Japanese soldiers fell.
10 15.
But more kept coming.
They had numbers.
They had discipline.
And they had orders to retake this ground at any cost.
Jackson’s first magazine ran dry.
He reloaded his last 20 rounds.
The Marines were down to their final clips.
The squad’s bar man had cleared his jam, but had only one magazine remaining.
The mathematics had turned against them again.
Four Americans with perhaps 60 rounds between them against 25 Japanese soldiers still advancing.
Then the coral ridge behind the Japanese erupted in explosions.
The seventh Marines had pushed three rifle platoons through the gaps Jackson had created.
40 men with rifles, bars, and grenades.
They had circled behind the Japanese counterattack force.
They had waited for the right moment.
That moment was now.
The Japanese found themselves caught between two American forces.
Jackson and his three Marines in front, 40 Marines behind.
The crossfire was devastating.
Japanese soldiers fell in clusters.
Some tried to retreat to their tunnel entrance.
Marines cut them down before they reached it.
In less than 3 minutes, the counterattack was over.
40 Japanese soldiers laid dead on the coral.
The southern perimeter’s last reserve was gone.
Six pill boxes remained.
And now Jackson had ammunition.
He had grenades.
He had 40 marines ready to follow him into the final positions.
The largest bunker complex on the southern peninsula sat 300 yd ahead.
Three pill boxes arranged in a triangle, mutually supporting, heavily manned.
The Japanese had concentrated their remaining defenders in this final strong point.
Jackson checked his weapon, checked his grenades, looked at the Marines forming up around him.
The last fight was about to begin.
The triangle formation was the strongest Japanese defensive position on the southern peninsula.
Three pill boxes, each one covering the approaches to the other two.
Approximately 30 soldiers divided among the three bunkers, plus a network of rifle pits and fighting holes connecting the positions.
Standard marine doctrine called for preparatory bombardment before assaulting a fortified position of this size.
Naval gunfire, air support, at minimum, a barrage from the regiment’s mortar platoon.
None of that was available.
The naval guns had moved on to support operations elsewhere.
Marine Corsaires were busy attacking targets on the northern ridges.
The mortar teams could not fire without hitting the Marines already advancing through the area.
43 Americans would take the triangle with rifles, grenades, and one man who had already proven that concrete walls could not stop him.
Jackson organized the assault in less than 2 minutes.
He used hand signals, pointed at positions, divided the Marines into three groups.
Each group would attack one pillbox simultaneously.
Jackson would take the center bunker, the largest one, the one with the best fields of fire.
The Marines moved out at 0847.
They had been fighting for over an hour.
The temperature had climbed past 105°.
Dehydration was becoming a factor.
Several men showed signs of heat exhaustion.
They kept moving anyway.
Jackson led his group of 12 Marines toward the center pillbox.
The approach required crossing 60 yards of open ground.
No cover, no concealment, just volcanic rock baked white by the Pacific sun.
The Japanese opened fire when the Marines were halfway across.
Two men fell in the first 3 seconds, one dead, one wounded in the leg.
The remaining 10 kept running.
They had learned from Jackson’s earlier assaults.
Speed was survival.
Hesitation was death.
Jackson reached the bunker wall first.
He pressed against the concrete and pulled the pin on a Japanese grenade.
The Type 97 had a four to 5second fuse.
He counted to two.
Threw the grenade through the firing slit.
Ducked.
The explosion silenced one machine gun, but the bunker had two firing positions.
The second gun kept shooting.
Marines outside were dying.
Jackson pulled another grenade, counted, threw.
Another explosion.
The second gun went quiet.
He climbed to the roof and found the ventilation shaft, shoved his BAR into the opening, emptied his magazine into the darkness below.
Screams echoed up through the concrete.
Then silence.
The center pillbox was dead.
On his left, the first assault group had reached their target.
A Marine corporal had shoved a satchel charge through the firing slit.
The explosion collapsed half the bunker’s roof.
Japanese survivors stumbled out into Marine rifle fire.
On his right, the third group was struggling.
Their pillbox had a reinforced entrance facing away from the Marine advance.
Japanese soldiers inside were throwing grenades faster than the Americans could close the distance.
Jackson did not hesitate.
He sprinted across the open ground between bunkers.
Bullets kicked up coral around his feet.
A round grazed his thigh.
He kept running.
He reached the third pill box from its blind side.
The same blind side the Marines could not approach because of the entrance on the opposite wall.
Jackson found the ventilation shaft.
He had two grenades left.
He dropped them both into the opening.
The explosions killed everyone inside.
Three pill boxes destroyed in less than four minutes.
The triangle had fallen, but Jackson was bleeding.
The bullet that grazed his thigh had cut deeper than he realized.
Blood soaked his dungaree trousers.
His left leg was weakening with every step.
He looked south.
