Vanuatu: Espiritu Santo Island – Luganville War Museum
Luganville played a major role during WWII as part of the US Pacific operations. The US Military base here, Base Button, was the largest American military base in the South Pacific, spread over 38 sq miles. it was mostly a supply and maintenance base for the pacific fleet and operation further north. the Luganville War Museum preserves and displays a lot artifacts from WWII, including an aircraft remains, military documents, and personal belonging of the US soldiers. There is also a sizable display on the President Coolidge ship that sank here in the Luganville Harbor in 1942 – the massive ship carrying US 5340 troops ran onto the US-laid mines and sank. And but two soldiers survived, but the ship and equipment on board sank, including the entire US stock of quinine to fight malaria in the Pacific military operation theater.
