On the morning of Dec. 7, 1941, the Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, lasted about 90 minutes, killing 2,333 American military personnel and wounding 1,139.
The first targets were airfields in Oahu, to prevent a counterattack by air. In the first wave, at least 181 Japanese planes started bombing and strafing airfields and ships in Pearl Harbor around 7:55 a.m.
An hour later, 170 more planes arrived in a second wave. The attacks ended just before 8:50 a.m.
Japan’s main targets were eight United States battleships: seven moored along Battleship Row, and one in dry dock across the channel. Three sank, one capsized, one was beached and the rest were damaged.
Attacks on California
After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Californians lived in fear of a Japanese invasion. The Japanese attacked several ships along the coast and a long-range submarine bombed an oil field near Santa Barbara on Feb. 23, 1942. The next day, rumors of an invasion triggered air-raid sirens and anti-aircraft fie in Los Angeles that became known as The Battle of Los Angeles. U.S. anti-aircraft guns fired about 1,400 rounds over the city. No planes or bombs were discovered and the incident was later determined to be a false alarm.
There also were unmanned balloon bombs found in the Northern California towns of Alturas and Hayfork.
The U.S. Army began building bases and expanding installations in the state in 1939. After the Pearl Harbor attack, the California coastline was fortified with hundreds of cannons and anti-aircraft batteries. The harbors in San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego were protected with minefields. Military bases in the Golden State became key training areas for the wars in Europe and the Pacific.
Soldiers weren’t the only newcomers to California; thousands of workers flocked here. California accounted for 17% of the nation’s wartime production and received 10 cents of every dollar spent by the Defense Department. One of the biggest booms for the state’s economy came in agriculture. From 1940 to 1944, the state’s annual crop revenues increased 159% to $1.7 billion.
During World War II, the state had more than 140 military bases and also was a leading manufacturing center.
Less than 20% of the bases in California during World War II remain in use today.
Surviving veterans
Approximately 119,550 of the more than 16 million veterans who served in World War II are alive, according to 2023 Veterans Affairs statistics. In 2020, there were about 325,574 World War II veterans alive. Approximately 10% reside in California, the most of any state.
By the numbers: Totals for the Pearl Harbor attack
United States
2,403 dead; 68 civilians
188 aircraft destroyed; 155 damaged
18 ships damaged
Consoling feature: All three of the U.S. aircraft carriers stationed at Pearl Harbor were out to sea. The USS Arizona and USS Oklahoma were the only two of the eight battleships that were not repaired.
Imperial Japan
64 dead; 55 in aircraft and 9 in minisubs
29 aircraft destroyed; 74 damaged; 5 minisubs destroyed
