Wartime History
Delivered to the U.S. Army painted in olive drab. Later, assigned to the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) and painted green with code "T20". Transported to Guadalcanal.

During September 1942, this tank was attacked near Tenaru (St Joseph playing field) by the Kuma Battalion (Ichiki 's 2nd echelon supporting Kawaguchi's attack on Bloody Ridge). Hit on the left side of the hull by two 37mm armour piecing rounds fired from a Japanese Type 94 37mm anti-tank gun. One round passed through the front and the other exploded near the ammunition rack, causing a fire which charred the white paint inside.

After the battle the treads, engine and machine guns were salvaged and the fenders cut off. It was abandoned in a swamp near Henderson Field where it came to rest upside down.

Wreckage
Remained 'in situ' until November 2009. Salvaged from the swamp on November 27, 2009 by Anders Markwarth, and taken to his private museum on Guadalcanal.

Anders Markwarth adds:
"It came out of the mud in pristine condition with turret and 37 mm gun still in place , it also is rust free and has a complete coat of paint with original markings still in place. It is an unbelievable find and is now at the museum. Its fenders are cut of at that point with an oxy and are bent downwards in exactly the same position. We also noticed that at one point in time it was painted olive drab and later had a light bluish colour painted over it"

On November 30 - December 1, the turret was removed with chain and block. After the recovery the tank is displayed at the Anders Markwarth compound at the Markwarth Collection (Solomon Islands War Museum).

Anders Markwarth adds:
"We want to bring this tank to road worthy condition and that will mean sand blasting and a new coat of paint but to leave the original paint job will not last years but we have photos to display of what the tank looked like after the recovery."

References
Thanks to Peter Flahavin, John Innes, Ewan Stevenson and Anders Markwarth for additional information.

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Last Updated
October 23, 2019