History
The Pearl Harbor Attack of December 7, 1941
What happened during the Pearl Harbor attack, why it drew the United States into World War II, how it is remembered, and how to visit the memorial.
On the morning of December 7, 1941, the Imperial Japanese Navy launched a surprise attack on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oʻahu. In under two hours, 2,403 Americans were killed, 1,178 were wounded, and the United States was drawn into World War II. President Franklin D. Roosevelt called it "a date which will live in infamy." He was right.
What happened
Two waves of Japanese aircraft - fighters, bombers, and torpedo planes - struck battleships, airfields, and military installations beginning at 7:55 a.m. The USS Arizona took a direct hit to her forward ammunition magazine and exploded, sinking in minutes with most of her crew still aboard. Nearly half of the day's deaths - 1,177 sailors and Marines - perished on a single ship. The USS Oklahoma capsized. The USS West Virginia and USS California sank at their moorings. According to the National Park Service, 21 ships were damaged or sunk and more than 300 aircraft were destroyed or damaged.
Why it mattered
The attack ended years of American reluctance to enter the war in Europe and the Pacific. Congress declared war on Japan the following day, and within days Germany and Italy declared war on the United States in return. Pearl Harbor pulled the country into a global conflict that would reshape the world - and it placed Hawaii, still a territory at the time, at the center of the Pacific theater for the next four years. The island of Oʻahu became one of the most militarized places on Earth. The path to statehood, accelerated by Hawaii's wartime contributions, would follow.
How it is remembered
The site is now the Pearl Harbor National Memorial, managed by the National Park Service. The USS Arizona Memorial is built directly above the sunken hull of the battleship - the sailors still entombed within her - and it is treated as a solemn active military shrine, not a tourist attraction. Fuel still seeps slowly from the wreck, a sight visitors sometimes call "black tears." You can learn more from the NPS at nps.gov/perl.
Visiting the memorial
A visit is genuinely moving and worth planning carefully. The free timed tickets for the USS Arizona Memorial boat transfer book out quickly - often weeks in advance in peak season. Our practical guide to visiting Pearl Harbor covers everything: tickets, timing, the four main sites, and how to approach the memorial with the respect it deserves. Pair it with the Oʻahu guide to plan the rest of your day.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happened at Pearl Harbor?
How many people died at Pearl Harbor?
Can you visit the site of the attack?
We research each guide against primary sources: the Hawaii Tourism Authority and Mālama Hawaii, the National Park Service, the State of Hawaii and its Division of State Parks, the National Weather Service, and the U.S. Census. For culture, language, and history we lean on the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, the Bishop Museum, and the scholarship of Mary Kawena Pukui. We send readers to those sources rather than speaking over them. When rules, prices, or conditions change, we update the page.