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Tinian - 509th Composite Group

By May, 1945, Tibbets and the 509th had moved out to the Pacific, to the island of Tinian in the Marianas. As it was shaped something like the island of Manhattan, the Army engineers named the base facilities with names like Broadway and Forty-second Street. Tibbets' group bivouacked in the "Columbia University district." Tinian was ideal; its 8,500 foot runways were among the longest in the world at the time. Tibbets ran into various confrontations, on issues from maintenance to training, stemming in part from the secrecy of the operations. He flew back and forth to the States three times between May and July, but missed the first atomic test at Alamogordo because he had to return to Tinian to persuade General Curtis LeMay not to switch the atomic mission to another outfit.

Tinian Island, showing its four 8,500 ft. (2,591 m) runways">

On July 26th, the cruiser Indianapolis dropped anchor off Tinian and unloaded a 15-foot wooden crate. Inside was the atomic bomb, complete except for a second slug of uranium that a B-29 later delivered. Having delivered its load without incident, Indianapolis moved on toward the Philippines. Though intelligence reports assured Captain Charles McVay that the route from Guam to Leyte was safe, there were Japanese submarines active in the area. Four days after departing Tinian, Indianapolis was sunk by a Japanese submarine.

The Mission

By early August, 1945, plans for the first atomic mission were set. Seven Boeing Superfortresses would take part, including the primary, a standby, a photo plane, one with scientific instruments to measure the blast, and three others that would scout ahead. Bombing would be visual, rather than by radar. Possible target cities included Hiroshima, Kokura, Niigata, and Nagasaki. Until this time, Tibbets' own plane had been simply number 82, when he decided to name it Enola Gay, after his confidence-building and loving mother. Twelve men crewed the plane:

Capt. Robert Lewis - copilot
Maj. Thomas Ferebee - bombardier
Capt. Theodore Van Kirk - navigator
Lt. Jacob Beser - radar countermeasures
Capt. William "Deak" Parsons - weaponeer
2nd Lt. Maurice Jeppson - assistant weaponeer
Sgt. Joe Stiborik - radar
Staff Sgt. George Caron - tail gunner
Sgt. Robert Shumard - asst. flight engineer
Pfc. Richard Nelson - radio
Tech Sgt. Wayne Duzenberry - flight engineer

Left to Right,
Standing: Lt. Col. John Porter, ground maintenance officer; Capt. Theodore J. Van Kirk, navigator; Maj. Thomas W. Ferebee, bombardier; Col. Paul Tibbets, pilot and commander of 509th Group; Capt. Robert A. Lewis, copilot; and Lt. Jacob Beser, radar countermeasure officer.

Kneeling: Sgt. Joseph Stiborik, radar operator; SSgt. George R Caron, tail gunner; Pfc. Richard H Nelson, radio operator; Sgt. Robert H. Shumard, assistant engineer; and SSgt Wyatt Duzenbury, flight engineer. Col. Porter was not on the aircraft during the flight.

They got the word on Sunday morning, August 5. Conditions were go, and the next day would be the day. At the last minute, it was decided to complete the final assembly of the bomb in flight, thus eliminating the risk of it exploding if Enola Gay crashed on take-off. Navy Captain Deak Parsons, who had earlier opposed this idea, now suggested it, and persuaded the team that he could perform the difficult assembly in the cramped bomb bay of the B-29.

They loaded the bomb into the Enola Gay that afternoon. "Little Boy" was 12 feet long and 28 inches in diameter - bigger than any bomb Tibbetts had ever seen. Its explosive power equalled 20,000 tons of TNT; or roughly as much as two thousand Superfortresses could carry - all in a single bomb that weighed about 9,000 pounds. Deak Parsons practiced the delicate arming process. That night the crew was briefed, for the first time, on the nature of their weapon - an atomic bomb.

