World War II: Pearl Harbor Attack – Military Files from the White House War Room

Description

Pearl Harbor & the Early Months of WWII

Timeline of Events (based on document dates)

• December 4, 1941: This is the earliest date on the documents within the White House War Room military files. It is likely that these documents contain briefs on military activity in Hawaii, reports from the Army and Navy on the Pacific, and other operational information. This would be the period immediately preceding the attack on Pearl Harbor, with military personnel closely monitoring Japanese naval movement.
• December 7, 1941: The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor occurs. Documents in the collection will likely contain initial reports of the attack, damage assessments, casualty reports, and the beginning of the U.S. military response. The document collection would likely include orders from this day and immediately following.
• December 8-31, 1941: The immediate aftermath of Pearl Harbor. The files will consist of ongoing reports on activities in the Pacific and the Japanese offensive. The included documents would very likely cover allied ship losses, aircraft losses, allied merchant ship losses, and reports on the regional situations in Africa, Alaska, American port cities, Australia, Canada, Central America, Europe, Guam, Iceland, Midway, Netherlands-East Indies, New Zealand, Singapore, South America, and the West Indies. This period would see a rapid expansion of the war effort and the US military’s response.
• January 1- April 6, 1942: This would be the post-Pearl Harbor period and the first few months of the US entering World War 2. The documents from this period would include updates on the war in the Pacific, specifically pertaining to allied naval, air and merchant ship losses, along with war department operational summaries and Joint Intelligence Committee Daily Summaries, plus regional situation reports.

Cast of Characters (Principal People Likely Mentioned):

• President Franklin D. Roosevelt: The President of the United States during World War II. As the ultimate authority, his involvement and direction of the war effort are represented within the documents and by way of the files sent to his military aides.
• White House Military Aides: While unnamed within the source description, these individuals are essential. They were the direct recipients of the reports sent from the War Department and the Navy Department and were responsible for organizing the materials and briefs for the President. Their role was to provide the President with critical, up-to-date information on military activity.
• War Department Personnel: Included in this general category are likely high-ranking officers of the Army and their personnel involved in intelligence gathering, logistics, strategy and operations.
• Navy Department Personnel: This covers all levels of Navy officers and staff who were involved in the Navy’s intelligence and operational functions.
• Members of the Joint Intelligence Committee: These are the individuals involved in intelligence gathering and analysis for all the branches of the US military. They were tasked with providing daily intelligence summaries, which appear in the document collection.

Additional Notes:

• The provided document collection would also likely include the names of many other military personnel of all ranks involved in the operations of the US military.
• There may be other civilians, such as members of the civilian government, mentioned in the collection.
• Because the files are primary sources, they would provide detailed information on the events of this period in the context of the Pearl Harbor attack and the immediate aftermath.

World War II: Pearl Harbor Attack: Military Files from the White House War Room

A total of 2,455 pages of military documents related to the December 7, 1941, Pearl Harbor attack were sent to and kept in the White House war room, duplicated from materials stored by the National Archives and Records Administration.

The files include documents produced by both the War Department and the Navy Department, which were forwarded to military aides at the White House regarding the Japanese assault on Pearl Harbor, the subsequent Japanese offensive in the Pacific, and their immediate consequences. The files span from December 4, 1941, to April 6, 1942, containing messages, reports, maps, charts, and various official documents.

The contents of the compiled volumes and folders feature:

Summaries of activities occurring in Hawaii

Reports from the Army and Navy concerning Pacific operations

Operational directives

Daily summaries from the Joint Intelligence Committee

Reports detailing maritime contacts and vessel sightings

Assessments of losses suffered by allied ships, aircraft, and merchant vessels

Regional situation reports addressing locations such as Africa, Alaska, American ports, Australia, Canada, Central America, Europe, Guam, Iceland, Midway, the Netherlands East Indies, New Zealand, Singapore, South America, and the West Indies.

Operational summaries from the War Department

Navy military aides’ files on intelligence issues for President Roosevelt.