Infantry Marines of the 6th MarDiv hiking toward Naha from the north after the city was secured. Naha was the largest urban area that Marines fought in during the war. Although it had a prewar population, the city was a graveyard during the campaign. Nearly all structures were destroyed, either from the pre-assault bombardment, or in the street fighting to capture it.

A .30 caliber light machine gun team hikes down the slope in the foreground.

Kuwanga Ridge, 21 June 1945. Marines observe flamethrower operators at work. Although the Okinawan landmass was almost completely in US hands, the fighting was still deadly for the Marines.

Finally, after almost three months of grinding combat, a 6th MarDiv infantryman stands at the shore on southern Okinawa.

21 June 1945 — Marines of Co G, 2nd Bn, 22nd Marines, raise the flag on a cliff overlooking the sea at Okinawa's southern tip.

Noting the cost of victory, battalion commander LtCol John G. Johnson remarked, "This has been a hard fight, and in raising this flag we pay tribute to the memory of those brave men who have fallen in action."

Japanese prisoners climb aboard a truck for transport to a POW camp. The 6th MarDiv was credited with capturing 3,254 enemy prisoners of war in combat, the highest total for any Marine division in the Pacific.

A Hospital Corpsman treats an Okinawan civilian. The people of the island suffered terribly in the fighting. Although it was a fierce opponent to the Japanese armed forces, the Division and its' Marines were angels of mercy to the island's population.

The 6th MarDiv was credited with processing 24,308 civilians during and after the campaign. Many of these people were starving, dehydrated and in need of medical attention.

4 July 1945 — The 6th MarDiv Cemetery is dedicated at a spot overlooking the East China Sea. A field music plays taps at the dedication.

1,637 of the Division's Marines and attached Navy personnel were killed during the fighting on the island.

The color guard raises the American flag at the dedication of the 6th MarDiv Cemetery.

The honor guard waits for the dedication ceremony at the 6th MarDiv Cemetery.

Surely one of the most somber tasks. Marines wander among the rows of crosses and Stars of David, searching for the graves of their buddies who fell in battle.