Little Boy

Chuck Sweeney, with the scientific instruments in the Great Artiste, would follow Tibbets' closely, duplicating his hairpin turn. George Marquardt's photo plane would stay far behind, out of range of the shock wave. The three weather planes, Claude Etherley's Strait Flush, John Wilson's Jabbitt III, and Ralph Taylor's Full House, would take off an hour ahead, to scout out the designated target cities. Every crewman carried a standard service pistol; Tibbets carried enough cyanide capsules for all. They started engines at 2:30 AM on the morning of August 6, 1945. Three hours after takeoff, they flew over Iwo Jima at dawn, where 5,500 Americans and 25,000 Japanese had died, so that the USAAF could use Iwo as an emergency landing field. They adjusted course and headed northwest. At 7:30, Deak Parsons completed his adjustments; the atomic bomb was live. They climbed slowly to their bombing altitude of 30,700 feet.

Taxiing for takeoff on Hiroshima raid

At 8:30 they received the coded message from Etherley's Strait Flush, flying over Hiroshima, "Y-3, Q-3, B-2, C-1." The message meant that cloud cover over Hiroshima, the primary target, was less than three-tenths. Tibbets gave the word to his crew, "It's Hiroshima." As they reached the coastline of Japan, no interceptors challenged them; the Japanese had become indifferent to small groups of B-29s. They crossed Shikoku and the Iyo Sea.

They looked down at the city below. The other crewmen verified that it was indeed Hiroshima. They spotted the Initial Point, or I.P. They turned and headed almost due west. Tom Ferebee peered into his Norden bombsight, and cranked in the information to correct for the south wind. Tibbets reminded the crew to put on their heavy dark Polaroid goggles, to shield their eyes from the blinding blast. It had been calculated to have the intensity of ten suns. They easily spotted the distinctive T-shaped bridge that was their primary. 90 seconds before drop, he turned the controls over to Tom Ferebee, the bombardier. At 9:15AM (8:15 Hiroshima time), they dropped "Little Boy" and made a 155 degree diving turn to the right. Unable to fly the plane with the dark goggles, they shoved them aside.

43 seconds later, a tingling in Tibbets' teeth told him of the Hiroshima explosion: the bomb's radioactive forces interacting with his fillings. The bomb exploded at 1890 feet above the ground. Bob Caron, the tail gunner was the only crew member to see the fireball. Even wearing the goggles, he thought he was blinded. The plane raced away, while the shockwave from the explosion raced toward them at 1,100 feet per second. When the shockwave hit, it felt like a near-miss from flak. The mushroom cloud boiled up, 45,000 feet high, three miles above them, and it was still rising. They flew away, shocked and horrified at the sight below. The city had completely disappeared under a blanket of smoke and fire. They radioed back to headquarters that the primary target had been bombed visually with good results.

The Enola Gay landing on Tinian Island after the Hiroshima bombing

The mushroom cloud over Hiroshima was visible for an hour and a half as they flew southward back to Tinian. The crew talked about the effect of the atomic bomb on the war. They thought that perhaps the Japs would "throw in the sponge" even before they landed. Twelve hours after they had taken off, Tibbets and the crew of the Enola Gay touched down, to be greeted by all the military brass that could be mustered: General Carl Spaatz, commander of the Strategic Air Force; General Nathan Twining, chief of the Marianas Air Force; General Thomas F. Farrell and Rear Admiral W.R.E. Purnell, both with the atomic development project; and General John Davies, 313th Wing Commander. Spaatz pinned a Distinguished Service Cross on Tibbets as he descended from the plane.

Hiroshima, Japan - 1945

After the welcoming formalities, they were debriefed and given a quick medical checkup. The interviewers were skeptical of their accounts of the blast. The news of the atomic bomb was promptly announced to the world. The Japanese were given an ultimatum, to accept the Potsdam call for unconditional surrender, or face further atomic attacks. Three days later, Chuck Sweeney, in Bock's Car, dropped the second atomic bomb on Nagasaki.

