A little history

by chuckofish

Today is Victory over Japan Day, the day on which Imperial Japan surrendered in WWII, bringing an end to the war. The formal signing of the Japanese Instrument of Surrender took place on board the battleship USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945, and at that time President Truman declared September 2 to be the official V-J Day.

General Douglas MacArthur signing the Instrument of Surrender on behalf of th e Allied Powers. Generals Wainwright and Percival, both former prisoners of the Japanese, stand behind him.

Missouri was the third ship of the United States Navy to be named after the US state of Missouri. The ship was authorized by Congress in 1938. The ship was launched on 29 January 1944 before a crowd of 20,000 to 30,000 spectators. At the launching ceremony, the ship was christened by Margaret Truman, the ship sponsor and daughter of Harry S. Truman, then one of the senators from the ship’s namesake state.

USS Missouri underway in August 1944.

Missouri earned three battle stars for World War II service, five for Korean War service and a further three for Gulf War service.

Let’s all just take a moment, shall we?