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Naval Historical Center News

09 Jun 2014

Today in U.S. Naval History: June 9

USS George Washington (SSBN-598) (U.S. Navy photo)

Today in U.S. Naval History - June 9 1882 - Establishment of Office of Naval Records of the War of the Rebellion (became part of Naval Historical Center) 1942 - First Navy photograhic interpretation unit set up in the Atlanic. 1959 - Launching of USS George Washington (SSBN-598), first nuclear powered fleet ballistic missile submarine, at Groton, Ct. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval History and Heritage Command website at history.navy.mil.

16 Apr 2014

Least Known Navy Activity? Underwater Shipwreck Archeology

Robert S. Neyland, Ph.D., director of the Underwater Archeology Branch (UAB) of the Naval History and Heritage Command (NHHC) in Washington, D.C., manages the people who protect more than 17,000 ship and aircraft wrecks around the world. The UAB houses a collection of more than 3,000 artifacts recovered from sunken military craft sites, and an artifact loan program of 6,000-plus items to national and international museums and other qualified facilities throughout the world. The branch itself was created in 1993 through the Department of Defense Legacy Resource Management Program funds. Robert Neyland, Ph.D., followed soon after. Neyland…

10 Jul 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: July 10

USS Houston photographed during the early or middle 1930s. (U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph.)

Today in U.S. Naval History - July 10 1934 - USS Houston takes Franklin Delano Roosevelt on first visit of U.S. President to South America. 1943 - Naval gunfire help Allied troops land on Sicily. It was first extensive use of LST's and smaller landing craft to deliver heavy equipment over the beach. 1945 - 14 carriers from Third Fleet carriers begin air strikes on Japanese Home Islands which end August 15. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at history.navy.mil.

09 Jul 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: July 9

Today in U.S. Naval history - July 9 1846 - Sailors and Marines from USS Portsmouth occupy and raise flag over San Francisco. 1944 - Organized Japanese resistance ceases on Saipan, Marianas. 1960 - USS Wasp departs Guantanamo Bay to support United Nations effort to calm the newly independent Congo. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at history.navy.mil.

08 Jul 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: July 8

USS Jeannette (1879-1881) Engraving after a sketch by H.A. Ogden, depicting Jeannette leaving San Francisco, California, on July 8, 1879 to begin her Arctic expedition. (U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph.)

Today in U.S. Naval History -July 8 1778 - Allied French fleet under Comte d'Estaing arrives in America. 1853 - Commodore Matthew C. Perry sails his squadron into Tokyo Bay. 1879 - USS Jeannette departs San Francisco to explore Arctic. 1944 - Naval bombardment of Guam begins. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at history.navy.mil.

05 Jul 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: July 5

Commodore Stephen Decatur, USN. 19th Century engraving by D. Edwin, after a Gilbert Stuart portrait. (U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph.)

Today in U.S. Naval History - July 5 1814 - Sloop-of-war Peacock captures British Stranger, Venus, Adiona and Fortitude. 1815 - Commodore Stephen Decatur's squadron arrives at Tripoli to collect reparations for seizure of American merchant ships in violation of Treaty of 1805. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at history.navy.mil.

03 Jul 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: July 3

HMS Triumph (Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center.)

Today in U.S. Naval History - July 3 1898 - At Battle of Santiago, Cuba, RADM Sampson's squadron destroys Spanish fleet 1950 - USS Valley Forge and HMS Triumph participate in first carrier action of Korean Conflict. VF-51 aircraft (Valley Forge) shoot down two North Korean aircraft. The action is first combat test of F9F Panther and AD Skyraider. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at history.navy.mil.

