and your strengths and abilities will be tested. i have faith in you. i feel as though i was standing upon a rock now with the go back to the program which we had arranged for tonight. >> american history tv is marking the 75th anniversary of the japanese attack on pearl harbor throughout this weekend and next. saturday, december 10, beginning at 11:00 a.m. eastern will be live to take your calls and tweets for ian toll. next saturday here on american history tv. roosevelt: yesterday, december 7, 1941, a date which will live in infamy.

the united states of america was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the empire of japan. >> each week, american artifacts takes viewers into museums and historic sites around the country. on the morning of december 7, 1941, planes from six japanese aircraft carriers attacked the island of oahu in hawaii, targeting the u.s. pacific fleet at pearl harbor and the island's defenses. almost 400 americans were killed, and 1200 wounded. 20 when ships and vessels, and almost 350 aircraft were destroyed or damaged. the surprise attack led to u.s. entry in world war ii. next, american history tv to us some of the attack sites and memorials at pearl harbor, part of the national park service world war ii valor in the pacific national monument, including several stops within the bounds of the pearl harbor

naval station, and off-limits to the general public. >> aloha, and welcome to pearl harbor. my name is daniel martinez, and i serve as the chief historian for the national park service at the home of the uss arizona memorial. we are here today to take you on a guided tour of this historic resource where the attack on pearl harbor, and the attack on oahu to place. the resources here are unbelievable. we are standing right now at ground zero. this is where it all began at pearl harbor. but not the attack. the attack had actually unfolded most 10 minutes earlier at the airfields at wheeler. that the naval air station. and the marine base. at 7:55, the time that everybody remembers, the attack happened here. below me is a bomb crater.

this bomb crater is a 500 pound bomb that's in circular patterns with shrapnel scraps running out on either side. it is the most tangible bomb crater we have here at pearl harbor. this is where lieutenant t akahashi's dive bombers came in, and dropping these 500 pound bombs on what is known as the pb wide ramp. -- pby ramp. what is over the shoulders is hangar number six. it was completely destroyed during the attack. following up would be the zero fighters, nine of them strafing this with 20 millimeter cannon. these nine aircraft wreaked havoc on an apron of aircraft of seaplanes and assorted utility aircraft that were now being consumed by the devastation of the attack. when the bomb hit, it blew shrapnel through the air and

along a path here on the concrete. you can see the holes dug into this concrete. initially, this was patched. but concrete does not like to be repaired. for those that love history, we can see shrapnel running in every direction. not only that, but the strafing that took place is easily visible. we will look at that just a moment. to give you an idea of the kind of damage one of these zero fighters could inflict, we are standing on the concrete apron next to hangar number six. this is where the hangar doors were. we're right in the center of the ramp.e -- pby when the japanese fighters came down, they could fire two types of weapons. machine guns located on the wings, or the 20 mm cannon located right on the howling of the aircraft. these strike patterns go right into the hangar.

nearly 75 years after the event, they are as fresh and the pavement as the day they were struck. i am often asked what the pb ramp. this concrete slopes toward the water. a pby was a long-range patrol plane. the navy used that the scout out around the island. a tractor would be coming up here telling the plane, taking it to the water. once in the water, the sailors would get in that water and detach the gear from it. it was called beaching. it was the wheel gear that got on that ramp. then they would float the plane out, it would take off, and that the tractor comes here with the sailors and comes into the water. the sailors go out, attach that beaching gear. then they pull it up this ramp towards the hangar and you have an explanation of the ramp. from here we are going to head over to the uss utah and its memorial. there are only two ships here

left on the pearl harbor attack, the uss arizona and the uss utah. the utah is special as well because 52 souls are still resting inside. behind me is the uss utah. she was the first ship torpedoed at pearl harbor. she was struck by two torpedoes. when they hit, they did catastrophic damage to the ship. within 12 minutes, she had capsized, taking 58 members of its crew. those that survived were swimming out of these waters. the ship today is in the salvage mode. this is as far as they got on the salvage. at the time of attack she was completely capsized. you can only see the bottom of the hull. from that hull they removed later that afternoon the only crew member rescued from the ship. the utah lost 58 men. 52 are still inside the ship. this memorial is in that remembrance. the memorial was an aspiration

for senator moss from utah, and also for the surviving crew. in 1971, he came here to dedicate the ground in which this memorial would be built. he said these words, which in my terms still hot me to this day. -- can't me to this day. -- haunt me to this day. "while we honor those who here gave the last full measure of devotion, all of us hope and pray that the time will come when we no longer need to dedicate memorials to men who died in battle. that we will dedicate memorials to those who live in peace, to all nations and all men. frank moscow the united states senator, utah, groundbreaking december 7, 1971." while his dream in the crew of the utah, that dream came true. memorial was dedicated on memorial day, 1972. this memorial is that.

