--- title: Pearl Harbor History: See the Telegram That Spread the Alarm description: The infamous World War II attack took place on Dec. 7, 1941 canonical: https://time.com/4129622/pearl-harbor-telegram/ author: Lily Rothman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-12-06T23:00:57.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-13T22:55:16.000Z article:section: History og:title: Pearl Harbor History: See the Telegram That Spread the Alarm og:description: The infamous World War II attack took place on Dec. 7, 1941 og:url: https://time.com/4129622/pearl-harbor-telegram/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Pearl Harbor History: See the Telegram That Spread the Alarm twitter:description: The infamous World War II attack took place on Dec. 7, 1941 twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # See the Actual Telegram That First Spread the Word About Pearl Harbor ## Video: Remembering Pearl Harbor: Lt. James Downing [Watch (HLS stream): Remembering Pearl Harbor: Lt. James Downing](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/UBMGDK2f.m3u8) (1:24)  _Published 2016-11-21. Meet the 103-year-old veteran whose recollections inspired the new virtual reality experience "Remembering Pearl Harbor"_  by [Lily Rothman](https://time.com/author/lily-rothman/)  ## Lily Rothman Rothman is managing editor at TIME. Updated: Dec 13, 2023 10:55 PM UTCPublished: Dec 6, 2015 11:00 PM UTC  by [Lily Rothman](https://time.com/author/lily-rothman/)  ## Lily Rothman Rothman is managing editor at TIME. Updated: Dec 13, 2023 10:55 PM UTCPublished: Dec 6, 2015 11:00 PM UTC  The telegram that first spread the news of Pearl Harbor, from Dec. 7, 1941 Museum of World War II Boston There should be no question as to why this telegram was classified as “urgent” by Lt. Cmdr. Logan Ramsey, when he sent it on Dec. 7, 1941\. The news — AIRRAID ON PEARL HARBOR X THIS IS NO DRILL — was directed to all U.S. Navy ships that were present in the Hawaii area, and the blunt force of that message is key to understanding its historical significance, says Kenneth Rendell, the founder and director of the [Museum of World War II in Natick, Mass.](http://www.museumofworldwarii.com/), which houses the telegram. “The big thing about Pearl Harbor was that it really was a surprise attack,” he says. “The war in Europe was what everybody was focused on.” If an attack did come in the Pacific, most observers thought the first target would be a place closer to Japan such as Hong Kong. The surprise is underscored by the personal memorabilia of U.S. sailors and airmen stationed in Hawaii prior to that day. “Their photograph albums are full of beach scenes and hula girls,” Rendell says. “It was very peaceful, so \[the attack\] was a total shock.” **_Read TIME’s original coverage of Pearl Harbor, here in the TIME Vault:_** [National Ordeal](http://time.com/vault/issue/1941-12-15/page/20/) **_More from the WWII Museum:_** [See the Original Operations Orders for the Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki](http://time.com/3980421/hiroshima-nagasaki-operations-orders/) ### After Pearl Harbor: Rare Photos From the American Home Front  The exposed wreckage of the battleship USS Arizona. Bob Landry—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  The USS Arizona's wreckage. Bob Landry—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Damaged battleship in the background days after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Bob Landry—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  American bombers fly over Hawaii, December 1941. William C. Shrout—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Vice Admiral Joseph "Bull" Reeves, Waikiki Beach, December 1941. Bob Landry—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A rally at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, December 1941. George Strock—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A poster at the Brooklyn Navy Yard calls for vigilance, December 1941. George Strock—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  The Brooklyn Navy Yard by night, 1941. George Strock—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A Naval officer — dwarfed by the vessel in his view — gazes at a cruiser's propeller at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, 1941. George Strock—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A worker on break at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, 1941. George Strock—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  One of the earliest vessels on display at the Brooklyn Navy Yard: the Intelligent Whale, a 19th-century hand-cranked submarine. George Strock—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A hastily constructed defense bunker, Hawaii, early 1942. Bob Landry—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Training with gas masks in Hawaii, early 1942. William C. Shrout—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  American troops in Hawaii, days after the attack on Pearl Harbor. William C. Shrout—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Troops in Hawaii, early 1942. William C. Shrout—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Men dig a post-Pearl Harbor defensive trench in Hawaii, December 1941. William C. Shrout—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Troops shore up defenses in Hawaii in the weeks after Pearl Harbor. William C. Shrout—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Post-Pearl Harbor training and patrol in Hawaii, early 1942. Bob Landry—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Young defenders beside a mounted machine gun, Hawaii, December 1941. William C. Shrout—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A sign points the way to Pearl Harbor on Dec. 15, 1941, a week after the attack. William C. Shrout—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Aboard an American warship, Pearl Harbor, early 1942. Bob Landry—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  A sailor chalks a message to America's fighting men from the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations on a warship at Pearl Harbor. "Your conduct and action have been splendid. While you have suffered from a treacherous attack, your commander-in-chief has informed me that your courage and stamina remain magnificent. You know you will have your revenge. Recruiting stations are jammed with men eager to join you." Bob Landry—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Military man, Pearl Harbor, December 1941. William C. Shrout—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  An American warship's crew shows its spirit, Pearl Harbor, early 1942. 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