Everybody remembers Pearl Harbor. Nobody remembers Attu.
June 7, 1942: Japanese forces invaded Attu, Alaska, then a U.S. territory.
Everybody remembers Pearl Harbor. Few Americans remember Attu.
Yet on June 7, 1942, Japanese forces landed on the remote Aleutian island, making Attu the only part of the United States occupied by Japan during World War II.
Nearly a year later, American forces returned.
The battle that followed lasted less than three weeks. Nearly 4,000 people died, including more than 500 Americans. It became one of the deadliest battles of the Pacific War.
Yet unlike Iwo Jima, Guadalcanal, or Okinawa, Attu never became part of the national memory.
Today, it is often called the “Forgotten Battle.”
Japanese troops on Kiska Island, June 1942. One day later, Japanese forces would land on nearby Attu, beginning the occupation of American territory during World War II.
American service members watch Japanese bombs fall on Dutch Harbor, Alaska, June 1942. It marked the first aerial bombardment of American territory since the War of 1812.
U.S. Navy Photo
American soldiers land at Massacre Bay on Attu Island, May 26, 1943. It marked the beginning of the battle to retake American territory occupied by Japanese forces.
AP Photo
A bugler sounds taps during a memorial service on Attu Island, August 1943. Nearly 4,000 men died during the campaign to reclaim the island.
Attu Village in 1937. In 1942, only about 42 Aleut residents and two white Americans lived on the island. Their story is often overshadowed by the battle that followed.
Sitting closer to Russia than to the U.S. mainland, Attu Island was seen by the Japanese military as a strategically vital location to occupy.
Chief Mike Hodikof and his wife collecting roots near Attu Village, 1936. The indigenous Unangax̂ (Aleut) people were skilled hunters, gatherers, and stewards of the land.
The Forgotten People
Before the battle, Attu was home to a small community of 42 Aleut villagers. In 1942, only two white Americans lived on the island. The people who lost their homes, their community, and in many cases their lives were overwhelmingly Indigenous Alaskans.
When Japanese forces arrived, the villagers were taken to Hokkaido as prisoners of war. Nearly half would die in captivity.
Their story rarely appears in accounts of the war.
For many Americans, the Battle of Attu has been forgotten. The story of the Aleuts is even less remembered.
More Forgotten People
Also missing from many accounts is the role played by Japanese Americans.
While more than 120,000 Japanese Americans were being removed from their homes and incarcerated, Nisei soldiers of the Military Intelligence Service were serving the United States in the Aleutians.
At Attu, they translated captured documents, interrogated prisoners, and persuaded Japanese soldiers to surrender. Their work saved lives and provided valuable intelligence at a critical stage of the war.
Many served while their own families remained behind barbed wire.
Courtesy of U.S. National Archives and Records Administration
MIS soldiers aboard the USS Heywood en route to Attu. Their language skills helped provide intelligence, interrogate prisoners, and persuade Japanese soldiers to surrender.
Courtesy of U.S. National Archives and Records Administration
An MIS interpreter interrogates Japanese prisoners on Attu Island in 1943. They provided intelligence that helped U.S. commanders understand enemy plans and positions.
Ben Moriwaki and Fred Tanakatsubo, veterans of the Battle of Attu, visit Topaz. Few images better capture the contradictions faced by Japanese Americans during World War II.
Courtesy of Vince Wallace
African American soldiers at Massacre Bay, Attu Island, May 1943. The campaign to retake Attu depended on thousands of support personnel who are rarely mentioned.
Courtesy of U.S. National Archives and Records Administration
An anti-aircraft gun on Kiska Island after its capture by American forces. Kiska and Attu formed the only portion of U.S. territory occupied by Japan during World War II.
Courtesy of Alaska State Library Historical Collections
The battle for Attu was one of the deadliest campaigns of the Pacific War. Yet unlike Iwo Jima, Guadalcanal, or Okinawa, it never became part of America’s shared memory.
Who Gets Remembered
The story of Attu is not just a story of invasion.
It is also a story of memory.
The battle was fought on American soil.
The people who lost their homes were American citizens.
Yet both became footnotes in a war remembered for other places and other battles.
Everybody remembers Pearl Harbor.
Nobody remembers Attu.