Presenting a prologue to a program about the aerial attack on Pearl Harbor Dec. 7, 1941, at the Cambridge Rotary Club's Wednesday meeting, President-elect Jim Coffey read a poignant description of the battleship USS Pennsylvania, which won eight battle stars, and the battleship USS Franklin, an aircraft carrier known as "the ship that wouldn't die," before introducing one of 8,000 living World War II veterans, Bill Shepard.
Shepard, who was stationed on the Pennsylvania and the Franklin during World War II, was awarded the Bronze Star for his heroic actions when the Franklin was bombed by the Japanese. When the order was given to evacuate the ship, Warrant Officer Shepard volunteered to stay behind and help put out the fires. The Franklin's crew was the most decorated in the U.S. Navy.
Rotarians gave 96-year-old Shepard a standing ovation.
Continuing the club's salute to The Greatest Generation, guest speaker Dr. Tom McGrath, associate professor of history at Muskingum University, began his PowerPoint presentation with several diagrams of battleships docked at Pearl Harbor and copies of authentic photos taken by the Japanese pilots during the attack.
"At 7:58 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 7, 1941, an air raid siren was broadcast on Pearl Harbor. A voice succinctly stated, 'This is not a drill,'" said McGrath.
"The attack was well executed by the Japanese, and they had a little luck on their side. The weather was perfect and the planes that showed up on the radar were mistaken for a group of B-17s that were due to land at Pearl Harbor momentarily.
"It was a tactical victory that came in two waves," he said. "The first attack was a complete surprise. A fleet of Japanese aircraft carriers launched about 350 aircraft almost simultaneously to bomb Battleship Row, NAS Ford Island and Hickam Air Field. The Japanese developed armor-piercing shells which did extensive external damage to several ships, but sank only four. The prize they sought and their main target was the American fleet of air craft carriers, but none were docked at Pearl, they were all out to sea.
"The second wave of attack followed approximately 30 minutes later, when the USS Arizona was shattered by the modified shells, six other ships were sunk and most of the planes were destroyed.
"The Japanese Admiral Yamamoto, who ordered the strike on Pearl, showed his cultural arrogance that would prove to be his country's downfall. He believed the Americans lacked the commitment to sacrifice, and didn't have the stomach for a war. And, that the Japanese would prevail in approximately six months allowing them to continue their dominance in South Asia.
"The attack resulted in 2,400 dead and 1,100 wounded," said McGrath. |
