When I first caught sight of Wake Island in November 2011 I felt a powerful sense of déjà vu: I had spent so much time poring over maps and letters, seeing Wake through the eyes of my father and grandfather and all of the other men who sacrificed so much to build a base on that tiny atoll. It was my privilege and honor to...

A few miles away from the memorials that commemorate the war dead on Wake, the “POW Rock” stands on the lagoon shore of Wilkes, mute testimony to the ninety-eight Americans massacred in 1943. It was deeply moving to trace the chiseled marks with my own fingers, and I felt my Wake family with me in spirit. Among the first...

Morning glory vine creeps over several concrete bunkers built by the civilian contractors in 1941 as explosives magazines. Standing inside this one, I could almost hear the groans of the wounded men who filled this makeshift hospital during the two-week siege in December 1941. Three of the concrete magazines built by the...

The bridge to Peale burned down a decade ago, so the only way to reach this part of the atoll – once bustling with activity but now a silent jungle – is by water. We sailed on a Hobie Cat across the turquoise lagoon to explore the beaches and ruins. When I walked into the brush alone, snow white fairy terns hovered...

At the completion of the COMPACAF tour of Wake Island, we paid our respects at the U.S. Marine Corps memorial and posed for a group shot. Several of us took a few more minutes to pause at the three other memorials that commemorate the war dead: the American contractors, Guamanian Pan Am employees, and the Japanese, whose...