The Flag Raisings

On the morning of February 23, 1945, the fifth day of battle, a 40-man Marine combat patrol ascended the rocky slopes of Mount Suribachi, a 550-foot extinct volcano at the southern tip of Iwo Jima. The patrol, led by First Lieutenant Harold G. Schrier, had been ordered to sieze and occupy the crest and raise a small American flag. When the patrol reached the rim of the crater, some of the Marines fought off a defending force of Japanese, while others located an iron pipe, tied the flag to it, and raised the Stars and Stripes. Watching the flag go up, Secretary of the Navy James V. Forrestal proclaimed, "The raising of that flag on Suribachi means a Marine Corps for another 500 years."

Shortly after raising the first flag, another patrol was sent to raise a larger flag that would be visible over the entire island. As the second group hoisted this flag, Associated Press Photographer Joe Rosenthal captured the moment on film. For Marines on the battlefield, the two flag raisings gave hope for a quick victory. However, the determined Japanese only dug deeper and would fight tenaciously for another month.

Captions of Photos on Upper Right of Panel

Michael Strank (4)

Sergeant, USMC

Connemaugh PA

1919 - 1945 (killed on Iwo Jima)

Rene Gagnon (5)

Private First Class, USMCR

Manchester NH

1926 - 1979

Harlon Block (6)

Corporal, USMC

Yorktown TX