trigger for the United States officially entering into World War II. The attack on the U.S. naval base on what was then still the U.S. territory of Hawaii by the Imperial Japanese spurred many into enlisting in the war.

You can learn more at this site

The attack lasted 110 minutes, from 7:55 a.m. until 9:45 a.m., as Japanese planes attacked on a Sunday in the belief that the Americans would be less alert on this day - many were still in their pajamas in the mess hall when the attack began. The United States aircraft carriers were the primary target of the attack, but the Japanese had their timing off and those carriers weren't at the base; due to this, the Japanese cancelled a second planned attack. Midget submarines were also used by the Japanese in this attack.

2,343 men were killed, 1,272 were wounded and 960 left missing.  A total of 2,335 U.S. servicemen were killed and 1,143 were wounded. 68 civilians were also killed and 35 were wounded. The Japanese also suffered casualties that day, although nowhere close in comparison: 65 men, with an additional soldier being captured - 28 Japanese planes were shot down and 5 midget submarines sunk.                                                                                                

Here's a video of the reporting that was put together last year for the 75th Anniversary that you can find on YouTube:

                                                 

The next day, on December 8, 1941,  the country declared war on the Empire of Japan.  Shortly afterward, Nazi Germany, and its ally Italy, followed with a declaration of war against the United States for what it felt was a breach of neutrality agreements by the U.S. given the increasing cooperation by the U.S. with the United Kingdom through the countries' special relationship.  The United States responded with their own declaration of war on December 11, 1941.

As the famous Infamy speech by President Franklin D. Roosevelt conveys, this surprise attack left a lasting impression in the national psyche and contributed to the overwhelming sense of patriotism that was carried through the war by the country.

Here's an image of the WWII draft in Waterford, NY, taken July 22, 1942.

Members are listed on the back of the photo as:   Wally Rudebush, Jas A. Glavin,  Joe Hartnett,  Jack Harney, Molly Storm, Dr. Peckham, and Gordon Yaxley