Sunday marked the 72nd anniversary of one of the most infamous battles in World War II history. On February 19, 1945 American Marines invaded the island of Iwo Jima, and a life-long St. Louisan was there from start to finish.
Jim Thorpe was 18-years-old and finishing his senior year in high school when he signed up for the Marines in 1943.
“It was just the thing to do. The war was on and they needed men to fight,” said Thorpe.
Thorpe and his fellow 5th Division Marines began training for combat, eventually learning they were headed for the Pacific and Iwo Jima.
“When you think you're gonna get shot at I would say you get excited a little bit.”
On the day of the invasion, Naval ships opened fire softening the island's defenses so the Marines could make their landing. Thorpe says commanders warned the men about the ferocity of the Japanese.
“They told us these guys would fight to the end. And they did,” he recalled.
The Marines fought for more than 30 hellacious days to capture the island. Thorpe says the fighting was painfully slow, with Marines sometimes only gaining a few yards at a time.
“It's like being shot at all day. It's just a repetition of what you did the day before,” he said.
But a moment Thorpe will never forget was when Marines raised the American flag atop Mount Suribachi.
“Everybody stood up and hollered and cheered like we just scored a touchdown,” said Thorpe.
After conquering Iwo Jima, Thorpe and his fellow Marines were sent to Hawaii to regroup and train for the invasion of Japan.
A few months later, American forces dropped the Atom Bomb and the war came to an end.
Thorpe then came home to St. Louis, where he got married and raised seven kids.
“We’re very proud of him and what he's done after the marine corps and including what he did during World War II,” said Thorpe’s son, Kevin.
“He always instilled those Marine Corps values in everything we did and I believe it correlates a lot with the success we've all had and the love we still have for each other,” said Bill Thorpe, another of Jim Thorpe’s sons.
Despite the horrors he saw on Iwo Jima, Thorpe says becoming a Marine and fighting the war was one of the greatest things that ever happened to him. And now, 72 years later, he still wears the Eagle Globe and Anchor like a badge of honor.
“I am so proud that I was there and did what I did. I might not have been the greatest Marine that ever lived but I did what I could.”
Thorpe is now 91 years-old and lives in chesterfield.
To this day he keeps in touch with his sergeant from Iwo Jima. And every Saturday morning, he has a big group breakfast with his children and grandchildren.
