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History, Reference, Research, and GrogTalk => Military (and other) History => Topic started by: steve58 on February 24, 2014, 02:16:05 PM

Title: Admiral Nimitz's WWII operational diary ("Graybook") posted online
Post by: steve58 on February 24, 2014, 02:16:05 PM
Looks like there are 8 volumes, all in PDF.  Largest in only 150MB.  Tried to download Vol 1 for a look see, but so is everyone else apparently....

Quote
The U.S. Naval War College released a trove of World War II information Monday by posting online the operational diary kept by the Pacific commander, Adm. Chester W. Nimitz, during the war against Japan.

The 4,000-page multivolume collection includes a running summary of the situation for every day of the war in the Pacific compiled by Nimitz's planning staff. It is the only known similar document to survive from the war, said Prof. John Hattendorf, who teaches maritime history at the Naval War College in Newport, R.I.

The Nimitz "Graybook," named for the gray material in which it is bound, is posted at www.usnwc.edu/graybook . Traffic was so heavy Monday that the site was inaccessible to many, a spokeswoman for the Naval War College said. They were working to fix the problem.

The diary begins on Dec. 7, 1941, the day of the attack on Pearl Harbor, with the line: "The war opened with the attack of Japanese aircraft on Oahu." It goes on to list the locations of the Navy's forces throughout the Pacific, the damage sustained that day and what is known about the enemy's position.

Nimitz's planning staff prepared a similar summary for him every day of the war. Unlike other commanders during World War II, Nimitz kept them, and the diary was found in his personal papers, Hattendorf said. It also includes supporting documentation for the summaries, including the orders Nimitz received from Washington and elsewhere, intelligence information from other commanders and exactly what his fleet units were doing.

The entries run through Aug. 31, 1945, as the war in the Pacific came to an end.

http://www.seattlepi.com/news/us/article/Adm-Nimitz-s-WWII-operational-diary-posted-online-5261834.php


...looks like a live streaming event tonight at 6pm ET.

http://www.armchairgeneral.com/wwii-communications-of-fleet-admiral-chester-nimitz-to-stream-live.htm
Title: Re: Admiral Nimitz's WWII operational diary ("Graybook") posted online
Post by: Barthheart on February 24, 2014, 02:22:35 PM
WOW!  :o
Title: Re: Admiral Nimitz's WWII operational diary ("Graybook") posted online
Post by: TheCommandTent on February 25, 2014, 06:22:20 AM
Quote from: Barthheart on February 24, 2014, 02:22:35 PM
WOW!  :o

+1