- 10 minutes ago
Douglas Jacobson turned a dead bazooka team into a breakthrough at Hill 382 on Iwo Jima, using a two-man weapon alone to smash Japanese bunkers, machine gun nests, and a concrete blockhouse. The Marine from the 23rd Marines had no time for training rules when the assault stalled under fire, so he grabbed the M1A1 launcher, loaded rockets by himself, and kept moving through volcanic ash and crossfire.
This military history story follows the brutal fight for Iwo Jima, the “meat grinder” on Hill 382, and the kind of battlefield improvisation that saved lives under impossible pressure. It is a narrated World War 2 story filled with close-quarters combat, tank attacks, pillboxes, and the relentless push of Marines taking the summit position by position.
For fans of WW2 stories, Marine Corps history, battlefield heroism, and narrated war stories, this is a gripping listen with strong historical detail and a clear combat narrative. It also fits searches for military history documentary, Iwo Jima story, Marine bazooka hero, and World War 2 narration for background listening.
Ideal for viewers who enjoy WW2 military history, Marine Corps stories, historical narration, and real battlefield accounts from Iwo Jima. If you search for war stories, narrated history, or stories of battlefield courage, this episode delivers a powerful account of Douglas Jacobson and Hill 382.
This military history story follows the brutal fight for Iwo Jima, the “meat grinder” on Hill 382, and the kind of battlefield improvisation that saved lives under impossible pressure. It is a narrated World War 2 story filled with close-quarters combat, tank attacks, pillboxes, and the relentless push of Marines taking the summit position by position.
For fans of WW2 stories, Marine Corps history, battlefield heroism, and narrated war stories, this is a gripping listen with strong historical detail and a clear combat narrative. It also fits searches for military history documentary, Iwo Jima story, Marine bazooka hero, and World War 2 narration for background listening.
Ideal for viewers who enjoy WW2 military history, Marine Corps stories, historical narration, and real battlefield accounts from Iwo Jima. If you search for war stories, narrated history, or stories of battlefield courage, this episode delivers a powerful account of Douglas Jacobson and Hill 382.
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LearningTranscript
00:00At 0900 on February 26, 1945, Private First Class Douglas Jacobson crouched behind volcanic rock on the western slope of
00:09Hill 382,
00:10watching the bazooka team ahead of him take fire from a Japanese 20-millimeter anti-aircraft gun.
00:1619 years old, three island campaigns, zero decorations.
00:22The Japanese had fortified Hill 382 with 16 hardened positions, each one designed to kill Marines in overlapping fields of
00:30fire.
00:31Jacobson had enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve at 17, lying about his age to get into the fight.
00:37He worked as a draftsman for his father back in Port Washington, New York, spent summers as a lifeguard on
00:42Long Island beaches.
00:44Now, he was part of Company I, 3rd Battalion, 23rd Marines, 4th Marine Division, pinned down on the most fortified
00:52hill on Iwo Jima.
00:54The island was eight square miles of volcanic ash and death.
00:58Five days earlier, 30,000 Marines had stormed ashore expecting light resistance.
01:04Intelligence had been catastrophically wrong.
01:06The Japanese commander, Lieutenant General Tadamichi Kuribayashi, had spent eight months turning Iwo Jima into a fortress.
01:1418 kilometers of tunnels, concrete pillboxes, hidden artillery, and Hill 382, the highest elevation north of Mount Suribachi, anchored the
01:24entire defensive system.
01:26Marines called this sector the meat grinder.
01:29The name was not metaphorical.
01:31In the seven days since the landing, the 23rd Marines had lost nearly half their strength.
01:37Company after company had tried to take Hill 382.
01:40Every assault ended the same way.
01:42Japanese gunners waited until Marines crossed open ground, then opened fire from positions the bombardment had failed to destroy.
01:50Sherman tanks burned.
01:52Flamethrower teams died before reaching their targets.
01:55Entire squads vanished into the volcanic ash.
01:58Hill 382 rose 125 feet above the black beaches.
02:02The Japanese had carved the summit into a maze of interconnected bunkers and fighting positions.
02:0757-millimeter anti-tank guns commanded every approach.
02:11Machine gun nests covered the flanks.
02:14Light tanks sat buried in crevices, invisible until they fired.
02:18And at the base of the hill, a 20-millimeter anti-aircraft gun swept the killing ground with devastating effect.
02:24Jacobson watched the two-man bazooka team move forward.
02:28The loader carried four M6A3 rockets in a canvas bag.
02:32The gunner held the launcher itself, a steel tube four and a half feet long, weighing 13 pounds.
02:38They advanced 15 yards.
02:40The anti-aircraft gun opened fire.
02:43Both Marines went down.
02:45The bazooka fell into the ash.
02:47Company eye was stuck.
02:48Without that anti-aircraft gun destroyed, the entire assault would collapse.
02:52The company had already lost 17 men killed and 26 wounded in the first 30 minutes of the attack.
02:59The Japanese defenders were invisible.
03:01Every rock could hide a rifle pit.
03:04Every depression could conceal a machine gun nest.
03:07Marines were dying without ever seeing the enemy.
03:10Jacobson looked at the bazooka lying in the open.
03:12It was designed for two men, one to aim and fire, one to load the rocket and connect the electrical
03:18ignition wire.
