The “Williwaw War” has become the common term for the World War II conflict between American and Japanese troops in the Arctic Aleutian Islands. The term “williwaw” apparently dates to the nineteenth century, though its origin is uncertain; it describes sudden violent gusts of wind, often accompanied by rain, snow, and fog. The Aleutian theater in the war held particular interest for Arkansans: according to a story widely believed at the time (and which may actually be true), the loss of a coin toss in July of 1941 resulted in assignment of the 206th Coast Artillery Regiment of the recently federalized Arkansas National Guard to Aleutian duty. The winners (as they then thought), New Mexico’s 200th, were dispatched to the tropical Philippines, just in time for the Japanese invasions. The 206th arrived in Alaska in August of 1941, along with another Arkansas Guard unit, the 153rd Infantry Regiment. The infantry went mostly to the mainland, but the 206th constructed its primary base at Dutch Harbor on Amaknak Island, one of the Fox Islands group in the middle of the 1,400-mile chain. There they settled into what was intended as a defensive posture to prevent the Japanese from establishing naval or air facilities for strikes against the U.S. mainland. The Japanese, having similar worries about the vulnerability of their homeland to attack from U.S. forces in the Aleutians, soon established bases on Attu and Kiska, two of the archipelago’s westernmost islands. #vjday #williwawwar #williwaw #wwii #warishell #usmilitary #vintage #midcentury #ephemera #vintageimage #blackandwhite #photograph #blackandwhitephoto #morning #goodmorning #morningtime (at Ridley Park, Pennsylvania) https://www.instagram.com/p/CD8_SBwngw4/?igshid=dkez45nyvjik