it is the forgotten ship and forgot memorial. the public doesn't come here, because they are not allowed yet to come here. this is on a military reservation. it is a dream of the park service that in the near future, we will have transportation out here so they can this memorial at the next memorial we are going to, the uss oklahoma memorial. like the crew of the uss utah, the crew of the uss oklahoma sought a memorial to remember their 429 sailors, marines, and officers that were lost aboard the ship. she represents the second greatest loss of life at pearl harbor. 32 men were rescued from the ship the following day. the idea of the uss oklahoma ever fighting again was lost when she capsized. she was raised and placed in the war and then sold for scrap after the war. she did not make it to the scrap yard. she sunk in a storm.

the uss oklahoma and its memorial is one of those places where you can stand among pillars of marble and see names of those that lost their lives on december 7, 1941. we are going to move to our next stop, and that is the chief petty officer bungalows that were part of the naval air station here at pearl harbor. we are here in the general area of the chief petty officer bungalows that were here on december 7, 1981. -- 1941. this was family housing. it was important not only to the men who served here, but for families that worked here and went to school here. this was a complex that was very unique to ford island and its naval air station. it was important on december 7. these homes are in the proximity. right behind them is battleship row. the torpedo planes came over and torpedoed the ships, they flew right over these houses. one can only imagine what their sunday morning was like. for luis kinsman, a young girl and we took her oral history.

she remembers vividly what it was like and the terror her family endured that sunday morning at breakfast was suddenly shouted by bomb striking the ships and torpedo water geysers racing up into the air nearly 600 feet. these cpo structures are ones that have been reconstructed. on the other side is one of the original ones. it is the hope of the national park service to continue to care take for these structures and return this to a 1941 neighborhood. our next stop will be battleship row, the main battle line of the pacific fleet. behind me is the famous battleship row. the white concrete blocks represent mooring quays that secured each ship. it took two for each battleship. they started at the end with the uss nevada. just ahead of the nevada was the

uss arizona and the repair ship vestal. moving up here, uss tennessee and west virginia. adjacent to where the uss missouri is would be the maryland and the oklahoma. a little bit further down, uss california. seven battleships that made up battleship row. also here at battleship row is the uss missouri. the missouri was actually commissioned in 1944 and saw action in the pacific. she is often a member for one event, that is the surrender of japan at tokyo bay. this museum ship was brought here in 1998, and is one of the key visits for people that come to pearl harbor. she now rests in the place where the uss oklahoma was sunk at pearl harbor.

history is remembered and history is revisited. we have just come from ford island. behind me is battleship row. in the distance, you can see the uss missouri and an element of the uss arizona memorial. we are here at hospital point, one of the most historic site at pearl harbor. it is here where one of the most historic events during the pearl harbor attack, often neglected by most documentaries films, the gallant sortie of the uss nevada. we're going to go there in just a few moments. i would like to share with you that this place is where very famous chinese-american photographer took pictures in the 1930's and 1940's. they did the portraits of the ships as they came into port. we knew the uss arizona had the picture taken late 1940, just a year before she was lost here at pearl harbor.

the drama of pearl harbor unfolded here in the latter stages of the attack. we are at the uss nevada memorial. it was placed here in 1983 by the navy league. the uss nevada had witnessed the beginning of the attack on battleship row, just about 7:55. the harbor was fully being struck by the japanese navy. part of that assault was a torpedo that was dropped and struck the nevada. she would actually suffer during the attack six bomb hits and a torpedo hit. at a quarter to 9:00, the uss nevada had made a decision with the crew that was frightened and yet wanted to get out of the harbor. it was decided by the crew and its officers that it would try to get underway. it was extremely fortunate that two of her boilers were already lit. normally it would take two and half hours to get a ship of that

size underway. but now she had the power and the will. led by lieutenant francis thomas, he directs the chief quartermaster to wheel her out and pull away. at that same moment, chief hill goes over to the moorings and drops the line. up and down battleship row they now look at the uss nevada as her bowel starts to swing out. they can hear the cheers coming up from the ship as the ship is aderway, as one remembered football game. but the cheering in the movement is now going to be stymied by the japanese second wave attack that is now coming over diamondhead. seeing that battleship underway is now a prime target for that attack. as if it is a hive, the bees of japan now descend upon the uss nevada. just as she approaches the shipyard area, she now suffers a number of attacks from dive