02 Jul 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: July 2

Today in U.S. 1923 - Commissioning of Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, D.C. 1926 - Distinguished Flying Cross authorized by Congress. 1937 - Amelia Earhart disappears in Pacific. 1945 - USS Barb (SS-220) bombards Japanese installations on Kaihyo Island, Japan; first successful use of rockets against shore positions. 1946 - Establishment of VX-3 to evaluate adaptability of helicopters to naval purposes. 1950 - USS Juneau and 2 British ships sink five of six attacking North Korean torpedo boats and gunboats. 1967 - During Operation Bear Claw, Seventh Fleet Amphibious Force conducts helicopter assault 12 miles inland at Con Thien. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at www.history.navy.mil.

01 Jul 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: July 1

USS Covington. Fine screen halftone reproduction of a photograph taken in 1918. This ship was torpedoed and sunk in July of that year. (Courtesy of William H. Davis, 1977. U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph.)

Today in U.S. 1800 - First convoy duty; USS Essex escorts convoy of merchant ships from East Indies to U.S. 1801 - U.S. 1911 - Trial of first Navy aircraft, Curtiss A-1. The designer, Glenn Curtiss, makes first flight in Navy's first aircraft, A-1, at Lake Keuka, NY, then prepares LT Theodore G. Ellyson, the first naval aviator, for his two solo flights in A-1. 1933 - USS Constitution commences tour of principal U.S. seaports. 1951 - Responsibility for the Government of Trust Territories transferred from Navy to Department of Interior.

28 Jun 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: June 28

Today in U.S. Naval History - June 28 1794 - Joshua Humphreys appointed master builder to build Navy ships at an annual salary of $2,000. 1814 - USS Wasp captures HMS Reindeer 1865 - CSS Shenandoah captures 11 American whalers in one day 1970 - USS James Madison (SSBN-627) completes conversion to Poseidon missile capability For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at www.history.navy.mil.

27 Jun 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: June 27

Today in U.S. Naval History: June 27 1813 - USS President anchors in Bergen, Norway 1950 - To support U.N. call to assist South Korea, Truman authorizes U.S. naval and air operations south of 38th Parallel, Korea For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at www.history.navy.mil.

26 Jun 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: June 26

Today in U.S. Naval History - June 26 1884 - Congress authorizes commissioning of Naval Academy graduates as ensigns 1918 - Marine brigade captures Belleau Wood 1959 - Twenty-eight Naval vessels sail from Atlantic to Great Lakes, marking the formal opening of Saint Lawrence Seaway to seagoing ships. 1962 - NAVFAC Cape Hatteras makes first Sound Surveillance System (SOSUS) detection of a Soviet diesel submarine. 1973 - Navy Task Force 78 completes minesweeping of North Vietnamese ports. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at www.history.navy.mil.

25 Jun 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: June 25

Today in U.S. Naval History - June 25 1917 - Navy convoy of troopships carrying American Expeditionary Forces arrives in France 1950 - North Korea invades South Korea beginning Korean Conflict For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at www.history.navy.mil.

24 Jun 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: June 24

Today in U.S. Naval History - June 24 1833 - USS Constitution enters drydock at Charlestown Navy Yard, Boston, Mass. for overhaul. The ship was saved from scrapping after public support rallied to save the ship following publication of Oliver Wendell Holmes' poem, "Old Ironsides." 1926 - Office of Assistant SecNav set up to foster naval aeronautics; aircraft building increased 1948 - Berlin airlift initiated to offset the Soviet Union's blockade access of U.S., France, and Great Britain to their sectors of Berlin. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at www.history.navy.mil.

21 Jun 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: June 21

(Official U.S. Navy Photograph, National Archives.)

Today in U.S. Naval History - June 21 1898 - USS Charleston captures island of Guam from Spain 1945 - Okinawa declared secure after most costly naval campaign in history. U.S. had 30 ships sunk and 223 damaged, mostly from kamikaze attacks, with 5000 dead and 5000 wounded, while the Japanese lost 100,000 dead For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at www.history.navy.mil.

