Junior Edgar "Punch" Parker

United States Marine Corps

August 1943-March 1946

Forward

When I was a boy growing up in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, my next door neighbors were the Parkers. As my brothers and I would be outside playing late in the afternoon with Eddie, Herb, Mike, or David, the Parker boys would suddenly go racing home to eat supper at the sound of a distant bugle call. The person on the other end of that bugle was a WWII Marine veteran by the name of J. Edgar Parker, but everyone knew him as "Punch." Apparently he had earned the nickname as a youngster for being a little on the chubby side, somewhat like a punching bag. Punch worked for many years as a meat packer and inspector, owned a neighborhood general store, and served for decades as the Scoutmaster of Troop 162. He was also an active member of Corinth Baptist Church for many years, serving as a deacon and Sunday School Director. He was married to his wife Mazie for fifty seven years until his death in 2007. In addition to his four sons and their wives, he also had seven grandchildren.

Punch Parker was without a doubt one of the kindest, most decent and good-humored people that I have ever known. He was always friendly, never took himself too seriously, and would lend a hand to anyone in need. He used to delight in showing off his extensive personal collection of vintage rifles, helmets, swords, flags, and wartime memorabilia to all the neighborhood kids. As I grew a little older and began to understand more about what had happened in World War II, Punch Parker's incredible experiences fighting against the brutal Japanese war machine in the Pacific Theatre of Battle gradually became known to me.

Punch had learned to blow the bugle in the United States Marine Corps after being drafted in 1943. In addition to serving as a company bugler, he would somehow manage to survive indescribably horrific conditions as a front-line infantryman in the Battle of Okinawa. The bitter struggle on this remote island was by all accounts some of the bloodiest and most savage fighting in all of World War II. Considering the terrible sights and sounds that he endured in a place that one Marine would later describe as "the most ghastly corner of Hell I have ever witnessed," Punch Parker seemed remarkably well adjusted. His faith, courage, tenacity, patriotism and sense of humor enabled him to pass through a firestorm of unspeakable suffering and death relatively unscathed. This is my humble attempt to tell the story of a true American hero.

Robert Poole, Jr.

Punch

One Young Man's Journey through the Bloodiest Battle of the Pacific War

*********

"My job was many things, but one of them was to carry messages to all the platoons. I'd either run phones lines or carry the message by voice. Every night we had to have a new password. We'd use something like 'Chesterfield' or 'Camel,' something with the letter 'C' in it. The Japanese couldn't say 'C' because it didn't sound right."

"It was just about night, and I had to take the password to everybody, because you couldn't holler it across the field. After dark, you don't move because you'll get shot. I was out there on a point, and I just made a beeline across a little gulley to save time. Next morning, I woke up, and looked out across where I had run. There must have been anywhere from 100 to 150 little silver metal points sticking up out of the ground."

Punch Parker, a 22 year old United States Marine Corps infantryman and field bugler, had unwittingly passed through an enemy mine field on the battle scarred island of Okinawa.

"Some of them had wires tied between them, so if you hit one, another one would go off. I'd run right through the middle of it and hadn't hit a thing. The guardian angels were on my shoulders that day! That was one of those things you'd joke about later. I joked about it and they joked about it. That's the only way you can live in a situation like that is to joke about it."

J. Edgar Parker

USMC

On April 1, 1945, one of the greatest battles of World War II commenced on an island less than 400 miles south of Japan. The Battle of Okinawa, the largest amphibious assault in the Pacific Theatre in World War II, involved more than 1600 Allied ships and nearly 550,000 Marines, Soldiers, Sailors, and Army Air Corps flyers. (1) For the Americans, Okinawa would serve as a springboard for the upcoming invasion of Japan. This small Pacific outpost was targeted for conquest due to its relative proximity to the Japanese home islands, its harbors, airfields, and capacity to sustain supply lines for the upcoming attack.

Considered home territory by the Japanese, Okinawa was a place that had to be defended at all costs. If U.S. Naval and Air forces were not stopped here, they would be able to launch virtually uncontested attacks on Japan's mainland. Desperation to defend this tiny spot of territory in the vast Pacific would lead the Imperial Japanese military forces to sacrifice themselves in ways that would leave America's fighting men speechless.

Officially known as Operation Iceberg, during the Battle of Okinawa the United States Navy would sustain the largest loss of life and ships in its storied history. Total American casualties in the operation numbered over 12,000 killed, including nearly 5,000 Navy dead and almost 8,000 Marine and Army dead. (2) At least 36,000 were wounded. (3) Thousands more would be taken out of action by combat fatigue.

Okinawa was the first major battle in the Pacific campaign where large numbers of civilians would get caught in the crossfire between American and Japanese forces. While exact numbers are impossible to determine, it is estimated that a third of the island's civilian inhabitants, or around 150,000 people, were killed in the fighting. (4) Anywhere from 80 to 90 percent of the island's buildings would also be destroyed. More than 100,000 Japanese soldiers and native conscripts made the decision to either fight to the death or commit suicide. (5)

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The war in the Pacific was unlike any war that had ever taken place in modern history. It was a war of annihilation driven by pure hatred where no quarter was to be given. The historical, social, political, economic and military traditions of two radically different cultures produced a mutual revulsion that led each side to believe the other to be inferior and subhuman. The Battle of Okinawa, the last battle of World War II, would be a fight to the death on the land, air and sea.

This was the grim situation where Marines like Junior Edgar Parker found themselves on that Easter Sunday in 1945. Parker, who before the war worked in the family grocery store and meat packing business, was a young man who found himself literally on the other side of the world facing a determined and fanatical enemy. This is his story.

Off to War

After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, young men either volunteered or were drafted into military service across the United States. After receiving his draft notice, young J. Edgar Parker decided he wanted to enter the United States Marine Corps "because it was the most respected and the toughest outfit available." He officially entered into the service of his country on August 6, 1943.

"We had a physical examination in Elizabeth City to see if you could walk, talk or crawl. Then you went to Ft. Bragg for a complete physical. Right there it was decided what branch they would put you in. You could have a choice if you passed your physical at the highest level. Then we went to Raleigh and were sworn in. We came back home for ten days, and then we went to Parris Island for boot camp."

