The Marines and Japanese Souvenirs on Guadalcanal August-October 1942

Today’s post is written by Dr. Greg Bradsher. On the morning of August 7, 1942, the Marines landed on Guadalcanal, relatively near an airfield that the Japanese had begun constructing, and the relatively small number of Japanese on the island melted into the jungle.  The following day the Marines began collecting Japanese souvenirs near the airfield. … Continue reading The Marines and Japanese Souvenirs on Guadalcanal August-October 1942

Skateboarding into Combat

By Jason Clingerman Marines skateboarding into combat... sounds like something out of a Back to the Future sequel, right? Well, as a matter of fact, the U.S. military experimented with using skateboards in combat situations. In the March 1999 exercises known as Urban Warrior '99, the military experimented with the potential use of skateboards to … Continue reading Skateboarding into Combat

Music at the Archives – John Philip Sousa

Today’s guest blogger is Trevor Plante, a supervisory archivist at the National Archives in Washington, DC.  Following up on two recent blog posts from our office by Juliette Arai and Mark Mollan I thought it would be a great opportunity to blog about one of my favorite Marine Corps documents that I often show Marines when we … Continue reading Music at the Archives – John Philip Sousa

Navy / Maritime Records at Archives I

By T. Juliette Arai "What records do you have here?" is a common question we are asked everyday at Archives I.  This post -- Part 2 of a 3-part series -- provides a brief description of the Navy/maritime records one can find at our facility in Washington, DC.  Part 1, Army [records at AI], was posted … Continue reading Navy / Maritime Records at Archives I

Semper Fi

By Robin Waldman Agency correspondence files are like treasure troves. One never knows what one will find inside. Unlike program or subject files, correspondence files often vary widely by topic, capturing the inquiries, suggestions and outrages of the American public. Records of the U.S. Marine Corps are, of course, no exception and the series "General Correspondence, … Continue reading Semper Fi