1779: 1,000 Continental Marines and militiamen, including a 100-man artillery detachment commanded by Paul Revere, depart Boston, sailing to attack the British at Fort George (present-day Castine, Maine). The 44-ship …
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1863: At 7:45 p.m., Union soldiers led by Brig. Gen. Truman Seymore launch a second attack against Fort Wagner, in Charleston (S.C.) Harbor. Spearheading the attack is Col. Robert G. …
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1898: Spanish forces under the command of Gen. José Toral surrender Cuba to Gen. William R. Shafter, practically ending Col. (and future president) Teddy Roosevelt’s “splendid little war.” In December, …
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1861: Brig. Gen. Irvin McDowell’s 35,000-man army departs Washington, D.C., marching to meet Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard’s Confederate force assembled along Bull Run some 25 miles away. Just weeks ago, McDowell …
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1862: President Abraham Lincoln signs a law creating the Medal of Honor – the nation’s highest decoration for valor. The award is presented to “such non-commissioned officers and privates as …
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1798: Having been disbanded after the end of the Revolutionary War 15 years ago, President John Adams re-institutes the United States Marine Corps for the Quasi War with France. 1804: …
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1942: A PBY “Catalina” crew spots an intact Japanese A6M “Zero” fighter that crash-landed on the Alaskan island of Akutan. The fighter is salvaged and shipped to the United States, …
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1814: On the banks of the Niagara River in Upper Canada (modern-day Ontario), The United States Army proves that they are capable of going toe-to-toe with the British. Wrongly believing …
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1775: Gen. George Washington, the newly appointed commander-in-chief of the Continental Army, takes formal command of his troops in Cambridge, Mass. 1778: A force of 1,000 Loyalists and Iroquois warriors …
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1863: The Battle of Gettysburg (Pa.) enters its second day. Col. Joshua L. Chamberlain’s 20th Maine Volunteers occupy “Little Round Top” at the extreme left flank of the Union forces. …