This Day In United States Naval History

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This Day In United States Naval History - June 26th

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1917 - During World War I, the first Navy convoy of troopships carrying the American Expeditionary Forces arrives in France. The 14 troopships depart on June 14 from New York, which includes the 5th Marine Regiment.

1945 - USS Bearss (DD 654), USS John Hood (DD 655), USS Jarvis (DD 799), and USS Porter (DD 800) sink three Japanese auxiliary submarine chasers and a guardboat and damage a fourth auxiliary submarine chaser south of Okekotan, Kurils.

1945 - USS Parche (SS 384) attacks a Japanese convoy and sinks gunboat Kamitsu Maru and freighter Eikan Maru seven miles of Todo Saki, southern Honshu.

1950 - After North Korean invaded South Korea, USS Mansfield (DD 728) and USS De Haven (DD 727) evacuates 700 Americans and friendly foreign nationals from Inchon, Korea.

1962 - U.S. Naval Facility, Cape Hatteras, N.C., makes the first Sound Surveillance System (SOSUS) detection of a Soviet diesel submarine.

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This Day In United States Naval History - June 27th

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1861 - While commanding a gunboat flotilla, Cmdr. James Harmon Ward is mortally wounded by a musket ball while aiming the bow gun of his flagship, USS Thomas Freeborn at Mathias Point, Va. Ward is the first US Naval officer casualty of the Civil War.

1898 - During the Spanish-American War, the 301-ton yacht Hornet captures the Spanish steamer Benito Estenger off Cape Cruz, Cuba.

1916 - At the Battle of Los Trencheros during the Dominican Campaign in the Dominican Republic, the Fourth Marine Regiment withstands an attack by Dominican insurgent forces.

1945 - PV-1 (VPB 142) sinks the Japanese submarine I 165, 450 miles east of Saipan, Mariana Islands.

1945 - USS Blueback (SS 326) sinks Imperial Japanese Navy submarine chaser, (CH 2), north of Lombok, Java Sea.

1950 - President Harry Truman authorizes U.S. Naval and Air operations south of 38th Parallel, Korea, in support of the U.N. call to assist South Korea.

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This Day In United States Naval History - June 28th

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1776 - Army Col. William Moultries' troops defend Sullivans Island and Charleston, S.C. from an attack by British Commodore Sir Peter Parker and his fleet during the American Revolution. After a nine-hour battle with casualties mounting, Parker retreats. With Charleston saved, the fort is named in honor of Col. William Moultrie.

1814 - The sloop of war USS Wasp commanded by Johnston Blakeley, comes across HMS Reindeer, commanded by William Manners, off Plymouth, England, and engages in battle. After the 19-minute battle, USS Wasp captures HMS Reindeer, taking her crew as prisoners, and burn her at sea.

1914 - Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria is assassinated at Sarajevo, Bosnia. This act eventually leads to World War I.

1918 - A detachment of Marines from USS Brooklyn lands at Vladivostok, Russia to protect the U.S. Consulate and to assist forces of other Allied nations in bringing order to the city during the early stages of the Russian Revolution.

1919 - The Versailles Peace Treaty is signed, which ends World War I.

1943 - USS Peto (SS 265) and USS Tunny (SS 282) sink Japanese hydrographic-meterological research ship Tenkai No.2 northeast of Mussau Island and a gunboat Shotoku Maru off the west coast of Rota, Mariana Islands.

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This Day In United States Naval History - June 29th

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1860 - The steamer USS Mystic, commanded by William E. LeRoy, captures the slaver, Thomas Achorn at Kabenda, Africa and send her to New York.

1862 - During the Civil War, the steam sloop USS Susquehanna, commanded by Cmdr. R.B. Hitchcock, captures the blockade-running British steamer HMS Anna near Mobile, Ala.

1871 - Capt. Charles F. Halls arctic expedition sails from New York on USS Polaris. Aiming for the North Pole, USS Polaris reaches 82X 11 N, 61X W. latitude, then the furthest point north reached by a vessel.

1944 - USS Darter (SS 227) sinks the Japanese minelayer Tsugaru in the Dutch East Indies.

1950 - USS Juneau (CLAA 119) and USS De Haven (DD 727) fire the first naval shore bombardment of the Korean War in the vicinity of Samchock, Korea.