After the War

PAUL TIBBETS
COLUMBUS, OHIO
6 MARCH 1991

Not long after the surrender, Tibbets inspected the damage done to Nagasaki. He stayed in the Air Force, and participated in the development of the B-47, our first all-jet bomber. He learned to fly jets with Pat Fleming, a 19-kill Navy ace. In the early 1950's, he flew B-47's for three years. He advised on the making of the movie "Above and Beyond," and was pleased that the famous actor, Robert Taylor, played him. From the 1950's through the 1960's he had a number of overseas assignments, including France and India. After his retirement from the Air Force, he became president of Executive Jet Aviation in Columbus, Ohio.

News Release by Airmen Memorial Museum
June 9, 1994
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

STATEMENT OFFERED BY BRIGADIER GENERAL PAUL W. TIBBETS (USAF, RETIRED) AT THE AIRMEN MEMORIAL MUSEUM ON JUNE 8, 1994 UPON THE ACCEPTANCE OF THE AIR FORCE SERGEANTS ASSOCIATION'S FREEDOM AWARD

A number of people and veterans organizations have asked me to comment on the subject of the Enola Gay, the care afforded her by the Smithsonian Institution together with their treatment of the atomic mission in general.

This is a photo of Col. Paul Tibbets on Tinian Island. It is thought that this photo was taken just prior to the Enola Gay taking off on its mission to Hiroshima. The man on the right is Capt. Robert Lewis, the co-pilot of the Enola Gay. The identities of the other men in the photo are not known. If you know their identity, please contact us via "feedback". This photo was submitted by Michael Carol, whose father, Andrew Carol, was a Staff Sergeant with the 509th Composite Group.

From my point of view, the matter has been politicized, and, as a result, mishandled. Those whose business it is to create, mold, manipulate and utilize public opinion have done so as a matter of self-serving interest. Consequently, history has been denigrated; the Enola Gay has been miscast and a group of valiant Americans have had their role in history treated shamefully. I am an airman, a pilot. In 1945, I was wearing the uniform of the US Army [Air Forces] following the orders of our commander-in-chief. I was, to the best of my ability, doing what I could to bring the war to a victorious conclusion-just as millions of people were doing here at home and around the world. Each of us -- friend and foe alike -- were doing the dictates of our respective governments. I recruited, trained and led the members of the 509th Composite Bomb Group. We had a mission. Quite simply, bring about the end of World War II. I feel I was fortunate to have been chosen to command that organization and to lead them into combat. To my knowledge, no other officer has since been accorded the scope of the responsibilities placed on my shoulders at that time.

General Spaatz Presents Distinguished Service Cross to Col. Paul Tibbets as General Davies Looks On - 1945

As for the missions flown against Japan on the 6th and 9th of August, 1945, I would remind you, we were at war. Our job was to win. Once the targets were named and presidential approval received, we were to deliver the weapons as expeditiously as possible consistent with good tactics. The objective was to stop the fighting, thereby saving further loss of life on both sides. The urgency of the situation demanded that we use the weapons first - before the technology could be used against us.

Col. Paul Tibbets After Receiving DSC. - 1945

During the course of the half century that has elapsed since the use of the atomic weapons, many scribes have chronicled the flight of the Enola Gay with nothing but descriptions of the destructive nature of our atomic weapons. Few such narratives have been objective. Indeed, I suggest to you that few, if any of the articles, books, films or reports have ever attempted to discuss the missions of August 6th and August 9th, 1945 in the context of the times. . Simply stated the Enola Gay and the 509th Composite Bomb Group have been denied a historically correct representation to the public. Most writers have looked to the ashes of Hiroshima and Nagasaki; to find answers for the use of those atomic weapons. The real answers lay in thousands of graves from Pearl Harbor around the world to Normandy and back again. The actual use of the weapons as ordered by the President of the United States was believed to be the quickest and least costly (in terms of lives lost) way to stop the killing. I carried out those orders with the loyal support of the men of the 509th Composite Bomb Group and the United States military at large. Our job was to serve. Our sworn duty was to God, country and victory. Today, there is a debate on how to present the Enola Gay and the use of the atom bombs to the American public and the world at large. There are questions as to how to best present the events of the summer of 1945. I have had many requests, -many appeals; to openly voice my opinions as to the Smithsonian's proposal and depiction of these realities. Consequently, I suggest that the Enola Gay be preserved and displayed properly- and alone, for all the world to see. She should be presented as a peace keeper and as the harbinger of a cold war kept from going "hot." The Enola Gay and her sister ship Bock's Car should be remembered in honor of the scientists who harnessed the power of the atom for the good of mankind. The talents and skills of those men and women who gave us the means to use, regulate and control atomic energy. Such notable positive contributions are worthy of Smithsonian recognition.

