At the conclusion of the Battle of Iwo Jima, on February 23, 1945, Joe Rosenthal snapped a photograph of six US Marines planting the American flag atop Mount Suribachi. Entitled "Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima," the photograph has been reprinted thousands of times and has since become a symbol of the victory over Japan.
Three of those identified in the photograph –Michael Strank, Harlon Block, and Franklin Sousley – were killed in battle shortly after the photograph was taken. The Marine Corps identified the surviving three as Rene Gagnon, Ira Hayes, and John Bradley.
But after conducting his own research in 2014, history buff Eric Krelle raised the possibility that John Bradley was not actually one of the men in the photo.
On Thursday, Krelle’s suspicion was confirmed. Using facial recognition technology, the Marine Corps carried out its own investigation and determined that the individual originally identified as Bradley is actually one Harold Schultz.
Part of the confusion rests on the fact that there were two flag raisings on Iwo Jima. While Rosenthal’s photo captures the second, Bradley took part in planting the first.
Still, the question remains: Why, given that he died in 1995, did Schutlz never attempt to set the record straight?
"Why doesn’t he say anything to anyone," asked Charles Neimeyer, a historian with the Marine Corps, according to USA Today. "That’s the mystery."
His stepdaughter may have the answer, describing a dinner conversation she had with Schultz in the early 1990s.
"My mom was distracted and not listening and Harold said, “I was one of the flag raisers," Dezreen MacDowell said, according to Newser. "I said, 'My gosh, Harold, you’re a hero.' He said, 'No, I was a Marine.'"
