This Day in Naval History - Aug. 05

August 5, 2008

From the Navy News Service

1832 - Frigate Potomac is first U.S. Navy ship to entertain royalty, King and Queen of Sandwich Islands, Honolulu.
1864 - Rear Admiral David Farragut wins Battle of Mobile Bay, sealing off last Confederate port on Gulf Coast.
1882 - Authorizing of first steel warships, beginning of the modern Navy.
1915 - First air spotting for shore batteries at Fort Monroe, Va.
1921 - Yangtze River Patrol Force established as command under Asiatic Fleet.
1953 - Exchange of prisoners of war of Korean Conflict (Operation Big Switch) begins.
1967 - Operation Coronado III begins in Rung Sat Zone, Vietnam.
1990 - Navy and Marine Task Force -- USS Saipan (LHA 2), USS Ponce (LPD 15) and USS Sumter (APA 52) -- begin evacuation of U.S. citizens and foreign nationals from Liberia during civil war.

For more information on naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center Web site at www.history.navy.mil.