Col. Paul Tibbets Grins After Receiving DSC Award - 1945

The Enola Gay has become a symbol to different groups for one reason or another. I suggest that she be preserved and given her place in the context of the times in which she flew. For decades she has been relegated to a storage facility. Her place in history has been dealt with unfairly by those who decry the inhumanity of her August 6th mission. Ladies and gentlemen, there is no humanity in warfare. The job of the combatants, the families, the diplomats, and factory workers is to win. All had a role in that "all out" fight.

I am not a museum director, curator, or politician. I am a pilot. I am a military man trained to carry out the orders of a duly elected commander-in-chief.

This is a unique photo of Enola Gay signed by Col. Paul Tibbets. This photo was submitted by Betsy Daste, whose uncle, H. F. Martin, was with the 509th Composite Group.

For decades the Enola Gay has been in pieces. During this same period the subject of the atomic missions has provoked a flood of emotions. Virtually each and every narration of the events surrounding the flight of the Enola Gay has delved into the horrors and tragedies brought on by the atomic bombs.

Today, on the eve of the 50th Anniversary of the end of World War II, many are second-guessing the decision to use the atomic weapons. To them, I would say, "STOP!" It happened. In the wisdom of the President of the United States and his advisors at the time, there was no acceptable alternative but to proceed with what history now knows as Special Bombing Mission No. 13. To those who consider its proper presentation to the public, I say; "FULL SPEED AHEAD!" We have waited too long for all the wrong reasons to exhibit this aircraft. Too many have labeled the atomic missions as war crimes in an effort to force their politics and their opinions on the American public and to damn military history. Ironically, it is this same segment of society who sent us off to war that now wish to recant the flight of the Enola Gay.

Brigadier General Paul W. Tibbets
United States Air Force

Thus far the proposed display of the Enola Gay is a package of insults. Resting on an arrangement that will be shaped like a cradle, the sixty-some feet of fuselage and forward bomb bay - without wings, engines and propellers, landing gear and tail assembly - makes for an awesome sight. If nothing else, it will engender the aura of evil in which the airplane is being cast.

I am unaware of any positive achievements being credited to the men and women who built the B-29 bombers that carried the war to the Japanese homeland, or the soldiers, sailors, marines, and Seabees who fought, lived and died fighting to take Pacific Islands that were needed for airplane bases within striking distances of the mainland. What about the airmen who flew those strikes and lost their lives? And, those who survived. Are they to be denied recognition for their efforts? Something is wrong with this scenario.

In closing, let me urge consideration and let the exhibition of the Enola Gay accurately reflect the American spirit and victory of August 1945. Those of us who gained that victory have nothing to be ashamed of neither do we offer any apology. Some suffered, some died. The million or so of us remaining will die believing that we made the world a better place as a result of our efforts to secure peace that has held for almost 50 years. Many of us believe peace will prevail through the strength and resolve of the United States of America.