03:19Nobody operated a bazooka alone.
03:21The back blast alone could injure an isolated gunner.
03:24The weight made solo operation nearly impossible.
03:28And reloading under fire was a two-man job.
03:31But the two men were dead.
03:33If you want to see how Jacobson's decision turned out, please hit that like button.
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03:42Back to Jacobson.
03:43The anti-aircraft gun fired another burst.
03:45Three more Marines dropped.
03:47Company I had been fighting for Hill 382 for over an hour.
03:51The Japanese positions seemed impenetrable.
03:54Higher command was watching.
03:56Failure here meant failure across the entire 4th Marine Division front.
04:00And beyond Hill 382 lay the amphitheater, Turkey Knob, and the ruins of Minami Village.
04:06All of them bristling with enemy guns.
04:10Jacobson grabbed his rifle and moved toward the bazooka.
04:13The volcanic ash gave no cover.
04:16Japanese riflemen had clear lines of sight.
04:19One Marine had already tried to recover the weapon.
04:23He made it five yards before a sniper found him.
04:26Jacobson kept moving.
04:27He reached the bazooka.
04:29Grabbed it.
04:30Four rockets remained in the dead loader's bag.
04:33He slung the canvas over his shoulder and lifted the launcher tube.
04:38Thirteen pounds of steel.
04:40Four rockets at eleven pounds each.
04:43Sixty-seven pounds total.
04:45And he had to run.
04:47The anti-aircraft gun tracked him.
04:51Jacobson ran.
04:52The anti-aircraft gun fired.
04:54Rounds tore through the air inches from his head.
04:56He dove behind a cluster of shattered rocks thirty yards from the Japanese position.
05:01Volcanic dust covered his uniform.
05:03The bazooka tube was hot from the morning sun.
05:06He had never fired a bazooka alone.
05:09Training taught a strict protocol.
05:11Gunner takes position.
05:13Loader inserts rocket from the rear.
05:15Loader connects ignition wire to the contact spring.
05:18Loader taps Gunner's helmet.
05:20Gunner ensures backblast area is clear.
05:22Gunner fires.
05:23Gunner fires.
05:24The process required coordination between two trained men working in sequence.
05:29Jacobson had no loader.
05:30He set the launcher tube on the ground.
05:32Pulled one M6A3 rocket from the canvas bag.
05:36The rocket measured nineteen inches long.
05:39Its shaped charge warhead contained one point six pounds of high explosive.
05:43Six stabilizing fins folded against the body.
05:46He inserted the rocket into the rear of the tube until it locked.
05:50Then he pulled the coiled wire from the rocket's tail assembly and wrapped it around the contact spring mounted on
05:55the launcher.
05:56His hands moved fast.
05:58The Japanese gun crew knew someone was behind the rocks.
06:01They were adjusting their aim.
06:03Jacobson lifted the launcher onto his shoulder.
06:05The weight pulled him off balance.
06:07He braced his left hand under the tube.
06:10Right hand gripped the wooden stock trigger mechanism.
06:13The latter sight showed graduations for 100, 200, 300, and 400 yards.
06:19He estimated the anti-aircraft gun at 80 yards.
06:22The rear of the tube was open.
06:24When he fired, the backblast would erupt behind him in a cone of superheated gas extending 15 meters.
06:30Anyone standing there would be burned.
06:33But there was nobody behind him.
06:35He was alone.
06:35He rose from cover.
06:38Sighted.
06:38Pulled the trigger.
06:40The electrical circuit closed.
06:42The rocket motor ignited inside the tube.
06:44The M6A3 shot forward at 80 meters per second.
06:49Fire and smoke erupted from both ends of the launcher.
06:52The recoil was minimal, but the blast wave hammered his ears.
06:56The rocket crossed 80 yards in one second.
06:59It struck the anti-aircraft gun's shield dead center.
07:04The shaped charge detonated.
07:06A jet of molten copper penetrated the steel at 6,000 meters per second.
07:12The warhead exploded.
07:14The gun and its four-man crew disintegrated in a flash of orange flame.
07:20Company I started moving forward.
07:22Jacobson dropped flat.
07:24Reloaded.
07:24He worked the process backwards, alone, without help.
07:28Pulled the second rocket from the bag.
07:31Inserted it from the rear.
07:33Connected the wire.
07:34Lifted the tube.
07:35The entire reload took him 40 seconds.
07:38A trained two-man team could do it in 12.
07:41Two Japanese machine gun positions opened fire from higher up the slope.
07:46They had been waiting for the Marines to advance.
07:49Now they cut down three men in the first burst.
07:52Company I went to ground again.
07:54Jacobson saw the muzzle flashes.
07:57Both guns were dug into earth-covered emplacements 70 yards uphill.
08:01The positions were invisible from the front.
08:04Only their firing gave them away.
08:06He moved right, flanking the first position.
08:10Volcanic rock gave partial cover.
08:12The machine gun tracked other targets, suppressing the main Marine advance.
08:17Jacobson reached a position 40 yards from the emplacement.
08:21He could see the barrel now, traversing left and right.
08:24He shouldered the bazooka.
08:26Aimed.
08:27Fired.
08:28The rocket hit the earthen cover and penetrated before detonating.
08:33The machine gun and its crew vanished in the explosion.
08:36Dirt and debris rained down the slope.
