Free Republic

Death is Mercy to Secessionists By Bernard Thuersam on Mar 21, 2016 William T. Sherman viewed Southerners as he later viewed American Indians, to be exterminated or banished to reservations as punishment for having resisted government power. They were subjects and merely temporary occupants of land belonging to his government whom they served. The revealing excerpts below are taken from “Reminiscences of Public Men in Alabama,” published in 1872: Headquarters, Department of Tennessee, Vicksburg, January 1, 1863. [To] Major R. M. Sawyer, AAG Army of Tennessee, Huntsville: “Dear Sawyer — In my former letter I have answered all your questions...

Private Luke Quinn – The Unlikely Celebrity of Harpers Ferry Posted on June 16, 2018 by ECW Guest Post When Private Luke Quinn arrived in Harpers Ferry, Virginia on October 18, 1859 he likely did not imagine that he’d never leave. He certainly could not have imagined that he’d be popularized in the small town with a namesake pub, an interesting monument and an unrestful sleep in St. Peter’s Cemetery. Here’s a quick look at the lively afterlife of the most unlikely celebrity of John Brown’s Raid… Little is known about Private Luke Quinn prior to his untimely death. From...

Armer Mountain, AZ Transport Plane Crashes, Dec 1951 Submitted by Stu Beitler I went with the advance party of an Air Force evacuation team to the summit of Armer Mountain, a 7000-foot peak that juts out of the Sierra Ancha range, 65 miles northeast of Phoenix. First Lieut. DONALD C. HUMPHREYS of Coolidge, Ariz., Staff Sgt. JOHN WEIS of Pittsburgh and ARNOLD JOHNSON, a cowboy, rode horses to the summit. M/Sgt. RALEIGH D. CURTIS, of Macomb, Ill., T/Sgt. NORMAN C. VAN TASSEL of Warsaw, Mo., and I walked. The climb was tough all the way. We struggled over icy rocks...

LAST FLIGHT, THE MISSING AIRMEN, MARCH 1951 [Author’s Preface: This is an abbreviated account of the ill-fated flight of the C-124 Globemaster II N43173C, 49-0244.] At 1915 Zulu, on Wednesday, the 21st of March, 1951, the C-124 commanded by Major Robert J. Bell of the 2nd Strategic Support Squadron departed Walker AFB, loaded with aircrews and equipment of the 509th Bomber Group, final destination was RAFB Lakenheath, England. At 2212 Zulu, they touched down at Barksdale AFB, Shreveport, Louisiana where they remained overnight. On Thursday, the 22nd of March Brigadier General Paul T. Cullen and his staff joined the other...

Ben Salomon was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on September 1, 1914. He graduated from the Dental College of University of South Carolina in 1937 and soon began a dental practice. When the United States entered the war, his patriotic instinct led him to enroll in the army in 1940. After basic training, he joined the 102nd Infantry Regiment and quickly proved to be a natural soldier with weapons and a leader. Within a year, he had risen to the rank of sergeant and was in charge of a machine gun section. In 1942, Salomon was to become an officer in...

Flanders off the beaten path: The secrets of Flemish Brabant by Toon Lambrechts, The rich heritage of Flanders has left many traces behind. Some are touristic highlights, others remain virtually unknown. Flanders Today went in search of its quirkiest historical spots for our five-part series: Flanders off the beaten path. This week we visit the province of Flemish Brabant, unearthing forgotten tales of revenge, haunted castles and country churches AN EYE FOR AN EYE Odds are you’ve never heard of Meensel-Kiezegem, one of those long village names it’s easy to forget. But the cemetery behind Meensel’s local church bears witness...

Just how the Defense Department will allow an estimated 3.5 million veterans and their caregivers on base early next year to use commissaries, exchanges and some recreation resources is still largely unanswered, despite a looming deadline and potentially complicated access issues. Beginning Jan. 1, 2020, all service-connected disabled veterans, caregivers enrolled in the Department of Veterans Affairs' Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers program, and former prisoners of war will be able to shop at on-base grocery stores and exchanges. They will also be allowed to use some MWR amenities, such as golf courses and bowling alleys.

Operation Harvest Moon By; Bob Neener 0351 3rd Platoon Lima Company 3/3 On 9 Dec 1965, at approximately 1300 hours LIMA Company 3rd Battalion, 3rd Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, was the lead Company, a spearhead, sent into the Que Son Valley to rescue the 5th ARVN Regiment who had been under heavy attack since daybreak. It was Tuesday, December 8th 1965, Lima Company had just been pulled from MAG 16 perimeter duty for what we thought was going to be a couple of days of R&R. We were in the rear area (Battalion HQ) somewhere on DaNang Air Base. Our...

