Part 2 of 442nd story: Lost Battalion to wars end | News, Sports, Jobs

The Nisei Veterans Memorial Center currently is hosting part two of its exhibit, “Loyalty, Courage, Sacrifice: the 442nd Story.”

The exhibit opened Monday and will continue through Sept. 13, noon to 4 p.m. weekdays.

Starting with the Rescue of the Lost Battalion and finishing with the end of World War II, the exhibit features many significant achievements of the nisei combat team. Nisei means second generation Japanese American.

The 442nd Regimental Combat Team was comprised of two units: the 100th Infantry Battalion and 442nd Regimental Combat Team. These two units were formed at different times, but their history overlaps.

On Jan. 28, 1943, around 1,500 volunteers from Hawaii were called to join a Japanese-American unit, but an overwhelming 10,000 men volunteered. Of that total, 2,686 were selected and joined with 1,182 Japanese-American recruits who volunteered on the Mainland.

A month later the 442nd Regimental Combat Team was formed and saw its first action in Italy in June 1944.

By that date the 100th Infantry Battalion already had been in the Mediterranean theater for over nine months and had been involved in many significant battles, including the Battle of Monte Cassino. After the two units merged, the 100th and the 442nd formed into a single infantry regiment. Together, they became the most decorated unit of its size and length of service in the history of the U.S. Army.

Part One of the exhibit in 2018 featured the history of the regiment beginning with the formation of the 100th and the attack on Pearl Harbor through the liberation of Bruyeres, France.

For more information regarding the exhibit and the Nisei Veterans Memorial Center, visit nvmc.org or call Melanie Agrabante at 244-6862.

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