Remembering Pearl Harbor Morning of December 7, 1941. Thank our veterans for protecting our country. our counity

80 years ago today, on the morning of December 7, 1941, Japanese bombers and torpedo planes staged a surprise attack on the U.S. Pacific fleet anchored at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, propelling the United States into World War II. In less than 2 hours, the U.S. Pacific Fleet was devastated, and more than 3,000 Americans were either killed or wounded.

Within the holdings of the National Archives, you will find records chronicling U.S. military history and battles, including photographs, video footage, maps, ship plans, and other records related to the events of Pearl Harbor.

“This is not a Drill” Dispatch, 12/7/1941

This Navy dispatch sent from the Commander in Chief of the Pacific announces the attack on the U.S. Naval Base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii by the Japanese Navy. It was received at the Squantum Naval Reserve Aviation Base on December 7, 1941 from the First Naval District. It states, “AIR RAID ON PEARL HARBOR X THIS IS NOT DRILL.”

DocsTeach, the online tool for teaching with documents from the National Archives, has online teaching activities related to Pearl Harbor. In Pearl Harbor Dispatch Analysis, students analyze the “This is Not Drill” naval dispatch in an activity that encourages students to look for evidence to decode the true meaning of the message.

Learn more on the Education Updates blog.

The Cartographic unit at the National Archives holds maps and aerial photographs depicting Pearl Harbor, as well as plans for ships that were present on December 7, 1941.

Manuscript color Map of Pearl Harbor after the Attack, National Archives Identifier 29032720. Prepared by the Joint Intelligence Center, Pacific Ocean Areas to illustrate the locations of roads, railroads, airfields, buildings, storage tanks and positions of unnamed ships in the harbor. 

The battleship USS Arizona (BB-39) was bombed and sunk during the attack on Pearl Harbor. The following ship plans for the USS Arizona list alterations to the ship’s design dated as late as June 1941.

L: Plans for the Battleship USS Arizona (BB-39): Booklet of General Plans – Second Deck / Third & Splinter Decks / First Platform. National Archives Identifier 75840426

R: Plans for the Battleship USS Arizona (BB-39): Booklet of General Plans – Inboard Profile, 8/31/1934. National Archives Identifier 75840420

Because the bombing of Pearl Harbor was a surprise, there is very little American footage of the attack itself. The following film captures about three minutes of the attack and its aftermath:

Learn more on the Unwritten Record blog.

“Day of Infamy” Address

The day after the attack on Pearl Harbor, President Franklin Roosevelt delivered a six-minute speech before a joint session of Congress that ended with a request for a declaration of war. Congress approved within hours.

Learn more about the writing of this speech on the Pieces of History blog.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s annotated draft of a proposed message to Congress requesting a Declaration of War against Japan. The speech was dictated by Roosevelt on December 7, 1941 in the hours following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The handwritten notations are Roosevelt’s modifications and corrections to the typewritten first draft. The final version of the speech incorporating Roosevelt’s annotations was delivered by the President to a Joint Session of Congress on December 8, 1941. National Archives Identifier: 593345

The American flag is raised at the USS ARIZONA Memorial, 6/1/1988. National Archives Identifier 6434051

On DocsTeach, the online tool for teaching with documents from the National Archives, you can find primary sources like maps and speeches – even images taken by the Japanese military during the attack that were later captured.

DocsTeach also includes posters that used the attack on Pearl Harbor as a rallying cry for a variety of war efforts, like joining the Coast Guard, buying war bonds, or working harder in a factory. Learn more on the Education Updates blog.

Learn more about the records held at the National Archives related to Pearl Harbor:

• Visualizing Pearl Harbor 75 Years Later – The Unwritten Record

• Remembering “a date which will live in infamy”

• Remembering Pearl Harbor – The Text Message

• Spotlight on Navy Deck Logs

• How a Booklet of General Plans Helped Save 32 Trapped Sailors After the Attack on Pearl Harbor

• Dorie Miller, War Hero

We invite you to explore The American Soldier in World War II website, offering a portrait of Americans who served in the war and of U.S. society and culture in the 1940s.

During World War II, the U.S. Army administ