Baker Company, 100th Infantry Battalion
![Jack Nakamura (Co. B, 100th Inf. Bn.) [Courtesy of Sonsei Nakamura]](https://www.100thbattalion.org/wp-content/gallery/photos-jack-seitoku-nakamura/1_Jack-Nakamura001x.png "Jack Nakamura (Co. B, 100th Inf. Bn.) [Courtesy of Sonsei Nakamura]")
As a youth, Jack joined the Boy Scouts, earning the ranks of Star and Life before ultimately becoming an Eagle Scout around the time the United States entered World War II. His deep interest in both English and Japanese reflected the dual heritage of many Americans of Japanese ancestry in Hawaii. He graduated from Waipahu High School in 1941.
On December 7, 1941, Jack witnessed the attack on Pearl Harbor firsthand. He heard bombs falling and thought it was a maneuver. Minutes later, he realized the bullets were real when some bullets ripped by his feet and at their outhouse.
In 1942, the Army formed the 100th Infantry Battalion (Separate) mainly from Japanese American soldiers of the Hawaii National Guard. Jack’s older brother, Sonsei Nakamura, was an original member of the battalion, serving in Company B.
In 1943, Jack, now 20 years old, volunteered for the newly activated 442nd Regimental Combat Team, a segregated Japanese American unit formed after the 100th. Army records noted his small stature — 5’2″ and 112 pounds — but his determination made him stand tall among his peers.
He was assigned to the 1st Battalion of the 442nd Infantry Regiment. While training at Camp Shelby, volunteers were requested to reinforce the 100th Infantry Battalion (Separate), which had suffered heavy casualties fighting in Italy. Jack volunteered, along with several other members of the 442nd, to replace soldiers who had been wounded or killed.
Jack arrived in Anzio, Italy, in the second group of early replacements transferred from the 442nd to the 100th. He was assigned to Company B, the same company in which his older brother, Sonsei, served. Within a week, German artillery struck the shack where he and two fellow soldiers had taken shelter. The blast killed one soldier, threw one of his buddies about 40 feet, and hurled Jack nearly 30 feet, leaving him dazed, unable to hear, and unable to feel anything. Believing he had died, he later recalled seeing flowers and an angel before a friend shook him back to consciousness. He received his first Purple Heart for the injuries he sustained in the attack.
Jack continued fighting through Italy and France, participating in four campaigns. He participated in combat across Pian Marano, Civitavecchia, Belvedere, and Livorno, and later during the liberation of French towns and the rescue of the “Lost Battalion” — a mission that cost his unit dearly. He remembered the gratitude of civilians who shared what little they had.
Battle fatigue eventually landed Jack in the hospital, but after rest he returned to duty, soon earning his second Purple Heart after tumbling down a mountain under machine gun fire.
During the final push against Germany’s Gothic Line, he helped flank enemy positions and later supervised German prisoners repairing damaged water lines. In an unexpected moment of humanity, he spent an evening sharing beer and songs with the prisoners — men who had just been enemy combatants.
After the war ended, Jack completed his service and returned home, carrying with him the scars, stories, and reflections he later preserved in a handwritten memoir completed in 2014 at the age of 91 for his children and grandchildren. He worked at Barbers Point as a supply supervisor until retiring in 1981. Jack and his brother, Sonsei, remained active in the 100th Infantry Battalion Veterans (Club 100), attending annual memorial services and banquets while staying in touch with their comrades from the 100th Infantry Battalion. Jack passed away in April 2023 at the age of 100.