Punch Parker - Central High School

Elizabeth City, NC

Parker was one of 204,509 recruits who were trained at Parris Island between 1941 and 1945 for service in World War II. (6) Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island is an 8,095 acre military installation near Beaufort, South Carolina tasked with the training of enlisted Marines. (7) Recruits living east of the Mississippi River reported here to receive their initial training.

"My Boot Camp platoon was 619. Me and two other guys from Elizabeth City chose the Marines. The three of us went to boot camp together."

Marines in training at Parris Island, SC

May 1942

After making it through boot camp, the Marine Corps decided that Parker would go to Field Music School.

"I was in the Central High School Band in Elizabeth City, but guess what? I beat the drum! So they taught me how to blow the bugle, because I didn't know how. After I passed the school, they put me in the infantry."

After completing his initial training, Parker proceeded to Camp Pendleton Marine Base in San Diego, California, serving a brief stint as company bugler.

"Then they sent us directly overseas on a troop transport ship to Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands for additional training. I was assigned to I Company, 3rd Battalion, 29th Marines."

'Mysteries of the Deep'

While steaming across the vast Pacific Ocean en route to their destination, the Marines and Sailors aboard Parker's ship faced a time-honored naval tradition known as 'Crossing the Line.' This was a ritual that marked a mariner's first time crossing the equator. It had been undertaken in the distant past to see if a new sailor had what it took to endure the hardships faced by extended periods at sea.

Pollywog to Shellback Ceremony

USS McCLELLAND DE 750

Photo - Art Zippler

"You were a pollywog before, and if you lived through it, you were a shellback," Parker remembers. "They'd make you crawl on your hands and knees, and there were about 4000 of us aboard. You only had the bottom part of your underdrawers on. They were shooting water on the deck to keep it cool. Every now and then somebody would stick a hot wire on you to shock you a little. A lot of people had clippers, and they'd cut clumps out of your hair.

Then you'd end up with ol' King Neptune setting on a throne in front of a big pool of dirty water. They'd throw you in it, and they'd squirt some kind of mess in your mouth. It was the bitterest stuff I'd ever tasted in my whole life. Then they'd take you out and throw you on the other side. One guy hit his head when they threw him in the water, and he got knocked out. He came out the other side cold! They grabbed him and brought him back, though. With 4000 people going through there in one day, they had to hustle. It was an experience. It was more fear of the unknown. What's going to happen next?"

Guadalcanal

From September 1944 until March 1945, Parker and his fellow Marines trained incessantly in the brutal tropical heat of Guadalcanal for the upcoming battle on Okinawa. There he became a member of the legendary Sixth Marine Division under the command of Major General Lemuel Shepard. This was the only Division that, as an entire unit, never spent as much as one day in the continental United States. (8) The Sixth Marine Division was uniquely formed to fight in the battle of Okinawa and never reactivated after World War II. (9) Formed around the core of the First Provisional Marine Brigade, it was composed of three infantry regiments: the 4th Marines, 22nd Marines and 29th Marines, an artillery regiment, the 15th Marines and subordinate units such as Engineer, Medical, Pioneer, Motor Transport, Tank, Headquarters and Service battalions. (10)

Punch Parker on Guadalcanal

(Solomon Islands) - 1944

The Sixth Division

Even though the Sixth Marine Division was new when it was formed, it was composed mainly of hardened veterans from other campaigns, such as Guam and Saipan. As a matter of fact, seven out of the nine infantry battalions that composed the division had fought in several major island campaigns. (11) The 2nd and 3rd battalions were new units with a number of green troops, but were led by many seasoned and battle tested officers and NCOs. (12)

Marine Maj. Gen. Lemuel Shepherd

Commanding General of the 6th Marine Division.

Pfc. Sam Weiner, ca. June 1945.

127-GR-95-122119.

Major combat operations that had taken place earlier on the island during the hellish Battle of Guadalcanal had by and large ceased, so for the next seven months Parker and the newly arrived Marines settled into a mind-numbing routine of preparing for war.

"Training is boring. You get so sick of it. You do the same thing over, and over, and over. But you do it so you will automatically do it. When you get in a situation, you don't have to stop and think about what you are supposed to do. You just do it. That's what gives you confidence, too."

He also recalled that "Training would be to go out and hike 25 miles and play war. We had to start our hiking around 1 a.m. because during the daytime, it was 110 degrees in the shade, every day. Right sticky hot! All you had to do was train, and there was no place to go to get into trouble. There really wasn't much spare time or place for recreation. No bars, no bowling alleys, and no good time girls! I think I saw one USO show the whole time on Guadalcanal. Drinking and drugs weren't a problem because no one could get it, even if they wanted to. This was before the big time drug era."

While most Leathernecks had an area of specialized knowledge, they still lived by the creed that 'every Marine is a rifleman.'

Parker was "trained on the M1 rifle, M1 carbine, the Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR), light and heavy machine gun, bazooka, bayonet, and flame thrower. We were also taught how to throw grenades. My primary weapon was the M1 carbine. It was a good weapon, semi-automatic. It had 8 shots. It was very reliable, and you very seldom ever had a jam."

Marion F. Sturkey, who authored 'Warrior Culture of the U.S. Marines,' noted that "In boot camp at Parris Island or San Diego, no one escapes from the Rifleman's Creed. Every Marine is trained, first and foremost, as a rifleman, for it is the rifleman who must close with and destroy the enemy. The rifleman remains the most basic tenet of Marine Corps doctrine. All else revolves around him. Marine Aviation, Marine Armor, Marine Artillery, and all supporting arms and warfighting assets exist to support the rifleman. Every Marine must memorize this creed. And, every Marine must live by the creed." (13)

The Rifleman's Creed

Written by Major General William H. Rupertus

This is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is mine. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me my rifle is useless. Without my rifle, I am useless. I must fire my rifle true. I must shoot straighter than the enemy who is trying to kill me. I must shoot him before he shoots me. I will. My rifle and I know that what counts in war is not the rounds we fire, the noise of our burst, or the smoke we make. We know that it is the hits that count. We will hit.

My rifle is human, even as I am human, because it is my life. Thus, I will learn it as a brother. I will learn its weaknesses, its strengths, its parts, its accessories, its sights and its barrel. I will keep my rifle clean and ready, even as I am clean and ready. We will become part of each other.

Before God I swear this creed. My rifle and I are the defenders of my country. We are the masters of our enemy. We are the saviors of my life.

