USS SHARK vs. Caroline

                        10 NOVEMBER 1822                      USS SHARK VS. Caroline Officially, the US government banned American participation in the African slave trade in 1808, although enforcement was not attempted until our Navy began patrolling off West Africa in 1820. Two years later those patrols Read More

USS DECATUR vs. The Indians

                                            27-28 OCTOBER 1855                                       USS DECATUR vs. The Indians The Oregon Treaty with England in 1846 deeded that portion of British Columbia south of the 49th parallel to the United States–the area that would become our States of Washington and Oregon. Settlers Read More

Dogger Bank Incident

                                               21 OCTOBER 1904                                        DOGGER BANK INCIDENT In 1904, frictions between Japan and Russia erupted into war when the Japanese attacked and destroyed the Russian Navy’s 1st Pacific Squadron at its base in Port Arthur (modern China).  Tsar Nicholas II reacted by Read More

USS MEREDITH, DD-434 (cont.)

                                            15-18 OCTOBER 1942                                      USS MEREDITH, DD-434 (cont.) In ten minutes, all to be seen of MEREDITH was floating debris, life rafts, and the black heads of sailors bobbing in a thick mat of oil.  VIREO (AT-144) escaped the attack almost unscathed, Read More

USS MEREDITH, DD-434

                                            15-18 OCTOBER 1942                                           USS MEREDITH, DD-434 The Gleaves-class destroyer USS MEREDITH (DD-434) was no stranger to the young War.  After a brief stint in the Atlantic, MEREDITH transferred to the Pacific, where in April 1942 she screened HORNET (CV-8) on the Read More

The Panama Canal

                                     TODAY IN NAVAL HISTORY                                                10 OCTOBER 1913                                            THE PANAMA CANAL At 1401 this afternoon, in a media event, President Woodrow Wilson pressed a button in the Executive Building of downtown Washington DC.  Two thousand miles to the south, dynamite charges Read More

The Charge Up Coyotepe

                                              2-4 OCTOBER 1912                                      THE CHARGE UP COYOTEPE The US Marines had been in Nicaragua off and on since December 1909, each time to quell civil unrest and prop-up conservative pro-American governments.  In this latest foray, the administration of Adolfo Díaz had Read More

The Miraculous Crossing

                               TODAY IN NAVAL HISTORY                       27-28 SEPTEMBER 1066                     THE MIRACULOUS CROSSING For the first week of January in the year 1066, King Edward the Confessor of England agonized on his death bed.  A sudden apoplexy (cerebral hemorrhage) caused lapses in and Read More

PROVIDENCE vs. MILFORD

                       20 SEPTEMBER 1776                      PROVIDENCE vs. MILFORD On 10 May 1776, temporary CAPT John Paul Jones assumed command of the Continental Navy sloop Providence, armed with twelve 4-pounder guns.  Jones received his permanent appointment on August 8th and departed the Delaware Capes Read More