Farragut historian brings to life tragic events
“Tora! Tora! Tora!” (Tiger! Tiger! Tiger!)
That was the code phrase the Japanese army used to signal the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, which occurred Dec. 7, 1941.
Farragut historian and retired history teacher Frank Galbraith shared the command as he related the events leading up to and taking place during and after the Dec. 7 attack to more than 50 people in his presentation, Day of Infamy, in Farragut Town Hall’s Board Room Monday evening, Dec. 1.
Hosted by Farragut Museum Committee and Town Parks and Recreation Department, the presentation offered a look into World War II and even how it impacted East Tennessee. Galbraith also paid tribute to U.S. military veterans, who were asked to stand near the end of the presentation.
One of those many veterans who stood was Mike Jones, who served in the U.S. Army from 2009 to 2013 as a linguist.
Supplementing Galbraith’s presentation, author Carl Peiers, 86, was on hand to sign his book and talk about his experiences he shared in his publication, “I Survived Growing Up in Nazi Germany.”
“This is really a good book about what (Peiers) did and where he grew up there,” Galbraith said. “You will enjoy reading the book.”
Peiers, who now lives in Knoxville, came to the United States in
1952, when he was 13 years old.
“My parents immigrated,” he recalled.
“I have another lady from Germany here, Helga Liske. She lived in Germany for a while, too,” Gaibraith added.
Liske said she grew up in Germany and was 7 years old when World War II ended in Germany.
When she was 21, she moved to Canada.
“I lived there three years,” Liske said. “I met my husband there. He studied in the (United) States, so I came to the States in 1962 (when she was 21).”
“Some of you may remember some of the things we’re going through here,” Galbraith said.
“I was born before Pearl Harbor (attack),” he noted, adding the attack was on a Sunday.
“It just so happens that Dec. 7 is this coming Sunday,” Galbraith pointed out. “I’m so glad we were able to do this program right now, here.”
He explained “Tora! Tora! Tora!” was the command given by Mitsuo Fuchida, who commanded the air raid on Pearl Harbor “to his radio man to radio back to Tokyo that when the Japanese planes got to Pearl Harbor, it was a total surprise.”
With the destruction, U.S. citizens were quick to take action against Japanese-Americans, but Gailbrath pointed out, “It wasn’t the Japanese citizens or Japanese-Americans, it was the Japanese military.”
Farragut resident Eric Johnson echoed that point as he remembered two teachers who were the best of friends. One was a Japanese-American science teacher, and the other was another teacher who earlier survived the Japanese army attack in Hawaii, when fighter pilots shot at homes in a residential neighborhood.
“I was just amazed at the amount of damage,” Johnson said regarding the accounts of the teacher who survived the Japanese army attack. “The pictures you see of battleships sunk, maybe cars shot up. The destruction was unbelievable.”
At the same time, “I think it made a big impression that Japanese-American and American teachers were good friends, and everyone accepted (the Japanese-American teacher) as American,” Johnson said.
Galbraith said at the end of World War I in Europe on Nov. 11, 1918, when countries, such as Germany, had to rebuild, there were soldiers in the German army who stayed in the military after the war. One of those was Adolph Hitler, who was injured during World War I and blamed the Jews and communists.
While in the army, Hitler “ran into the National Socialist German Workers Party, known as Nazi Party,” Gailbraith said. “He learned he had a gift of talking, and people listened.”
He said the invasions by Benito Mussolini in Italy and Hitler encouraged Japan’s Emperor Hirohito to invade Manchuria and other parts of China then Pearl Harbor.