08:39The second machine gun swung toward him.
08:42Jacobson was already moving.
08:44He dove behind a depression in the ground as bullets tore through the space where he had been standing.
08:50His ears rang from the bazooka's backblast.
08:53He had two rockets left.
08:54The second machine gun was now hunting him specifically.
08:58He crawled 20 yards left.
09:00The gun crew was trying to locate him.
09:03They fired bursts at suspected positions.
09:06Jacobson waited until they paused to reload.
09:08Then he stood.
09:10Shouldered the launcher.
09:11The machine gun crew saw him.
09:13They swung the barrel.
09:14Jacobson fired first.
09:16The rocket struck the gun mount.
09:18The explosion was smaller this time, but effective.
09:21The machine gun fell silent.
09:23Jacobson saw one Japanese soldier crawl from the wreckage, wounded.
09:27A marine rifleman from Company I shot him.
09:30Three targets down.
09:32Thirteen to go.
09:33But now Jacobson faced a bigger problem.
09:36Ahead, blocking the route to the summit, stood a reinforced blockhouse built from concrete and volcanic rock.
09:43Artillery had failed to destroy it.
09:45And inside were at least a dozen Japanese defenders with rifles and grenades.
09:50He had one rocket left.
09:54The blockhouse sat 50 yards uphill.
09:56Its walls were three feet of reinforced concrete faced with volcanic rock.
10:01The structure measured roughly 12 feet by 15 feet.
10:04A single firing slit faced downslope, covering the approach with interlocking fields of fire from the machine gun positions Jacobson
10:12had just destroyed.
10:13American naval gunfire had hit this blockhouse repeatedly during the pre-invasion bombardment.
10:1916-inch shells from battleships.
10:218-inch rounds from cruisers.
10:23The structure showed scorch marks and concrete chips.
10:26But the walls still stood.
10:28And inside, Japanese defenders waited with rifles ready.
10:32Jacobson had one M6A3 rocket.
10:35The shaped charge could penetrate armor, but concrete was different.
10:39The warhead would blow a hole in the wall.
10:42Whether that hole would be large enough to neutralize the position was uncertain.
10:46He needed a different solution.
10:48He moved laterally across the slope, staying low.
10:51The blockhouse firing slit faced southwest, covering the main marine avenue of approach.
10:56If he could reach the northern side, he might find a blind spot.
10:59The Japanese had built their defenses, assuming attackers would come from the beach.
11:04They had not expected a lone marine to flank their positions from within their own defensive perimeter.
11:09Jacobson crawled 40 yards through volcanic ash and shattered rock.
11:13His uniform was black with dust.
11:15The bazooka tube scraped against stone.
11:18Behind him, Company I remained pinned down, taking sporadic fire from other positions higher on Hill 382.
11:24He reached the northern face of the blockhouse.
11:28No firing slits on this side.
11:30The structure had been built into the hillside, using the natural slope for additional protection.
11:34But the rear entrance was visible.
11:37A low opening, barely three feet high, covered by a wooden frame.
11:41Jacobson set down the bazooka.
11:43He still had the one loaded rocket, but firing it into the entrance from ten feet away would be suicide.
11:49The backblast, in the confined space, would kill him as surely as it would kill the Japanese inside.
11:55He needed the rocket for something else.
11:57He pulled a fragmentation grenade from his belt.
12:00Then he picked up the bazooka again and moved to within 15 feet of the entrance.
12:05He could hear voices inside.
12:07Japanese.
12:08At least six men, maybe more.
12:11He shouldered the launcher, aimed at the wooden entrance frame.
12:15Fired.
12:16The rocket hit the frame and detonated.
12:19The explosion blew the entrance open, collapsing part of the rear wall.
12:24Dust and smoke poured from the opening.
12:27Jacobson dropped the bazooka tube and pulled the pin on his grenade.
12:30He counted two seconds, then threw it through the smoking entrance.
12:34The grenade detonated inside the blockhouse.
12:37Screams.
12:38Then silence.
12:40Jacobson waited.
12:42Nothing moved.
12:43He circled to the firing slit.
12:45Looked inside.
12:46The interior was devastated.
12:49Bodies.
12:50Rubble.
12:51The position was neutralized.
12:53Four targets down.
12:55Twelve to go.
12:56But now he had no rockets.
12:58The bazooka was useless without ammunition.
13:01He picked up his rifle and started back down the slope toward Company I's position.
13:06As he moved, he passed the bodies of the original bazooka team.
13:10The loader's canvas bag was still there.
13:13Jacobson checked it.
13:14Empty.
13:15He looked across the volcanic ash field.
13:18Two hundred yards back, near where Company I had started the assault, he could see the supply point.
13:24Ammunition crates, medical supplies, and boxes of bazooka rockets stacked behind a low wall of sandbags.
13:31The entire area was under Japanese observation from higher positions.
13:36Mortar fire had been falling there intermittently all morning.
13:40Three Marines had already been killed trying to bring ammunition forward.
13:45Jacobson started moving toward the supply point.
13:47He stayed low, using every depression and rock cluster for cover.
13:52Japanese snipers were active.
13:54One round cracked past his head.
13:57Another hit the ground two feet to his left.
13:59He reached the supply point, found a crate marked M6A3 rockets, pulled it open.
14:06Twelve rockets inside, packed in individual cardboard tubes.