20 Jun 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: June 20

Today in U.S. 1813 - Fifteen U.S. gunboats engage three British ships in Hampton Roads, Va. 1815 - Trials of Fulton I, built by Robert Fulton, are completed in New York. This ship would become the Navy's first steam-driven warship. 1898 - U.S. forces occupied Guam, which became first colony of U.S. in the Pacific. 1913 - First fatal accident in Naval Aviation, ENS W. D. Billingsley killed at Annapolis, Md. 1944 - Battle of Philippine Sea ends with Japanese losing two aircraft carriers and hundreds of aircraft. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at www.history.navy.mil.

17 Jun 2013

Today in U.S. Naval history: June 17

Today in U.S. Naval history - June 17 1833 - USS Delaware enters drydock at Gosport Navy Yard in Norfolk, Va., the first warship to enter a public drydock in the United States 1870 - USS Mohican burns Mexican pirate ship Forward 1898 - Navy Hospital Corps established 1940 - Chief of Naval Operations asks Congress for money to build two-ocean Navy For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at www.history.navy.mil.

13 Jun 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: June 13

"Entering the Ice" Engraving by George T. Andrew after a design by M.J. Burns, copied from "The Voyage of the Jeannette ...", Volume I, page 117, edited by Emma DeLong, published in 1884. It depicts USS Jeannette entering the Arctic Ice, near Herald Island (about 72N, 175W), on 6 September 1879. (U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph.)

Today in U.S. Naval History - June 13 1881 - USS Jeannette crushed in Arctic ice pack 1967 - Operation Great Bend in Rung Sat Zone, Vietnam For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at www.history.navy.mil.

05 Jun 2013

Today in U.S. Naval history: June 5

Courtesy of Donald M. McPherson, 1969. (U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command Photograph.)

Today in U.S. Naval history – June 5 1794 - First officers of the U.S. Navy under the Constitution are appointed. The first 6 captains appointed to superintend the construction of new ships were John Barry, Samuel Nicholson, Silas Talbot, Joshua Barney, Richard Dale, and Thomas Truxtun 1917 - First military unit sent to France, First Naval Aeronautical Detachment, reaches France on board USS Jupiter 1945 - Typhoon off Okinawa damages many U.S. Navy ships   For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at www.history.navy.mil.

06 Jun 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: June 6

Photograph from the Army Signal Corps Collection in the U.S. National Archives.

Today in U.S. Naval History – June 6 1944 - D-Day, in Operation Overlord, Allied invasion fleet (more than 2,700 ships and craft) land troops on Normandy beaches, the largest amphibious landing in history For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at www.history.navy.mil.

07 Jun 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: June 7

USS Yorktown (Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the U.S. National Archives.)

Today in U.S. Naval History - June 7 1819 - Lt. John White on merchant ship Franklin, anchored off Vung Tau is first U.S. naval officer to visit Vietnam 1917 - U.S. subchasers arrive at Corfu for anti-submarine patrols 1942 - Battle of Midway ends with loss of USS Yorktown 1944 - Construction of artificial harbors and sheltered anchorages begins off Normandy coast 1991 - Joint Task Force Sea Angel ends relief operations in Bangladesh after Cyclone Marian For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at www.history.navy.mil.

10 Jun 2013

Today in U.S. Naval history: June 10

Today in U.S. Naval history - June 10 1854 - U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, MD, holds first formal graduation exercises. Previous classes graduated without ceremony. 1896 - Authorization of first experimental ship model tank For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at www.history.navy.mil.

12 Jun 2013

Today in U.S. Naval History: June 12

Today in U.S. Naval History - June 12 1944 - Four U.S. Carrier Groups (15 carriers) begin attack on Japanese positions in the Marianas. 1948 - The Women's Armed Forces Integration Act provides for enlistment and appointment of women in the Naval Reserve. 1970 - After earthquake in Peru, USS Guam begins 11 days of relief flights to transport medical teams and supplies, as well as rescue victims. 1990 - CDR Rosemary Mariner becomes first Navy woman to command fleet jet aircraft squadron. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center website at www.history.navy.mil.