Adak Update Hiking

A view of Downtown Adak, overlooking Sweeper Cove

World War II Historic Resources | Downtown Historical Markers | Remote Historical Markers

Adak Island is of historic significance because of the role it played in World War II. In 1942, the Japanese invaded and occupied the far western Aleutian Islands of Attu and Kiska. U.S. forces built facilities on Adak Island to support efforts to retake Attu and Kiska and to guard against a possible counter-offensive.

Historic Bering Chapel, 1995 In 1976, markers with brass plaques were erected to identify historic or commemorative sites on-island as a part of Adak's celebration of America's Bicentennial. These pages provides a guide to these markers along with some background history and the identification of resources eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. The working on these pages differs slightly from the wording on the brass plaques. The changes have been made to correct errors and to reflect the operational closure of the Adak Complex.

The original pamphlet was prepared by the Adak Historical Society. Revised and updated in 1998 by the U.S. Navy, Engineering Field Activity Northwest.

Adak Island and the Aleutian Campaign

On June 3 and 4, 1942, the Japanese launched a carrier-based attack on the air installation at Dutch Harbor as part of a two-pronged attack on Alaska and Midway Island. The results of the attack inflicted damage, but did not disable the base. Falling back from this offensive, the Japanese had planned to invade Adak where they mistakenly thought a base had already been established. However, since Adak was still within range of the still serviceable Dutch Harbor airfield, the Japanese forces decided to take the far western Aleutian islands of Attu and Kiska, landing at both on June 7. This occupation created the need for a U.S. military advance base farther west in the Aleutian chain.

The development of Adak began on August 30 when a force of 4,500 men under the command of Brigadier General Eugene M. Landrum waded ashore. The construction of the base was under the direction of Colonel B.B. Talley of the Army Corps if Engineers. The first objective was the construction of an airfield. After survey of Sweeper Cove, it was determined an airfield could be easily constructed on the tidal flats if a dike were built to control tidal flow. After an incredible10-day construction period, the first air strikes from Adak were launched against the Japanese positions on Attu and Kiska. This mission was the first combined fighter and bomber zero altitude (50 feet above the water) strike of World War II, marking a historic development in military tactics. During the fall of 1942, the Eleventh Air Force flew regular bombing missions against Japanese positions. Heavy losses due to flying missions of 400-860 round trip miles in nearly constant inclement weather led to the decision to construct a new air base on Amchitka Island, only 65 miles from Kiska. Adak provided air cover during construction in 1943 and afterward assumed a supporting role of repairing planes and forwarding supplies.

On October 2 and 3, 1942, enemy planes strafed the base at Adak with machine gun fire and dropped at least nine bombs on the island. All of the bombs landed in undeveloped areas causing no damage. These raids, however, place Adak Island, along with Pearl Harbor and Dutch Harbor, as one of only a handful of locations in the United States to be the subject of an enemy air raid.

The Navy soon followed the Army in constructing facilities on Adak. In January 1943, it built two hangars and some support facilities at Davis Army Airfield. In the early spring, the Navy began construction of a seaplane base, known as Mitchell Field. The two nearby bodies of water, Andrew Lake and Clam Lagoon, were used for sea-plane operations. In May 1943, the Navy decided to upgrade the base and began construction of two land-based runways, large wooden hangars and other support facilities. During this same period, the Navy construction force (Seabees) also expanded facilities at Sweeper Cove, building five piers and 108 concrete anchorages in the harbor. Other major types of facilities constructed include ship repair facilities, facilities in support of a PT-Boat squadron, ordnance magazines, communications facilities, post office, barracks and headquarters facilities for the commanders of the North Pacific Force, Alaskan Sector, Fleet Air Wing 4, and Seventeenth Naval District.

The first months of 1943 saw an intensification of activity on Adak as the island became the staging point for the invasion of Attu. By early May, about 27,000 combat troops gathered at Adak ready to support the invasion of Attu. The invasion occurred on May 11, 1943; by May 29, Attu was fully under control of U.S. forces. In response to problems created by improper equipment and training experienced on Attu, the invasion force assembled for Kiska trained on Adak. By July 1943, 37,000 troops had assembled for the operation. On the eve of the invasion, the total force on Adak was approximately 90,000 with more than 100 ships in the harbor. On August 15, the invasion force landed on Kiska only to discover that the Japanese had evacuated the island a few weeks before.

Although the retaking of Attu and Kiska turned out to be the end of the shooting war in the Aleutians, the U.S. forces still had to guard against a possible Japanese counter-offensive. The Army and Navy continued to develop maintenance and supply facilities on Adak to support operations at the newer bases developed further west in the Aleutians as the launching points for raids against the Japanese in the Kurile Islands. Furthermore, some military strategist advocated launching a full invasion of the Kuriles and eventually norther Japan from the Aleutians. Therefore, a huge Army Reserve depot consisting of piers, a breakwater, and three waterfront transit sheds at Sweeper Cove and several large warehouses at Davis Lake were constructed to accommodate a potential force of 50,000 men. Adak became the largest military base in the Aleutian Islands.

With the surrender of Japan in August 1945, the military rapidly began to stand down its forces in Alaska and the Aleutians. While Adak continued in operation, its level of staffing and strategic importance declined. By the early 1950s, Adak was the only major base in the Aleutians and was the major Naval base in the northern Pacific. It soon became strategically important to the Cold War as the location of fleet communication antennas, listening posts, and a support base for anti-submarine patrol aircraft.

Although overshadowed by the larger and more famous battles and campaigns that occurred in the central and south Pacific, the Aleutians played a unique role in the U.S. was effort against Japan. For one, the initial Japanese attack on Dutch Harbor was part of the Battle of Midway, which was strategically very important and represented a turning point in the war. The Japanese occupation of the islands of Attu and Kiska generated the fear of possible further action against other areas of Alaska and even the West Coast of the continental United States. The campaign to remove the Japanese from these islands was the only campaign of the entire war fought on U.S. soil. In addition to the military history, several famous Americans were either stationed here (Dashiell Hammett and Gore Vidal) or visited here (several Hollywood stars, boxing champion Joe Lewis, and President Roosevelt) during the war. Roosevelt's visit to Adak combat troops was his last field visit prior to his death. These factors elevate the military installations established on Adak to a level of national historic importance.