My grandpa was there in the US army 37th infinity division. He was awarded a bronze star and we have a letter of commendation explaining what he did. His platoon was low on ammo and they were resupplied with the wrong ammo and no motor rounds. He ran through enemy Japanese lines, made it back to the supply depot and loaded up a truck with the correct 30 cal ammo and motor rounds and drove it back through enemy lines while truck was shot up. Raymond L Harshman T-sergeant

My great uncle Tommy Garrett died on Bougainville in November of 1944. He’s listed as KIA/MIA. He was in the army. 182nd infantry 2nd battalion, company b.

My dad served here as a Marine. His discharge papers show him on Bougainville Island 11/6/43 to 12/15/43. From there he was on Guam from 7/21/44 to 2/14/45. His last stop was Iwo Jima, from 2/24/45 to 3/28/45. He was a radio man but never got a scratch. (externally)

I was on Bougainville for one year and I'm lucky to be sitting in a chair in my house at 95

My Dad was injured (shot) in the Battle of Bougainville. Surreal to watch this video and thinking he could be among these men.

Well done sir. My father passed through there with the RNZAF, bombed Rabaul flying corsairs with 16 and 22 squadron tours.

My father was on Bougainville Nov 1, 1943 USMC he passed in 1985 he would be 96 if he was still here, I have all his stuff and a bunch of photos too from that time.

Thanks USA. What you did in the Pacific will not be forgotten by we Australians. We remember them.

I'm watching this remembering old friends John (Jack) Teeple and Martin E. Shave. ...Salute. .. r.i.p.

A very hard campaign for the Marines and the Australians. A sadly forgotten, but very rough part of the war.

My grandfather was in the 75th battalion here. His name was Robert “Bob” Bruns. He operated a dragline. If anyone knew him please let me know!

God Bless all the soldiers. My dad was one of them.

My grandpa lived to be 92. It's a shame I never asked him about this fight here, or how he lost his bits of his face in combat with these men. I'm proud to be serving my country now though.

My grandfather was in the marines there, the Japanese mortared a fuel dump that him and his crew were involved in setting up on the island he tried pulling out the remains of his friends and sustained third degree burns on his body he received citation and a purple heart for this and later went back an island to Vella la vella where a Japanese zero blew him off the deck of a ship into the water rupturing his left ear receiving his second purple heart.

My grandfather, hollis 'tume' thornberry served with the 71st naval construction battalion in 1943. He talked of climbing poles to string communication lines under sniper fire

My uncle , Ricks Ambrose served at Bougainville. Also Saipan, G. Canal and others. God bless you men ans woman

My father was stationed there with the SeaBees and he helped build the airstrips. I have pictures of him and his crew.

My grandfather was a marine on the USS McKean when it was torpedoed in Empress Augusta Bay off Bougainville in Nov. 1943. I was lucky that he was able to describe the experience to me in detail, in the 1990s.

Dad was there with the U.S. 6th Army 37th Division.

As an Australian Viet Nam veteran and amatuer war historian I take depp umbrage that American film makers in some cases completely leave out the fact that the Australan Army was deeply in volved in New Guinea from Kakoda track,Milne bay the first defeats on the Japanese in ww2.On New GUuinea tthe Australians fought all the way from Buna Gona right up to Wau and on untill the Japanese were defeated,I even heard one commentator to say that the American Gi was going to save Australia in new Guinea,it all becomes a bit insulting and Aussie troops were there in Bouganvillee give us the credit we are due,we are small but in every war we have punched above our weight.

The title is a misnomer. In 1945 the US troops had been withdrawn and been replaced by the Australian Army (not shown). The US Air Forces were largely replaced by New Zealand and Australian squadrons. The US forces had been satisfied to maintain a perimeter around Torokina but the Australians pushed in 3 directions (N, E and S) to eventually liberate nearly the entire island.

My great granduncle was an Australian officer in the Papua New Guinea battalion and was at Bougainville interesting to see something of what he would have seen (Leo Bernard Schweida)

My grandmother's older brother as a native of Malaita, Langalanga Lagoon was fighting in Guadalcanal, then to New Georgia, then to Bouganville. I never knew him because I was born years after he passed away in the late 80s. But luckily his stories were documented in a book that I found. He was part of a commando unit headed by New Zealand officers. In Unit 23 under Lt. Len Barrow when they were in New Georgia and Bouganville. At Guadalcanal he was with Allied marines at Mataniko. He remarked that after they pushed the Japanese back, he reached the top of Mboganavera hill where he found a lot of the marines laying down in foxholes having a smoke. So he asked, hey where's the enemy? And someone said to him, no enemies here, have a cigarette! He remarked that the U.S marines didn't care what they did being in the jungles, and did whatever they want. Unlike the Australians who had respect for their senior officers, the U.S. marines would later talk behind the back of their senior officer that they would put a bullet in their heads. After Guadalcanal, now in New Georgia, they patrolled the island and later brought the fight to the Japanese on Bouganville. He got shot in Torokina. He said that he jumped into a foxhole and when after they were to chsrge he realized that he was hit on the foot. He laid there and didnt want to get taken as Japanese prisoner. He threw a grenade at a Japanese tank and laid quietly in the bush until a U.S tank rolled by, so he shot his pistol in the air, and the U.S soldiers came and saw he was hit. So they hit him in the face to numb him and stitched his foot up the same day. He was okay and fought on. Another time they were hungry as Japs cut off flights dropping supplies, but luckily as natives they found wild yams on Bouganville and survived off the land that way for about three months. There are more stories i can say from what I found in the records, and I like to think he did his part to chase the Japanese invaders away from his country. His name was George Maelalo. Jah bless! Tagiu Rasua, merci beaucoup, vinaka, faftai, thanks for reading.

