President Issues Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day Proclamation

WASHINGTON (NNS) -- President Barack Obama issued a proclamation declaring Dec. 7, 2013, as National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day.

Here is the text of the president's proclamation:

More than seven decades ago, on a calm Sunday morning, our Nation was attacked without warning or provocation. The bombs that fell on the island of Oahu took almost 2,400 American lives, damaged our Pacific Fleet, challenged our resilience, and tested our resolve. On National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, we honor the men and women who selflessly sacrificed for our country, and we show our enduring gratitude to all who fought to defend freedom against the forces of tyranny and oppression in the Second World War.

In remembrance of Pearl Harbor and to defend our Nation against future attacks, scores of young Americans enlisted in the United States military. In battle after battle, our troops fought with courage and honor. They took the Pacific theater island by island, and eventually swept through Europe, liberating nations as they progressed. Because of their extraordinary valor, America emerged from this test as we always do -- stronger than ever before.

We also celebrate those who served and sacrificed on the home front -- from families who grew Victory Gardens or donated to the war effort to women who joined the assembly line alongside workers of every background and realized their own power to build a brighter world. Together, our Greatest Generation overcame the Great Depression, and built the largest middle class and strongest economy in history.

Today, with solemn pride and reverence, let us remember those who fought and died at Pearl Harbor, acknowledge everyone who carried their legacy forward, and reaffirm our commitment to upholding the ideals for which they served.

The Congress, by Public Law 103-308, as amended, has designated December 7 of each year as "National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day."

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim December 7, 2013, as National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day. I encourage all Americans to observe this solemn day of remembrance and to honor our military, past and present, with appropriate ceremonies and activities. I urge all Federal agencies and interested organizations, groups, and individuals to fly the flag of the United States at half-staff this December 7 in honor of those American patriots who died as a result of their service at Pearl Harbor.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this fifth day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand thirteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-eighth.

BARACK OBAMA

USS California First US Navy Ship to Enter Pearl Harbor Base

USS California (Armored Cruiser No. 6). Photographed circa 1908. NHHC Photograph Collection, NH 55011.

Naval History & Heritage Command
On 14 December 1911, the first U.S. Naval Ship, USS California, entered Pearl Harbor after it was made into a Naval base, breaking a red, white, and blue ribbon stretched across the new channel. Note, in September 1914, California was renamed San Diego. On 19 July 1918, during WWI, San Diego was torpedoed and sunk off Fire Island, New York by German submarine, U-156.

Aerial View of Pearl Harbor, circa 1918. NHHC Photograph Collection, NR&L Files, Places.

USS California (Armored Cruiser No. 6). In San Diego harbor, California, circa 1910-1914.
Photographed by the Arcade View Company. Courtesy of Captain Don Fink, 1983. NHHC Photograph Collection, NH 94938.

USS California (Armored Cruiser No. 6). Underway in San Pablo Bay, California, 1909.
Collection of Rear Admiral Ammen Farenholt, USN(MC). NHHC Photograph Collection, NH 55009.

USS Utah Memorial, Joint Base Pearl Harbor.

PEARL HARBOR (Dec. 6, 2012) Musician 3rd Class Shelby Tucci, assigned to the Pacific Fleet Band, plays Taps during a sunset ceremony at the USS Utah Memorial, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. Utah was sunk during the surprise Japanese attacks on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. (U.S. Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Diana Quinlan/Released)

President Proclaims National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day

WASHINGTON, Dec. 6, 2012 – “Today, we pay solemn tribute to America's sons and daughters who made the ultimate sacrifice at Oahu. As we do, let us also reaffirm that their legacy will always burn bright -- whether in the memory of those who knew them, the spirit of service that guides our men and women in uniform today, or the heart of the country they kept strong and free,” President Barak Obama said in his proclamation issued today declaring Dec. 7 as National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day.

The proclamation reads:

“On December 7, 1941, our Nation suffered one of the most devastating attacks ever to befall the American people. In less than 2 hours, the bombs that rained on Pearl Harbor robbed thousands of men, women, and children of their lives; in little more than a day, our country was thrust into the greatest conflict the world had ever known. We mark this anniversary by honoring the patriots who perished more than seven decades ago, extending our thoughts and prayers to the loved ones they left behind, and showing our gratitude to a generation of service members who carried our Nation through some of the 20th century's darkest moments.

“In his address to the Congress, President Franklin D. Roosevelt affirmed that "with confidence in our Armed Forces -- with the unbounding determination of our people -- we will gain the inevitable triumph." Millions stood up and shipped out to meet that call to service, fighting heroically on Europe's distant shores and pressing island by island across the Pacific. Millions more carried out the fight in factories and shipyards here at home, building the arsenal of democracy that propelled America to the victory President Roosevelt foresaw. On every front, we faced down impossible odds -- and out of the ashes of conflict, America rose more prepared than ever to meet the challenges of the day, sure that there was no trial we could not overcome.

