USS Maryland's Crew Fought Heroically During Pearl Harbor Attack

The battleship USS Maryland was damaged by Japanese armor-piercing bombs during the Dec. 7, 1941, surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

Despite the damage, the crew made their way to anti-aircraft batteries and fired at the incoming enemy aircraft, shooting down seven.

Navy Seaman 1st Class Leslie Short shot down a torpedo bomber with his machine gun that was attacking the battleship USS Oklahoma, which was moored alongside the Maryland. He also damaged a second aircraft.

Short survived the war and served on active duty for 30 years, including in Korea and Vietnam. He retired in 1971 and died in 1998 at age 76.

Some of the Maryland's crew attempted to rescue survivors of the Oklahoma, which had capsized, and others sprang into action fighting fires on the battleships.

Four of the Maryland's crew were killed during the attack.

Besides the Maryland, seven other battleships were struck, along with 13 other vessels and nearby airfields. The attack, which launched from six aircraft carriers and came in two waves, resulted in 2,403 killed and 1,178 wounded.

The United States joined the war after Congress voted to declare war on Japan.

Salvage efforts for the Maryland and other ships began almost immediately after the attack on Pearl Harbor, and the battleship returned to service Feb. 26, 1942, after repairs and improved fighting armament at Puget Sound Navy Yard in Washington.

The Maryland went on to participate in subsequent World War II battles, including those at Tarawa, Kwajalein, Saipan, Leyte Gulf and Okinawa.

After the war in the closing months of 1945, Maryland made five voyages carrying some 8,000 returning Pacific Campaign service members to the United States.

Maryland entered Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in 1946 and was later placed in the Pacific Reserve Fleet. The vessel was scrapped in 1959.