Civil War

Escape of Planter

                                                 12-13 MAY 1862                                             ESCAPE OF PLANTER Robert Smalls was a 23-year-old slave who was contracted by his owner to Charleston, SC, tradesmen in exchange for the pay he earned.  The Spring of 1862 found Smalls in the employ of C.J. Relyea, Read More

Land Ops, Marines, WWII Pacific

Fall of Corregidor

                                                    6 MAY 1942                                           FALL OF CORREGIDOR The Japanese invasion of the Philippines began within hours of the attack on Pearl Harbor.  Landing in the Lingayen Gulf, they swept southward across the island of Luzon toward Manila, Subic Bay, and the Bataan Read More

Amphibious Ships, Cold War, War of 1812

Last Cruise of LPH-11

                                        1 FEBRUARY-2 MAY 1997                                          LAST CRUISE OF LPH-11 On the sunny Friday morning of 2 May 1997 the amphibious assault ship NEW ORLEANS (LPH-11) nudged toward Pier 6 at Naval Station San Diego.  A seasoned 28-year veteran, she was returning from Read More

Civil War, Ironclads

CSS NEUSE

                                                  27 APRIL 1864                                                      CSS NEUSE Union forces gained control of North Carolina’s shoreline south of the Virginia border during the first year of the Civil War.  By late 1862, Union troops were garrisoned at New Bern on the Neuse River, Washington Read More

Auxiliaries, Civil War

CSS WEBB’s Run for the Sea

                                                23-24 APRIL 1865                                     CSS WEBB’S RUN FOR THE SEA The 206-foot sidewheel steamboat William H. Webb started her career as a coastal steamer in New York in 1856.  She fell into Confederate hands in 1861 and was converted to a ram Read More

Auxiliaries, Coast Guard, WWII Atlantic

USCGC SPENCER vs. U-175

                                                  17 APRIL 1943                                         USCGC SPENCER vs. U-175 Ocean Escort Unit A-3, a multi-national collection of the US Coast Guard cutters SPENCER (WPG-36) and DUANE (WPG-33) along with the British corvette HMS DIANTHUS, the Canadian corvettes CHILLIWACK, ROSTHERN, TRILLIUM and DAUPHIN, and Read More

Battleships

MISSOURI Turret Fire

                                                  13 APRIL 1904                                          MISSOURI TURRET FIRE The first years of the 20th century were heady times.  The Wright brothers had achieved the first heavier-than-air flight only months before this date.  Theodore Roosevelt was President, and from a naval perspective, our nation Read More

Foreign Navy, WWII Pacific

YAMATO’s Desperation Sortie

                                                  6-7 APRIL 1945                                  YAMATO’S DESPERATION SORTIE A second offshore phase of operation “Ten-Go” involved the Imperial Navy.  Its warships were to sally forth and blast what remained of the Allied invasion fleet after the April 6th kikusui raid.  But by this Read More

Naval Aviation, WWII Pacific

“Floating Chrysanthemums”

                                                  6-7 APRIL 1945                                  “FLOATING CHRYSANTHEMUMS” The Japanese plan for defense of Okinawa was known by the language characters “Ten-Go.”  While defenders on land waged a battle of attrition, Japanese air and naval forces would engage the American invasion fleet.  But the Read More

Gunboats, Land Ops, Marines

Colombian Intervention

                                         11 MARCH-25 MAY 1885                                      COLOMBIAN INTERVENTION As Prestan’s fires left 8,000 homeless in Colon, the rebellious Azipuru was stirring again on the Pacific side.  Having initially been chased into the hills, Azipuru regained Panama City when Colombian troops crossed the isthmus Read More