“Today, we pay solemn tribute to America's sons and daughters who made the ultimate sacrifice at Oahu. As we do, let us also reaffirm that their legacy will always burn bright -- whether in the memory of those who knew them, the spirit of service that guides our men and women in uniform today, or the heart of the country they kept strong and free.

“The Congress, by Public Law 103-308, as amended, has designated December 7 of each year as "National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day.

“NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim December 7, 2012, as National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day. I encourage all Americans to observe this solemn day of remembrance and to honor our military, past and present, with appropriate ceremonies and activities. I urge all Federal agencies and interested organizations, groups, and individuals to fly the flag of the United States at half-staff this December 7 in honor of those American patriots who died as a result of their service at Pearl Harbor.”

Woodrow Derby Pearl Harbor Survivor

PEARL HARBOR (Dec. 6, 2012) Woodrow Derby, who served aboard the former battleship USS Nevada (BB 36), speaks at the unveiling of the new USS Nevada wayside exhibit at Hospital Point at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. Derby is in Hawaii as an honored guest for upcoming ceremonies commemorating the Dec. 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Sean Furey/Released)

The Story of USS California during the Pearl Harbor Attack

Pearl Harbor Raid, 7 December 1941
USS California during the Pearl Harbor Attack

Photos and Story from US Navy Archives

By Doug Mills RCN America Network

USS California (BB-44), flagship of the Battle Force, was hit forward and aft by two Japanese torpedoes in the early minutes of the Pearl Harbor raid. She was later hit by a bomb and near-missed by another, which caused additional flooding. Though her design included very good protection against underwater damage, California's actual condition was much less satisfactory, with many watertight compartments open and some design details proving unable to resist the effects of torpedo warheads.

California had steam up and was nearly ready to get underway when a large mass of burning oil, drifting down "Battleship Row", threatened to set the ship afire. She was ordered abandoned, and, when the crew returned on board sometime later, it was impossible to control her flooding. Despite strenuous efforts, she slowly settled to the bottom of Pearl Harbor, coming to rest on 10 December. The battleship was raised in March 1942 and received repairs and modernization work that lasted until January 1944, over two years after she was sunk. Nearly a hundred of her officers and men were killed in action during the Pearl Harbor attack.

NARRATIVE OF EVENTS ON BOARD U.S.S. CALIFORNIA ON THE MORNING OF DECEMBER 7, 1941, DURING AIR ATTACK ON PEARL HARBOR BY JAPANESE NAVAL AIR FORCE, AS SEEN BY CAPTAIN HAROLD C. TRAIN, U.S. NAVY, CHIEF OF STAFF, BATTLE FORCE.

1. I was sitting in my cabin a little before 0800, when the general alarm sounded. My first thought was that the alarm had been set off by accident. I put on my blouse and cap, hurried on deck, and started rapidly toward the bridge.

2. Some time enroute between the quarterdeck and the bridge I felt the shock of something hitting the ship and saw a low-flying plane flash over the ship from port to starboard. As I arrived on the bridge I saw smoke and flames appear from the seaplane hangar on Ford Island.

3. Upon arriving on the bridge I sent for the Communication Watch Officer, Ensign K.B. Kohler, U.S.N.R., and the Staff Duty Officer, Lieutenant Commander C.F. Greber, U.S. Navy. I sent out a signal by flag hoist to ships in the harbor of Task Force ONE and TWO to get underway, and followed this by a signal to "sortie in accordance with Sortie Plan ES". This was duplicated by radio.

4. Lieutenant Commander Greber and Lieutenant Colonel Gladden then arrived on the bridge and I directed Lieutenant Colonel Gladden to go down to the telephone and communicate with Admiral Pye, and the other members of the Staff not on board, and tell them we had been attacked by Japanese planes and to return to the ship immediately. I told Colonel Gladden to have the telephone wire slackened off before trying to use the telephone, as we were listed to port and I feared it would carry away before he could telephone.

5. Lieutenant Commander Little, the senior officer on board the California, informed me that two torpedoes had hit the California on the port side, that she had listed 7¹/2°, and that he was attempting to gradually take off this list.

6. Shortly after getting out the two messages above referred to, a signalman called to me and said the Oklahoma had capsized. I went over

Pearl harbor Remembered...From the Navy Video Archives

"December 7th 1941 A date that will live in infamy"

"December 7th 1941 A date that will live in infamy"