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This Day In United States Naval History - June 30th

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1815 - In the last naval action of the War of 1812, the sloop of war, USS Peacock, commanded by Capt. Lewis Warrington, comes across the British cruiser HMS Nautilus in the Straits of Sunda. The cruiser's crew informed Capt. Warrington of the Treaty of Ghent. Suspicious, he wants Nautilus to strike colors. Refusing to do so, Peacock broadsides her, killing or wounding 15. Boarding the vessel, Capt. Warrington discovers the treaty is true and releases HMS Nautilus and repairs the ship.

1942 - USS Plunger (SS 179) sinks Japanese freighter No.5 Unkai Maru off the China coast near Shanghai.

1943 - In Operation Toenails, Task Force 31, commanded by Rear Adm. Richmond K. Turner, lands the New Georgian Occupation Force, consisting of the U.S. Armys 172nd Infantry, 43rd Division on Rendova Island. Task Force 31 is supported by land-based aircraft and destroyer gunfire. The troops land without opposition.

1945 - USS Baya (SS 318) and USS Capitaine (SS 336) attack the Japanese Makassar to Surabaya convoy MASU 705 and engage escorting submarine (Ch 5) and later sink cargo vessel Bandai Maru.

1951 - A group of stranded Japanese soldiers who refuse to believe World War II ended in 1945, surrender to Lt. Cmdr. James B. Johnson, USS Cocopa (ATF 101) on Anatahan Island in the northern Marianas.

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This Day In United States Naval History - July 1st

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1801 - Commodore Richard Dale's squadron arrives at Gibraltar for the protection of American interests and to strike at the Barbary Pirates in the Mediterranean. Squadron ships were USS President, USS Philadelphia, USS Essex, and USS Enterprise.

1850 - The Naval School at Annapolis, Md., is renamed the U.S. Naval Academy and adopts a four-year course of study. Also on this date, Commander Cornelius K. Stribling becomes the first Superintendent of the Naval Academy and serves until the fall of 1853.

1911 - Designer Glenn Curtiss makes the first flight in the Navys first aircraft, Curtiss A 1, at Lake Keuka, NY, and prepares Lt. Theodore G. Ellyson, the first Naval Aviator, for his two A 1 solo flights.

1918 - USS Covington (No. 1409), is torpedoed by German submarine (U 86) and sinks the next day while in tow. Of the 776 onboard, all but six are saved.

1931 - USS Constitution is re-commissioned after a four-year, nearly $1 million restoration. The next day, the ship and crew began a three-year, three-coast tour of the U.S., visiting 76 ports and hosting 4.6 million people; the tour, known as the "National Cruise", was intended to thank U.S. citizens who had supported "Old Ironsides'" restoration.

1943 - USS Thresher (SS 200) attacks a Japanese convoy off the northwest coast of Celebes, in Makassar Strait, damaging destroyer Hokaze and sinks army cargo ship Yoneyama Maru, 38 miles from Balikapan. Six days later, USS Paddle (SS 263) sinks the damaged Hokaze in the Celebes Sea.

1946 - The atmospheric nuclear weapon test, Able, is detonated during Operation Crossroads at the Bikini Atoll, Marshall Islands.

1972 - Rear Adm. Samuel L. Gravely Jr. becomes the first African-American to achieve flag rank in the U.S. Navy.

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This Day In United States Naval History - July 2nd

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1926 - The Distinguished Flying Cross is authorized by Congress. The first Naval Aviator to receive the Distinguished is Lt. Cmdr. Richard E. Byrd for his flight to the North Pole on May 9, 1926.

1937 - Amelia Earhart and her navigator Fred Noonan disappear over the Pacific. US Coast Guard cutter Itasca, USS Colorado (BB 45) and USS Lexington (CV 2) and PBY aircraft from Hawaii are dispatched, but the extensive search is unsuccessful.

1944 - TBM aircraft from (VC 58) based on board USS Wake Island (CVE 65) sink German submarine U 543, southeast of the Azores.

1944 - PB4Ys (FAW 1) sink Japanese sailing vessel Nishima Maru off Mokpo, Korea, and cargo ship No.12 Shima Maru.

1945 - USS Barb (SS 220) bombards Japanese installations on Kaihyo Island, Japan in the first successful use of rockets against shore positions.