Paul W. Tibbets
Command Pilot
Enola Gay

Additional Sources:

www.theenolagay.com
www.tangischools.org
www.hill.af.mil/museum
www.leisuregalleries.com
www.nebraskastudies.org
www.stelzriede.com
www.childrenofthemanhattanproject.org
www.warofourfathers.com
www.au.af.mil
www.strategic-air-command.com
www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk

On This Day In History

Birthdates which occurred on May 10:
1724 Johan A Zoutman Dutch Lieutenant-Admiral (battle of Doggersbank)
1730 George Ross US judge (signed Declaration of Independence)
1770 Louis Nicholas Davout French field marshall (defeated Prussians)
1788 Augustin-Jean Fresnel optics pioneer/physicist
1810 James Shields Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1879
1813 Montgomery Blair Franklin County KY, lawyer (Dred Scot v Sandford)
1824 Charles Henry Van Wyck Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1895
1838 John Wilkes Booth assassin of Abraham Lincoln
1850 Sir Thomas Johnstone Lipton Glasgow Scotland, yachtsman/tea magnate (Lipton Tea)
1886 Karl Barth Basel Switzerland, theologian/author (Action in Waiting)
1886 Olaf Stapleton British religious sci-fi writer (Star Maker)
1894 Dimitri Tiomkin Russia, composer (Academy Award 1954-High & Mighty)
1899 Fred Astaire Omaha NE, tap dancer/actor (Easter Parade, Swingtime)
1902 David O Selznick Pittsburgh PA, producer (Gone With the Wind)
1908 Carl Albert (D) speaker of the House
1909 Maybelle Carter(Mother Maybell) Nickelsville VA, country singer
1910 Margot Turner matron-in-chief (Army Nursing Service)
1915 Denis Thatcher husband of British PM Margaret (1979-90)
1921 Nancy Walker Philadelphia PA, Bounty ads/actress (Rhoda, McMillan & Wife)
1929 Antoine "Fats" Domino rocker (Blueberry Hill)
1930 Pat Summerall NFLer (New York Giants)/Sportscaster (CBS)
1934 Cliff Wilson snooker player
1936 Gary Owens Mitchell SD, disc jockey/TV host (Laugh In, Gong Show)
1938 Maxim Shostakovich Leningrad Russia, conductor (Atlanta Symphony)
1940 Taurean Blacque actor (Neal Washington-Hill Street Blues)
1943 Donovan [Leitch] Glasgow Scotland, guitarist/folk singer (Mellow Yellow)
1943 James Earl Chaney US civil rights activist
1947 Dave Mason Worcester England, singer/songwriter (We Just Disagree)
1955 Chris Berman sportscaster (ESPN)
1955 Homer Simpson animation (Simpsons)
1955 Mark David Chapman assassin of John Lennon
1957 Sid Vicious [John Beverly], London England, punk rocker (Sex Pistols)
1958 Rick Santorum (Representative-R-PA)
1963 Lisa M Nowak Washington DC, Lieutenant Commander USN/astronaut
1965 Linda Evangelista St Catherines Canada, model (Elite)
1972 Emma Ridley Hanpstead England, actress (Return to Oz)

Deaths which occurred on May 10:
0238 Gaius Julius Verus Maximinus the Thracian, Roman Emperor, murdered
1566 Leonhard Fuchs German botanist, dies at 65
1569 Juan the Avila Spanish minister/writer
1710 Georg Dietrich Leiding composer, dies at 46
1774 Louis XV king of France (1715-74), dies at 64
1794 Elisabeth princess of France, beheaded at 30
1798 George Vancouver British explorer, (Voyage of Discovery), dies at 40
1818 Paul Revere American patriot, dies
1829 Thomas Young physicist/decipherer of Egyptian hierogolyphics, dies
1849 Katsushika Hokusai Japanese painter, dies at 89

1863 Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson Confederate General (Civil War), dies from wounds received at Chancellorsville