14:09He grabbed four, shoving them into the canvas bag he had taken from the dead loader.
14:14A mortar round hit thirty yards away.
14:17Shrapnel whined overhead.
14:19Jacobson ran back toward the slope, carrying the bazooka tube in one hand and the bag of rockets in the
14:25other.
14:26Company I was still pinned down.
14:27Higher on hill 382, a second pillbox had opened fire.
14:32This one was smaller than the blockhouse, but just as deadly.
14:36Five-man crew, heavy machine gun, and a perfect position covering the eastern approach.
14:42Jacobson loaded a fresh rocket.
14:44The pillbox was ninety yards uphill.
14:47He found cover behind a cluster of rocks and began his approach.
14:50The Japanese inside had seen him destroy the blockhouse.
14:54They knew what was coming.
14:58The pillbox crew opened fire early.
15:01Too early.
15:02Jacobson was still eighty yards out when the first burst kicked up volcanic ash ten feet to his right.
15:08They were nervous.
15:09The blockhouse destruction had rattled them.
15:12Nervous defenders made mistakes.
15:14Jacobson zigzagged uphill, using the terrain.
15:17The pillbox machine gun tracked him, but the gunner was firing in short bursts, trying to conserve ammunition.
15:23Each burst gave Jacobson three seconds to move before the next one came.
15:27He covered fifteen yards, then twenty.
15:30The gun fell silent.
15:32Reloading.
15:33He dove behind a depression and shouldered the bazooka.
15:36The pillbox was now sixty-five yards away.
15:39He could see the concrete structure partially buried in volcanic rock.
15:43The firing slit was narrow, designed to minimize exposure while maintaining a wide field of fire.
15:49But narrow slits created a problem for defenders.
15:52Limited traverse.
15:53The machine gun could only swing so far left or right before hitting the concrete edges of the opening.
15:59Jacobson moved right, forcing the gun crew to adjust their position.
16:03The barrel swung to track him.
16:05He kept moving.
16:07The barrel reached its maximum traverse.
16:09The firing stopped.
16:10The crew was repositioning the gun mount inside the pillbox.
16:14Jacobson stopped moving.
16:16Ained.
16:17Fired.
16:18The rocket crossed the distance in under a second.
16:21It entered the firing slit and detonated inside the pillbox.
16:25The shape-charge warhead was designed to penetrate armor.
16:29Inside a confined concrete space, the effect was catastrophic.
16:33The explosion blew out through every opening.
16:36Fire and smoke erupted from the entrance.
16:38The machine gun went silent.
16:41Jacobson waited.
16:42Nothing moved inside.
16:44He reloaded and moved forward cautiously.
16:47At twenty yards, he could see into the entrance.
16:50The five-man crew was dead.
16:52The interior was destroyed.
16:54Spent brass from the machine gun covered the floor.
16:57Five targets down.
16:59Eleven to go.
17:00Company I was advancing again.
17:03Jacobson could see Marines moving up the slope in small groups, using the positions he had cleared as cover points.
17:08They were making progress.
17:10But ahead, the terrain became worse.
17:14Hill 382's western face was a maze of volcanic rock formations, shattered terrain, and interconnected defensive positions.
17:21The Japanese had spent months preparing these defenses.
17:24Every approach was covered.
17:26Every avenue of advance channeled attackers into kill zones.
17:30Jacobson moved higher.
17:32Fifty yards ahead, he spotted an earth-covered rifle emplacement.
17:35Not a pillbox.
17:36Not a bunker.
17:38Just a hole in the ground, with overhead cover made from logs and volcanic rock.
17:42Two Japanese riflemen inside, firing at the advancing Marines below.
17:46The emplacement was crude, but effective.
17:49Artillery bombardment had failed to destroy it because the earth-covering absorbed the blast.
17:54Direct fire could not reach it because of the angle.
17:57And the riflemen inside had excellent visibility across the entire western slope.
18:02Jacobson flanked left.
18:03The rifle emplacement was positioned to cover down-slope targets.
18:07The defenders were not watching their flanks.
18:09He reached the position 40 yards away, slightly above the emplacement.
18:13He loaded a rocket.
18:15Aimed downward at the overhead cover.
18:17Fired.
18:19The rocket hit the logs and earth-covering, penetrated, and detonated inside.
18:23The emplacement collapsed.
18:25The firing stopped.
18:27Six targets down.
18:28Ten to go.
18:29But now Jacobson faced the most dangerous section of Hill 382.
18:33Ahead, forming a semicircular defensive perimeter around the summit approach,
18:37sat six interconnected positions.
18:40Each one supporting the others.
18:42Rifle pits.
18:43Machine gun nests.
18:44Mortar positions.
18:45All carefully sited to create overlapping fields of fire.
18:49The Japanese had designed this cluster as the final killing ground.
18:53Even if attackers broke through the lower defenses,
18:55this perimeter would stop them.
18:57The 23rd Marines had tried to assault this position twice already.
19:01Both attempts had failed with heavy casualties.
19:04Jacobson had three rockets left.
19:06Six targets.
19:07The mathematics were simple.
19:09He would run out of ammunition before he ran out of positions.
19:13He needed to go back for more rockets.
19:15The supply point was now 300 yards behind him.
19:18The entire route was exposed to Japanese observation from the summit.
