Hawaii Island’s role in the United States’ success in the Pacific Theater during World War II is bigger than some may think.
Some 50,000-plus men trained at Camp Tarawa in Waimea during a two-year period to assist in the invasions of Saipan-Tinian and Iwo Jima in 1944, helping to set up the U.S. for ultimate victory in August 1945, said Jim Browne, commandant of the Camp Tarawa Detachment No. 1255. The men were also trained for the occupation of Japan following the war said.
“The Big Island played a very important part in the success of the Pacific Theater,” he said. “The two campaigns the 2nd and 5th Marine divisions undertook supported the strategic bombing of Japan.”
More than a dozen people turned out for the program presented by members of the Marine Corps League Camp Tarawa Detachment No. 1255 held at Puukohola National Historic Site in South Kohala. During the event, members spent an hour discussing Hawaii Island’s history and role during World War II.
The talk story events are held by the detachment to ensure the island’s history during the World War II era isn’t forgotten. The detachment, which has a nonprofit arm called The Camp Tarawa Foundation, also provides complimentary tours, as well as speaking engagements when requested.
“This is a huge part of our history here that most people don’t know about,” said Puukohola Park Ranger Greg Cunningham. Through these events “they are trying to preserve a very important piece of history that if it is not preserved now it will be gone.”
Thousands of Marines, Navy corpsmen and Seabees trained at Camp Tarawa, located in Waimea, from December 1943 to November 1945. A total of 5,145 were killed in action or died of their wounds. Some 18,029 were wounded in action in the invasions of Saipan-Tinian and Iwo Jima.
Browne said the military opted to train here because of the island’s sheer size and relative similarity to the islands Marines would ultimately invade. The training area spanned from the Waikoloa resort area to about 15 miles north of Kawaihae.
“This was the only place in the Pacific were 21,000 to 22,000 men could train on the same day at the same time,” he said.
When the military came to train here, in the early 1940s, Waimea had a population of fewer than 400 residents, said Kathy Painton, with the detachment. Browne noted the town had one telephone, one light bulb and a lack of water to support thousands of military personnel.
But all that changed when the men, mostly Marines, began to call the town “home.”
“The Seabees did a lot of the heavy construction and created a lot of the infrastructure in the Waimea area that is still there and in use today,” Browne said before explaining the construction battalion created an airfield in the area, paved roads, and built water and power systems. “They literally brought the town of Waimea, and Parker Ranch, into the 20th century.”
While a good amount of the time soldiers spent here was for training, such as conducting an amphibious assault landing at Polulu Valley, marching up its walls and then back into Waimea, Browne and Painton divulged some stories they’ve managed to dig up over the years from talking to people who once called the camp home.
The stories range from memories of the best hamburgers in town and baseball games to Hawaii’s first professional rodeo and outdoor movies at Camp Tarawa.
One of the stories shared Saturday about the camp centered around a New Zealand-born duck that once called Camp Tawara home. Sgt. Siwash, as he became known after reportedly chasing off a Japanese rooster during the Battle of Tarawa in 1943 for which he was awarded a Purple Heart, was the 10th Marine Regiment’s mascot.
And, just like the men training, the duck enjoyed a cold libation, Browne said.
“That duck loved his beer,” Browne said. “If he had his choice between water and beer, the duck chose the beer.
For more information about the detachment, visit camptarawamcl.com. To request a speaking engagement, call Painton at 880-9880.
