OT- Castner's Cutthroats

[Rusty]

I found this over on rimfire central and thought it was interesting. I wonder if anyone here might have more information on this unit?

Documentary brings back Alaskan memories
The Alaskan Scouts were some of the finest men one World War II veteran has ever known.

By Lindsay Key
Special to The Roanoke Times

At the beginning of World War II, the Army sent Lt. Earl Acuff to a remote location in the Aleutian Islands to spy on Japanese planes.

He was able to warn the Army about several attacks.

However, months went by, and the Army heard nothing from Acuff. The Alaskan Scouts, a unit of commando rangers drawn from Alaska under the leadership of Col. Lawrence Castner, were sent out to recover his body.

Acuff, however, was far from dead.

"I was living like a king," Acuff recalled with a chuckle. "I was diving for king crab and eating fresh seafood and fowl -- wild ptarmigan, ducks and geese -- for dinner.

"They told me not to break radio sound unless I saw a Japanese plane, so I didn't. When the Alaskan Scouts came to 'rescue' me, they started thinking that maybe they'd like to stay with me."

That's how Acuff became acquainted with the Alaskan Scouts, also known as Castner's Cutthroats -- a band of trappers, hunters and other native Alaskans who fought off the Japanese in World War II.

Acuff was transferred to serve with the scouts, who numbered about 30, until the end of the war.

"I've served with a lot of different people," recalled Acuff, who is now 88 and lives part-time with a daughter in Pearisburg and part-time with another in Fairfax.

"But the Alaskan Scouts are by far some of the finest men I've known in my life. I've never seen more talented, dedicated soldiers, willing to sacrifice everything. They just wanted to get that war over, so they could get back to their jobs, traplines or boats."

American historians have been equally fascinated by this band of soldiers.

Julie Pryor of Moore Huntley Productions in Massachusetts and her colleague David Huntley recently produced a documentary "Alaska: Dangerous Territory" that first aired July 19 on the History Channel. The documentary focused on the Alaskan Scouts, as well as other dangerous occupations in Alaska.

Pryor said she worked a year on the project, which followed the 2004 production of another two-hour special for the History Channel. The first special was so well-received that Pryor was asked to make another Alaska-themed show.

"After reading a 1943 article in LIFE magazine ... I was hooked ... these men seemed larger than life, and I just had to meet them," she said. "I knew the chances of finding them were slim, but with some perseverance and a lot of luck, I found Mr. Acuff, along with three other scouts in Alaska."

According to Acuff's daughter, Dawn Connor of Fairfax, Huntley arrived at her home to interview her father on Nov. 11, Veterans Day.

"They interviewed my dad in the dining room for around two hours," Connor said. "They ended up using around three clips from him in the documentary. Everyone with the History Channel was so professional and respectful. My dad was also later contacted to identify people in pictures."

Luck helped with finding the photographs and footage to accompany the documentary, according to Pryor.

Acuff said he was pleased with the outcome of the show.

"I liked it; it was very accurate," Acuff said. "But of course, there are so many things that happened that you can't reproduce on a television show."

After his service with the Alaskan Scouts ended at the close of World War II, Acuff left the Army for a short while but was then asked to return after 10 months.

"They asked me to come back and teach as one of three instructors at the Arctic Indoctrination School in Big Delta, Alaska," Acuff said.

There, he said, he taught soldiers how to survive in cold weather and how to survive the summer in Alaska.

Acuff also served as a battalion commander in the Koreas and as a brigade commander and director of operations, plans and training in the Vietnam War.

Once he retired from the Army, he lived on a small farm outside Blacksburg and served as commandant of cadets at Virginia Tech.

"The president at the university at the time, Marshall Hahn, asked me to help save the Corps of Cadets. He was trying to build a larger, comprehensive university and didn't want the corps to suffer as a result," Acuff said.

After retiring from Virginia Tech, Acuff and his wife, Mary-Low, decided to travel the country to visit his eight children.

Mary-Low Acuff recently died, and Acuff now splits his time between living with his daughter in Fairfax and his daughter Mary Ann Bowling in Pearisburg.


Rusty <><

[Ysabel Kid]

Interesting story - thank you for sharing it!

[Noah Zark]

There was a book published in the late 80s or early 90s titled, "Castner's Cutthroats" by Jim Rearden. I picked up a copy and it is an EXCELLENT read. In fact, I reread it every three or four years. I highly recommend it.

Oops, they are kinda pricey:

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchR ... s&x=54&y=9


Amazon lists six of them, a paperback at $114 and five hardcovers from $215.

Maybe I should take all the guns out of the safes and put my books in them.

Noah

[45-70-]

I was lucky enough to live in Alaska for 10 years thanks to Uncle Sam. I find that most people, even military buffs have no clue about what went on in Alaska during the war. They dont know anything about the Japanese invasion of the Aleutian Islands or all the fighting that went on up there. There were some airplanes removed while I was there that still had remains in them. The gun mounts and other equipment is still there all over Dutch Harbor, Adak, and Kiska. Here are some articles with photos if you are interested.

http://www.nps.gov/archive/aleu/WWII_in ... utians.htm

Photos
http://www.lib.washington.edu/specialco ... oll604.xml

http://www.history.army.mil/brochures/aleut/aleut.htm

[S.B.]

A good friends dad, who just passed away, was with this outfit during WWII.
I have a copy of this book and found it very entertaining. Half fiction half truth or so it's stated inside the jacket(I think it was)?

[Rusty]

The book by Jim Rearden is going to be coming out in paperback in March. here's a link to a place that's taking preorders. I think I'm in for one.


http://www.ajarmsbooksellers.com/cgi-bi ... /4250.html


IIRC one of the things that made for a turning point in the war was when American forces were able to capture a Zero that was totally intact that had become disabled in AK. They were able to use the captured airplane to find out it's strengths and weakness.



Rusty <><

[cubrock]

It was an intact Zero that crashed in a bog in the Aleutians that gave us our first good look at that airplane. That information later helped us win in Pacific dogfights.

[Gun Runner]

I watched this on the history channel or possibably the military channel about 6 months ago. Quite a story. The gov. armed the guys with High standard .22 pistols and I beleive springfield 03.a3's. It showed them training the first troops to come up their. Like Rusty said just about all of them were trappers and some miners. "They knew how to live off the land." Very interesting story about them. There is another book about them but the name escapes what little mind I have left.

Gun Runner

[Rusty]

It was the History Channel Gun Runner. I checked their online store and you can buy the short story for $29.95. I'm thinking it over.

Rusty <><

[cubrock]

Another interesting story is the men who hunted German weather stations in Greenland. They often went out alone for weeks and months at a time, even in the dark Arctic winter. They came from a variety of countries, one of the toughest was Norwegian.

Both sets of guys are ones I'd like to meet but never have to tangle with!

[S.B.]

I watched this on the history channel or possibably the military channel about 6 months ago. Quite a story. The gov. armed the guys with High standard .22 pistols and I beleive springfield 03.a3's. It showed them training the first troops to come up their. Like Rusty said just about all of them were trappers and some miners. "They knew how to live off the land." Very interesting story about them. There is another book about them but the name escapes what little mind I have left.

Gun Runner

Actually, from the book, they prefered Colt Woodsmans pistols and M1 carbines? And the government gave them what ever they wanted.