The remaining three pill boxes stood between the Marines and complete control of the southern peninsula.
Jackson had killed approximately 50 Japanese soldiers, destroyed nine bunkers, been wounded at least once.
The logical thing was to stop, get medical attention, let fresh Marines finish the job.
Jackson loaded his last magazine, and started walking south.
A Marine sergeant grabbed his arm, pointed at the blood, pointed at the aid station behind them.
Jackson pulled his arm free.
Three pill boxes remained.
He was not finished.
The 10th pill box fell at 0912.
Jackson killed its five defenders with grenades dropped through the ventilation shaft.
His leg was still bleeding.
He had wrapped a torn piece of dungaree fabric around the wound.
It was not enough.
Blood seeped through the makeshift bandage with every step.
The 11th pillbox fell at 0921.
This one required help.
Jackson’s ammunition was exhausted.
A Marine private named Henderson brought up a satchel charge.
Jackson placed it.
The explosion killed seven Japanese soldiers.
The 12th pillbox was the last.
It sat on a small rise overlooking the beach where the seventh Marines had landed 3 days earlier.
The position had been firing on Marine supply party since D-Day.
Its two machine guns had killed at least 15 Americans.
The bunker’s commander had watched 11 pill boxes fall that morning.
He knew he was next.
Jackson approached from the northeast.
His leg had stopped responding properly.
He was dragging it more than walking.
Blood loss was affecting his vision.
The coral ridges seemed to shimmer in the 100° heat.
Three Marines followed him.
They had refused to let him assault the final position alone.
One carried extra grenades.
One carried a flamethrower.
One carried a bar with ammunition to spare.
The Japanese opened fire at 100 yards.
The marine with the BAR returned fire.
suppressive burst that forced the enemy gunners to duck.
Jackson and the other two kept moving.
At 50 yards, the flamethrower operator stepped forward.
The M2 flamethrower had an effective range of 40 yard.
He needed to get closer.
Jackson provided cover.
He took the bar from the supporting marine and fired in controlled bursts.
The weapon kicked against his shoulder.
His wounded leg buckled.
He dropped to one knee and kept shooting.
The flamethrower operator reached effective range.
He triggered a 3-second burst.
Burning fuel arked through the air and poured into the pillbox’s firing slit.
The screaming lasted less than 10 seconds.
At 0933, the 12th pillbox fell silent.
Jackson collapsed against a coral boulder.
His dungarees were soaked with blood.
His hands shook from exhaustion and adrenaline.
His bar lay across his lap, barrel still hot from the final assault.
In approximately 90 minutes, Private First Class Arthur Jackson had destroyed 12 Japanese pillboxes and killed 50 enemy soldiers.
He had broken the southern defensive line.
He had enabled his platoon’s advance.
He had changed the tactical situation on an entire sector of the island.
Navy corman reached him within minutes.
They cut away his blood soaked trousers and dressed the wound.
The bullet had passed through muscle without hitting bone or artery.
Jackson would keep his leg.
He would also keep fighting.
3 days later, still limping, Jackson was back in combat.
Word of his assault spread through the seventh Marines within hours.
Officers who had watched the attack from observation posts described what they had seen.
A single Marine charging positions that should have required company level assaults.
Pillboxes falling one after another.
50 Japanese dead.
The regimental commander forwarded a report to division headquarters.
Division forwarded it to core.
By the time Peloo was declared secure on November 27th, Arthur Jackson’s name had reached the desk of Admiral Chester Nimttz.
The Medal of Honor recommendation was submitted in early October.
The citation detailed every pillbox, every kill, every moment of the 90-minute assault.
The paperwork moved through channels with unusual speed.
On October 5th, 1945, President Harry Truman stood in the White House.
13 months had passed since Pelu.
The war was over.
Japan had surrendered, and Arthur Jackson, now 20 years old, stood at attention while the president placed the Medal of Honor around his neck.
Truman read the citation aloud.
12 pill boxes, 50 Japanese soldiers, conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty.
Jackson returned to Oregon after the ceremony.
He had a medal.
He had a limp that would never fully heal.
And he had memories that would follow him for the rest of his life.
What those memories did to him over the next seven decades would surprise everyone who thought they knew the hero of Peloo.
Arthur Jackson did not talk about Peloo for decades.
He returned to Portland after the war.
Married, raised a family, worked for the United States Postal Service, delivering mail.
His neighbors knew him as a quiet man who walked with a slight limp.
Most had no idea about the metal in his closet.
Jackson remained in the military reserves.
He transferred from the Marine Corps to the Army Reserve and continued serving through the Korean War era.
He rose to the rank of captain.
He trained younger soldiers.
He never spoke about the 12 pill boxes.
In 1961, Jackson was stationed at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba.
Cold War tensions were high.
Soviet influence in Cuba had transformed the island into hostile territory.
Jackson served as a security officer responsible for monitoring potential espionage threats.
