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This Day in U.S. Military History
Chris Carter is the director of the Victory Institute, and deputy regional director of the U.S. Counterterrorism Advisory Team. His work appears at OpsLens.com. the US Report, International Analyst Network, Human Events, Canada Free Press, Family Security Matters, Deutsche Welle, NavySEALs.com, Blackfive and other publications. Chris is a veteran of the U.S. Air Force, non-commissioned officer in the South Carolina State Guard, and retired firefighter.
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29 December 1941
Posted Sunday, December 29, 2019, at 3:45 PMAfter secretly crossing the Atlantic in a British battleship, British prime minister Winston Churchill is currently spending a couple weeks with President Franklin Roosevelt in the White House, coordinating grand strategy. Meanwhile in Cape Girardeau, the oil furnace of Charles Augustus Himmelberger (325 N. ... -
Pearl Harbor admiral's father fought for both Union, Confederacy
Posted Friday, December 20, 2019, at 2:35 PMAdm. Husband E. Kimmel, Commander-in-Chief of the Pacific Fleet when Pearl Harbor was attacked on Dec. 7, 1941, has ties to Cape Girardeau County. His father, Manning M. Kimmel, was born in Apple Creek, Mo. (near modern-day Old Appleton in Perry County) in 1832. He received an appointment to the United States Military Academy, graduating with the Class of 1857... -
19 December 1941
Posted Thursday, December 19, 2019, at 10:16 AMLloyd Dale Clippard (see "Community to Pay Tribute to City's First War Casualty"), a 19-year-old seaman second class assigned to the battleship USS Utah, was one of 58 men killed when the ship was hit by two torpedoes and capsized during the Pearl Harbor attack. ... -
15 December 1941
Posted Sunday, December 15, 2019, at 11:00 AMThe AP “War Bulletins” section on the front page references German long-range artillery targeting the Dover area. The Germans installed a number of coastal defense batteries (originally intended for battleships) along the Dover Strait, featuring cannons ranging from 8.3-inch to the 16-inch “Adolf cannons” which at this point of the war were about to be shipped over from Poland. ... -
13 December 1941
Posted Friday, December 13, 2019, at 9:18 AMThe United States’ air and naval assets in the Philippines were mostly neutralized in the first 48 hours of the war, so smaller Japanese landings and bombing raids across Luzon Island are met with little resistance. American commanders correctly suspect that these small-scale landings merely diversions for the upcoming main assault... -
12 December 1941
Posted Thursday, December 12, 2019, at 4:19 PMFive days after the Pearl Harbor attack, the Imperial Japanese Navy’s First Air Fleet is steaming west across the North Pacific, some 1,500 nautical miles northwest of Hawaii. Across the ocean, Japanese forces hammer Luzon Island on multiple fronts: Olongapo, Cavite, Legaspi, Batangas, and Clark Field... -
11 December 1941
Posted Wednesday, December 11, 2019, at 5:31 PMSecretary of War Henry L. Stimson "confirmed" that B-17 bombers sunk the battleship Haruna off Luzon Island, however no battleships were assigned to that particular fleet and Haruna was nowhere near the area. Chalk this up to the fog of war. ... -
7 December 1941
Posted Saturday, December 7, 2019, at 7:19 AM -
67 years ago: Poplar Bluff native earns the Medal of Honor
Posted Friday, September 7, 2018, at 3:56 PMOn this day in 1951 in North Korea's "Iron Triangle," the 35th Infantry Regiment's "I" Company fell under enemy attack by a numerically superior communist force. A 20-year-old Poplar Bluff native named Billie G. Kanell watches an enemy grenade land in his position. ... -
Today in Military History: Jackson native, Cpl. Jeremy Shank, gives his life for his country
Posted Thursday, September 6, 2018, at 10:50 AMToday's post is in honor of U.S. Army Corporal Jeremy R. Shank, who gave his life for his country on this date in 2006. The 18-year-old native of Jackson, Mo. was serving with the 2d Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division when he sustained mortal wounds from small-arms fire during a dismounted security patrol in Hawijah, Iraq... -
The World War II air bases of Southeast Missouri
Posted Monday, March 19, 2018, at 7:05 PMWith Imperial Japan expanding across Asia and Hitler's Third Reich conquering Europe, American war planners knew that our military would soon need pilots. Airfields popped up all across the country, including several in Southeast Missouri... -
Today in U.S. military history: Operation Desert Storm
Posted Wednesday, January 17, 2018, at 5:05 PM27 years ago today, a massive U.S. and coalition air campaign continues to pound Iraq's air force and air defense systems, expanding targets to include Saddam Hussein’s command and control infrastructure. Meanwhile, Iraq fires eight Soviet-built "Scud" ballistic missiles into Israel. ... -
Dec. 18 in U.S. military history: Typhoon COBRA sinks three ships, kills 790 sailors
Posted Monday, December 18, 2017, at 10:18 AMSailing through the Philippine Sea on this day in 1944, Adm. William “Bull” Halsey’s Task Force 38 heads directly into Typhoon “Cobra”. The 100 mph-plus winds and high seas capsize and sink three destroyers, while heavily damaging a cruiser, five aircraft carriers, and three destroyers. ... -
Oct. 6 in U.S. military history: the "Lost Battalion"
Posted Friday, October 6, 2017, at 5:10 PMOn this date 99 years ago, 500 men of the 77th "Metropolitan" Division under the command of Maj. Charles W. Whittlesey have been surrounded by German forces after the French and American units advancing on their flanks have been held up. With no communication other than carrier pidgeons and no other means to send supplies, 1st Lt. ... -
NFL athletes that served during World War II
Posted Friday, October 6, 2017, at 4:40 PMOn December 7, 1941, 27,000 Americans watched the Washington Redskins cruise to a 20-14 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles at Griffith Stadium. During the game, the loudspeakers announced that various government and military officials in attendance needed to report to work. Players and fans were blissfully unaware, for the moment, that Pearl Harbor had been attacked and the nation was now at war...