So be it, until victory is America's and there is no enemy. (14)

Field Bugler

In addition to his duties as a rifleman, Punch Parker also used his newly learned skills as a field bugler to help organize and discipline the daily routine of his fellow Leathernecks.

"Being a field bugler, I had a day on and a day off. On my day off, I'd follow the other guys around and try and learn how to do their job. That gave me a chance to learn how to use all the weapons and to get familiar with the rest of the guys. As far as being a bugler, I had to blow all the calls. I woke them up in the morning, called them out to chow, called the assemblies, putting the flag up in the morning and taking it down in the afternoon. Then at night you'd play 'Taps' and put them to bed."

Punch Parker in 1945 - USMC

Operation Iceberg

Within the first six months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Japan had captured vast stretches of territory in the Pacific. However, the tide began to turn in 1942 as the United States began to assert its overwhelming economic and military power against the Empire of the Rising Sun. The Japanese war machine was halted at Coral Sea, decimated at Midway, and defeated at Guadalcanal. American military might destroyed her army, naval and air forces across a wide swath of the Pacific in places such as Tarawa, Leyte, Peleliu, Saipan, and Iwo Jima. 'Operation Iceberg,' the code name given to the U.S. attack on Okinawa, would be the latest in a campaign of 'island hopping' that would lead to the ultimate invasion and occupation of the Japanese mainland. Marines like Punch Parker would form the tip of the spear thrust into the heart of a wounded but still dangerous enemy.

Okinawa

http://www.history.army.mil/books/wwii/okinawa

Heading to War

"As soon as the training was over, we headed towards Okinawa in March 1945," he recounted. "We went straight into combat. The day we landed, they chose not to oppose us. We went in right on shore."

Much as the Japanese military command had decided not to challenge the Marines face to face on the beaches of Iwo Jima, on Okinawa they once again employed a similar strategy of 'wait and bait' by digging in and inflicting as many casualties as possible on the invaders once they moved inland. By 1945, the Japanese knew they could no longer defeat the American forces in a direct conflict, but decided that their best option was to bloody the enemy, demoralize him through a war of attrition, and hope to negotiate a settlement to end the hostilities.

Defeat and occupation of their sacred homeland was simply unthinkable. The end result was that the closer the American forces got to the home islands of Japan, the more desperate and determined the Japanese would fight. The Japanese soldiers knew that they would almost certainly die in service of their Living God Emperor Hirohito, and were told to take the lives of ten Americans before their own death. The stage was set for an epic battle that would rival fighting anywhere else in the entire war for its sheer firepower, destruction, and staggering loss of life.

U. S. battleship Maryland fires at a target near the southern tip of Okinawa

www.history.army.mil/books

'Love-Day'

In late March of 1945, the U.S. Navy would unleash a bombardment on selected targets in an effort to 'soften up' Okinawa prior to the invasion. The intensity of this offshore barrage and many others like it during the 3 month-long battle would be dubbed a 'typhoon of steel' by the native Okinawans. The initial landings of 'L-Day' or 'Love-Day' began at around 8:30 am on April 1, 1945, and took place on the west coast of Okinawa in an area known as the Hagushi beaches. (15) The plan was for the First and Sixth Marines to land on two locations known as Red Beach and Green Beach, and cut the island in two.

By the end of that April Fool's day, some 60,000 troops had moved ashore with virtually no opposition. (16) After the unexpectedly quiet landing on Okinawa took place, the two Marine divisions moved west to east, then north. One Marine allegedly quipped immediately after the unchallenged amphibious assault that he had 'already lived longer than he expected.'

Landing on the Hagushi Beaches - April 1, 1945

http://www.history.army.mil/books/wwii/okinawa

RYUKYU ISLANDS

http://www.history.army.mil/books

Okinawa - April 13, 1945

Copyright : Public Domain

"As soon as we turned and moved towards the north end of the island, that's when it started," recalls Parker. Within a week the Marines had secured Nago, the second largest city on the island. Although they encountered resistance as they moved up the Motobu Peninsula, the Marines had effectively destroyed organized opposition in the north by the third week of April. Parker and his fellow Leathernecks thought their job was done.

"We worked on that two-thirds of the island. In fact, three quarters of the island was secured in a month and a half. The U.S. Army had turned south and when we came back, they were right where we left them. The Japanese had formed a line and stopped them right there."

The 10th Army had run into stiff opposition on their southward trek, and had essentially bogged down. After an intense internal debate among American commanders about the next course of action, it was decided that Marines would replace Army units at the end of April on the front lines around an area known as the Shuri-Yonaburu Line. This was a high ridge that bisected Okinawa, and was distinguished by an ancient medieval fortification known as Shuri Castle. The Japanese 32nd army, led by General Mitsuri Ushijima, would turn this position into a killing field as they sought to inflict maximum damage on the advancing Americans. (17)

General Mitsuru Ushijima

http://en.wikipedia.org

The rugged natural terrain of Okinawa was used as a weapon by the Japanese to slow the advance of the Marine and Army units into a bloody war of attrition. The island, merely 64 miles long and 18 miles wide, was honeycombed with numerous natural caves linked by tunnels that were turned into elaborate fortresses stocked with reserves of ammunition, food, water, and medical supplies. Working without heavy mechanized machinery, over a seven month period before the invasion upwards of 100,000 Japanese troops, Okinawan Home Guard conscripts and slave laborers dug miles of underground tunnels with hand tools. It was said that you could travel from the east to west coast of the island through the Shuri line and never actually come above ground. The headquarters of the 32nd Imperial Japanese Army would be located as deep as 160 feet directly under Shuri Castle as part of an elaborate complex of subterranean fortifications that would stretch in some places over a thousand yards. (18)

'Spider Holes'

Life on the ground for Marines like Punch Parker around the Shuri line would become a nightmarish grind of avoiding the withering barrage of enemy fire.

"On a day to day basis, we were running and ducking in holes. You had to run every place you went. You couldn't afford to get out and walk. Every time you stopped, you had to dig a foxhole for protection against artillery, mortars, machine guns, and snipers. The battle on Okinawa was a little different than a lot of battles. You didn't see who you were shooting at. The Japanese were dug into the hills; they had caves with hospitals and living quarters right inside the mountains. They would just come to the opening to shoot at you, drop mortars, fire artillery at you, then duck back in the holes. They had all the high ground. You had to go up to them. That's what made it so difficult to finally take it over. They'd let you go by them sometimes, then they'd come up behind you. Then they'd tag you from both sides. We got caught in that several times. The Japanese soldiers were very devious, you might say. Sometimes they'd dig a 'spider hole' out in the middle of a field, put bushes over it, wait till you walked by, then jump up and shoot you in the back. They didn't last very long when they did that, either!"