19:23Mortar crews had zeroed in on the most obvious paths.
19:26Snipers covered the open ground.
19:28And the Japanese defenders in the six-position cluster had certainly seen him by now.
19:33They would be waiting for him to return.
19:36Jacobson started moving downhill.
19:38He stayed in the depression lines, avoiding the ridges.
19:41A mortar round hit 50 yards to his left.
19:44Then another, closer.
19:46The Japanese were bracketing him.
19:48The next round would find the range.
19:50He sprinted the last 100 yards to the supply point.
19:54Grabbed another four rockets.
19:56A mortar round impacted 20 yards away.
19:59Shrapnel screamed overhead.
20:01He threw himself flat as a second round hit even closer.
20:04Then he ran back uphill, carrying 67 pounds of weapons and ammunition,
20:09while Japanese mortars walked across the slope, trying to kill him.
20:15Jacobson reached the cluster of six positions at 10.30 in the morning.
20:19He had been fighting for 90 minutes.
20:21His uniform was soaked with sweat despite the cool February air.
20:26His ears rang from the bazooka's repeated backblast.
20:29His shoulder was bruised from the launcher's recoil.
20:32He had four rockets.
20:34Six targets.
20:35He would need to make choices.
20:37The six positions formed a defensive arc roughly 60 yards across.
20:42The Japanese had built them to support each other.
20:45If he attacked the leftmost position,
20:46the others would have clear shots at him.
20:49If he attacked from the center, all six could engage simultaneously.
20:53The positions were spaced 15 to 20 yards apart,
20:56close enough for defenders to provide mutual support,
20:59but far enough that a single rocket could not destroy multiple emplacements.
21:04Jacobson studied the layout.
21:05The rightmost position was a rifle pit.
21:08Two men.
21:09The second was a machine gun nest,
21:11partially concealed behind volcanic rock.
21:13The third and fourth were mortar positions.
21:16The fifth was another rifle pit.
21:18The sixth was a reinforced observation post with a clear view of the entire western slope.
21:23He made his decision.
21:25Take the observation post first.
21:27Without spotters, the other positions would be fighting blind.
21:30He moved wide right, circling outside the defensive perimeter.
21:34The route took him through broken ground studded with sharp volcanic rock that tore at his uniform.
21:40Japanese defenders in the positions were focused downslope, watching for the main marine advance.
21:46They were not expecting an attack from their flank.
21:49Jacobson reached a position 70 yards from the observation post.
21:52He loaded a rocket, shouldered the launcher, and fired.
21:56The rocket hit the observation post's reinforced wall and detonated.
22:00The explosion collapsed one side of the structure.
22:04Jacobson reloaded immediately, fired a second rocket into the smoking ruins.
22:08The observation post disintegrated.
22:10Two Japanese soldiers stumbled out, wounded.
22:13Marine riflemen from Company I, now advancing up the slope, shot both.
22:18Jacobson did not wait to see the result.
22:21He was already moving toward the next position.
22:23The rifle pit.
22:25Two Japanese soldiers with Arisaka rifles.
22:27They had seen the observation post explode.
22:30They were scanning the flanks, trying to locate the threat.
22:34Jacobson was 40 yards away when one of them spotted him.
22:38The soldier raised his rifle.
22:40Jacobson dove behind cover as the shot cracked past.
22:43He had two rockets left, five targets remaining.
22:47He could not waste ammunition on a two-man rifle pit.
22:50He pulled a fragmentation grenade from his belt, waited three seconds, then stood and threw.
22:56The grenade arced through the air and dropped into the rifle pit.
23:00The explosion killed both defenders.
23:03Four rockets expended.
23:05Two grenades used.
23:07Eight positions destroyed.
23:08Eight to go.
23:10The remaining four positions in the cluster opened fire.
23:13Machine gun rounds tore through the air around Jacobson.
23:17Mortar crews were adjusting their aim.
23:18He could hear the distinctive thump of rounds leaving the tubes.
23:23He had maybe ten seconds before they landed.
23:25He ran left, away from his last position.
23:29The mortars hit where he had been.
23:31Shrapnel whined through the air.
23:33He kept moving, found cover behind a low ridge of volcanic rock.
23:37The machine gun in the second position was tracking him.
23:41Short bursts.
23:42Disciplined fire.
23:43The gunner was skilled.
23:45Jacobson could not move without exposing himself to that gun.
23:49He loaded his third to last rocket.
23:51The machine gun nest was 50 yards away, built into a natural depression in the slope.
23:57Good cover.
23:58Good fields of fire.
24:00Difficult target.
24:01Jacobson waited for the machine gun to fire.
24:04Counted the burst.
24:05Five rounds.
24:07The gunner was conserving ammunition.
24:09During the pause, Jacobson rose, aimed, and fired.
24:14The rocket hit the depression edge and detonated.
24:17The machine gun went silent.
24:20Jacobson did not know if he had destroyed the position or just suppressed it.
24:24He reloaded.
24:25A Japanese soldier appeared from the smoking position, running toward the next rifle pit.
24:30Jacobson shot him with his M1 Garand.
24:32The soldier fell.
24:33Two rockets left.
24:35Three positions remaining in the cluster.
24:38Two mortar pits and one rifle pit.
24:40The mortar crews were the priority.
