The Alaska State Museum November Artifacts of the Month are snowshoes (2003-4-1) and a field parka shell (2004-69-1). US military wore these items during the Battle of Attu, which was part of the Aleutian Campaign during World War II.
Snowshoes were one of the few pieces of cold weather gear supplied to soldiers. Soldiers used the wood and rawhide snowshoes to traverse the snowy and windswept island. Soldiers were also supplied with leather boots and lightweight rain parkas, which offered little warmth in the snowy conditions. The artifact of the month has an attached hood with a tie to tighten the hood around the face. There are ties on each sleeve to tighten around the wrists. Pocket openings on each side meet in a deep pocket in the middle, with access to clothing underneath. Each pocket has a flap with a button. The pocket on the right side has the following tag: "Foster Brothers Sportswear Co. Contract W669-QM-13026, Aug 25, 1941. P.Q.D. No. 66, Dated May 21, 1941, Stock No 55-p-4657 Medium, Philadelphia Q.M. Dept." There appear to be lipstick and face powder stains on the inside front neck area.
In June 1942, six months after the US declared war on Japan following the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Japanese forces staged an invasion on the remote Aleutian Island of Attu. In 1942, the population of Attu was comprised of 45 native Unangax̂ people and two white Midwesterners. 42 of the residents were imprisoned in Japan, and by the end of the war, fully half had died.
In May 1943, almost a full year after the initial Japanese invasion, the US military launched Operation Landcrab. Thousands of US troops landed on the rocky windswept beaches via landing craft. The majority of the planned 3-day recapture operation dragged on for three weeks. This extension was largely due to a lack of proper equipment and training, as well as a heavily dug-in Japanese base. Much of the landing force was from the US Army 7th Infantry Division, which had trained in the California desert and was unprepared for the extreme weather of the Aleutians. Thousands of soldiers were withdrawn from the battle due to foot problems, exposure to the elements, and infectious disease. US troops took the last of the Japanese holdouts almost three months after the first landing of Operation Landcrab. Over two thousand Japanese soldiers had died. No prisoners were captured, the dwindling force resorted to the last Banzai charge of the war, and the remaining injured soldiers committed suicide in the makeshift hospital.
This often-forgotten battle, fought in an isolated corner of the world, was one of the most extreme engagements of the war. Many lessons learned on Attu would prove valuable against the assault on the nearby island of Kiska, especially regarding cold weather gear and preparation. However, unknown to allied command, the small Japanese contingent had already withdrawn from Kiska before US troops arrived. The battle was still costly - casualties resulted from exposure, accidental friendly fire, and a naval mine in the harbor that a US Navy ship hit, killing 71.
These battles are among the many remembered on Veterans Day.
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