On September 30th, a Cuban worker named Ruben Sabargo attacked Jackson.
Sabargo had been under suspicion for passing information to Cuban intelligence.
The confrontation turned violent.
Jackson shot and killed Sabargo in self-defense.
The incident created complications.
Jackson buried the body and reported the shooting to his superiors.
The case became entangled in Cold War politics.
Jackson requested a court marshal to clear his name officially.
The Marine Corps denied his request.
In 1962, he left active service.
The circumstances haunted Jackson for years.
He had killed 50 men on Pelu and received the Medal of Honor.
He had killed one man at Guantanamo and received only silence.
But time has a way of restoring perspective.
Jackson continued his reserve service in the army until 1984.
He retired as a captain with 40 years of combined military service.
He moved to Idaho.
He began speaking publicly about his experiences.
He visited schools.
He talked to veterans groups.
He shared what he had learned about courage and fear and the cost of survival.
In 2011 at age 86, Jackson visited the USS Peloo.
The Navy had named an amphibious assault ship after the battle where he had earned his medal.
Jackson walked the decks.
He spoke to more than 1,000 sailors and marines assembled in the hangar bay.
He told them about the 14-lb canned ham his mess sergeant had made him carry during the landing.
He told them about the pill boxes.
He told them about the men who did not come home.
He presented the ship’s captain with his Medal of Honor flag, one of only two flags each recipient receives.
The captain had it framed and placed in the ship’s hall of heroes alongside photographs of the eight Marines who earned the Medal of Honor at Peloo.
Jackson was the last surviving Medal of Honor recipient from that battle.
On June 14th, 2017, Arthur Jackson died in Boise, Idaho.
He was 92 years old.
Marine Corps bodybearers from Bravo Company, Marine Barracks, Washington, carried his remains.
Full military honors marked his burial at the Idaho State Veteran Cemetery.
50 Japanese soldiers had tried to stop one 19-year-old Marine on September 18th, 1944.
Every single one of them died.
The Marine lived another 73 years.
If this story moved you the way it moved us, do me a favor, hit that like button.
Every single like tells YouTube to show this story to more people.
Hit subscribe and turn on notifications.
We are rescuing forgotten stories from dusty archives every single day.
Stories about Marines who charge concrete bunkers with nothing but rifles and grenades.
Real people, real heroism.
Drop a comment right now and tell us where you are watching from.
Are you watching from the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia?
Our community stretches across the entire world.
You are not just a viewer.
You are part of keeping these memories alive.
Tell us your location.
Tell us if someone in your family served.
Just let us know you are here.
Thank you for watching and thank you for making sure Arthur Jackson does not disappear into silence.
These men deserve to be remembered and you are helping make that
| « Prev |
News
MEL GIBSON UNCOVERS HIDDEN TRUTHS ABOUT JESUS FROM AN ANCIENT BIBLE!!! In a groundbreaking cinematic endeavor, Mel Gibson is set to challenge the very foundations of Western Christianity with his upcoming film, “The Resurrection of the Christ,” which promises to reveal a side of Jesus that has been deliberately obscured for centuries. Drawing inspiration from the Ethiopian Orthodox Bible and the enigmatic Book of Enoch, Gibson’s narrative will transport audiences through realms unknown, exploring not only the resurrection but also the fall of angels and the cosmic battle between good and evil. As production ramps up in Rome, the film aims to intertwine ancient scripture with a bold vision that defies traditional storytelling. What lies within the pages of the Ethiopian texts could shatter long-held beliefs, portraying Christ not merely as a gentle savior but as a powerful, overwhelming force with the authority to command both angels and demons. With a release date set for Good Friday 2027, the stakes are high—will this film awaken a new understanding of faith, or will it provoke a backlash that echoes through history? The question remains: what else has been buried, and who will be ready to confront the truth?
