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An Infamous Day

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Why we love it

On the morning of December 7, 1941, hundreds of Japanese fighter planes attacked the American naval base at Pearl Harbor near Honolulu, killing 2,403 people and injuring 1,178 others. US President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared it to be “a date which will live in infamy.” This story map uses images, videos, and maps to recreate that tragic day. We love how the map uses geographical and temporal details, across multiple battlefronts, to show a new perspective on the interconnected sequence of events.

Why it works

This story map works because it brings clarity to a complex story—one that’s made up of both calculation and chaos. Using grayscale colors for maps can be a risky choice, but here the cartography does justice to the moment in time. The map author embraces black-and-white basemaps for an old-school map aesthetic. This choice provides continuity when the story transitions from maps of the ships’ arrangement to newsreels and historic aftermath photos. 

Important steps

  • Add custom shapes for the flight path

    The flow lines of the two attack waves require custom shapes and georeferencing in ArcGIS. Multiple steps and software are needed to make the curved flight paths.
    Adding custom shapes tutorial

  • Add personal narratives

    Recollections and reflections from soldiers who were at Pearl Harbor that day bring a powerful, personal narrative to the story.

  • Transition with immersive sections

    Immersive sections are a series of views that showcase media full-screen. They are a good way to transition between pictures, maps, and videos.
    Cascade sections

  • Black and white tells the story

    Designing the basemaps in black and white tied together historic photos and aerial imagery from the time.
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Requirements

  • Data

    The data for this story came from a variety of sources including the US Naval History and Heritage Command, the US National Archives, The National WWII Museum, the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa Library, the US Navy, National Geographic, and the National Park Service.
    Naval History and Heritage Command
    National Archives
    The National WWII Museum

  • Analysis

    Specific locations were found to pinpoint the targets of the raid during the two waves of attacks. This was later combined with temporal data to create the sequence of events.

  • Time

    The story map was made during part of a summer internship at Esri. It required several weeks to write the narrative, find visual media, design the maps, and perfect the overall story.
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Tips and tricks

  • Walk readers through the story

    Since readers can only absorb limited amounts of information at once, be sure to parse the story into understandable chunks.

  • Make notes on historic photos

    Annotated historic aerial imagery is a great complement to traditional maps, and it immerses us now in events of the past.

  • Tell the story with visuals

    Use compelling images, videos, and maps to draw attention to your story and help supplement the narrative.
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Resources

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Headshot of Clare Trainor, cartographer

Map Author

Clare Trainor

As a cartographer, I love the stories told through compelling maps and visualizations. I was recently an intern with the Esri Story Maps Team and I now work at National Geographic helping produce maps and graphics for National Geographic Magazine.

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