The Men of an Iconic Moment
The iconic Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph, “Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima,” captured a pivotal moment during World War II and became an enduring symbol of American perseverance and sacrifice. The image, taken by Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal on February 23, 1945, depicts six United States Marines raising the American flag atop Mount Suribachi during the Battle of Iwo Jima. While the photograph immortalized their collective action, the individual stories of these men, including their ultimate fates and final resting places, are a poignant reminder of the cost of war.
The six men responsible for raising the second and larger flag on Mount Suribachi were Corporal Harlon Block, Private First Class Franklin Sousley, Sergeant Michael Strank, Corporal Ira Hayes, Corporal Rene Gagnon, and Pharmacist’s Mate Second Class John Bradley. Their lives after the flag-raising were varied, with some tragically not surviving the battle, while others carried the memory of Iwo Jima for the rest of their days.
Here are the six flag-raisers and their burial locations:
- Sergeant Michael Strank: A leader within the group, Strank was killed in action on Iwo Jima just a week after the flag-raising, on March 1, 1945. He was buried in the 5th Marine Division Cemetery on the island. In 1949, his remains were exhumed and reinterred in Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.
- Corporal Harlon Block: Initially misidentified in the photograph, Block was also killed in action on Iwo Jima on March 1, 1945, the same day as Strank. He was initially buried in the 5th Marine Division Cemetery on Iwo Jima. His family later had his remains moved to the Weslaco Cemetery in his hometown of Weslaco, Texas. In 1995, his body was moved a final time to the Marine Military Academy in Harlingen, Texas, where he is buried near the Iwo Jima monument.
- Private First Class Franklin Sousley: The third of the flag-raisers to die on Iwo Jima, Sousley was killed on March 21, 1945. He was initially buried in the 5th Marine Division Cemetery. In 1947, his remains were returned to his home state of Kentucky and buried in the Elizaville Cemetery in Fleming County.
- Corporal Ira Hayes: A Pima Native American, Hayes survived the war but was haunted by his experiences and the fame the photograph brought him, a struggle later depicted in the song “The Ballad of Ira Hayes” and the book and film “Flags of Our Fathers.” He died of exposure and alcohol poisoning in 1955 at the age of 32. Hayes is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
- Corporal Rene Gagnon: Gagnon survived the war and played a role in the subsequent war bond tours. He passed away in 1979 at the age of 54. Initially buried in Manchester, New Hampshire, his final resting place is now Arlington National Cemetery.
- Pharmacist’s Mate Second Class John “Doc” Bradley: A Navy corpsman, Bradley was the last survivor of the six flag-raisers, passing away in 1994 at the age of 70. For decades, he rarely spoke of his experiences on Iwo Jima. He is buried at Queen of Peace Cemetery in his hometown of Antigo, Wisconsin. It is worth noting that historical analysis by the Marine Corps later determined that another Marine, Private First Class Harold “Pie” Keller, was in Bradley’s position in the photo, and that Bradley had participated in the earlier, first flag-raising on Mount Suribachi. However, for decades, Bradley was identified as one of the six in the famous photograph.