Okinawa - May 1945

Copyright : Public Domain

Burned and Buried Alive

Before the iconic Battle of Iwo Jima in February 1945, Japanese tactics often consisted of suicidal Banzai charges where waves of soldiers would rush the enemy in an attempt to overwhelm and annihilate their position. However, this strategy would change as the American forces pressed closer to Japanese home islands. The previous offensive mindset was replaced by a defensive posture where the Imperial Japanese Army would dig in and fight a bloody campaign of stall tactics designed to impose maximum casualties on the opposition.

It was said that during the Battle of Iwo Jima that the Japanese were not 'on' Iwo Jima, they were 'in' Iwo Jima. Much the same can be said about the Battle of Okinawa, where some Marines and U.S. Army troops said they rarely saw a live Japanese soldier almost the entire time they were in combat there. American forces would once again have to scorch the enemy to death with flame throwers in their reinforced bunkers or drop explosive charges deep into the underground tunnels and caves, entombing them for eternity in the rugged mountain fortresses.

Enemy positions burned out

www.history.army.mil/books/wwii/okinawa

Parker recalled that "Once in a while, you had the chance to see them out in the open. They were smart enough to mainly stay inside the mountains. So we had to seal them in the mountains, fill up the holes, drop napalm and explosives in the holes. We dropped some one day and we saw at least fifteen or twenty clouds of smoke coming from all throughout that hill. They had that many outlets to each one of the caves. That's why it was so hard. They'd come out the back side of the mountain. You had to seal off the entire mountain. They had machine guns, mortars, artillery, and rifle fire on the line they formed. It took over a month to break it."

A Marine demolition crew destroys a Japanese Cave

cavehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Okinawa

'Sugar Loaf Hill'

As if the situation on Okinawa was not bad enough, during the month of May monsoon rains had begun to turn the battlefield into a muddy quagmire. Every road became virtually impassible as heavy mechanized machinery bogged down in the morass. Men struggled to even walk in what was often a knee-deep muck. When the Marines pushed to take Naha, the capital of Okinawa, they would first have to run a gauntlet of what had been thought to be an insignificant group of hills that would become known as Half Moon, Horseshoe, and Sugar Loaf. This period in mid-May would herald some of the most intense and savage fighting in the history of the United States Marine Corps. The Battle of Sugar Loaf Hill, in particular, would become hallowed ground in the annals of Marine Corps history for both the ferocity of the combat and the unbridled courage and determination of the men who fought and died there.

Okinawa as seen in a view from the crest of Sugar Loaf Hill

Department of Defense (USMC) 124747

Day to day progress in defeating the entrenched enemy would often be measured in mere yards of blood stained soil. In places such as Wana Draw and Dakeshi Ridge, the Japanese dropped a murderous combination of mortars, artillery and machine gun fire from the steep hills above onto the exposed Leathernecks below night and day. Sergeant Neil Van Riper of the First Marines recalled: 'I'd be flat on the ground and notice an ant or a bug and think, 'I wish I was that small. There was never a time when you weren't afraid.' (19)

Miles of interconnected tunnels would enable the hidden Japanese to move freely underground from position to position to rain down their firestorm of death. In one week's time the Sixth Division would endure well over 2000 casualties as Sugar Loaf Hill was assaulted up to eleven times. (20)

Okinawa - May 1945

A U.S. Marine evades enemy machine gun fire at a place called "Death Valley."

Public Domain

Punch Parker was all too familiar with the horrors of war as his fellow Marines were killed and wounded in epic proportions. Some companies would be wiped out, filled with replacements, only to be annihilated again.

"A company of Marines is 250 people" he recalled. "You operated by platoons. One company would take a section and try to hold it. A battalion had an area, and that was three rifle companies. I had a company roster, and out of the original 250 people, I figured out we had 87 percent casualties (wounded or killed in action). According to the official records, they said we had 90 percent casualties in that three month period."

In scenes that would rival descriptions of Hell from Dante's Inferno, the flooded battlefield around the Shuri line degenerated into a grotesque barren subtropical wasteland poisoned by a witches' brew of blood, mud, rotting corpses, maggots, flies and lead. It was said that anyone sliding down the greasy slopes could easily find their pockets full of maggots at the end of the journey. (21)

'Hell's Own Cesspool'

Private First Class Eugene B. Sledge, a member of the 1st Marine Division, described his experience on Okinawa as "the most ghastly corner of Hell I had ever witnessed. Every crater was half full of water, and many of them held a Marine corpse. The bodies lay pathetically just as they had been killed, half submerged in muck and water, rusting weapons still in hand. Swarms of big flies hovered about them." Wherever he looked, Sledge saw "maggots and decay. Men struggled and fought and bled in an environment so degrading I believed we had been flung into Hell's own cesspool." (22)

Punch Parker shared similar memories of the unimaginable filth that his Marine companions endured. "I'd say if you saw a bunch of pigs in a pigpen, that's just about what you had with us. You couldn't really take a bath, because you couldn't afford to take off your boots. You might have to get up and run. You'd stay right up on the front line for two weeks, and after the Japanese beat you down and we didn't have many people left, they'd send another company in and let you come back maybe a mile or two and camp around an artillery gun. We'd find us a ditch someplace and take a bath and get a fresh uniform."

Given the unimaginable amount of artillery shells, mortars, and bullets flying around the island of Okinawa, it almost defies belief that J. Edgar Parker was never actually wounded in action. "I had to drag all the rest of them out. Somebody had to!" In addition to his previously mentioned near miss in the mine field, however, he did have a few other scrapes with death.

"One of the closest calls I had was when I was running across this opening to get from one part of the company to the other. When I got to the other side a guy said he saw a tracer disappear right in my shirt tail. With a tracer there are three more live bullets with it. I'm not sure because I didn't see it. Lots of bullets would pop around you sometimes. Another time I had an artillery shell explode on the hill right above me. It covered me and about five or six other guys up with hot rocks and dirt."

Okinawa, 1945

Marines working to take Wana Ridge before the town of Shuri.

