{"id":3378,"date":"2016-06-30T08:05:08","date_gmt":"2016-06-30T12:05:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/?p=3378"},"modified":"2025-10-16T16:08:42","modified_gmt":"2025-10-16T20:08:42","slug":"fourth-of-july-flag-flew-at-sea-in-1944","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/fourth-of-july-flag-flew-at-sea-in-1944\/","title":{"rendered":"Fourth of July flag flew at sea in 1944"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n
\"USS<\/a>
USS Essex in 1943. (wikipedia.com)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For 240 years, the Fourth of July<\/a>, which marks the debut of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, has been a special day for American flags<\/a>.<\/p>\n

On that date in 1944, as World War II continued to rage, a newspaper printed aboard the USS Essex published an editorial titled \u201cIndependence Day 1944.\u201d Read in the context of that time, the editorial takes on a deeper meaning, especially in its last sentence.<\/p>\n

\"Front<\/a>
Front page of the Buccaneer, dated July 4, 1944.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Essex, an aircraft carrier, was in the process of being built when Pearl Harbor was attacked in December 1941. Its construction schedule was accelerated, and the ship was launched the following July. Throughout the remainder of the war, it took part in several battles, including Okinawa and Leyte Gulf, as it sailed west across the Pacific.<\/p>\n

The unsigned editorial appeared in Buccaneer, the ship\u2019s newspaper. The cover showed a cartoon carrier lighting a firecracker while a flag flies from a mast.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
A picnic in Indiana on the Fourth of July 1941, five months before Pearl Harbor. (Library of Congress)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cThis year,\u201d the article began, \u201cwe look back at the gala July 4th holidays we knew in the past with a sigh of regret. We recall family reunions, great stone crocks of ice cold lemonade, home fried chicken peeping from under the clean cover of a picnic basket and a lot of fun\u2026while we frivolously overlooked the true meaning of the day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Putting aside nostalgia, the author turned his mind to reality. \u201cThe present grim war is a real reminder that we have to work to get lemonade, the chicken, the reunion and all we enjoyed in the past,\u201d he wrote. \u201cWe have to fight for the things we want and for the celebrations we and our loved ones will enjoy in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"In<\/a>
In 1943, two sailors from an aircraft carrier are covered with American flags and buried at sea in the Pacific from a Coast Guard vessel. (National Archives)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

That wish will be fulfilled only if \u201cwe are alert on all the battle lines,\u201d he continued. \u201cWe are sure that\u2026our loved ones will be able to take a lot of honest pride in saying that we are truly worthy of the traditions found in the 150 years of American Independence.\u201d<\/p>\n

Unaware that a kamikaze pilot would soon crash into the carrier, killing 15 sailors, but no doubt ready for what might come, the editorialist affirmed that \u201cours is a must job \u2013 also it is glorious and our reward will be found in the annals of the fleet if we do the job that is to be done day by day.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
An American flag flies from an aircraft carrier as a plane lands. (US Naval Academy)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Turning his eyes to the mast on his vessel, the author concluded his remarks with these words: \u201cDon\u2019t you think \u2018Old Glory\u2019 is just a little more beautiful flying at the staff today?\u201d<\/p>\n

This Fourth of July, that\u2019s a question all of us should answer in the affirmative.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For 240 years, the Fourth of July, which marks the debut of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, has been a special day for American flags. On that date in 1944, as World War II continued to rage, a newspaper printed aboard the USS Essex published an editorial titled \u201cIndependence Day 1944.\u201d Read in the… continue<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":6088,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[28,364,83,255,320,112],"class_list":["post-3378","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-history-lessons","tag-american-flags","tag-declaration-of-independence","tag-fourth-of-july","tag-independence-day","tag-pearl-harbor","tag-world-war-ii"],"yoast_head":"\nFourth of July flag flew at sea in 1944 - Gettysburg Flag Works Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/fourth-of-july-flag-flew-at-sea-in-1944\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Fourth of July flag flew at sea in 1944 - Gettysburg Flag Works Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"For 240 years, the Fourth of July, which marks the debut of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, has been a special day for American flags. 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