Guadalcanal became a turning point in Pacific war

On July 6, 1942, the Japanese moved a force consisting of 2,000 troops and laborers to Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands to build an airstrip. 

The Allies recognized that land-based planes operating from this field would cause serious problems for New Caledonia and other islands. Immediate steps were planned to eject the Japanese from this island utilizing the forces available in the South Pacific.

On Aug. 7, 1942, just one month later, 6,000 men of the U.S. 1st Marine Division, commanded by Maj. Gen. Alexander Vandegrift, launched an amphibious assault on Guadalcanal, surprising the 2,000 Japanese defenders. The landings were made with strong naval and air support and met with little initial resistance.

The airfield on Guadalcanal was seized in the first 36 hours. The Marines then named the field Henderson Field, named after Maj. Lofton Henderson, a Marine aviator who had been killed on a bombing run in the Battle of Midway the previous month. Henderson Field would then quickly become the center of gravity for the conflict on Guadalcanal.

Many more troops were brought in by the Japanese and the Allies. When the battle ended six months later with a victory by the Allies, 1,600 American lives had been lost and 4,000 troops wounded, plus thousands more deaths from malaria and other diseases. Total American deaths reached 7,100. The Japanese suffered much worse, with 23,000 killed.

The U.S. lost 29 ships and more than 600 aircraft. The victory was the turning point in defeating Japan in the Pacific.

Roger Gregory served as a captain in the 1st Infantry Division in Vietnam. He is a Priest River businessman.