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This Day In United States Naval History - July 3rd

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1898 - During the Spanish American War, when Rear Adm. Cerveras Spanish fleet attempts to flee from the harbor at Santiago, Cuba, but the U.S. Navys Atlantic Squadron successfully pursues, attacks, and systematically destroys the Spanish vessels.

1942 - A PBY 5A aircraft successfully fires the first airborne retro-rocket at Goldstone Lake, Calif.

1943 - Submarine chaser USS (SC 1048) rescues survivors of a U-boat attack who had been sighted by a Navy blimp in the North Atlantic Ocean. The survivors are from the tanker Bloody Marsh, which was previously torpedoed July 2 and sunk by German submarine (U 66), which during its career sinks 37 Allied vessels until sunk by aircraft from USS Block Island (CVE 21) and USS Buckley 51) nearly a year later.

1944 - USS Frost (DE 144) and USS Inch (DE 146) sink German submarine (U 154) off Madiera.

1950 - USS Valley Forge (CV 45) and HMS Triumph participate in first carrier action of Korean War. VF 51 aircraft from Valley Forge shoot down two North Korean aircraft. The action is also the first combat test of F9F Panther and AD Skyraider.

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This Day In United States Naval History - July 4th

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1776 - The Second Continental Congress unanimously adopts the Declaration of Independence, which announces the colonies' separation from Great Britain.

1801 - President Thomas Jefferson holds the first Presidential Review of U.S. Marine Band and Marines at the White House, Washington, District of Columbia.

1805 - USS Constitution is anchored off Syracuse; Commodore John Rogers orders a 16-gun salute at noon and all ships are dressed with signal flags; a gala is held aboard Constitution, the flagship, that night.

1863 - During the Civil War, the Confederates surrender Vicksburg, Miss., following a lengthy bombardment and siege by Union naval and land forces. The surrender gives the Union control of the Mississippi River. President Abraham Lincoln writes, ''The Father of Waters again goes unvexed to the sea.''

1944 - USS David W. Taylor (DD 551) and USS Riddle (DE 185) sink Japanese submarine (I 10) while attempting an evacuation mission to Saipan, 100 miles east-northeast of her destination.

1991 - USS Arleigh Burke (DDG 51) is commissioned at the waterfront of downtown Norfolk, Va. The guided-missile destroyer is the lead ship of her class and named for the former Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Arleigh Burke, who attends the ships commissioning ceremony.

1992 - USS George Washington (CVN 73) is commissioned at Norfolk, Va. The ships sponsor is First Lady Barbara Bush. The sixth carrier in the Nimitz-class of supercarriers, it is the fourth warship to be named after the first president of the United States. The GW is currently homeported at Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan.

1994 - USS Squall (PC 7) is commissioned at St. Louis, Mo. The seventh Cyclone-class patrol craft is currently homeported at Naval Support Activity Bahrain.

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This Day In United States Naval History - July 5th

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1801 - David G. Farragut is born near Knoxville, Tenn. Known for the quote, Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead during the Battle of Mobile Bay in 1864, he is appointed vice admiral by President Abraham Lincoln in 1864 and is commissioned an admiral, the first-ever in the US Navy, by a Congressional Act in 1866.

1814 - The sloop-of-war, USS Peacock, captures British vessels HMS Stranger, HMS Venus, HMS Adiona, and HMS Fortitude.

1859 - Hawaiian bark Gambia, commanded by Capt. N.C. Brooks, discovers the Midway Islands. The islands are named "Middlebrook Islands." On Aug. 28, 1867, Capt. William Reynolds of the USS Lackawanna takes possession of the atoll for the U.S., making Midway the first offshore islands annexed by the U.S. government.

1862 - The Navy Department is reorganized by act of Congress.

1942 - USS Growler (SS 215) torpedoes and sinks the Japanese destroyer, Arare, in the Salmon Lagoon, off Kiska. In the attack, USS Growler damages destroyers Kasumi and Shiranui.

1944 - USS Thomas (DE 102) and USS Baker (DE 190) from Task Group 22.5, sink German minelayer submarine (U 233) off Halifax, Nova Scotia.

