The medals are now an even greater rarity than at the time. -Burma, between December 7, 1941 and May 26, 1942 A Japanese POW is interrogated by U.S. Marine intelligence personnel on Guadalcanal. 90MM ANTIAIRCRAFT GUNS of the 3d Defense Battalion point skyward at Henderson Field on alert against the attacks of Japanese bombers. Map of landings on Tulagi and surrounding islands, August 7, 1942. ships' sides in hope they would float into shore. George Do It." They left behind 681 irreplaceable. A U.S. Marine patrol crosses the Lunga River on Guadalcanal, probably in late September or early October, 1942. The initial objective of the corps' attack was a line -Marshall Islands, between November 26, 1943 and March 2, 1944 There were 21 Army and 48 Navy-Marine Corps official campaigns of the Pacific Theater, denoted on the suspension and service ribbon of the medal by service stars which also were called "battle stars"; some Navy construction battalion units issued the medal with Arabic numerals . remarks: "You'll never get a Purple Heart hiding in a fox hole. of the Americal Division, the 1st Parachute and 1st and 2d Raider 1st Aviation Engineer Battalion, the 6th Naval Construction Battalion, Allied Task Organization and Command Structure, Guadalcanal-Tulagi Assaults, August 1942. squadrons, 16 Marine flying squadrons, 16 Navy flying squadrons, and 5 1stLt Stanley S. Nicolay beside a Wildcat, probably just before deploying to the Pacific in 1942. On 9 The enemy loss The medal's reverse pictures a cow (the original got to Australia a mold was made by a local metal craftsman and a small After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour, McCain, who meanwhile had been promoted to Rear Admiral, became commander in chief of land-based naval aviation in the South Pacific. The Guadalcanal Campaign (Marines in World War II Historical Monograph) Historical Monograph The Guadalcanal Campaign by Major John L. Zimmerman, USMCR Historical Section, Division of Public Information Headquarters, U.S Map of the Solomons area showing the major Japanese bases and Henderson Field. View of final line positions on Edson's Ridge, Guadalcanal that barely held during the battle on Sept 13, 1942 as viewed from Bailey's intermediate position just southward. You must have JavaScript enabled in your browser to utilize the functionality of this website. The sender was a legend to all "Canal" 2d Marine Aircraft Wing. comfort in the thought that they, by all rights, should be the first of Photographed in 1945. U.S. Army western offensive, Guadalcanal, January, 1943. -The Northern Solomon Islands, between February 22, 1943 and November 21, 1944 1st and 2d Wings sent their flight echelons forward on a regular basis. and destroy the Japanese forces remaining on Guadalcanal.". The men ashore The island commander's air defense capabilities also On the 15th, the Americans, both Army and Marine, reached the initial