68 Years

***** Corregidor, the Gibralter of the East fell to the Japanese on this date essentially ending armed resistance to the invasion began 6 month's earlier. 11,000 American and Filipino Prisoner's including well over 10% wounded were taken as LTG. Jonathan Wainwright out of resources and fearing a slaughter of the wounded in Malinta tunnel decided to capitulate rather than fight on for at best 1 or 2 more days. He was forced to broadcast an order for other holdout areas in the islands like Cebu & Samar to also surrender less the attack on the Rock would continue.

***** This was in direct violation of the earlier instructions from MacArthur already in Australia. Wainwright made one final contact with Hawaii via radio and sent a brief explanation to FDR as well as a long transmission of as many Names & serial numbers of the Men as was possible.

****** A number of Army and Navy Nurses were captured also as well as a small contingent of Red Cross Girls. They stayed on Corregidor for over a month after surrender as the wounded were evacuated. Then they joined American internee's at Santo Tomas College to wait out the War . Most of the American captives were within days marched thru Manila streets and kept in an old Spanish prison. Many were eventually shipped to Japan & Manchuria.

***** Part of our History.

******* Today is the Anniversary of Midway. The turning point of the Pacific Naval War. Raymond Spruance guessed Right as Choici Nagumo guessed wrong. One American had the lone surviving Ringside seat to it all as he floated hidden in his Mae West. George Gay from Texas later to be a TWA Captain. He died in Connecticut in 1994.