bombers that are sending bombs into the ship from the bow to the midship. so badly crippled she will now be ordered to go aground near hospital point. there she will nose her bow in. tradewinds will move her along with the current, and she'll be side-by-side along hospital point. the movement of the nevada is over. just before that last act, the nevada is right next to the uss shaw that is in floating drydock. in one of the most dramatic pictures taken is the explosion of the shaw with the bow of the nevada in it. it is as if the drama of the explosion extinguishes the horror of what has happened on 7 december, 1941. in 1983, it was decided that a

memorial would be placed here. the crew of the nevada wanted that to happen, and working with a local construction company and the navy league, this memorial was placed here. this plaque denotes the history of the attack on the nevada during the pearl harbor assault, and listed over here are those killed in action, and the two medal of honor recipients which were a chief boatswain's mate, given posthumously who was the who removed the ropes from the from the mooring quay so the ship to get underway. and then he was working to put out fires and yvonne came and he literally disappeared. the other is don ross, a machinist's mate who went down to the engine room, even though he passed out several times. he kept reviving and making sure that the engines were under power and the ship could forward.

my only contribution to the story when it was placed here 1983 is that there were a number of ships that went by here. at that time, you could actually have tourist ships that came by. those in the navy would see this monument and not know what it was. if they can get a monument maker and have a ship named in boston black, which has its name and 36,title of the ship, bb everybody would notice what it is. they did that. now this monument and memorial with the flag behind me and pearl harbor here as well is one of the destination points for those that seek out the history of this pearl harbor attack and what happened on 7 december, 1941. leaving here from the uss nevada memorial, we're going back over to ford island.

we are going to the uss arizona memorial overlook, one of those secret places that very few visitors get to see. we are taking you there. we're just above battleship row. this is the first memorial built to honor those that died on december 7. it was brought here in 7 december, 1955 by the navy club of the united states of america. you can see an inscription above it has a reverent recognition of the internal memory of those who gave their last full measure of devotion to their country. this monument is dedicated humbly to the sacrifice in , defending our freedom. if you look at the artistic impression there, you will see the ship of state held by columbia in the background. a battleship and the palm and the many faces of those that died that day. this rock is very special.

you would not find it here on ford island. it was brought here. this hawaiian rock is a very special rock. whoever picked it made sure that it had all of the relevance to the hawaiian culture. sacredness and remembrance and he refine this rock unlike any , of the island, brought here to remember the first december 7 monument. we are going to move ourselves over to the uss arizona memorial that was dedicated in 1962 and tell that story, and take a personal walking tour to one of the first and most revered world war ii memorials in the united states. we have just come from the uss

arizona overlook and battleship row. we are on the uss arizona memorial. this memorial was a dream for many years, to build something substantial and the memory of those that fell here. 1177 officers, sailors and marines were lost in that fatal moment. perhaps as many as 900 still serve the ship. the uss arizona memorial started to come into an idea, and also a design in the late 1950's. the initial planner for this was admiral radford. he had started with a platform being placed on the arizona in 1950. he had hoped there be something more formal later, and the pacific war commission went forward with the design and with funding to build the uss arizona memorial in the late 1950's. the designer of this memorial

was an interesting fellow, his name was alfred price. alfred was a refugee from austria, and had come here before the war to flee the nazis that had now occupied his country. when the war breaks out, he is an enemy alien because he is of german-austrian ancestry. he is arrested and held for nearly six months. they find out he is not an enemy of the state, but rather a willing immigrant, ready to help the navy with design of buildings during world war ii. after the war is over he will create his own firm, and he will be one of the architects asked to submit a design for the new uss arizona memorial. his design was the winning submission. it called for a memorial to span the wreck of the arizona, but not touch it.

the design was simple, and yet extremely effective. it was designed as a suspension bridge. 36 piers on either side of this ship suspend the memorial about it. the design is basically one that soars at dips and reflects what had happened at pearl harbor. initially the only purposeful design in a memorial were these openings here on either side. the tree of life. we found that in our research years later that this design represents peace and harmony. so not only is the memorial a war grave and a final resting place for those that perished that day and a war memorial it , is also a piece memorial. behind me are the names of the crew of the uss arizona. not only the officers and sailors, but the marine detachment as well. they represent that great loss of life.

there was really nothing like this in america. even today, as you can see from these on either side, those that survive, over 300, many of them had asked that their ashes be brought back to the ship and placed in the hull of it. it does remind me of the purpose of the memorial. over here is a marine named d.w. fincher. i look at his record and found his father had asked if they would be ever immemorial built to honor those that fell here. but in particular, that his son would be remembered. it was written in 1943. the uss arizona memorial is visited by nearly 1.6 million visitors per year. nearly 2 million come to the visitors center. it is the most visited site on the island of oahu and the hawaiian islands.