1864 James Clay Rice lawyer/Union Brigadier-General, dies in battle at 34
1864 Thomas Greeley Stevenson Union Brigadier-General, dies at about 27
1904 Henry M Stanley [John Rowlands] British explorer, dies
1910 William Huggins discoverer of stellar nature of Andromeda, dies
1920 John Wesley Hyatt inventor/plastics pioneer, dies
1942 Joseph M Weber comedian/singer (Weber & Lewis Fields), dies at 74
1943 André Bertulot Belgian resistance fighter, hanged
1943 Arnaud/Armand Fraiteur Belgian resistance fighter, hanged
1943 Maurice-Albert Raskin Belgian resistance fighter, hanged
1950 John G Fletcher US poet (Burning Mountain), dies
1973 Jack E Leonard Chicago IL, comedian, dies at 62
1992 Joan Merrill vocalist, dies of a stroke at 74
1992 John Lund actor (Perils of Pauline), dies at 81
1994 John Wayne Gacy mass murderer, executed in Illinois at 52
1997 Joanie Weston roller derby queen (Bay Bombers), dies at 61

Reported: MISSING in ACTION

1966 BAILEY JOHN EDWARD---MINNEAPOLIS MN.
[REMAINS IDENTIFIED 03/17/99]
1966 ECKES WALTER W.---NEW YORK NY.
[06/18/66 ESCAPED, ALIVE AND WELL 1998]
1967 AHLMEYER HEINZ JR.---PEARL RIVER NY.
1967 MILLER MALCOM T.---TAMPA FL.
1967 NETHERLAND ROGER M.---BEAVER PA.
[REMAINS IDENTIFIED 06/16/00]
1967 SHARP SAMUEL A. JR.---SAN JOSE CA.
1967 TYCZ JAMES N.---MILWAUKEE WI.
1968 BLACKMAN THOMAS J.---RACINE WI.
1968 CZERWONKA PAUL S.---SOUTHTON MA.
1968 COOK JOSEPH F.---FOXBORO MA.
1968 FLEMING HORACE H. III---PENSACOLA FL.
1968 FRITSCH THOMAS W.---CROMWELL CT.
1968 HEMPEL BARRY L.---GARDEN GROVE CA.
1968 HEYNE RAYMOND T.---MASON WI.
1968 KING GERALD E.---KNOXVILLE TN.
1968 LOPEZ ROBERT C.---ALBUQUERQUE NM.
1968 MC GONIGLE WILLIAM D.---WICHITA KS.
1968 MITCHELL DONALD W.---PRINCETON KY.
1968 MILLER GLENN E.---OAKLAND CA.
1968 PERRY THOMAS H.---CANTON CT.
1968 SARGENT JAMES R.---ANAWALT WV.
1969 WALTERS WILLIAM---PHILADELPHIA PA.
1971 BINGHAM KLAUS Y.---WAHIAWA HI.
1971 LUTTRELL JAMES M.---FAYETTEVILLE NC.
1971 WALTON LEWIS C.---CRANSTON RI.
1972 BLACKBURN HARRY L. JR.---HIGHLAND SPRINGS VA.
[REMAINS RETURNED 04/10/86]
1972 HARRIS JEFFREY L.---CLINTON MD.
[REMAINS RETURNED 05/97]
1972 LODGE ROBERT A.---LYNBROOK NY.
[09/30/77 REMAINS RETURNED]
1972 RUDLOFF STEPHEN A.---NEW YORK NY.
03/28/73 RELEASED BY DRV, ALIVE IN 98]
1972 WILKINSON DENNIS E.---WEST PALM BEACH FL.
[08/26/78 REMAINS RETURNED]

POW / MIA Data & Bios supplied by
the P.O.W. NETWORK. Skidmore, MO. USA.

On this day...
1267 Vienna's church orders all Jews to wear a distinctive garb
1278 Jews of England imprisoned on charges of coining
1291 Scottish nobles recognize authority of English king Edward I
1427 Jews are expelled from Berne Switzerland
1497 Italian navigator Amerigo Vespucci leaves for 1st voyage to New World
1503 Columbus discovers Cayman Islands
1534 French navigator Jacques Cartier reaches Newfoundland
1559 Scottish Protestants under John Knox uprise against queen-mother Mary
1570 Czar Ivan IV becomes Protestant
1652 John Johnson, a free black, is granted 550 acres in Northampton VA
1676 Bacon's Rebellion, frontiersmen vs Virginia Government begins
1752 Benjamin Franklins 1st tests the lightning rod
1774 Louis XVI ascends to throne of France