24:42They were dropping rounds on Company I, preventing the Marines from advancing.
24:47Jacobson moved uphill, angling toward the first mortar position.
24:5060 yards away.
24:52The crew was reloading.
24:53They had not seen him yet.
24:55He shouldered the bazooka.
24:57Aimed.
24:57Fired.
24:58The rocket hit the mortar pit dead center.
25:01The explosion was massive.
25:03The mortar tube launched into the air, tumbling end over end before crashing back to earth 30 yards away.
25:10Two Japanese soldiers died instantly.
25:12A third crawled from the wreckage, his uniform on fire.
25:16One rocket left.
25:18Two positions remaining.
25:19Jacobson reloaded his final M6A3.
25:22The second mortar position was 40 yards uphill.
25:25The rifle pit was between him and the mortar.
25:28Three Japanese soldiers in the rifle pit.
25:30Two in the mortar position.
25:32Five men.
25:33One rocket.
25:34He made a choice.
25:37Jacobson aimed at the mortar position.
25:39Fired his last rocket.
25:41The M6A3 hit the mortar pit and detonated.
25:44The two-man crew died instantly.
25:46The mortar tube flipped backward from the blast, its base plate torn from the ground.
25:52Twelve positions destroyed.
25:53The rifle pit remained.
25:55Three Japanese soldiers in the pit saw Jacobson.
25:58They opened fire with their Arasaka rifles.
26:01Rounds snapped past his head.
26:03He dropped the empty bazooka tube and unslung his M1 Garand.
26:07Eight rounds in the clip.
26:08Three targets at 40 yards.
26:10He fired.
26:11The first soldier dropped.
26:13Fired again.
26:14The second soldier fell back into the pit.
26:16The third soldier tried to climb out and run.
26:18Jacobson shot him in the back.
26:20The six-position cluster was destroyed.
26:23Thirteen enemy positions neutralized since 0900.
26:26The route to Hill 382's summit was open.
26:29Company I began advancing past the positions Jacobson had cleared.
26:33Marines moved in small groups, weapons ready, expecting more resistance.
26:37But the Japanese defensive line had broken.
26:40The positions Jacobson destroyed had been the anchor points.
26:43Without them, the remaining defenders higher on the hill were isolated.
26:47Jacobson looked downslope.
26:49To his left, across a shallow ravine, another Marine company was pinned down.
26:54He could see Marines crouched behind rocks, unable to move.
26:57They were taking heavy fire from a position Jacobson could not see from his angle.
27:01The company was part of the 24th Marines, attached to support the 23rd's assault.
27:06They had been trying to advance up the eastern approach to Hill 382 while Company I attacked from the west.
27:12But something had stopped them.
27:14The entire company was stuck 200 yards from the summit.
27:17Jacobson had no more bazooka rockets, but he could see what was holding up the advance.
27:21A pillbox, concrete and volcanic rock, built into the hillside overlooking the eastern approach.
27:27The firing slit faced directly down the ravine, creating a killing field no Marine could cross.
27:34He picked up the empty bazooka tube, started moving downslope toward the supply point again.
27:39His legs ached.
27:41His shoulder throbbed from the launcher's repeated recoil.
27:44He had been fighting for nearly two hours without water.
27:47The supply point had moved forward.
27:49Marines had dragged ammunition crates up the slope as Company I advanced.
27:55Jacobson found the new position behind a cluster of rocks 70 yards downhill.
28:00More M6A3 rockets.
28:02He loaded four into the canvas bag.
28:05Then, he moved across the ravine toward the pinned down company.
28:09The route took him through exposed ground.
28:12Japanese snipers were still active.
28:14One round hit the volcanic ash two feet to his right.
28:17Another cracked overhead.
28:19He reached the Marine Company's position.
28:22A captain saw him coming with the bazooka and pointed uphill toward the pillbox.
28:27Jacobson nodded.
28:28He had already identified the target.
28:30The pillbox was 80 yards away, elevated 15 feet above the ravine floor.
28:36Its position gave the defenders perfect observation and fields of fire.
28:41The concrete structure showed no damage from the naval bombardment, and the firing slit was positioned to cover every approach
28:48route.
28:49Jacobson moved right, working his way up the ravine's edge.
28:53The pillbox crew was focused on the Marines directly below them.
28:57They were firing methodical bursts from what sounded like a Type 92 heavy machine gun, 7.7 millimeter, 600 rounds
29:06per minute.
29:07Effective range, 800 meters.
29:10At this distance, the gun was devastating.
29:13Jacobson climbed higher, using dead ground to mask his movement.
29:17The pillbox crew could not depress their gun low enough to engage targets directly beneath their position.
29:24He exploited that blind spot, moving through terrain they could not cover.
29:28He reached a position 50 yards from the pillbox, slightly below its level.
29:33He loaded a rocket.
29:35The angle was difficult.
29:37Firing upward reduced the rocket's effective range and accuracy.
29:40But the pillbox slit was visible.
29:43Three feet wide.
29:44Eighteen inches tall.
29:46If he could put a rocket through that opening, the shaped charge would detonate inside.
29:52He aimed.
29:53Compensated for the upward angle.
29:56Fired.
29:56The rocket climbed.
29:58Hit the concrete wall two feet above the slit.
30:01Detonated.
30:03Chunks of concrete rained down, but the pillbox was intact.
