Japanese Shrine, Valencia Negros Oriental

Japanese Shrine, Valencia Negros Oriental.

 

A marker of the Japanese Army's last stand in the closing months of the second world war. This area was fortified by the Japanese Imperial army, and it overlooks the city of Dumaguete, Southern part of Cebu Island, Siquijor island, and the northwestern part of Mindanao.

 

Sources taken from SU Library Documents, Dumaguete City: Philippines.

 

Dumaguete D-Day

~In Negros Oriental the Japanese who were now pinned down by the guerrillas in Dumaguete, were watchfully waiting for the American landing in the province.

 

On April 25th, 1:30 P.M., the 164th Infantry Regimental Combat Team, sailed from Cebu City. The landing crafts moved southward along the eastern shores of Cebu and rounded Santander to the west. By dawn the next morning the landing crafts were already in a position to make the landing. But before this could be done, one of the three destroyers sailed south to shell Dumaguete and fired at some targets that the planes flying overhead would indicate. The morning shelling and strafing had caused the Japanese to flee. At 8:00 A.M. the landing crafts were now headed for the beach and American G.I.’s dashed to the shores, wading in shoulder deep water with rifles and ammunition held high.

 

From the landing site in Lo-oc the regimental and battalion commanders drove a mile south to the town of Sibulan to confer with the guerrilla officers on the actual situation of the Japanese in the area. Fortunately, the 40th Division’s 40th Reconnaissance Troops arrived from Occidental Negros within an hour of the landing. They came down the east coast of Negros in time for the conference in Sibulan. The decision was for the 2nd Battalion of the 164th Infantry Americal Division supported by USAFIP forces to go to the hills from Lo-oc following the San Antonio Road and the 1st Battalion to proceed to Dumaguete.

 

In the meantime, guerrilla forces attacked a group of Japanese stationed close to the Maslog creek in order to clear the area of enemy resistance so that the U.S. Liberation Force could safely go through to Dumaguete. By 10:30 A.M. the march towards Dumaguete started. Passing the Maslog Bridge, the battalion fanned out on both sides of the provincial road towards the Dumaguete airfield. At the airfield the troops encountered a minefield. By 1:15 P.M. the airfield was in the hands of the Americal Division. A short time later the advance scouts of the battalion entered Dumaguete.