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This Day In United States Naval History - July 6th

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1747 - John Paul Jones is born in Arbigland, Scotland. Originally appointed to the Continental Navy in 1775, he is known for his quote, Ive not yet begun to fight! during the battle between Continental frigate, Bonhomme Richard, and HMS Serapis on Sept. 23, 1779.

1898 - During the Spanish-American War, the auxiliary-cruiser USS Dixie captures the Spanish vessels, Three Bells, Pilgrim, and Greeman Castle, off Cape Cruz, Cuba.

1943 - Following the Allied landing on New Georgia, the Japanese attempt to land reinforcements with 10 destroyers, resulting in the Battle of Kula Gulf. In the battle, USS Helena (CL 50) is hit by three torpedoes, breaks apart, and sinks, with nearly 170 of her crew lost.

1943 - While serving as VB 102's Squadron Commander and as Plane Commander of a PB4Y 1 Patrol Bomber during the Central Solomons campaign, Lt. Cmdr. Bruce A. Van Voorhis courageously undertakes a lone long-range mission to disrupt potential Japanese attacks. While striking enemy facilities and aircraft at Greenwich Island in the face of overwhelming aerial opposition, Van Voorhis' plane is caught in the blast of its own bombs and crashes into a nearby lagoon, killing those on board. For his "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity" on this occasion, he is posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor and promoted to Commander.

1944 - USS Paddle (SS 263) attacks a Japanese convoy northwest of Halmahera and sinks destroyer Hokaze off Sangi Island. Also on this date, USS Sealion (SS 315) attacks a Japanese convoy in the East China Sea and sinks merchant passenger cargo ship Setsuzan Maru off Ningpo, China while USS Tang (SS 306) sinks Japanese freighter Dori Maru in Chosen Bay.

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This Day In United States Naval History - July 7th

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1798 - Congress rescinds treaties with France, and the Quasi War begins.

1846 - During the Mexican-American War, Commodore John D. Sloat, disembarks from his flagship frigate, USS Savannah, at Monterey and claims California for the U.S.

1915 - Thomas A. Edison becomes the head of the Naval Consulting Board, which screens inventions for the Navy.

1944 - USS Mingo (SS 261), USS Skate (SS 305), USS Sunfish (SS 281), USS Flasher (SS 249), and USS Bonefish (SS 223) sink up to eight Japanese ships.

1944 - While serving with the Fourth Battalion, Tenth Marines, Second Marine Division during the Battle of Saipan, Pfc. Harold C. Agerholm uses an abandoned ambulance and makes repeated trips for three hours under heavy rifle and mortar fire, single-handedly evacuating approximately 45 wounded men until mortally wounded by a Japanese sniper. For his "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity," he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

1948 - The first six enlisted women are sworn into Regular Navy: Chief Yeoman Wilma J. Marchal; Yeoman Second Class Edna E. Young; Hospital Corpsman First Class Ruth Flora; Aviation Storekeeper First Class Kay L. Langen; Storekeeper Second Class Frances T. Devaney; and Teleman Doris R. Robertson.

1979 - USS Emory S. Land (AS 39) is commissioned at her homeport of Norfolk, Va. The submarine tender is named after Adm. Emory S. Land, an officer noted for his designs of submarines.

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This Day In United States Naval History - July 8th

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1777 - British frigate HMS Rainbow and brig HMS Flora chase the Continental frigates Boston and Hancock and the captured prize, British frigate HMS Fox, off Halifax, Nova Scotia. Boston escapes but Hancock is captured and renamed HMS Iris.

1778 - The Allied French fleet under Adm. Comte dEstaing arrives in America with reinforcements for the American Revolution and participates in the Battle of Rhode Island and at the Siege of Savannah.

1879 - USS Jeannette departs San Francisco to explore the Arctic, but becomes frozen in the ice pack by September. On June 13, 1881, the bark-rigged wooden steamship sinks after she is crushed in an Arctic ice pack during an attempt to reach the North Pole through the Bering Strait. Of the 33 who set off after the ship went down, only 13 of Jeannette's men survive their adventures and return to civilization.

1944 - The cruisers and destroyers of Task Group 53.18, commanded by Rear Adm. Charles Turner Joy, begin daily bombardment of Japanese defenses on Guam. Battleships join the bombardment group on July 14.

