SFC Clarence B. Craft - Military Timeline

The counterattack forced Ushijima to withdraw to the Shuri Line, an eight-mile path stretching from Yonabaru on the east coast, through tortuous ridges near ‘Shuri Castle,’ and on into the port of Nah

The counterattack forced Ushijima to withdraw to the Shuri Line, an eight-mile path stretching from Yonabaru on the east coast, through tortuous ridges near ‘Shuri Castle,’ and on into the port of Naha on Okinawa’s west coast. Buckner began a May 11 offensive against the Shuri Line with his rearranged forces, which must have pleased Nimitz.

Army forces in the east again encountered stiff resistance from Ushijima at a number of ridges, caves and draws. Closer to the east coast, the 96th Infantry Division bogged down for two days at a key elevation called Conical Hill before gaining a foothold on its crest. After withstanding fierce counterattacks for three days, the GIs expanded their perimeter until, by May 21, they had cleared both Conical Hill and nearby Sugar Loaf Hill, which opened a seam in the eastern edge of the Shuri Line.

Along the 96th Division’s western flank, the 77th Infantry Division battled through its own hell, particularly at Ishimmi Ridge, a 350-foot rise one-third of a mile in front of Shuri. Before dawn on M

Along the 96th Division’s western flank, the 77th Infantry Division battled through its own hell, particularly at Ishimmi Ridge, a 350-foot rise one-third of a mile in front of Shuri. Before dawn on May 17, Lieutenant Theodore S. Bell led 204 men of the 307th Regiment to its crest, then waited for the enemy barrage that would inevitably come once daylight arrived. The Japanese delivered a deafening response, as mortar and artillery fire mixed with unbelievably thick machine-gun fire from both flanks and the nearby heights at Shuri. By 10 a.m., all but one of the regiment’s 60mm mortars had been destroyed, and most of its radios had been knocked out.

All day long the regiment withstood heavy fire as supplies rapidly diminished. By nightfall, the isolated unit pulled back to its command post in a last-ditch stand to hold onto the ridge, hoping that reinforcements would arrive before the Japanese overran their positions. One relief force tried to reach the beleaguered men, but had to turn back before gaining the crest because of stiff Japanese resistance.

Fighting continued the next morning. When soldiers exhausted their supplies of grenades or bullets, they crawled to the bodies of fallen comrades to retrieve whatever ammunition they could find there. Some wounded men asked their buddies to prop them up and put a weapon in their hands so they could help fight, but by late afternoon only six reinforcements–one officer and five men–had been able to battle through the Japanese to reach the perimeter. Later that day a few more men arrived with fresh supplies, but the situation for the 307th looked bleak.

Help finally arrived late on the third day, when men from the 306th Regiment punched a corridor through to the surrounded men. As each fresh soldier checked in, an exhausted GI from the 307th was able to leave his position and stumble down to rear areas for much-needed rest. The regiment paid dearly for Ishimmi Ridge. Of the 204 men who charged up on May 17, only 48 returned on May 20 without serious injury.