| Original caption: “The Yanks mop up on Bougainville. At night, the Japanese would infiltrate American lines. At Dawn, the doughboys went out and killed them. This photo shows the tank going forward, infantrymen following in its cover.” Soldiers of K Company, 129th Infantry Regiment, Thirty-Seventh Infantry Division, follow M4A1 Sherman tanks of Second Platoon, 754th Tank Battalion. The tanks had just arrived; the cosmoline had been partially removed from “Lucky Legs II” as evidenced by the half-covered star on the turret. “Wild Boar” was another Sherman tank in action at this battle. F Company is usually credited in this photo, but morning reports indicate K Company was engaged with the tanks at this time. So many Japanese were killed that the tanks rolled over the bodies until the treads were caked with human flesh. M3 Stewarts accompanied the 754th Tank Battalion as well as the M4A1 Sherman tanks. Thirty Japanese were killed for every American in this engagement. Another Japanese counterattack never developed on Bougainville. The Australians took over, occupying Bougainville and sustaining over five hundred casualties, for another eight and a half thousand Japanese casualties until 1945. The photo was taken by a photographer from the 161st Signal Photo Company. They struggled with humidity, which fogged lenses and prevented film development. Initially, there was no photography lab available, so film was shipped from Bougainville to New Caledonia for processing. | |
| Image Filename | wwii1559.jpg |
| Image Size | 932.59 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 2908 x 2227 |
| Photographer | |
| Photographer Title | United States Army Signal Corps |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | March 17, 1944 |
| Location | |
| City | |
| State or Province | Bougainville |
| Country | Solomons |
| Archive | National Archives and Records Administration |
| Record Number | NWDNS-111-SC-189099 |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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