Papers and photographs pertaining to the service of Peter H. Pierce, a Madison, Wisconsin resident who served onboard LST 779 during World War II. The collection is comprised primarily photographs that pertain to Pierce's service during both his wartime and postwar service on LST 779. Wartime photographs include images of Pierce and other crewmen, images taken during transportation missions, and detail images of the exterior and interior of LST 779. Of particular interest are images taken by Pierce during the battle of Iwo Jima. Included are photographs just prior to the ship landing at Iwo Jima and images of the ship broached on the island during combat. Also included are images of Japanese prisoners, including one wounded individual, who were being loaded onto LST 779 for transportation off of the island. Postwar photographs were taken by Pierce when a skeleton crew was assigned to the ship and feature images of his new crew and tourist photographs of Japan and the Philippines. Pierce provided a typed description of some photographs, which is included in the collection. Manuscript material includes two reminiscences, written by Pierce, of his wartime experiences. LST 779 was one of the first supply ships to land on Iwo Jima during the initial invasion, and was the ship that carried the flag that was famously seen being raised on Mt. Suribachi in the photograph taken by Joe Rosenthal. After the war, Pierce returned to Wisconsin where he worked for Oscar Meyer and eventually settled in McFarland, Wisconsin.
