The United States has many hallowed battlegrounds. None are quite like Pearl Harbor. It takes only a brief visit to the USS Arizona Memorial to understand why.
On a recent visit, the smell of oil and aging steel were prevalent as soon as I entered the main area of the memorial overlooking the remains of the ship. In the early morning of Dec. 7, 1941, a bomb was dropped near the ship’s forward magazines during the Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. The ensuing blast killed more than half of the 2,400 Americans killed in the attack. Today, more than 900 bodies are still underwater inside the sunken ship.
In an instant, the Arizona was tranformed from a revered battleship to a mass grave.
Pearl Harbor is one of the few relatively modern battlegrounds on American soil. Gettysburg is a memorial to lives lost, but the scent of gunpowder does not linger in the air. The Arizona still bleeds oil into the harbor, and will for decades to come. More than 500,000 gallons of oil still remain in the ship. Some survivors call the oil “Black Tears.”
Not only is the story of the Arizona and Pearl Harbor one to memorialize, but the story behind the memorial’s designer is worth telling too. Alfred Preis came to the United States as an Austrian refugee fleeing the Nazis. He and his wife settled in Honolulu but were sent to an internment camp after World War II began due to their German backgrounds. Despite the indignity of living in an internment camp, Preis was proud of his new home and submitted the winning design for the Arizona’s memorial, almost 20 years after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
The now-famous structure welcomes more than a million visitors every year. “Wherein the structure sags in the center but stands strong and vigorous at the ends, expresses initial defeat and ultimate victory,” Preis said of the design.
Visitors to Pearl Harbor also have a chance to witness the military might sparked by the defeat. Surrounding attractions include the battleship USS Missouri and the submarine USS Bowfin. Both were launched during the U.S. involvement in World War II.
The Missouri is the last U.S. battleship to be completed, and its military might is clear. The ship’s nine 16-inch guns are still intimidating, even though the 71 year-old ship won’t return to action. I stood on the deck where the treaty was signed that ended World War II, the most destructive war the world has ever seen.
The Bowfin was just one of 120 Balao-class submarines used by the Navy during World War II. Although the Bowfin doesn’t look intimidating relative to the Missouri, it accomplished a lot. The Bowfin sank four Japanese military ships, damaged two others, and sank many Japanese cargo ships.
Pearl Harbor is also special in that it memorializes those lost in a battle that was an unprecedented defeat for the U.S.
Although only a few parts of the Arizona are visible from the memorial, I could not help but feel a tremendous sense of loss when I was there. Americans with the means to visit Hawaii should spend a day at Pearl Harbor, recognizing the sacrifice of those lost in the attack and the accomplishments of those who spent years fighting to win the war.
Jason Russell is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.