Love the order of the day.

My father served with the Australian Army on Bougainville from Dec 44 to Dec 45, pushing Japanese forces through "the battle of the swamps" south of Torakina to the Mivo River. L R Gorlick, OC 7 Platoon, A Coy, 47 Aust Infantry Btn (Wide Bay Regt), 27 Infantry Bgde, 3 Division, II Corp. The 47 Btn war diary show that he was leading a patrol to clear Lawnes Track near Mivo River Ford on the afternoon of 09th August 1945 after another patrol had suffered casualties in an ambush that morning, the day the second atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki. On 15th August they heard on the BBC World Service that the war was over but they stayed on Bougainville until December. He had served with 47 Infantry Btn from June 1939 to Dec 1945 through Wide Bay, Townsville, Milne Bay, Goodenough Is, Buna, Nassau Bay, Tambu Bay, Commissioned in the field shortly before being WIA on Komiatum Ridge during the advance on Salamaua / Lae. He returned to active service in July 44 for the Bougainville Campaign. RIP and Never Forgotten!

My grandpa’s brother lost half of his hand here or Tarawa, I can’t remember right now

My grandfather was a nurse orderly and stretcher bearer in the 17th field ambulance. If anyone has photos or knows much about this unit, let me know!

Great job guys 😊

My father was stationed there when I was born in 1944

On Dec 20th, 2021 we lost another Hero!! My good friend Al Kosnar passed away one month from his 98th birthday! He would tell me about the 3rd Marine Division gathering on Guadalcanal, then landing on Bougainville, telling me of the Heat/humidity and the nasty Bugs on the island!!!! He said the bugs were as bad as the Japanese!!! Al was in hand to hand combat on Guam, having been overrun in a Banzai attack, and he was wounded on the 2nd airstrip on Iwo Jima!!!!!! 4 Major battle stars!!!! I miss him dearly!

The Americal Division was also on Bougainville, They arrived the relieved the Marines there.

My father was on Bougainville. 3rd Marines.

My Grandfather was a Tek 5 on Bogenville in the US Army

How about moving the time stamp to the middle of the screen. It's not blocking enough of the picture.

My father was there with the 37 Buckeyes

Almost the same footage was used for several Island campaigns only the narrative has changed slightly.

You need a few more ads. I almost saw some of the footage.

3:05 hit him in the face ! Ouch !

what no Australians?

Willis Edgecomb Were you by chance associated with Robert or J D Williams? JD was killed on an island near there in March 1944

Dad fought here.

A lot of well done Yank propaganda made for home viewers . Allies are easily forgotten and dont exist .

My father was there !

The narrator sounds like the actor, Robert Taylor.

I wonder if the Japanese and American authorities ever came back to claim the bodies buried.

hardly No volume

The narrator pronounced it BOOganvile but my Dad ( was a Marine there) always pronounced BOganville. Not sure which one is right.

Did you smell the Bougainvillea?

...*When you look up actual film from WWII to see how they did things in real life to get ideas for how to go about missions in DCS World*...

At 3:03 he smacked himself in n the chin with that machine gun 😖😂

HOW AMERICA TOOK BOUGAINVILLE?WHAT ABOUT THE AUSSIES?

That time stamp makes this unwatchable.

You seem to have forgotten the Australians. Typical of the yanks

Have a cold beer drink on me sir!

Racism of that period on full display. Not one Black soldier visible that I could see. But my dad was there with an all-Black artillery unit. The narrator credits artillery as a key tool. My dad should've gotten a purple heart but the ship carrying his records was sunk and military claimed they had no way to verify what he did. All the joes there deserve a lot of credit- but not even one image of a Black soldier? smh. 🤔

Great footage ... thanks ......never again

"known only to god"

B

I s

piratas asesinos! todo vuelve en vida

RIP Captian H.T.M. Thank you for your service

this is where a certain destined-for-fame 1st Lieut of the U.S. Navy was stationed during WW2. History tells us that young American naval officer spent a lot of time playing poker with other his colleages on Bougainville and was so good, he is supposed to have won over $8000 while stationed there, all of which he sent home to California. A few years later this sharp, scrappy young man and WW2 Veteran would use his winnings to finance his first political campaign, a run for Congress. You guessed it, that young naval officer who 'knew when to hold and fold 'em' would later become U.S. President Nixon. And NOW you know, the REST of the story.