Sunday, December 07, 2008

December 7th, 1941, A Day Of Infamy

When the 7th of December 1941 was over, it was clear that the Japanese had delivered a tremendous blow to the United States. Five battleships were sunk or sinking, three destroyers were wrecked, a minelayer and target ship had capsized, two cruisers were badly damaged and many other ships needed repairs. Hawaii-based Navy and Army aviation was also greatly diminished, feeding a sense of defenselessness and defeat that greatly exceeded the realities of the situation.
Fortunately, the Japanese Navy's limited objectives, and limited resources, had left Pearl Harbor's industrial and logistics capabilities essentially intact. Repair efforts began almost immediately, with major salvage projects following as quickly as resources allowed. For the moment, however, with fires out and sunken ships awaiting salvors, Navy photographers, who had done such a remarkable job of recording the events of 7 December, continued their efforts to capture images of the results of the "Day of Infamy" to meet immediate official requirements, and the needs of posterity.

Japanese Empire in 1942 after Pearl Harbor






















Surrender of Japan, Tokyo Bay, 2 September 1945