SSgt. Walter F. Kleine, 127-N-123170

In a place filled with so much suffering and death, Punch Parker was able to witness first-hand one true source of human compassion: the Navy Corpsman. They had the unenviable task of stopping the bleeding in Marines who had suffered horrific wounds, administering Morphine to dull their pain, starting IV lines, and comforting the dying. Their life-sustaining heroics usually took place under filthy conditions while themselves dodging enemy bullets and artillery.

"I saw one of our guys one day, and he had a mortar hit right at his feet. It had blown one leg and an arm off, and he was black with dirt and covered in blood. He was conscious, but in shock. We went to get him to take him back, and he said 'No.' He knew he was going to die. The corpsman sat out there with him until he died so he wouldn't be alone. Things like that happened quite a bit. That's why I always say Navy corpsmen are number one in my book!"

Wounded soldiers being evacuated

from the Battlefield

www.history.army.mil/books

Marines on the front lines also had to be constantly on guard at night with the real possibility that Japanese infiltrators would creep up to their foxholes and drop a grenade on them or slit their throats as they slept. In addition to enduring the torrential rains in an exposed fighting position, Parker was also forced at times to sleep in cave tombs among the dead in order to survive.

"We slept, but we didn't sleep. You had to sleep with one eye open. A mosquito would fly past you and you'd wake up. The idea was that you'd sleep two to a hole. One sleeps, and one stays awake. I don't think anybody did much sleeping. The enemy knew the lay of the land, and we didn't. Most of the time there wasn't much night fighting, because if you moved, you got shot."

In one of the rare moments where he actually saw a Japanese soldier up close, Parker recalled that "We did have one come out of a hole in the mountain right in the middle of where we had stopped for the night. He came out and walked right through our company. We couldn't shoot him, because we were liable to shoot some of our own people. When he cleared us, he ran like a deer!"

Okinawa, the largest of 72 islands in the Ryukyu archipelago, is about a third the size of Rhode Island. (23) Its lush, subtropical environment, sometimes called the 'Galapagos of the Orient' for it diversity of unique plants and animals, came with an abundance of home grown creatures to torment the Marines. In addition to clouds of mosquitoes, poisonous centipedes, deadly snakes and blood-sucking leeches, the island was plagued by flies.

"There were blowflies as big as your thumb. The island's main crop evidently was sugarcane. They had a big sugarcane mill there. We blew it up and set it on fire. I went by it a month later, and it was still burning. Every time a bullet or shell would hit a stalk of sugarcane, it would break it and bleed. The blowflies were just swarming on that place. After we got air supremacy, they took transport planes and sprayed DDT on the whole island."

'The Thousand Yard Stare'

Throughout the history of warfare, there have been numerous terms used to describe soldiers that have been traumatized by the terrors of combat. Shell Shock, Combat Fatigue, and Combat Stress Reaction are common clinical names. All refer to a short-term loss of psychological clarity and motivation that basically amount to a battlefield nervous breakdown.

Combat Fatigue decreases the combatant's fighting capability, and its most common symptoms are exhaustion, slow reaction times, indecision, disconnection from one's surroundings, and inability to prioritize. (24)

One of the most easily recognizable signs of combat fatigue is the proverbial 'thousand yard stare,' which refers to the unfocused, glassy eyed gaze of a battle weary soldier. Soldiers have developed a variety of defense mechanisms to keep their sanity, and for 'Punch' Parker, it was humor.

Eugene Sledge, USMC, displays the

'thousand yard stare' after battle

Auburn University Special Collections

"Believe it or not, the best way I saw to handle the stress of combat was to joke about it. It wasn't a joke, but you would joke about how close somebody came to getting killed. If you started getting morbid about it, you'd end up getting combat fatigue. It would blow your mind."

It has been said that in order for a soldier to keep his sanity in combat, he must 'learn to forget' the horrific sights and sounds of the battlefield. Parker discovered that simply blocking out any thoughts of his own possible death in combat served him well. "I never thought about getting killed. It never crossed my mind. That's the kind of thing you don't think about. A scared man is no good to you, because he'll cause you to get killed," he stated matter of factly.

The largest number of combat fatigue cases ever recorded by the United States military occurred during the Battle of Okinawa. There were more than 26,000 non-battle casualties, which resulted in a costly depletion of front-line strength. (25)

"I think there were about fifteen or twenty out of our company that developed combat fatigue. One of them, in particular, they were carrying him back to the aid station, and he got shot in the back. In the book, he was wounded in action. But he had really just 'flipped out.' Now when those guys flip out, you've got to hold them in the hole. They'll squeal and holler. At night, especially, they'll let the enemy know where you are. You can't let them get up and run, because they'd get killed. The part about it is they'd take them back to the aid station, and in about a week, they'd send them right back to you. As soon as they got in a hot spot again, they'd go right back off the end. It'd take two or three people to restrain them before you could get them back to the aid station."

Suicide

Retaining one's honor was paramount in the mindset of the Imperial Japanese Army soldier in World War II. It was widely believed that surrendering to the enemy not only brought shame and dishonor onto the individual soldier, but to his family and nation as well. Parker recalls that "there were a lot of suicidal Japanese, evidently. It was very seldom you'd ever get one to surrender. They'd usually kill themselves before they'd surrender."

Japanese Hand Grenade

http://www.history.army.mil/books

Fighting to the death or committing suicide was considered much more honorable in the Japanese warrior culture than surrendering. Suicide in the form of human wave Banzai assaults, deliberately crashing aircraft into enemy ships, or ritualistic self-disembowelment (known as 'seppuku') were common practices in the various branches of the Japanese military in World War II. Parker recalled that many enemy soldiers committed suicide by simply blowing themselves up with their own hand grenades.

"In fact, a lot of times, we'd hear them at night. We'd get them cornered. They had these grenades where you had to hit them on something to set the charge off. They'd hit it on their helmet and blow themselves up. That happened quite often."

According to Ann Kluttz-Parker, Edgar Parker's daughter in law, Punch once told her that when the Marines captured a Japanese soldier that the enemy would beg for their life and say things like, "I love America. I love the Marines. I love your mother" over and over. He said that the Japanese believed that in order to be a US Marine, they had to kill their own mothers. I guess that would be enough to scare anyone. I think that he also said that the Japanese didn't show quite this much fear with the other branches of service."

