Bloody Front Line Combat on Guadalcanal with WWII Marine Bill Finnegan (Pt. 1)

Heading toward the beaches of Guadalcanal, 1st Marine Division PFC William Finnegan was filled with confidence as he looked back at the armada of ships following him to shore. Finnegan had no idea his division would go down in Marine Corps lore, becoming known as “The Old Breed”, for their heroic defense of Guadalcanal in the early days of World War II.

Meeting little resistance upon landing, Finnegan and his fellow marines moved inland through the jungle to root out the Japanese defenders. They would dig in along the Tenaru River, known more famously as “Alligator Creek”, where they waited for the inevitable Japanese attack. The ferocity of the fight that followed would make Guadalcanal a household name back home.