Ernie Pyle Monument, Japan dedication photographs
Collection — Folder: SP117
Identifier: SP117
Scope and Contents
This collection includes 6 black-and-white photographs taken at the Ernie Pyle memorial and cemetery in Ie Shima, Ryukyu Islands, Japan in 1945. Five of the photographs were taken during a ceremony for the erection of the new concrete memorial in Juy 1945.
Dates
- 1945 July, undated
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Legal title, copyright, and literary rights reside with Rare Books and Manuscripts, Indiana State Library, Indianapolis, IN. All requests to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted to Rare Books and Manuscripts.
Biographical Note
Ernie Pyle was an American journalist and war correspondent from Dana, Indiana. He was born Ernest Taylor Pyle on Augsut 3, 1900 at his childhood home in Dana. Pyle studied journalism at Indiana University, then had various reporter and editorial jobs and local newspapers before becoming a roving columnist with the Scripps-Howard newspaper chain. He married Geraldine "Jerry" Elizabeth Siebolds in 1925 and the couple moved to New Mexico.
When World War II broke out, he became a war correspondent, covering campaigns in North Africa, Sicily, Italy, and France, which won him the Pulitzer Prize for journalism in 1944. Pyle moved on to the Pacific theater and accompanied U.S. armed forces on Iwo Jima. During the Okinawa campaign, he was killed by Japanese machine-gun fire while visiting the nearby island of Ie Shima, Ryukyu Islands, Japan on April 18, 1945. Pyle was initially buried in Japan, but eventually interred in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Sources:
"Ernie Pyle." Encyclopaedia Britannica. Last modified July 30, 2021. Accessed October 21, 2021. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ernie-Pyle.
Findagrave.com. "Ernie Pyle." Find A Grave Memorial. Accessed October 21, 2021. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/2143/ernie-pyle.
Indiana University Media School. "New Scholars Visit Pyle Home Town." The Media School Report, August 29, 2016. Accessed October 21, 2021. https://mediaschool.indiana.edu/news-events/news/item.html?n=new-scholars-visit-pyle-home-town.
The Ernie Pyle WWII Museum. "Ernie Pyle's Boyhood Home." Accessed October 21, 2021. https://erniepyle.org/ernie-pyles-boyhood-home.
When World War II broke out, he became a war correspondent, covering campaigns in North Africa, Sicily, Italy, and France, which won him the Pulitzer Prize for journalism in 1944. Pyle moved on to the Pacific theater and accompanied U.S. armed forces on Iwo Jima. During the Okinawa campaign, he was killed by Japanese machine-gun fire while visiting the nearby island of Ie Shima, Ryukyu Islands, Japan on April 18, 1945. Pyle was initially buried in Japan, but eventually interred in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Sources:
"Ernie Pyle." Encyclopaedia Britannica. Last modified July 30, 2021. Accessed October 21, 2021. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ernie-Pyle.
Findagrave.com. "Ernie Pyle." Find A Grave Memorial. Accessed October 21, 2021. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/2143/ernie-pyle.
Indiana University Media School. "New Scholars Visit Pyle Home Town." The Media School Report, August 29, 2016. Accessed October 21, 2021. https://mediaschool.indiana.edu/news-events/news/item.html?n=new-scholars-visit-pyle-home-town.
The Ernie Pyle WWII Museum. "Ernie Pyle's Boyhood Home." Accessed October 21, 2021. https://erniepyle.org/ernie-pyles-boyhood-home.
Historical Note
Combat engineers from the 77th Infantry Division erected a permanent monument dedicated to the late Ernie Pyle in July, 1945 at Ie Shima, Ryukya Island in Japan. The concrete marker replaced a painted board at the spot where Pyle was killed by a bullet from Japanese forces. The marker has two brass plaques made of shell casings. The first bears a replica of the division's Statue of Liberty shoulder patch, while the second states: "On this spot, the 77th infantry division lost a buddy, Ernie Pyle, April 18, 1945."
The memorial sat near a small cemetery where Pyle and other American soldiers were temporarily buried. Pyle's body was removed from Ie Shima, along with the other Americans who died there, and reinterred on July 4, 1947 in the Okinawa Island Command Cemetery. Later, his body was relocated to Oahu, Hawaii.
Sources:
"Ernie Pyle Monument." Colton Courier (CA), August 28, 1945, 1.
"Ernie Pyle's Body Removed from Ie Shima." The Daily Courier (Connellsville, PA), July 3, 1947, 1.
"Monument Erected to Ernie Pyle." Ventura County Star (CA), July 2, 1945, 2.
"Yanks Dedicate Monument to Ernie Pyle." Salt Lake Telegram (UT), July 2, 1945, 2.
The memorial sat near a small cemetery where Pyle and other American soldiers were temporarily buried. Pyle's body was removed from Ie Shima, along with the other Americans who died there, and reinterred on July 4, 1947 in the Okinawa Island Command Cemetery. Later, his body was relocated to Oahu, Hawaii.
Sources:
"Ernie Pyle Monument." Colton Courier (CA), August 28, 1945, 1.
"Ernie Pyle's Body Removed from Ie Shima." The Daily Courier (Connellsville, PA), July 3, 1947, 1.
"Monument Erected to Ernie Pyle." Ventura County Star (CA), July 2, 1945, 2.
"Yanks Dedicate Monument to Ernie Pyle." Salt Lake Telegram (UT), July 2, 1945, 2.
Extent
0.01 Cubic Feet (1 folder)
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
This collection is arranged by subject.
Custodial History
This collection was received by Rare Books and Manuscripts as a donation.
Accruals
No further additions are expected.
Processing Information
Collection processing completed 2021/11/13 by Brittany Kropf. EAD finding aid revised 2021/11/13 by Brittany Kropf.
- Title
- Ernie Pyle Monument, Japan dedication photographs
- Status
- Completed
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Repository
Contact:
140 North Senate Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204 U.S.A.
317-232-3671
140 North Senate Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204 U.S.A.
317-232-3671