Kluttz-Parker also told the touching story about how one time Punch talked about coming across the corpses of an old Okinawan man and woman. Their bodies were decayed, but the woman still had long hair. The couple was holding hands. He thought that it was so endearing."

'Life not worth a Penny'

The value placed on the life of the young draftees in the Imperial Japanese Army was practically next to nothing. These soldiers were referred to as Issen Gorin, which translates to "one yen, five rin," the cost of mailing a draft notice postcard (less than an American penny). (26)

What this meant was that their life was worth essentially no more than the cost of the letter mailed to draft them into the service of their country. It was not surprising that these young men on the bottom rung of such a rigid military hierarchy were thought of by their superiors as nothing more than expendable assets to use and abuse. The Issen Gorin caught in the middle of such an unfortunate predicament would simply have to do exactly as they were told. This usually translated into enduring deplorable battlefield conditions, fighting to the last man, or even committing suicide for the glory of the Emperor.

The Japanese airmen who deliberately crashed their aircraft into U.S. Navy warships, referred to as "kamikaze" pilots, were one of the most deadly threats faced by Marines, Sailors and Soldiers during the Battle of Okinawa. This tactic was yet another example of the extreme measures and self sacrifice that the Japanese would employ to protect their sacred homeland.

"They had a lot of aircraft when we first got there," Parker recalled. "In fact, on the ship we were on, one of the kamikazes took a dive at it. Just by having enough flak hit him to deflect him, he missed us by about a hundred yards. During that time we lost hundreds of ships in the harbor. I read that it was the most costly and bloodiest battle that the Navy had ever fought in its history."

To be exact, The United States Navy did sustain the largest loss of ships in its history with thirty-six destroyed and 368 damaged. Most of these losses were a direct result of the fanatically determined actions of suicidal kamikaze pilots. The Navy also sustained the largest loss of life in a single battle with almost 5,000 killed and an equal number wounded. (27)

In addition to kamikaze pilots, there were also naval vessels both large and small that would sacrifice themselves for the nation. The world's largest battleship, the Imperial Japanese Naval vessel Yamato, would be destroyed by U.S. torpedo bombers in what amounted to a suicide mission in an attempt to thwart the invasion.

USS Bunker Hill burns after being hit by Kamikaze Aircraft

http://en.wikipedia.org

By the end of May, the horrific fighting along Shuri Heights began to subside as General Ushijima withdrew his forces further south. He decided to make a last stand in a cave command post near the sea. With their backs against the wall, several units made final Banzai charges and were cut down. As his options dwindled by late June 1945, the General and his Chief of Staff, Lt. General Isamu Cho, would commit ritualistic suicide before surrendering to the American forces. It was actually considered quite a shock when 7400 out of the original 115,000 Japanese soldiers and conscripts on Okinawa actually decided to surrender rather than fight to the death. (28)

A Group of Japanese prisoners who preferred capture to suicide

Public Domain

After 82 days of some of the most savage fighting in the entire Pacific campaign, the Battle of Okinawa came to an end on June 21 st, 1945.The flag was raised on the southern end of the island by Marines of George Company, 22 nd Regiment, 6th Marines. (29)

Punch Parker was one of only 60 original members of his company of 250 Marines to survive.

Aftermath

After the Battle of Okinawa, Parker and the surviving members of the 6th Division reformed in July to train for what was thought to be the imminent invasion of Japan. The island of Okinawa was being prepared for its role as a strategic base for American bombers and fighter aircraft to reach Kyushu, the southern tip of the Japanese homeland. The battle-hardened Marines faced the daunting prospect of squaring off against even more determined and fanatical enemy resistance by the entire Japanese populace.

It was received with considerable relief by all members of the United States Armed Forces that Emperor Hirohito had surrendered unconditionally after the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945. The fanatical resistance displayed by the Japanese forces on Okinawa and other Pacific islands helped President Harry Truman make the decision to end the war through the use of the newly acquired atomic weapons. The real prospect of facing up to one million American casualties in addition to perhaps millions more Japanese in a full scale invasion of the mainland would essentially force his hand on this matter.

The 'Fat Man' mushroom cloud resulting from

the atomic bomb being dropped on Nagasaki

August 9, 1945

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

The End of the War

Upon hearing of the enemy capitulation, Punch Parker fondly remembered that "We all cheered! They let us raise Cain an extra hour or two that night. We were on Guam at the time, getting ready to go to Japan. We were tickled to death. The atomic bomb saved my life, a lot of American lives, and a lot of Japanese lives. That feeling was universal among the soldiers. A Japanese lady even told me in the last ten years that the bomb saved a lot of Japanese lives. They would have been fighting us with bricks and sticks. We'd have had to do like in Vietnam, shoot women and children. She told me that when she was eight years old, she had to leave town because it had been bombed so bad. She lived on a farm, and they gave them sharpened, pointed pieces of bamboo. They were told that if they ever saw an American, attack them."

While the Battle of Okinawa was the largest and bloodiest single battle of the entire war in the Pacific, its place in history has often been overshadowed by a number of monumental events that happened during the same relative timeframe of the campaign. One reason is that it took place between the iconic Battle of Iwo Jima and the dropping of the atomic bombs on Japan. Other factors include the death of President Roosevelt in April 1945, Harry Truman's subsequent ascendancy as the new Commander in Chief, and the surrender of Nazi Germany in May. A level of war weariness had also entered the American psyche by the spring of 1945 with the defeat of the Nazi war machine. Most people simply wanted the long nightmare to be over.

'VJ Day'

"After VJ (Victory over Japan) Day in August 1945, we left Guam and went to Tsingtao, China."

Parker, along with two Marine divisions, proceeded to China to assist with the repatriation of Japanese forces. While in China, he witnessed the surrender of the Japanese to Chiang Kai-shek on the USS Missouri.

"Chiang Kai-shek's troops were in China, the Communist troops were in China, the Japanese troops were in China, and neither one wanted to surrender to the other. So, the Marines went to China, accepted the Japanese surrender, and shipped them back to Japan. We didn't even guard them; we just let them guard themselves. We thought that much of them! Some had their families with them, and we sent the families back to Japan."