here the memory is kept alive. and for the foreign guests who come here to understand pearl harbor. in particular, the japanese. we do not at this point look back at the war with anger, but rather we look back at the war for those that served and gave their lives, and for those that survived. we now celebrate nearly 70 years of peace between the united states and japan. this memorial for the japanese is a remembrance of the war that they were once involved in, and for the friendship that they now have between countries that were formally their enemies. so alford price achieved that goal. by building immemorial it represents peace and harmony. behind me is the gun turret.

it literally sat on top of that. it is the most visible portion of the ship. it comes out of the water. depending on the tide, part of the ship will be exposed. this particular piece of the wreckage is the largest. this plaque before me is the first plaque ever placed on the uss arizona. when they built the memorial, they make sure that admiral radford's plaque came here. it says, " dedicated to the internal memory of our gallant shipmates who gave her life and action, 7 december, 1941." this exhibit shows the uss arizona as she was on the morning of december 7. it gives you the entire length and her height. this shows you what the ship looked like from above. her main gun turrets. 1, 2, 3 and four.

right there whenever three was. -- where gunter at number three was. are what youons see above water. you can see how the memorial stresses across the mid-ships of the arizona. you can see the deterioration of the ship from the explosion, and he see this turret almost intact, but not quite, because she has dropped the 23 feet from her melting down three decks. the explosion it here and blew out this way. all of the smoothness is not as smooth as you think it might be. it is sand that has filled in the crevasses from this explosion. the arizona, when she was struck, the bomb landed right here. it went into the forward magazine and lifted the ship nearly 50 feet out of the water, fracturing her completely around in this manner. around the whole -- hull.

she then settled down and sank within nine minutes. she now rests in 40 feet of water and 23 feet of mud. this ship was so badly damaged that she never served her country again. in many ways, she still does this -- anduntry in the symbolism she evokes with the ship itself here and it's memorial. this portion of the uss arizona memorial is commonly referred to as the dedication well. it is at this very spot that america's first president to visit the memorial stood. john f. kennedy came here in 1963 in the summer to be the first to come aboard the memorial. he stood here next to a senator onoa, and it is current practice at that time to drop leis or flowers or reefs in the water -- wreaths in the water for the dead of pearl harbor and the crew of the uss arizona.

this tradition continues to this day. it is also a place for people stop and contemplate as they look down on the ghostly remains of the ship, looking down at the quarter deck and watch the oil flow by along the tube of the uss arizona. it is interesting also to point out that this is not only a tomb, but a shipwreck, and a reef. three kinds of strata is formed here. because new life comes from the reef. interned in ahose shipwreck that is still setting -- studied today to learn about how the arizona was lost and retain the artifacts that are still on the ship. one of the questions that is often asked the park rangers out here is what is that floating on the water? it is oil from the ship. it has been leaking since december 7.

that site and that smell goes back nearly 75 years. we are often asked how long will it continue? we do not know. a ship of this size took on almost a million gallons of fuel. in the aft section of the ship, it remained intact. environmentally, it dissipates quite rapidly across the water. you can see it as a sheen of multicolor. one of the local photographers has done a study of all the different shades and colors from the oil patterns. for those of us, we keep a sharp eye, along with the people that we are partnered with, to make sure that if there is any expansion of the oil that we can corral it and keep the environment clean. it is a message to many that visit here, to the uss arizona survivors. many of them thought it was a message to remember pearl harbor and to keep america alert.

of message that those are entombed still weep for what had happened here. to a japanese pilot named abe, when asked what might need to him, he said perhaps it is a warning to all who come here to never repeat the mistakes of world war ii. i suspect the visitors who come here on a daily basis take their own message. but here the oil still weeps, and the ship in many ways still lives. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] you can watch this and other american artifact programs at any time by visiting our website, c-span.org/history. american history tv is marking the 70th anniversary of

the japanese attack on pearl harbor throughout this weekend and next. saturday, december 10, we will be live to take your calls and tweets for the author of "pacific crucible." saturday hereext on american history tv. >> we are on stage at the frank lloyd wright theater of asu in tempe, arizona. american history tv visits the art museum to learn more about their collection of political art. >> the print collection is one of the largest at the art museum. we have 7000 works on paper, and they are cared for and stored and made available for close study and viewing here in the print study room. one of the areas of concentration within the print collection is artists dealing with social and political content. a lot of these artists