| Original caption: “A Marine walking guard duty on Roi Island past a line of clothes drying.” The fortified Roi-Namur was the target of the United States 4th Marine Division landing operation during the Battle of Kwajalein in February 1944, with a part of the island being blown up in an explosion that caused 120 American casualties. Marine Corps officers Lieutenant Colonel Aquilla J. Dyess (January 11, 1909 – February 2, 1944) and 1st Lieutenant John V. Power (November 20, 1918 – February 1, 1944) both earned posthumous Medals of Honor. A total of 313 Americans were killed and 502 wounded in the operation, with the Japanese garrison of an estimated 3,563 men being killed. During the Japanese occupation, the 2 islands – Roi to the west, and Namur to the east – were connected by a narrow strip of land and a causeway. After the American occupation, US Navy Seabees filled the remaining area between the islands by December 1944. The 2 now-joined islands are presently called Roi-Namur, with a total area of about 1 square mile. Dyess Airfield, named for the Medal of Honor winner, was built on Roi-Namur to begin air operations against Eniwetok and other Japanese possessions. The 4th Marine Air Wing devised a system of windmills to wash their laundry, and then they hung it on this line to dry. Photo by Lieutenant Charles E. Kerlee (March 28, 1907 – January 23, 1981), United States Naval Reserve. Kerlee was already well-known as a professional, award-winning commercial photographer. As such, he was approached by a United States Navy Reservist, Lieutenant Commander Edward Steichen (March 27, 1879 – March 25, 1973), himself a famous commercial photographer from New York. Steichen had a simple proposal – that Kerlee consider joining the United States Navy, not as a sailor or soldier, but as a cameraman. The top brass within the United States Navy, realizing that Steichen’s talents could help foster public support, had tasked him with assembling a special naval unit composed of the world’s best photographers and videographers to document the war effort. Steichen, in turn, called on his circle of friends, associates, and competitors, including Kerlee. Within a few months, Charles Kerlee found himself on board the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown (CV-10) and headed out to sea and into battle. His camera remained at work until the last days of the war. | |
| Image Filename | wwii2275.jpg |
| Image Size | 969.54 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 2361 x 2432 |
| Photographer | Charles E. Kerlee |
| Photographer Title | United States Navy |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | July 1, 1944 |
| Location | |
| City | Roi-Namur |
| State or Province | Kwajalein |
| Country | Marshalls |
| Archive | National Archives and Records Administration |
| Record Number | NWDNS-80-G-401089 |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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