Parker had mixed feelings about the people of Japan and the way the war was handled by their leadership. "The Japanese people were like us in some ways. When their government declared war, they had to fight just like we did. But they were also very brutal. After the war, they did have war crimes trials, which should have been done. It wasn't the fact that we had a war; it was the way they performed in the war. The atrocities they did were uncalled for. The Germans were bad enough, but the Japanese were worse. Except for what the Germans did to the Jews, of course."

Experience in China

After the terrifying ordeal on Okinawa, Parker and his fellow Marines of the 6th Division were finally able to unwind and enjoy themselves a little in Tsingtao.

"The Chinese people were friendly and happy to see us. We were taking the Japanese off their hands. The Japanese treated them mighty tough. When we came in town, they had a big parade, and they lined the streets and cheered. We couldn't understand what they were saying, though. They had restaurants where we could go eat; you could walk all over the town. Of course we still practiced war maneuvers just in case."

With the departure of the Japanese army, a new struggle for power emerged in the Chinese countryside between Nationalist and Communist forces.

"We were so close to the Communists that we could hear their gunfire at night. You could see the flashes off in the distance. They were that close to the town, trying to drive Chiang Kai-shek's troops out. It was not a very comfortable position for us to be in. Several times the guards at the gate to our compound got shot at. We didn't really know who it was, though."

Parker's tour of duty ended five months after the end of World War II. He was able to visit Peking and Tokyo before his final departure.

"We stayed in China from October 1945 to March 1946. When my points were enough to get out, they sent me right on back to California. From there I went to Camp Lejeune, and then home."

Coming Back Home

"After the war, I came back home and went to work. I did meat packing and worked at the family grocery store. In the 1960's and early 70's, I was a meat inspector for the state of North Carolina. I did that until I had cancer. They retired me on a disability. Then I went in the junk business! Good junk! Antique junk!"

Punch Parker believed that the so called 'Greatest Generation' of young men who came of age in the Great Depression of the 1930's were perhaps uniquely qualified to fight the monumental battles of the Second World War.

"I think my generation was more prepared to do something like this because we had people who had worked hard all their life. They were more conditioned for it, really. Nowadays, I don't think the young people are physically and mentally in the shape we were in at that time. Life was a little harder then; you figured on having some hard knocks. But now, nobody figures on hard knocks, they only figure on good times."

'Semper Fidelis'

J. Edgar Parker was a proud Marine and a true-blue American patriot. He never wore his patriotism on his sleeve, but quietly lived the Marine Corps motto of 'Semper Fidelis' (Always Faithful) through his example. "Punch' was always faithful to his God, Country, fellow Marines, family, Boy Scouts, community and friends.

"As far as my overall wartime experience, I would say there was a lot of pride. I don't really have regrets. If I had to do it over, I'd do the same thing again. During those three months on Okinawa, I had a lot of experiences I don't want to have again. But I think it let me know that this life is worth living, and it's worth fighting for, and our way of life is worth fighting for."

The Sixth Marine Division was decorated with the Presidential

Unit Citation with Battle Star for it heroism on the Island of Okinawa.

United States Marine Corps Honor Guard

J. Edgar Parker Funeral

September 26, 2007

Elizabeth City, North Carolina

(Photo courtesy of Betsy Love)

Junior Edgar Parker

In Memoriam

J. Edgar "Punch" Parker, 84, of Elizabeth City died on Saturday, September 22, 2007 at Albemarle Hospital. Punch was born on December 20, 1922 in Pasquotank County, North Carolina to Robert Linwood and Louisa Jennings Parker. He was the youngest of three children.

Punch graduated from Central High School in 1941. He played the bass drum in the high school band and was the catcher on the baseball team.

On August 6, 1943, Punch joined the United States Marine Corps. He completed basic training in Parris Island, South Carolina and the Field Music School, and then was shipped to San Diego Marine Base as the company bugler. He trained in the Solomon Islands on Guadalcanal where he became a member of the legendary Sixth Division Marines before engaging in the Battle of Okinawa in 1945. Punch was one of only 60 original members of his company of 250 Marines to survive The Battle of Sugar Loaf Hill. As a result of his service he received a Battle Star and a Navy Presidential Unit Citation. From Okinawa Punch traveled to Guam, Tsing-Tao, and Peking. While in China, Punch witnessed the surrender of the Japanese to Chiang Kai-shek on the USS Missouri. Punch's tour of duty ended in Tokyo in February 1946--five months after the end of World War II.

After the war Punch returned to Elizabeth City and joined the family business, R.L. Parker Packing Company, a country store and wholesale meat packing plant. Parker's Store was a cornerstone of the community, serving as a gathering place as well as the Mount Herman Township precinct poling center. Progress and the demise of the country store led Punch to open Parker's Trading Post. For over 30 years, Punch flourished as an aficionado of military history, collectible antiques, and glorified junk.

Punch fell in love with his sweetheart, Mazie Alexander Vereen on June 21, 1950. They were blessed with 57 years of marriage, four sons, and seven grandchildren. The Parkers have been faithful members of Corinth Baptist Church. He served as Superintendent of the Sunday School for over 30 years and has been a deacon in the church since the 1950's. He was a member of the Men's Bible Class and also a member of the Pasquotank Ruritan Club for many years.

In 1963 Punch, along with his 11-year old son Eddie, joined local Boy Scout Troop 162. Over the next 30 years Punch worked with the Boy Scouts and served as the Scout Master for 15 years, assisting many young men, including all four of his sons to attain the prestigious Eagle Scout Award. As his own sons aged out of scouting, Punch continued to be an instrumental member of the scouting community in the Albemarle area, acting as a district chairman, and, until recently, chairman of the local Eagle Scout Review Board.

He is survived by his wife of 57 years, Mazie Parker of Elizabeth City; sons, Ed Parker and wife, Vicki of Warner-Robbins, Georgia; Herb Parker and wife, Yvette of James Island, South Carolina; Michael Parker and wife Ann Kluttz of Concord, North Carolina; and David Parker and wife Cindi of Raleigh, North Carolina. Punch was the proud "Papaw" of seven grandchildren: Lindsay, Katie, Susan, Alex, Tyler, Bena, and Seven.

Survivors also include a nephew, Bobby Saunders and wife Terry, and great-niece Lane Saunders Byrd. Pall bearers Guy Murphy, Robert Poole, Roy Poole, Paul Simpson, Martin Simpson, and Brason Twiford are all former members of Boy Scout Troop 162.

