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Ira Hayes was a Pima Native American and a United States Marine who was one of the six flag raisers immortalized in the iconic photograph of the flag raising on Iwo Jima during World War II. Hayes was an enrolled member of the Gila River Pima Indian Reservation located in the Pinal and Maricopa counties in Arizona. He enlisted in the United States Marine Corps Reserve on August 26, 1942, and, after recruit training, volunteered to become a Paramarine. He fought in the Bougainville and Iwo Jima campaigns in the Pacific War.
On February 23, 1945, Hayes helped raise the second and largest of the two American flags raised on top
Ira Hayes was a Pima Native American and a United States Marine who was one of the six flag raisers immortalized in the iconic photograph of the flag raising on Iwo Jima during World War II. Hayes was an enrolled member of the Gila River Pima Indian Reservation located in the Pinal and Maricopa counties in Arizona. He enlisted in the United States Marine Corps Reserve on August 26, 1942, and, after recruit training, volunteered to become a Paramarine. He fought in the Bougainville and Iwo Jima campaigns in the Pacific War.
On February 23, 1945, Hayes helped raise the second and largest of the two American flags raised on top of Mount Suribachi that day, an event photographed by Joe Rosenthal of the Associated Press. The first flag was raised after the mountain was captured, but was not photographed during the raising of it. Another flag was requested and sent up to the top of the volcano in order to be better seen on the other side of the mountain where thousands of Marines were fighting. The second flag raising became historic, taking precedence over the first flag raising after the photograph of it appeared in the newspapers. Hayes and the other five flag-raisers became national heroes as a result. In 1946, he was instrumental in revealing the correct identity of one of Marines he raised the flag with, who was killed in action a few days after that. Hayes did not feel worthy of his fame and suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder. After his service in the Marine Corps, he descended into alcoholism. He died of exposure to cold and alcohol poisoning after a night of heavy drinking at his Indian Reservation on January 23–24, 1955. He was buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery on February 2, 1955.
Hayes was commemorated in art and film, before and after his death. In 1949, he portrayed himself raising the flag in the motion picture movie, Sands of Iwo Jima, starring John Wayne. He was the subject of an article by journalist William Bradford Huie, which was adapted for the feature film "The Outsider" (1961), starring Tony Curtis as Hayes. The movie inspired songwriter Peter La Farge to write "The Ballad of Ira Hayes," which became popular nationwide in 1964 after being recorded by Johnny Cash. In 2006, Hayes was portrayed by Adam Beach in the World War II movie "Flags of Our Fathers", directed by Clint Eastwood.
On November 10, 1954, Hayes attended the dedication of the Marine Corps War Memorial in Arlington, Virginia. The huge bronze monument was modeled after the second flag raising photograph depicting six Marines, including Hayes, raising the flag on Iwo Jima.
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Tags: Died 1955 (1), Historical Figures In The Military (1), Native Americans In The Military (1), Minorities In The Military (1), World War II Veteran (1), Born January 12 (1), Skydiver (1), Parachutist (1), Born In Arizona (1), Died Aged 32 (1), Died Young (1), Military (1), Born 1923 (1), Flags Of Our Fathers (1), USMC (1), Iwo Jima (1), Paratrooper (1), Infantry (1), Veteran (1), Marine (1)
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