The Aleutian Islands Campaign Remembered – Dispatch March 18, 2014

You are subscribed to Dispatches from the Veterans History Project for Library of Congress. This information has recently been updated, and is now available. The Aleutian Islands Campaign Remembered – Dispatch March 18, 2014 “The Aleutian Islands: WWII’s Unknown Campaign,” the most recent installment of the Library of Congress Veterans History Project (VHP) “Experiencing War” series, includes soldiers, sailors and merchant mariners who participated in the oft-forgotten Aleutian Islands Campaign of World War II. Stretching from Attu to Osaka, the Pacific Theatre of Operations comprised an array of air, ground and naval operations. Though many of these campaigns are etched in monument and memory, the yearlong struggle in the Aleutians is an exception. Concurrent with joint service operations on Guadalcanal, and lasting twice as long, the Japanese invasion and occupation of United States territory is absent from our collective memory of World War II. VHP Research Specialist Megan Harris, curator of the “Experiencing War” Web features, said “these narratives include some of VHP’s most gripping accounts of World War II, as United States forces faced blizzards known as “willowaws” and desperate, hand-to-hand combat with the enemy. Few recall the horrific conditions and brutal combat that characterized the Aleutian Campaign, and this Web feature is a means of ensuring that these stories are no longer forgotten.” At present, VHP has preserved nearly 600 narratives from veterans of the Aleutian Campaign. More than 100 of these collections are digitized and accessible through the link below: http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/vhp/search?query=aleutians&field=serviceLocation&war=worldwarii&digitalCollection=yes The Mission of the Veterans History Project of the Library of Congress American Folklife Center is to collect, preserve and make accessible the personal accounts of American war veterans so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand the realities of war. Learn more at www.loc.gov/vets. Share your exciting VHP initiatives, programs, events, and news stories with VHP to be considered for a future RSS. Email vohp@loc.gov and place “My VHP RSS Story” in the subject line. This service is provided by the Library of Congress at www.LOC.gov. Unsubscribe or change your subscriber preferences For questions or problems with subscriptions, contact subscriberhelp.govdelivery.com Follow us: Blog | Facebook | Flickr | iTunes U | Twitter | YouTube   This email was sent to woowonemusic@gmail.com using GovDelivery, on behalf of: Library of Congress · 101 Independence Ave, SE · Washington, DC 20540 · 202-707-5000