Punch was preceded in death by his parents, a sister, Catherine Parker Saunders Spence, and brother, Robert L. Parker, Jr. He will be remembered fondly for his charming sense of humor, his love of military history, his devotion to church and community, his dedication to the Boy Scouts and all the young men who benefited from it, as a loving husband, the best Dad and Papaw ever, a good friend, and a truly honest man.

The Parker family will receive friends on Tuesday, September 25, 2007 from 7:00pm until 8:30pm at Twiford's Funeral Home in Elizabeth City. A service commemorating the life of Punch Parker, officiated by Rev. David Turner, will be held at Corinth Baptist Church on Wednesday, September 26, 2007 at 11:00am. Burial with military honors will be conducted by The United States Marine Corps Ceremonial Drill Team at New Hollywood Cemetery following the service.

Packed Away

The whole thing smells

of innocence

hanging there

in a forgotten corner.

It's smaller than it used to be

the summer green's faded

like my youth

worn

by the vices of age

preserved only by wisdom

promised

but somehow misplaced.

The rebellions of youth give way

to compromise

leaving the ideals of boyhood

trapped

behind the Eagle

sewn to the thin pocket

of my Boy Scout shirt.

Michael Parker

10 December 1987

In Appreciation

Special thanks are given to the family of Junior Edgar Parker for their cooperation in making this project happen. Additional appreciation is extended to Ann Kluttz-Parker for her insightful comments, support, research, and use of family photographs. All photographs are property of the Parker family and may not be used or reproduced in any form without their permission.

Bibliography

Bolland, Robert F. - Geography and Climate

http://rfbolland.com/okislugs/descript.html

Haines, Joe D. (Lt. Cmdr) - The Final Battle.

http://www.okinawa.usmc.mil

Hallas, James - The Battle for Sugar Loaf

http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/wwii/okinawa/

Lacy, Laura - Battle of Okinawa

http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/wwii/okinawa/

Leckie, Robert - Okinawa: The Last Battle of WWII. (New York: Penguin Books, 1995) 202.

Parker, Junior Edgar - Interview conducted on Oct 14, 1999 in Elizabeth City, North Carolina with the author, Robert Poole, Jr.

Thanks to Sion Harrington and the North Carolina Office of Archives and History for permission to use this interview.

Parker, Larry - Nomonhan and Okinawa - The First and Final Battles of the Pacific War

http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/wwii/articles/nomonhanokinawa.aspx

Parker, Michael F. - World War II Registry - Junior Edgar Parker

http://www.wwiimemorial.com/

Rupertus, Major General William H. - "My Rifle: The Creed of a U.S. Marine"

(http://www.usmcpress.com/heritage/marine_corps_rifleman's_creed.htm)

Sixth Marine Division Association, Inc. - Sixth Division History

http://www.sixthmarinedivision.com/

Sturkey, Marion - Warrior Culture of the United States Marine Corps

Heritage Press International - Copyright 2001, 2003

Wukovitz, John F. - World War II - Magazine article (May 2000)

Notes

1. Wikipedia - Battle of Okinawa

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Okinawa

Part of Pacific War, World War II.

2. Ibid. "The battle has one..."

3. Ibid. "US losses were..."

4. Ibid. "Okinawan civilian losses..."

5. Ibid. "Ninety percent of the buildings.." Aftermath.

6. http://everything2.com. - Parris Island

"204,509 recruits were trained.."

7. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Marine_Corps - United States Marine Corps.

"Marine Corps Recruit Depot..."

8. Sixth Marine Division - Sixth Division History.

http://www.sixthmarinedivision.com/

"This was the only Division.."

9. Parker, Michael F. - World War II Registry - J. Edgar Parker

"The Sixth Marine Division..."

10. Sixth Marine Division.

"The core about which"...

11. Sixth Marine Division.

"Of its nine infantry..."

12. Sixth Marine Division.

"The 2nd and 3rd..."

13. Sturkey, Marion F. - Warrior Culture of the U.S. Marine Corps.

"In boot camp..."

14. Rupertus, William H. - The Rifleman' Creed.

http://www.usmcpress.com/heritage/marine_corps_rifleman's_creed.htm

15. Lacey, Laura - Battle of Okinawa

http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/wwii/okinawa/
"The landing on Okinawa...virtually no opposition."

16. Ibid.

"Equipment and 60,000 troops..."

17. Ibid.

"Rather than meeting..watched the Americans land."

18. Haines, Joe D. (Lt. Cmdr) - The Final Battle

http://www.okinawa.usmc.mil/Public%20Affairs%20Info/Archive%20News%20Pages/2006/060901-cave.html

"Okinawa, just 64 miles..at its deepest point."

19. Wukovitz, John F. - World War II magazine article (May 2000)

http://www.historynet.com/battle-of-okinawa-the-bloodiest-battle-of-the-pacific-war.htm/4

"Sergeant Neil Van Riper..you weren't afraid."

20. Lacey.

Hallas, James - The Battle for Sugar Loaf

http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/wwii/okinawa/
"The Sixth suffered..wiped out twice."

21. Global Security.org - Battle of Okinawa

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/okinawa-battle.htm)

"By the end of May...end of the journey."

22. Wukovitz, John F. - Battle of Okinawa: The Bloodiest Battle of the Pacific War

http://www.historynet.com/battle-of-okinawa-the-bloodiest-battle-of-the-pacific-war.htm

'the most ghastly..Hell's own cesspool."

23. Bolland, Robert F. - Geography and Climate

http://rfbolland.com/okislugs/descript.html

Okinawa, an elongated..the Ryukyu Archipelago.

24. Wikipedia - Combat Stress Reaction

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combat_stress_reaction)

"Combat Stress Reaction, in the...as a combat stress reaction."

25. Global Security.org - Battle of Okinawa

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/okinawa-battle.htm

"Combat stress also...non-battle casualties."

26. Wikipedia - Issen gorin

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Issen_gorin

"Issen Gorin which...less than a penny."

27. Lacey.

Leckie, Robert - Okinawa: The Last Battle of WWII. (New York: Penguin Books, 1995) 202.

http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/wwii/okinawa/

United States losses..an equal number wounded.

28. Parker, Larry - Nomonhan and Okinawa - The First and Final Battles of the Pacific War

http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/wwii/articles/nomonhanokinawa.aspx

"Out of a force.."

29. Lacey.

http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/wwii/okinawa/

"On June 12, 1945.."