An independent kingdom with a long and proud history of its own, then “discovered” by the West and dubbed the Sandwich Islands, Hawaii had only become a US possession in the 1890s, when a rebellion by the Anglo population of the islands rose up in revolt against the rule of Queen Liliuokalani. Sitting in the Japanese crosshairs that fateful Sunday morning was not only the US Pacific Fleet, but the Hawaiian Islands. That was the “long fuse” of the Great Pacific War (1941-45), the long-term background to Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941. The very success Japan enjoyed, however, placed the island empire squarely in the sights of the other Great Powers, and generated an increasingly tense strategic rivalry with the United States for domination of the Pacific. Again and again, Japan struck quickly to win wars over larger and theoretically more powerful opponents. Japan’s rise to Great Power status was rapid, with victorious wars over China (1894-95) and Russia (1904-5), as well as successful, if subsidiary role on the side of the Allies in World War I (1914-1918). Japan’s sudden exposure to the outside world, after centuries of isolation, generated a helt-er-skelter period of transformation, a revolutionary era in which Japan threw overboard many of its oldest traditions and built itself into a technologically advanced industrial state, with modern systems of administration and government-and a powerful military. The tangled relationship between the United States and Japan began with the forced opening of Japan in the nineteenth century, courtesy of Commodore Matthew Perry and this “black ships” of his squadron. He was posthumously awarded the following Medal(s):Japan, the United States, and the Hawaiian Islands His last duty assignment and major command was: USS Oklahoma He entered active military service in June 1936 and died during the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. This Seaman was a member of the United States Navy during his active service. American Defense Service Medal w/Fleet Clasp.He was posthumously awarded the following Medal(s) He entered active military service in January 1936 and died during the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. John Henry Bangert, Jr – Fire Controlman, 1st Class He was posthumously awarded the following Medals: His last duty assignment and major command was: USS Arizona He entered active military service in October 1940 and died during the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Fireman Third Class Harold Costill was 18 years old at the time of his passing. The former VFW post in Clayton was named in his honor and there also is an avenue in Clayton honoring the name of Fireman Third Class Harold K. His brother Gene was there to see him laid to rest. He was brought home to rest to his hometown of Clayton, NJ on September 14, 2019. Harold Costill’s remains were identified. Those who could not be identified, including Costill, were interred as unknowns at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the Punchbowl in Honolulu.įrom June through October 2017, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, in cooperation with cemetery officials, disinterred 35 caskets, reported to be associated with the USS West Virginia and transferred the remains to the laboratory for identification. Navy personnel recovered the remains of the deceased crewman, representing at least 66 individuals. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 106 crewman, including Harold K. The USS West Virginia sustained multiple torpedo hits, sunk, and it came to rest on the shallow harbor floor. He was assigned to the engine room on the Battleship, USS West Virginia BB-48, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was attacked by Japanese aircraft on Dec 7, 1941. Taps – Battleship volunteer Nan LaCorteįireman Third Class Harold K.
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