Original Item. One-of-a-Kind. This is a tremendous study of Formosa (Taiwan) prepared and printed in preparation for the planned invasion of the island (Operation Causeway). The folder consists of several maps, a folder of study maps showing the different characteristics of the island, and a very thick study into the history and characteristics of the island. The entire set was issued as SECRET but was downgraded to RESTRICTED.

Operation Causeway was a planned United States invasion of Formosa (Taiwan), the Quemoys (Kinmen Islands), and Xiamen Bay on the southeastern coast of Mainland China during World War II. At that time, Formosa was a Japanese colony since the nineteenth century. The island was seen as a possible next step in the planned Allied "island-hopping" advance across the Pacific after the capture of the Marianas in mid-1944.

The objectives of Operation Causeway included securing control over the Taiwan Strait to establish a forward base for the strategic bombing and final invasion of Japan, while simultaneously linking Nationalist Chinese forces with an unbroken seaborne supply line to America's vast military-industrial complex.

The largest map is produced from Japanese and British surveys to 1930 and was put together by the Hydrographic Office of the U.S. Navy. It is the 8th Edition from September 1944.

Also loose is a Special Terrain Map for Formosa, and three loose maps that are smaller and show certain landmarks and locations of interesting on the island. 

The "Formosa Orientation Map”, prepared by the 30th Engr. Base Top. Bn. USAFCPCB in February 1945, is labeled SECRET and still retains the following maps:

- Port Facilities 
- Principal Industrial Installations
- Water Supply
- Agricultural Resources
- Mineral Resources
- Electrical Power Installations
- Telecommunications
- Distribution of Population
- Administrative Districts

The study itself is roughly 100+ pages and is broken into sections including Index and General Description, Areas of Military Importance, Offshore Conditions, Ports, Anchorages, Coastline Description, Physiography, Vegetation, Rivers and Creeks, Lakes and Swamps, Airfields and Seaplane Bases, Roads, Tracks and Trails, Transport, Signal Communication, Towns, Villages, Etc.,, Resources, Population, Administration, Medical Problems, and Climate and Meteorological Conditions.

Folded up the plans measure approximately 9"W x 14 1/2"H. There are some parts torn out or tearing, but this is an outstanding study plan that will fit great into any WWII collection.