On the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II, we continue to share our Virtual Coffee & Conversations with you. Below and here you will learn more from Royal Schmidt, who fought in Charlie Company of the 160th Battalion in the 40th Infantry Division during action on Guadalcanal and New Britain.
Kiska Landing
Alaska Kiska Island, 1943. Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/89715097/.
Background: The war in the Pacific stretched from the Aleutian islands in the northeast (see image above) to New Guinea and Indonesia in the south west. From fierce fighting on remote jungle islands like Guadalcanal (see image below) to operations near the freezing Arctic Circle, the war in the Pacific was fought in the air, at sea, and on islands both large and small.
Take a moment today to reflect on the heroism, death, and service of the men and women who fought in World War II in the Pacific. Be sure to watch the Coffee & Conversation with your loved ones as you do.
This sketch from Guadalcanal shows two soldiers in a foxhole at night. Source: Brodie, Howard, Artist. Nightime on “Bloody Knoll” or “Chi. Heights” – 2 to a fox hole
Guadalcanal Solomon Islands, None. [Between 1942 and 1943] Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/2004661738/.