1944 - While serving as Tank Commander with Second Battalion, Sixth Marines, Second Marine Division during the Battle of Saipan, Sgt. Grant F. Timmermans tank is halted by the enemy when the Japanese hurl a grenade. Blocking the deadly missile, Timmerman holds the grenade to his chest and absorbs the blast, sacrificing his life to save his comrades. For his "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity" on this occasion, he is posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. Grant F. Timmerman is buried at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii.

1960 - USS Proteus (AS-19) is recommissioned and serves as a tender for the Polaris Fleet Ballistic Missile submarines.

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This Day In United States Naval History - July 9th

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1846 - During the Mexican-American War, Cmdr. John B. Montgomery and his detachment of Marines and sailors from the sloop-of-war USS Portsmouth raise the U.S. flag over (Yerba Buena) San Francisco, Calif.

1943 - PBY (VP 94) sinks German submarine (U 590) at the mouth of the Amazon River, Brazil.

1943 - Ensign John J. Parle is the Officer-in-Charge of small boats on board USS (LST 375). While preparing for the assault landing on Sicily, Italy, a smoke pot in a boat accidentally ignites. Realizing an explosion will give their position away, Parle grabs the pot and throws it over the side. As a result of the smoke and fumes he inhaled, he dies on July 17, 1943. For his "valor and courage above and beyond the call of duty" on this occasion, he is posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

1944 - The organized Japanese resistance ceases on Saipan, Mariana Islands.

1950 - During the Korean War, Cmdr. Michael J. L. Luosey assumes command of the Navy of the Republic of Korea. He subsequently serves as its Deputy Commander until June 1, 1952.

1960 - USS Wasp (CVS 18) departs Guantanamo Bay to support the United Nations effort to calm the newly independent Congo.

1960 - USS Thresher (SSN 593) is launched at Portsmouth, N.H.

1988 - USS Oklahoma City (SSN 723) is commissioned at Newport News, Va., near its homeport of Norfolk. The Los Angeles-class submarine is currently homeported at Guam with Submarine Squadron 15.

1994 - USS Rhode Island (SSBN 740) is commissioned at Groton, Conn. The Ohio-class ballistic-missile submarine is homeported at Kings Bay, Ga.

1994 - USS Dextrous (MCM 13), an Avenger-class mine countermeasures ship, is commissioned at Ingleside, Texas, which includes former Sailors from the original Dextrous (AM 341).

1994 - USS Port Royal (CG 73) is commissioned at Savannah, Ga. The guided-missile cruiser is the 27th and last ship of the Ticonderoga-class cruisers. Named after American Revolutionary and Civil War battles at Port Royal Sound, S.C., the ship is homeported at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

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This Day In United States Naval History - July 10th

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1934 - President Franklin D. Roosevelt travels to Cartagena, Columbia, by USS Houston (CA 30). His visit was the first by a U.S. president to South America.

1942 - While returning from a routine patrol, PBY from (VP 41) sights Mitsubishi A6M2 (type 0) carrier fighter (ZERO) upside down in a bog on Akutan Island, Aleutians, where it had been since its forced landing June 3 during the attack on Dutch Harbor. On July 12, a salvage party from (VP 41) begins to salvage the ZERO which lasts until mid-month. The find is vital as the Allies gain a lot of knowledge how to potentially combat the aircraft in future engagements.

1943 - In Operation Husky, naval gunfire helps Allied troops land on Sicily, Italy. It is the first extensive use of LST's and smaller landing craft to deliver heavy equipment over the beach.

1945 - USS Runner (SS 476) sinks the Japanese minesweeper (No.27) off Tado Saki, Honshu.

1971 - USS Ponce (AFSB 15) is commissioned. The final Austin-class amphibious transport dock is named after a city in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. After serving more than 40 years at her homeport of Norfolk, Ponce is redesignated in 2012 as an afloat forward staging base and is currently homeported at Bahrain.

1993 - USS Nebraska (SSBN 739) is commissioned at New London, Conn. The 14th Ohio-class submarine is originally homeported at Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, Ga., but is currently homeported at Bangor, Wash.

2007 - A U.S. Marine Corps V-22 Osprey lands on the British light aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious (R 06) during test exercises. This landing is the first time the vertical-takeoff-and-landing tilt-rotor had operated from the deck of a foreign warship.