1775 2nd Continental Congress convened in Pennsylvania; issues paper currency for 1st time
1775 2nd Continental Congress names George Washington, supreme commander
1775 Green Mountain Boys capture Fort Ticonderoga NY-American Revolution

1796 Napoleon defeats Austria in Battle of Lodi Bridge
1797 1st Navy ship, the "United States" is launched
1823 1st steamboat to navigate the Mississippi River arrives at Fort Snelling
1857 Indian Mutiny begins with revolt of Sepoys of Meerutkazerne, Delhi
1861 Union troops march on state militia in St Louis MI
1862 Battle of Plum Run Bend TN (Plum Point Bend)
1864 Battle at Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia
1864 Skirmish at Ny River VA
1865 President Jefferson Davis is captured by Union Cavalry in Irwinsville GA
1869 Golden Spike driven, completes Promontory Point UT-Transcontinental RR
1870 Jem Mace defends his heavyweight crown against Irish champion Joe Coburn, it lasts 1 hour & 17 minutes, and neither is struck by a punch
1872 Victoria Woodhull becomes 1st woman nominated for US president
1876 Centennial Fair opens in Philadelphia
1879 Meteor falls near Estherville IA
1893 19th Kentucky Derby: Eddie Kunze aboard Lookout wins in 2:39¼
1905 31st Kentucky Derby: Jack Martin aboard Agile wins in 2:100.75
1906 Russia's Duma (Parliament) meets for 1st time
1908 1st Mother's Day observed (Philadelphia)
1910 1st aircraft air display held (Hendon, England)
1910 36th Kentucky Derby: Fred Herbert aboard Donau wins in 2:06.4
1910 Halley's Comet closest approach to Earth in 1910 pass
1913 39th Kentucky Derby: Roscoe Goose aboard Donerail wins in 2:04.8
1915 Zeppelin drops hundred of bombs on Southend-on-Sea
1916 Disastrous fire in Ellendale ND
1917 Atlantic ships get destroyer escorts to stop German attacks
1919 45th Kentucky Derby: Johnny Loftus aboard Sir Barton wins in 2:09.8
1919 Race riot in Charleston SC, 2 blacks killed
1924 J Edgar Hoover appointed head of the FBI
1930 1st US planetarium opens (Adler-Chicago)
1933 Nazis stage public book burnings in Germany
1933 Paraguay declares war on Bolivia
1936 Nahas Pasja becomes premier of Egypt
1940 British Local Defense Volunteers (Home Guard) forms
1940 Dutch-Indies Governor Van Starkenborch proclaims end to state of siege
1940 French marines stationed on Aruba
1940 French troops arrive in Zealand/Brabant Netherlands
1940 Nazi armies invade the Benelux countries of Netherlands, Belgium & Luxembourg
1940 Winston Churchill succeeds Neville Chamberlain as British PM
1941 Adolf Hitler's deputy Rudolf Hess parachutes into Scotland
1944 Smith v Allwright (excluding Blacks from primary voting) is illegal
1945 Allies capture Rangoon from the Japanese
1945 Russian troops occupy Prague
1946 Umberto II succeeds Victor Emmanuel III as king of Italy
1948 1st attack by Egyptian irregular forces at Kfar Darom Israel
1956 French Government sends 50,000 reservists to Algeria
1959 Soviet forces arrive in Afghánistán
1960 John F Kennedy wins primary in West Virginia
1960 US atomic sub USS Triton completes 1st circumnavigation of globe under water
1963 Decca signs the Rolling Stones on advice of Beatle George Harrison
1966 25ºF lowest temperature ever recorded in Cleveland in May
1967 Foundation AZ soccer team forms in Alkmaar
1967 Hank Aaron only inside the park homerun (vs Jim Bunning)
1967 Keith Richards, Brian Jones & Mick Jagger arrested on drug charges(SHOCK!)
1967 Stockholm Vietnam-Tribunal declares US aggression in Vietnam/Cambodia(Yawn)
1968 Vietnam peace talks began in Paris between the US & North Vietnam
1969 Apollo 10 transmit 1st color pictures of Earth from space
1969 US troops begin attack on Hill 937/Hamburger Hill
1975 Brian Oldfield of the US put the shotput 75', an unofficial record
1979 Federated States of Micronesia becomes self-governing
1979 Vivekananda (Sri Lanka) completes nonstop cycle ride of 187 hours, 28 minutes, around Vihara Maha Devi Park, Colombo, Sri Lanka
1981 François Mitterrand defeats Valery Giscard d'Estang for President of France
1983 "Laverne & Shirley" last airs on ABC-TV
1983 Lee Chin Yong performs 170 continuous chin-ups in Seoul
1988 Edgar Degas' "Danseresje of 14" sold for $10,120,000
1989 General Manuel Noriega's Government nullifies country's elections, which the opposition had won by a 3-1 margin
1992 Bible Land Museum opens in Jerusalem Israel
1993 Paul Cézannes still life sells for $28,600,000 in NYC
1994 Barbra Streisand's begins 1st concert tour in 30 years
1994 Nelson Mandela sworn in as South Africa's 1st black president
1994 Silvio Berlusconi forms Italian Government
1995 Britain lifts a 23-year ban on ministerial talks with Sinn Fein
1996 2 US Marine helicopters collided during joint US & British war games, killing 14 people
1997 Chicago Cubs turn baseballs 68th triple play (vs San Fransisco Giants)
2001 The U.S. House of Representatives voted to withhold some back U.N. dues until the United States was reinstated on the U.N. Commission on Human Rights.

Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Hong Kong : Tin Hau's Day
North & South Carolina : Confederate Memorial Day (1868)
Thailand : Ploughing Ceremony
Ireland : Feis Ceoil music festival (1897)(Monday)
US-Indians : Native American Day
National Hamburger Week (Day 2)
Salvation Army Week
Iowa Tourism Month

Religious Observances
Denmark : Common Prayer Day
Roman Catholic : Commemoration of SS Gordian & Epimachus, martyrs
Roman Catholic : Commemoration of St Antoninus, bishop of Florence, confessor

Religious History
1812 Birth of Frances Elizabeth Cox, English translator. She made 56 contributions to the 1841 publication, "Sacred Hymns from the German," including "Sing Praise to God Who Reigns Above."
1828 English church leader John Henry Newman wrote in a letter: 'I wish it were possible for words to put down those indefinite, vague and withal subtle feelings which quite pierce the soul and make it sick. What a veil and curtain this world of sense is. Beautiful, but still a veil.'
1859 Birth of Wilhelm Wrede, a German Bible scholar who contended that the gospels reflected the theology of the primitive Church rather than the true history of Jesus. Wrede thus contributed his name to the title of Albert Schweitzer's 1906 theological classic: "The Quest of the Historical Jesus: From Reimarus to Wrede."
1912 The first Southern Sociological Congress closed, in Nashville. The four-day convocation met to address "social, civic and economic problems" of sixteen Southern states, and was an example of government, social agencies and the Church working together for social betterment.
1939 The Declaration of Union reunited the Methodist Episcopal Church in the U.S. after 109 years of division. (The Methodist Protestant Church had separated from the parent denomination in 1830, as had the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, later, in 1844.)

Source: William D. Blake. ALMANAC OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1987.

Thought for the day :
"God gives every bird its food, but He does not throw it into its nest."

Actual Newspaper Headlines...
Squad Helps Dog Bite Victim

Why did the Chicken cross the Road...
James Carville: Because the mean-spirited Republican majority in congress was going to cook the chicken and leave only the sun-bleached bones picked bare for the American people that they'd throw out in the street!

Guide to REAL driving...
It is traditional to honk your horn at cars that don't move the instant the light changes.

What The Company Really Means...
"COMPETITIVE SALARY:" We remain competitive by paying less than our competitors.