Most people know about the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, but fewer people know that the Japanese bombed the American mainland 10 months later.
On September 9, 1942, a Japanese navy pilot by the name of Nobuo Fujita, and a submarine crew, approached the coast of Oregon. The sub carried a tiny seaplane that was quickly assembled and secretly catapulted into the skies (an amazing accomplishment). Along with two small bombs, the pilot packed a Samurai sword that had been in his family for 400 years. He brought the sword in case he was shot down and had to take his own life before being captured. The plane couldn't carry large bombs, so their intent was to land the small bombs in a thick forest and start a massive forest fire.
It was a peaceful morning in Brookings, Oregon, when a fisherman heard a small plane flying overhead. Not long after this, the bombs were released. It’s the only bomb a foreign enemy has dropped on our mainland. The pilot safely made it back to the sub which was sitting on the surface through parachuting out and ditching the plane. Once again, an amazing feat.
Later that day, a forest ranger spotted a small blaze involving about seven trees that he easily extinguished. What the Japanese didn't know is that this forest had received an unusual amount of rainfall, so the trees were still wet.
In 1962, twenty years after the attack, Fujita returned to Brookings and presented the city with his cherished Samurai sword to pledge peace and friendship and to make amends for his attack. The sword was placed in the mayor’s office, where it remains to this day.
On September 9, 1942, a Japanese navy pilot by the name of Nobuo Fujita, and a submarine crew, approached the coast of Oregon. The sub carried a tiny seaplane that was quickly assembled and secretly catapulted into the skies (an amazing accomplishment). Along with two small bombs, the pilot packed a Samurai sword that had been in his family for 400 years. He brought the sword in case he was shot down and had to take his own life before being captured. The plane couldn't carry large bombs, so their intent was to land the small bombs in a thick forest and start a massive forest fire.
It was a peaceful morning in Brookings, Oregon, when a fisherman heard a small plane flying overhead. Not long after this, the bombs were released. It’s the only bomb a foreign enemy has dropped on our mainland. The pilot safely made it back to the sub which was sitting on the surface through parachuting out and ditching the plane. Once again, an amazing feat.
Later that day, a forest ranger spotted a small blaze involving about seven trees that he easily extinguished. What the Japanese didn't know is that this forest had received an unusual amount of rainfall, so the trees were still wet.
In 1962, twenty years after the attack, Fujita returned to Brookings and presented the city with his cherished Samurai sword to pledge peace and friendship and to make amends for his attack. The sword was placed in the mayor’s office, where it remains to this day.
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