The Quiet Heroes of the Sea: Filipino Fishermen, Boatmen, and Coastal Communities in World War II

Chick Parsons | Photo from Smithsonian Magazine

August 31, 2026 – Pasay City, NCR, Philippines

Article by Nicole Denise Fajilagot

When we think of heroes, we often picture soldiers with guns, or generals giving orders in a war room. But during World War II, the Philippines had another kind of hero, one who did not carry a rifle, but a paddle. These were the fishermen, boatmen, and coastal villagers who used their small boats and their knowledge of the sea to help the Filipino and American resistance survive the Japanese occupation. This National Heroes Day, we look back at the quiet, often unnamed men and women of the coast who became part of one of the most important secret networks of the Pacific War: the coastwatcher system.

A Secret Network Along the Coast

During the Japanese occupation, the United States needed a way to know what was happening inside the Philippines, where Japanese ships were moving, which areas were safe, and how the guerrilla forces were doing. The answer was a wide network of hidden radio stations along the coastlines, watched over by local guerrillas and civilians. According to the U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command, the United States relied on about 120 secret radio stations across the Philippines, which helped coordinate submarine transport missions and the sending of important intelligence about Japanese forces (Bisno, 2019).

These stations could not have worked without people who knew the coastline by heart, the fishermen who knew every cove, the boatmen who knew which channels were safe to cross at night, and the villagers who could move quietly between islands without drawing attention. One documented example comes from Leyte. According to the U.S. Army Center of Military History, a team landed on Poro Island specifically to set up a radio and coastwatcher station that overlooked the sea routes leading to Ormoc, which was the last major Japanese stronghold on the island. Setting up and protecting a station like this required constant support from local people who lived along that coast.

A Web of Trust: The Story of Chick Parsons

One of the clearest examples of how much the resistance depended on ordinary Filipinos along the coast is the story of U.S. Navy Commander Charles “Chick” Parsons. Parsons grew up in the Philippines and spoke Tagalog, and it was his deep, personal network of local contacts across the islands that allowed him to work closely and safely with guerrilla units. Parsons made eight secret trips into the Philippines aboard American submarines, bringing weapons, medicine, and radio equipment to guerrilla fighters hiding in the mountains and along the coasts. None of this would have worked without the silence and cooperation of local communities, the same communities who could have turned him in to the Japanese for a reward, but chose not to. Parsons himself gave credit to the ordinary people around him. In a letter he wrote about delivering supplies to guerrillas, he described how much it meant to the fighters and civilians simply to know they had not been forgotten (Eisner, 2017).

Small Boats, Big Risks

Long before big ships or submarines could safely approach the islands, it was the small boats, fishing boats, and local vessels that carried messages, supplies, and people between the coast and the hidden guerrilla camps inland. This kind of work was extremely dangerous. Anyone caught helping the resistance could be captured, tortured, or executed by the Japanese military police, known as the Kempeitai (Eisner, 2017). Unlike trained soldiers, these coastal helpers had no weapons and no formal protection, only their knowledge of the sea and their courage. Because so much of this work was done secretly, many of the individual fishermen, boatmen, and villagers who took these risks were never formally named in official military records. Their contribution survives mostly in the larger story of the coastwatcher stations and guerrilla support networks that depended on them.

From Submarines to Surface Boats

As the war went on and American forces got closer to the Philippines, submarines were no longer the only way to reach the guerrillas. From February to May 1945, a U.S Navy task group completed thirteen missions using surface boats to deliver supplies to Filipino guerrillas in Mindanao (Baños, 2020). This shift from submarines to boats moving more freely along the coast was only possible because of the years of groundwork laid by coastal communities who had already proven that the sea routes could be trusted.

Why This Matters Today

The story of the coastwatchers and their local supporters reminds us that heroism during war did not only happen on the battlefield. It also happened quietly, on the water, in small boats steered by people whose names we may never know. At AIMS Museo Maritimo, we honor not only the generals and the famous guerrilla leaders, but also the fishermen, boatmen, and coastal families who risked everything for a cause bigger than themselves. Their courage is part of our maritime heritage, a heritage built not just on ships and trade, but on the quiet bravery of the people who called the sea their home.

References

Baños, M. (2020). Guerrilla Submarines in Northern Mindanao during World War II. Metro Cagayan de Oro. https://www.metrocagayandemisamis.com/2020/10/29/guerrilla-submarines-in-northern-mindanao-during-world-war-ii/

Bisno, A. (2019). Evacuation by Submarine: USS Angler in the Philippines. Naval History and Heritage Command. https://www.history.navy.mil/browse-by-topic/wars-conflicts-and-operations/world-war-ii/1944/angler-philippines-evac.html

Eisner, P. (2017). Without Chick Parsons, General MacArthur May Never Have Made His Famed Return to the Philippines. Smithsonian Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/without-chick-parsons-General-MacArthur-Never-Made-Return-Philippines-180964406/