Charles W. Lindberg

Charles W. "Chuck" Lindberg (June 26, 1920 – June 24, 2007) was a former United States Marine who was part of the combat patrol that climbed Mount Suribachi and raised the first of two U.S. flags on the summit during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II. He was one of the last surviving members of both of the Mount Suribachi flag-raising events on February 23, 1945.^[1]

US Marine Corps

World War II

Lindberg was a native of Grand Forks, North Dakota when he enlisted in the Marine Corps shortly after the Japanese Navy attack on Pearl Harbor. Shortly after joining the Marine Corps, he volunteered for the Marine Raiders, a special Marine Corps unit. Lindberg first saw combat on Guadalcanal while serving as a member of the 2nd Raider Battalion ("Carlson's Raiders"), and participated in the "Long Patrol". He also saw combat with the 2nd Raiders on Bougainville. In February 1944, the Marine Raider and Paramarine units were disbanded and he returned to the States. He was reassigned to the newly activated 5th Marine Division at Camp Pendleton, CA

Battle of Iwo Jima

Lindberg was assigned as a flamethrower operator in 3rd Platoon, Company E, 2nd Battalion, 28th Marine Regiment, 5th Marine Division. On February 19, he landed with the fifth assault wave on the beach of Iwo Jima. On February 23, Lindberg was part of the 40-man combat patrol led by First Lieutenant Harold Schrier that climbed up and captured the top of Mount Suribachi and raised the American flag. On March 1, he was wounded in the arm by an Japanese sniper and was evacuated off the island. He received the Silver Star Medal for gallantry in action on Iwo Jima from February 19 to March 1, 1945.

Raising the flag

Lowery's most widely circulated picture of the first flag flown on Mount Suribachi. This picture was usually captioned as: 1st Lt. Harold G. Schrier with Platoon Sergeant Ernest I. Thomas, Jr. (both seated), Pfc. James Michels (in foreground with carbine), Sgt. Henry O. Hansen (standing, wearing soft cap), Cpl. Charles W. Lindberg (standing, extreme right), on Mount Suribachi at the first flag raising.
However, Pfc. Raymond Jacobs who was the radioman later identified in the photo disputed these identifications,^[2] and asserted that it should be: Pfc. James Robeson (lower left corner; not visible in this cropped version of the photo), Lt. Harold Schrier (crouched behind radioman's legs), Pfc. Raymond Jacobs (carrying radio), Sgt. Henry Hansen (cloth cap), unknown person holding flag pipe (Pvt. Phil Ward), Sgt Ernest Thomas (sitting, back to camera), Phm2c John Bradley, USN (helmeted, standing above Thomas and holding pipe), Pfc. James Michels (with carbine), and Cpl. Charles Lindberg (above Michels).

The famous flag-raising photograph taken by Joe Rosenthal on 556' Mount Suribachi was actually the second flag-raising event on February 23, 1945. The first U.S. flag, attached to a narrow water pipe found on Mount Suribachi, was raised on the mountain top from 10:20 to 10:37 a.m.; the larger second flag on a longer and heavier pipe was raised about 1 p.m. Lieutenant Schrier had volunteered to take a patrol up Mount Suribachi and raise an American flag at the summit to signal that the mountain was captured. After a fire-fight at the summit, a flag measuring 54-by-28 inches (137-by-71 cm), was raised and photographed by Marine Staff Sergeant Louis R. Lowery, a combat photographer with Leatherneck magazine, who had accompanied the patrol.^[3][4][5]

Schrier, a former Marine Raider like Lindberg, received the Navy Cross for volunteering to take the patrol up Mount Suribachi and raise the flag... Schrier's citation for the medal says, he and his Platoon Sergeant (Ernest Thomas) raised the flag.^[6] This is supported by Sgt. Thomas' CBS interview on February 25, 1945 aboard the flagship USS Eldorado where he said that Lt. Schrier, Sgt. Henry Hansen, and he actually raised the flag.

Schrier, Lindberg, Hansen, Thomas, and Pvt. Phil Ward (held the pipe off the ground) helped attach the flag to the pipe. The flag and flag pipe together was raised and planted. Ward and corpsman Bradley and Hansen, then secured the flag pipe into the ground more securely after it was planted in order to keep the flagpole upright in the soft sand and wind. Others seen in Lowery's photographs of the first flag-raising event include Pfc. Raymond Jacobs (radioman) and Pfc. James Michels.^[7] The flag was too small to be seen easily from the nearby landing beaches, and about two hours later, a larger replacement American flag attached to a longer and heavier pipe was raised simultaneous with the lowering of the first flag pipe and flag. It was the photograph of the second flag-raising by Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal that was seen around the world that became the famous. Lindberg included in his many public talks about the first flag raising event on Mount Suribachi, that the battalion commander Lt. Colonel Johnson (killed in action), had ordered the first flag replaced and safeguarded in order to make sure it was kept for his battalion after the battle.

Post-war and later life

Lindberg was honorably discharged from the Marine Corps in 1946. He returned home to Grand Forks, North Dakota, married, moved to Richfield, Minnesota, raised two daughters and three sons, and worked as an electrician for 39 years.

He dedicated himself for years to the telling of the story of the first American flag raised and flown on Mount Suribachi, only to have his account called into question, until the facts of it became known to the general public. He often spoke at schools, sharing his memories of his wartime service with the children. In 1995, he returned to Iwo Jima for the 50th anniversary of the battle of Iwo Jima.

In a tribute to Lindberg, KARE TV ran the following report:

At Fort Snelling, Friday, June 29th, 2007 the nation bid farewell to a true World War II hero. Marine Chuck Lindberg was laid to rest at Fort Snelling National Cemetery.

The thundering jet fighters and some vintage WWII planes flew overhead to pay tribute. And it was well deserved.

Lindberg was the last survivor of the first flag-raising on Iwo Jima's Mount Suribachi. But his moment was overshadowed by a second flag-raising. He spent a lifetime correcting the record.

Still, on this Friday at Fort Snelling, there was no doubt about history's record.

During the ceremony one of Lindberg's daughters, Diane Steiger said, "The angels needn't worry tonight, another Marine has arrived. Our hero has gone home, the heavens are safer tonight."^[8]

Military awards and decorations

Lindberg's military awards include:

• Silver Star Medal
• Purple Heart Medal
• Combat Action Ribbon
• Presidential Unit Citation with ⁵⁄₁₆ silver battle star
• American Campaign Medal
• Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with ³⁄₁₆ bronze star
• World War II Victory Medal

Portrayal in films

In the 2006 film Flags of Our Fathers, Lindberg was played by Alessandro Mastrobuono. Lindberg is the only character to appear in both Flags and its companion film, Letters from Iwo Jima, although in Letters he is uncredited and simply seen in the same shot of both films, rushing towards a bunker with a flamethrower.

See also

• List of U.S. Marines
• Last Iwo Jima Flag Raiser and IBEW Member Charles Lindberg Dies
• Marine Corps War Memorial

References

External links

• The Honoring All Veterans Memorial, Richfield, MN
• New York Times Obituary
• Yahoo news story