30:06The machine gun kept firing.
30:09Jacobson reloaded.
30:11Adjusted his aim downward.
30:13Fired again.
30:14The second rocket entered the firing slit and detonated inside the pillbox.
30:19Fire and smoke erupted from every opening.
30:22The machine gun fell silent.
30:24The position was destroyed.
30:26Fourteen positions down.
30:29Two to go.
30:30The marine company below began advancing.
30:33They moved quickly, exploiting the silence from the pillbox.
30:37Within minutes, they had crossed the ravine and were climbing toward the summit.
30:41But Jacobson heard something that stopped him.
30:44A different sound.
30:46Mechanical.
30:47Grinding.
30:48The distinctive noise of an engine in tracks on volcanic rock.
30:52A Japanese tank was moving up from the eastern base of Hill 382.
30:58The tank was a Type 95 Hago.
31:01Light tank.
31:02Seven tons.
31:03Diesel engine.
31:0537 millimeter main gun.
31:07Two Type 97 machine guns.
31:09Crew of three.
31:10The Japanese had been using these tanks as mobile pillboxes on Iwo Jima, positioning them
31:15in crevices and depressions where American naval gunfire could not reach them.
31:19This one was moving up the eastern slope, grinding through volcanic ash at 8 kilometers
31:24per hour.
31:25Its turret traversed left and right, searching for targets.
31:28The tank commander had spotted the marine advance and was moving to intercept.
31:32Jacobson watched from 70 yards away.
31:35The tank was below him, working its way up a shallow draw that led toward the summit.
31:39Behind the tank, he could see the marine company he had just helped.
31:43They were advancing in the open, unaware of the threat.
31:46The tank stopped.
31:47The turret swung toward the marines.
31:49The 37 millimeter gun elevated.
31:52Jacobson loaded a rocket.
31:54The Type 95's armor was thin.
31:5614 millimeters on the front.
31:5812 millimeters on the sides.
32:006 millimeters on the top.
32:01The M6A3's shaped charge could penetrate up to 100 millimeters of steel.
32:07The tank was vulnerable from any angle.
32:09But tanks were dangerous targets.
32:11Even light tanks.
32:13The Hago had a crew trained to operate under fire.
32:16And if Jacobson missed, the tank would turn its guns on him.
32:19He aimed at the turret.
32:21The Japanese tank commander was visible through the open hatch, scanning for targets.
32:25Jacobson fired.
32:26The rocket hit the turret's left side and detonated.
32:29The shaped charge penetrated the thin armor and exploded inside.
32:33The turret mechanism jammed.
32:35Smoke poured from the hatch.
32:37The tank's engine kept running, but the gun could no longer traverse.
32:40The tank was damaged, but not destroyed.
32:43The hull machine guns were still operational.
32:46One of them opened fire, spraying rounds across the slope.
32:49Marines dove for cover.
32:51Jacobson reloaded.
32:52The tank was trying to reverse, backing down the draw to escape.
32:56The driver could not see Jacobson's position.
32:58The damaged turret blocked his view upslope.
33:02Jacobson moved left, flanking the tank.
33:04He reached a position 60 yards away with a clear shot at the tank's rear.
33:09The engine compartment.
33:11The thinnest armor.
33:126 millimeters.
33:14He aimed.
33:15Fired.
33:16The rocket hit the engine deck and penetrated.
33:20The explosion was immediate.
33:22The diesel fuel ignited.
33:24Fire erupted from the engine compartment and spread into the crew compartment through the damaged turret.
33:29Two Japanese crewmen bailed out, their uniforms burning.
33:34Marine riflemen shot both.
33:36The tank burned.
33:38Black smoke rose into the morning sky.
33:4115 positions destroyed.
33:43One to go.
33:45Jacobson had one rocket left.
33:47He looked uphill toward the summit of Hill 382.
33:50The final Japanese position was visible now.
33:53A large blockhouse, bigger than the others.
33:56Concrete walls.
33:57Multiple firing slits.
33:59The structure dominated the summit approach.
34:02This was the last strong point.
34:04If he could destroy it, Hill 382 would fall.
34:08He started climbing.
34:10The slope was steep.
34:11Volcanic ash gave way under his boots.
34:14He was exhausted.
34:16Two hours of continuous combat.
34:1867 pounds of equipment.
34:20No water.
34:22No rest.
34:23Behind him, Company I and the attached Marines from the 24th were advancing together now.
34:29They had linked up at the ravine.
34:31Combined strength may be 80 men.
34:34Enough to take the summit once the last blockhouse was neutralized.
34:38Jacobson reached a position 40 yards from the blockhouse.
34:41He could see Japanese soldiers moving inside through the firing slits.
34:45At least six men.
34:46Maybe more.
34:47They had rifles.
34:49Grenades.
34:50And they knew he was coming.
34:51The blockhouse had been built to withstand naval bombardment.
34:55Its walls were four feet thick.
34:57Reinforced concrete mixed with volcanic rock.
35:00The roof was covered with additional layers of earth and stone.
35:04A direct hit from a battleship's 16-inch gun had failed to destroy it.
35:09Jacobson had one rocket.
35:11He studied the structure.
35:12The firing slits were narrow.
35:14Too narrow to guarantee a rocket would enter.
35:17If he missed, the rocket would detonate against the exterior wall.