The gods have throne guardians. This is a rare Ethiopian Orthodox Bible manuscript. The Book of Enoch is part of the literature that’s trying to explain that. Right now, Mel Gibson is at Cinita Studios in Rome, building what he calls the most important film of his life. And the version of Jesus Christ he […]
GENE HACKMAN’S SECRET TUNNEL: A DISTURBING DISCOVERY REVEALED!!! In a shocking turn of events, the death of legendary actor Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy has unveiled a chilling mystery hidden beneath their Santa Fe estate. After authorities forced entry into their secluded compound, they discovered not only the couple’s bodies but also a concealed tunnel leading to an underground chamber filled with bizarre artifacts and coded documents. As the FBI investigates, the unsettling timeline raises questions: why did Hackman remain silent for a week with his deceased wife, and what dark secrets were buried within the walls of his home? The agents’ findings suggest a life shrouded in secrecy, with markings and inscriptions hinting at a history far more sinister than anyone could have imagined. With an iron door sealed from within, the question looms—what lies behind that door, and why has the FBI kept it hidden from the public? This is a story that could change everything we thought we knew about one of Hollywood’s most private figures
Tonight, we’re learning new details in the death of legendary actor Gan Hackman. Deaths of Oscar-winning actor Gan Hackman and his wife, whose bodies were found in their Santa Fe home. 1425 Old Sunset Trail, where Gene Hackman, 95, and his wife Betsy Arakawa, 65, and a dog were found deceased. 40t below Gene Hackman’s […]
A TIME MACHINE BUILT IN A GARAGE: THE MYSTERIOUS RETURN OF MIKE MARKHAM!!! In a chilling tale of obsession and discovery, self-taught inventor Mike Markham vanished without a trace in 1997 after claiming to have built a time machine in his garage. As the world speculated about his fate—ranging from time travel to government abduction—Markham’s story became an internet legend. After 29 years, he reemerges, older and weary, carrying a box filled with journals and evidence of his experiments, but what he brings back is not the proof of time travel everyone hoped for; it’s something far more sinister. As he recounts his journey from rural tinkerer to a man on the brink of a new reality, the question looms: what horrors did he encounter during his years away, and what dark secrets lie within the technology he created? With each revelation, the line between reality and the unimaginable blurs, leaving audiences to wonder—has he truly returned, or has he brought something back that should have remained lost in time?
Back to the future. Could it actually happen with a real time machine? I was devastated. I thought if I could build a time machine that I could go back and see him again and tell him what was going to happen, maybe save his life. And so that became an obsession for me. In […]
MEL GIBSON REVEALS SHOCKING SECRETS ABOUT THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST!!! In a jaw-dropping interview on the Joe Rogan podcast, Mel Gibson pulls back the curtain on the making of The Passion of the Christ, exposing hidden truths that could change everything we thought we knew about this controversial film. As Gibson recounts the extraordinary resistance he faced from Hollywood, he reveals how the industry’s skepticism towards Christian narratives nearly derailed the project altogether. With insights into the film’s raw and visceral storytelling, Gibson reflects on the spiritual warfare depicted in every scene, challenging audiences to confront their own beliefs about sacrifice and redemption. But as he hints at supernatural occurrences on set and the profound transformations experienced by cast members, a chilling question arises: what deeper truths lie beneath the surface of this cinematic masterpiece, and how will Gibson’s upcoming sequel reshape our understanding of faith and history?
It was a great movie, but it seemed like there was resistance to that movie. Mel Gibson was on the Joe Rogan podcast talking about the sequel to The Passion of the Christ. What if the most controversial film of the century contained secrets that nobody was meant to discover? When Mel Gibson sat down […]
THE SHOCKING TRUTH BEHIND KING TUT’S MASK REVEALED AT LAST!!! In a groundbreaking revelation that could rewrite history, a team of physicists has employed cutting-edge quantum imaging technology to uncover a hidden truth about King Tutankhamun’s iconic death mask. For over 3,300 years, this 22-pound gold masterpiece has captivated the world, but new scans reveal a name beneath the surface that doesn’t belong to the boy king. As experts grapple with the implications of this discovery, they face a ticking clock—will the truth about the mask’s origins shatter the long-held beliefs of Egyptology? With whispers of a powerful queen whose legacy has been erased from history, the stakes are higher than ever. As the evidence mounts, a chilling question emerges: whose face was originally meant to adorn this sacred artifact, and what secrets lie buried in the sands of time?
Layers and layers and layers of information are coming out. Not just because objects are being um examined in detail, but also because new technologies can be applied to them. Was the mask created for Tuten Ammon or for someone else? For 3,300 years, the most famous face in history has been lying to us. […]
HAMAS DECLARES WAR: A NEW FRONT IN THE FIGHT FOR PALESTINE!!! In a chilling announcement from Gaza, Hamas’s military spokesperson, Abu Oda, has ignited a firestorm of tension across the Middle East, praising Hezbollah’s recent operations against Israeli forces and calling for intensified conflict. As Israel approves a controversial law permitting the execution of Palestinian prisoners, Abu Oda frames this moment as a pivotal turning point, highlighting the immense sacrifices of the Palestinian people and the silent genocide occurring in prisons. With a backdrop of escalating violence and deepening regional instability, he urges Arab and Muslim nations to take action against Israel’s aggression. As the stakes rise and the rhetoric hardens, the world watches with bated breath—will this conflict spiral into a wider war, drawing in more players and transforming the geopolitical landscape forever?
A new and explosive message is emerging from Gaza. The military spokesperson of Hamas al-Kasam brigades, the new Abu Oeda, has issued a fiery statement, one that is already sending shock waves across the region. In it, he praises Hezbollah’s recent operations against Israeli forces, calling them consequential and highlighting what he describes as heavy […]
End of content
No more pages to load
