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Okinawa Map


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Got this from my father, Col. Ditta (then Major).

The close up shows the Nana/Shuri area. You can see on the map his pencil lines going up to Shuri and to Dakeshi, and back down towards Naha.

He was also in the south, the Kunishi Mezado Ridge.

 

post-1414-0-08549400-1478031074_thumb.jpg

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  • 2 months later...
  • 3 years later...

The 2/7's Spencer Berger, who recommended a citation, and Col. Snedeker remained colleagues of my father's later, Snedeker at Quantico

while commanding the Marine Corps Schools.

http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?/topic/11539-usmc-medal-group-wphotos/

 

 

 

Assault on Shuri

The 7th Marines was an experienced outfit and well commanded by Guadalcanal and Bougainville veteran Colonel Edward W. Snedeker. "I was especially fortunate at Okinawa," he said, "in that each of my battalion commanders had fought at Peleliu." Nevertheless, the regiment had its hands full with Dakeshi Ridge. "It was our most difficult mission," said Snedeker. After a day of intense fighting, Lieutenant Colonel John J. Gormley's 1/7 fought its way to the crest of Dakeshi, but had to withdraw under swarming Japanese counterattacks. The next day, Lieutenant Colonel Spencer S. Berger's 2/7 regained the crest and cut down the counterattackers emerging from their reverse-slope bunkers. The 7th Marines were on Dakeshi to stay, another significant breakthrough.

"The Old Breed" Marines enjoyed only a brief elation at this achievement because from Dakeshi they could glimpse the difficulties yet to come. In fact, the next 1,200 yards of their advance would eat up 18 days of fighting. In this case, seizing Wana Ridge would be tough, but the most formidable obstacle would be steep, twisted Wana Draw that rambled just to the south, a deadly killing ground, surrounded by towering cliffs pocked with caves, with every possible approach strewn with mines and covered by interlocking fire. "Wana Draw proved to be the toughest assignment the 1st Division was to encounter," reported General Oliver P. Smith. The remnants of the 62d Infantry Division would defend Wana to their deaths.

Because the 6th Marine Division's celebrated assault on Sugar Loaf Hill occurred during the same period, historians have not paid as much attention to the 1st Division's parallel efforts against the Wana defenses. But Wana turned out to be almost as deadly a "mankiller" as Sugar Loaf and its bloody environs. The 1st Marines, now led by Colonel Arthur T. Mason, began the assault on the Wana complex on 12 May. In time, all three infantry regiments would take their turn attacking the narrow gorge to the south. The division continued to make full use of its tank battalion. The Sherman medium tanks and attached Army flame tanks were indispensable in both their assault and direct fire support roles (see sidebar). On 16 May, as an indicator, the 1st Tank Battalion fired nearly 5,000 rounds of 75mm and 173,000 rounds of .30-caliber ammunition, plus 600 gallons of napalm.

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  • 1 year later...

Great map!

 

I'm curious, beyond the family / sentimental connection, does anybody have an opinion on what inherent value a map like this might have?

 

Said differently, if you had a chance to buy one, what would you be comfortable paying for it?

 

Thank you.

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postmanusnac

I recently got a similar map, maybe the exact same one. It was in a paper grouping for a Solider in the Anti Tank Co., 382nd Infantry, 96th Division.

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