This monument on Ie Shima marks the location where Pulitzer Prize-winning war correspondent Ernie Pyle was killed by Japanese machine-gun fire on 18 April 1945, while covering the Okinawa campaign with the U.S. Army's 77th Infantry Division. The plaque's simple inscription, 'At this spot the 77th Infantry Division lost a buddy, Ernie Pyle,' reflects the deep affection soldiers held for Pyle, whose reporting brought the experiences of the ordinary GI to millions of Americans back home. Project: 218478