Iwo Jima memorial

Washington

• At 0800 hrs 23 Feb 1945, 3rd Platoon, E Company, 2nd Battalion, 28th Marines, under the command of 1st Lieutenant Harold G. Schrier, received orders at the base of Mount Suribachi. The platoon’s mission was to take the crater of Suribachi’s peak and raise the U.S. flag.

• At 1020 hrs The platoon reached the top without coming under fire. After securing the area 1st  Lieutenant Harold Schrier, Sergeant Ernest I. Thomas, Corporal Charles W. Lindberg, and Private First Class James R. Nicel raised the flag. This symbolic gesture lifted the morale of the entire Marine Corps.