Camp Tarawa memorial was erected on July 3rd 1984 - the large rock is
symbolic of Mt Suribachi on Iwo Jima; the brass plaque is made from shell
casings. The memorial has three panels.
The left panel is dedicated to 2nd Marine Division for the battle of
Tarawa and their training here until they departed for Saipan and Tinian.
Marines and Sailors trained for what has been referred to as the
toughest marine offensive of WWII. 1300 miles northeast of Guadalcanal, the
Japanese had constructed a centralized stronghold force in a 20-island group
called Tarawa.
RADM Shibasaki, the Japanese commander there, proclaimed, “a million
men cannot take Tarawa in a hundred years.”
Ultimately, the objective took 9,000 marines only four days - but not
without a staggering 37% casualties.
The victories at Tarawa, New Guinea and the Solomon Islands marked a
turning point in the war. The Marines
would reconstitute at the Camp Tarawa camp site.
The right panel commemorates 5th Marine Division through the battle of
Iwo Jima and occupation of Japan.
Lt General Kuribayashi, Japanese ground forces commander, concentrated
his forces in the northern two-thirds of the island. The miles of interlocking
caves, concrete blockhouses and pillboxes proved to be one of the most
impenetrable defenses in the Pacific.
While the 4th Marine Division defeated heavy opposition to take a
Japanese strong-point called the quarry, the 28th Marines of 5th Marine
Division seized Mount Suribachi. The
36-day assault on Iwo Jima cost America more than 26,000 casualties, including
6,800 dead. Of the 20,000 Japanese
defenders, only 1,083 survived.
Twenty-seven Medals of Honor were awarded to Marines and Sailors, many
posthumously - more than for any other single operation during the war.
The center panel honors Richard Smart, Parker Ranch, the community of
Waimea and the Big Island.
Camp Tarawa trained over 50,000 servicemen between 1942 and 1945.
Originally an Army camp named Camp Waimea, when the population in town
was about 400, it became the largest Marine training facility in the Pacific
following the battle of Tarawa.
There were three ways to get to Camp Tarawa - by narrow-gage sugarcane
freight train; by hard-axle truck or on foot.
Many arrived to sleep outdoors on rough lava beds until Seabee
construction could catch up with the surge - all were appreciative of the
shelter and the respite from war.
Pyramid tent cities and streets of long convoys of jeeps, trucks,
half-tracks, tanks, artillery, amphibious ducks made up the formidable, but top
secret, Camp Tarawa.
The town warmly received the Marines who:
- Bought all the goods from the farmers and
storekeepers
- Brought in Bob Crosby’s (Bing’s brother)
Band
- Set up outdoor movie theaters
- Played baseball with the locals
- Ate Thanksgiving dinner in Kohala homes
- Conducted live fire training
The camp closed in November 1945 as 5th Marine Division was transferred
to Japan for occupation. The Army took
over the camp and auctioned off the remaining assets.
The image shows the Camp Tarawa Memorial (top) and an aerial view of
Waimea at the time of encampment (bottom.)
In addition, more images have been added to a folder of like name in the
Photos section, including several images from The Waimea Gazette (used with
their permission.)
Past articles by Aileen Lindsey Barros, Alice Cook and Gordon Bryson in
The Waimea Gazette (February 1995 & March 1995) give more good information
on Camp Tarawa (here are links:)
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