35:21The explosion might damage the structure, but would not neutralize it.
35:25And the Japanese inside would kill him before he could reload.
35:29He needed a different approach.
35:32Jacobson moved right, circling toward the blockhouse's rear.
35:35The route took him through exposed ground.
35:38Japanese soldiers inside could see him through the firing slits.
35:42They opened fire.
35:44Rifle rounds cracked past his head.
35:46He dove behind a cluster of rocks.
35:48From this angle, he could see the blockhouse entrance.
35:52A reinforced door.
35:53Steel frame.
35:54Wooden panels.
35:55The door faced away from the main American advance.
35:59The Japanese had not expected anyone to reach this side of their defenses.
36:03Jacobson loaded his final rocket.
36:05Aimed at the door.
36:07Fired.
36:08The rocket hit the steel frame and detonated.
36:11The door blew inward.
36:12The explosion collapsed part of the entrance structure.
36:15Smoke and dust poured out.
36:18Jacobson dropped the bazooka tube.
36:19Drew his M1 Garand.
36:21Pulled two grenades from his belt.
36:23And charged the smoking entrance.
36:27Jacobson threw the first grenade through the shattered entrance.
36:30The explosion echoed inside the blockhouse.
36:33He threw the second grenade.
36:35Another detonation.
36:36Then he entered, rifle ready.
36:39The interior was chaos.
36:42Smoke.
36:42Debris.
36:43Bodies.
36:44Japanese soldiers wounded from the grenade blasts.
36:48Jacobson fired.
36:49Worked through the blockhouse room by room.
36:51The fighting was close.
36:54The fighting was close.
36:54Brutal.
36:55Hand to hand in some corners.
36:57His M1 Garand ran empty.
36:59He drew his pistol.
37:01Kept moving.
37:02Within two minutes, the blockhouse was silent.
37:0516 enemy positions destroyed.
37:0975 Japanese defenders killed.
37:1230 minutes of continuous action from 0900 to 0930.
37:17Then, another 90 minutes clearing the remaining positions up the slope.
37:22Private First Class Douglas Jacobson, 19 years old, had broken the Japanese defensive line on Hill 382.
37:31Behind him, Company I reached the summit.
37:35Marines poured through the gap Jacobson had created.
37:38By noon, the 23rd Marines held the high ground.
37:42By 1300 hours, they had begun clearing the reverse slope.
37:46Hill 382, the anchor of the entire Japanese defensive system on Iwo Jima, had fallen.
37:54The cost had been severe.
37:56Company I had lost 43 men killed or wounded.
38:00The 23rd Marines, as a whole, suffered 50% casualties since landing on February 19th.
38:07But Hill 382 was American ground now.
38:11Jacobson walked down the slope at 1400 hours.
38:15His uniform was torn.
38:17His face was black with volcanic dust and powder residue.
38:21He carried the empty bazooka tube in one hand.
38:24A Navy corpsman checked him for wounds.
38:26Minor cuts, bruises, severe dehydration.
38:31No serious injuries.
38:33Someone asked him how he had done it.
38:35Jacobson said he did not know.
38:37He had one thing in mind.
38:39Getting off that hill.
38:42The battle for Iwo Jima continued for three more weeks.
38:45The island was not declared secured until March 16th.
38:506,821 Marines died.
38:5317,000 were wounded.
38:55Of the 21,000 Japanese defenders, only 216 surrendered.
39:0027 Marines and sailors earned the Medal of Honor at Iwo Jima, more than any other single battle in American
39:07history.
39:08Douglas Jacobson was promoted to corporal in April 1945.
39:12He returned to the United States in September and reported to Headquarters Marine Corps in Washington.
39:17On October 5, 1945, President Harry Truman presented him with the Medal of Honor during a ceremony at the White
39:24House.
39:25Jacqueline Lucas, the youngest Medal of Honor recipient from Iwo Jima, received his medal the same day.
39:31Jacobson was discharged in December 1945.
39:34He re-enlisted in April 1946.
39:37Attended Officer Candidate School at Quantico.
39:41Commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in March 1954.
39:44Served in Japan, Okinawa, China, Vietnam.
39:48Before retiring, his commanding officer informed him he was the only officer in the Marine Corps without a high school
39:55diploma.
39:56Jacobson took the GED exam.
39:58Passed.
39:59Received his diploma in 1967.
40:02Then retired as a major after 24 years of service.
40:05He moved to New Jersey.
40:07Worked as a real estate agent.
40:09Married a teacher he had met in Okinawa.
40:11Moved to Florida in 1987.
40:14Rarely spoke about the war unless someone asked.
40:16Douglas Jacobson died on August 20, 2000, in Port Charlotte, Florida.
40:22Congestive heart failure and pneumonia.
40:24He was 74 years old.
40:26He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
40:29The state of Florida named a veterans' nursing home after him.
40:33The Douglas T. Jacobson State Veterans Nursing Home in Port Charlotte stands today.
40:38Caring for veterans who followed the same path he walked.
40:4116 positions.
40:4375 enemies.
40:4430 minutes.
40:45One Marine.
40:46One bazooka meant for two men.
40:49Hill 382 fell because Douglas Jacobson refused to stop.
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41:09Stories about Marines who saved their companies with weapons designed for two men.
41:13Real people, real people, real heroism.
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