Baldwinsville Messenger readers were introduced to my brother, paratrooper and cartoonist Sgt. Dick Dahlin, in the April 20, 2022 ,issue that revisited the VE Day (Victory in Europe) anniversary ending Hitler’s reign. As the Allies celebrated the defeat of the Nazis in Europe, American soldiers like my brother were still facing nightmarish predictions in the upcoming invasion of Japan.
On Aug. 6, 1945, the United States detonated an enriched uranium gun-type fission weapon with the codename “Little Boy” over the city of Hiroshima. The explosion immediately killed 80,00 people; tens of thousands later died of radiation poisoning. Today this event is steeped in controversy; however, in 1945, it was celebrated.
Nagasaki was bombed three days later, bringing similar death and destruction. “Fat Man,” a plutonium implosion-type nuclear weapon, immediately killed as many as 40,000 people. As in Hiroshima, tens of thousands suffered the effects of radiation in the years that followed.
The Japanese Supreme Council met to discuss surrender but were deadlocked. Emperor Hirohito broke the tie, deciding it was time for Japan to end the war. He broadcasted Japan’s surrender over the radio on Aug. 15, blaming the atomic bomb.
President Harry S. Truman declared Sept. 2, 1945, as VJ Day, thus ending WWII.
When the first atomic bomb was dropped my brother Dick was in Auxerre, France, training with the 101st Airborne Division for the invasion of Japan. A photo of him, during this training in full paratrooper gear, shows him after he landed in a beet field.
Changing views
The Hiroshima bombing transformed the average GI’s WWII viewpoint. At worst, these men feared being killed or wounded during this invasion or at best expected to spend many years supporting the occupation of Japan. The bombs allowed military personnel to begin thinking about early discharge. Dick’s cartoons and supporting information provide a rare look at this transformation.
Two of his works are shown. The first cartoon features a soldier blowing up a tank using a sling shot and an atomic pellet as a flabbergasted, seasoned general looks on. This conception must have been shared by his fellow soldiers at the time.
His sketch of an anxious GI considering Japanese occupation versus returning home and buying a new suit resonated among his fellow soldiers. Dick kept clippings from the 101st Airborne magazine showing photos of several paratroopers and their comments about the new suits they would purchase when they returned home.
Syracuse praises the bomb
In 1945, when the fighting stopped, there were two separate downtown Syracuse celebrations: on Aug. 14, the city erupted with utter madness at the announcement of the Japanese surrender. Later, on Sept. 4, 1945, there was a formal Victory Day Parade led by Medal of Honor recipient Forest Vosler; more than 100,000 spectators jammed South Salina Street. Onlookers threw confetti from tall buildings.
My aunt and uncle attended this parade and saved a souvenir flyer of this event. This souvenir, printed on both sides in red, white and blue, was compliments of the Manufacturers’ Association of Syracuse. The association had more than 80 members, including Carrier Corporation, Brown-Lipe-Chapin and Solvay Process.
By today’s standards, the cover would likely be too offensive for traditional news distribution. It features a racist caricature of a Japanese soldier with slanty eyes and buck teeth being blown up by an atom bomb gleefully lit by Uncle Sam.
Sgt. Dahlin’s legacy
Dick Dahlin often mentioned that the proudest and most moving experience of his life was marching in the New York City Victory Parade on Jan. 12, 1946.
The parade was led by 13,000 men of 82nd Airborne Paratroopers that was chosen as the All-American Division to represent the US army and the end of WWII. In preparation for the New York parade, the division mustered and trained three times a day in Berlin. The division arrived in the United States on Jan. 3, 1946, and continued training for the parade at Camp Shanks in Rockland County, New York.
The huge parade also included Sherman tanks and other armored vehicles, such as self-propelled howitzers, and a fly-by of a formation of glider-towing C-47s. The four-mile-long, ticker-tape parade down Fifth Avenue was cheered by thousands of exuberant New Yorkers.
In the twilight years of his life, Dick hoped that he would be remembered for this experience.
As it happens, I have another family connection to the end of WWII. My other brother, First Lt. Gordon Dahlin, served in the Philippines during the war. He was a firsthand witness of the surrender of Japanese General Tomoyuki Yamashita that is considered the unofficial end of World War II.
Roger Dahlin is a historian, gardener and author based in Baldwinsville.
