This scrapbook page from the Pat McAleer collection documents Marines associated with the Battle of Tarawa (November 1943). Of particular historical note is the center photograph of a massive coastal defense gun -- according to the handwritten caption, one of the guns the Japanese had captured from Singapore in 1942 and installed to fortify Betio Island, later assaulted by the 2nd Marine Division in one of the Pacific War's costliest amphibious battles. The accompanying snapshots of Marines at rest and at a camp gathering illustrate the human side of service far from home. Project: 218301