"Hiroshima" Trivia Quiz

Answer: Okinawa

The last great battle of World War II was over the tiny, 485 square mile island of Okinawa located in the East China Sea. Okinawa is only 375 miles from Kyushu, Japan, and its capture was necessary for a staging area for the invasion of the Japanese mainland.

Answer: Eleanor Roosevelt

When Truman asked the widow if there was anything that he could do for her, the former First Lady replied, "Is there anything we can do for you? For you are the one in trouble now".

Answer: Prayer

Truman likened his sudden ascension to the presidency to being hit by a bale of hay. He told reporters, "I felt like the moon, the stars, and all the planets had fallen on me."

Answer: Kissed the Bible

Truman had been Vice President for only 83 days when the Presidency was thrust upon him. While FDR attended the Yalta Conference and divided up post-war Europe among the Allies, Truman had accepted his Vice presidential Role on the "rubber chicken circuit".

Historians still debate when Truman actually learned of the atomic bomb. "Hiroshima" follows the common belief that he was not informed of the weapon until after becoming president.

Answer: Secretary of War Henry Stimson

Unlike Germany, Japan's war industry was spread among the workers' houses, and could only be destroyed by concentrated bombing efforts. Stimson expressed concerns about atrocities against non-combatants.

Answer: Secretary of State

After Truman became President, there was no vice president, and in 1945 the Secretary of State was next in line if anything happened to the president. While declaring that Edward Stettinius was a "fine man", Byrnes readily accepted the appointment. Byrnes had already served as a U.S. Senator, a U.S. Supreme Court Justice, and a trusted advisor to FDR.

After serving as Truman's Secretary of State, Byrnes became governor of South Carolina.

Answer: Yamato

The Yamato was the largest battleship ever built, displacing 72,000 tons as compared to the U.S.S. Missouri's 58,000 tons. It was first used in the Battle of Midway in June of 1942. In April, 1945 it was attacked by more than 300 aircraft, and sank with its crew of 2,498.

Answer: Draw a horse

Admiral Suzuki Kantaro was Prime Minister of Japan for only a short time, from April 7, 1945 to August 17, 1945. He had been Vice Minister of the Navy during World War I, a fleet commander, and later, the Chief of Naval General Staff from 1925 to 1929. Suzuki was opposed to Japan's war with the United States, and as prime minister he helped persuade Emperor Hirohito to accept surrender terms.

He died in 1948.

Answer: Orange

Initially, the Manhattan Project developed three bombs, one using uranium, and two of plutonium. The general used a piece of fruit from a nearby bowl to demonstrate the implosion effect in the plutonium bomb. Weapons-grade uranium was scarce, so scientists created a bomb that used the more plentiful plutonium.

Answer: Mixed military-civilian target without prior warning

As pointed out by Secretary of State-designate Byrnes, the problem with a test with Japanese observers was that the device may not work. Finding a purely military target would have been difficult, and giving prior warning would have given the enemy time to evacuate the target city and move in American prisoners of war.