Campaigning with the Buffalo Soldiers by David Dixon [see source at http://www.sru.edu/depts/scc/Buffalo/Campaigning.htm] Dr. David Dixon is an associate professor of history at Slippery Rock University. His courses include The American West, Indians of the United States, and The American Civil War. For his book, Hero of Beecher Island, Dr. Dixon received the Spur Award from the Western Writers of America as the best non-fiction author of 1994. This page is used with permission. On August 10, 1868, a war party of over 200 Lakotas, Cheyennes, and Arapahos swept down on the unsuspecting settlers of the Solomon and Saline Valleys in...

Wreck of Famed WWII Destroyer USS Johnston May Have Been Found By: Ben Werner October 30, 2019 5:15 PM • Updated: October 31, 2019 4:29 PM The following post has been updated to correct the number of ships involved in the Battle of Samar. A few days past the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Samar, researchers from Vulcan Inc.’s research vessel R/V Petrel believe they’ve found wreckage from the engagement’s famed Fletcher-class destroyer, USS Johnston (DD-557). Images of twisted metal, a destroyed deck gun, a propeller shaft and other less recognizable debris were posted to Petrel’s Facebook page Wednesday,...

Remains Of WWII Coast Guard POW Return Home After 77 Years By: Ben Werner October 31, 2019 4:12 PM Lt. James Crotty as an ensign aboard a Coast Guard cutter. Crotty served aboard several cutters and on both coasts of the U.S. including Alaska before departing for the South Pacific. The remains of Lt. Thomas Crotty are scheduled to arrive in his hometown Buffalo, N.Y. on Friday, 77 years after dying in a Japanese prisoner of war camp. Japanese captured Crotty after the fall of Corregidor, where he fought alongside Navy, Marine Corps and Army personnel in defense of the...

Life as the liberals like to remind us is 'complex'. Sometimes they are right. The following is a rough account of Lt Robert Frishman's rough journey through combat and captivity in North Viet Nam. Combat aviators , what say you. Prisoners Of War: ‘You Talk To the Rats’ Sept. 27, 1970 Prisoners Of War: ‘You Talk To the Rats’ CreditThe New York Times Archives September 27, 1970, Section E, Page 2 WASHINGTON — “The worst part of captivity is the isolation. “You talk to the rats, you talk to the wall. After six months you don't know if you're crazy....

Vietnam Fighter Pilot Finally Comes Home By Cory Angell, West Point Garrison Public Affairs / Published June 20, 2018 Lt. Col. Robert Marsi, West Point Garrison chaplain, led those gathered in prayer at the conclusion of the ceremony and noted what an honor it was to celebrate the life of Maj. White, “an American Hero.” WEST POINT, N.Y. (AFNS) -- Maj. James Blair White went missing in Southeast Asia on Nov. 24, 1969. He was finally laid to rest at West Point alongside of his mother, father and brother, June 19, 2018. His wife, Sharon Cook, and daughter, Katherine White,...

<p>The frontier between colonial India and Afghanistan in the 19th century was a place of danger and unrest. In 1897, at a small outpost called Saragarhi, 40 miles away from the British garrison town of Kohat (in what is now Pakistan), 21 Sikh soldiers stood their ground against an onslaught of 10,000 enemy tribesmen. Their gallantry in fighting to the bitter end cemented their reputation as brave and devoted to their duty, and the soldiers were recognised by the British with memorials, a battle honour and a regimental holiday. So why was Saragarhi viewed with such significance, and how is it still relevant today?</p>

Everything a foreigner needs to know to become a soldier in the Russian Armed Forces SCIENCE & TECH SEPT 26 2019 NIKOLAI LITOVKIN To put it simple: you'll need to be a good and strong person with no legal issues back home. In 2015, Russian president Vladimir Putin signed a decree allowing any foreign citizens to join the country’s Armed Forces. So, If you’re itching to start running with a brand new AK-12 in notorious Ratnik-2 battle gear, here’s what you need to know and what you need to do. Passport Since 2015, you DON’T need a Russian passport to...

When Admiral Tryon gave the order that positioned both mighty war vessels Victoria and Camperdown on a collision course, he made a huge mistake. So huge that it cost the lives of more than 350 crew members. The Victoria now is the only shipwreck worldwide that is positioned vertically on the seabed. On 22nd June 1893, standing on the bridge of his flagship, HMS Victoria, Admiral Tryon was the commander of the biggest battleships of the biggest Marine/Navy worldwide. Having the coastline of Tripoli, Lebanon, already in view, the Admiral commanded his fleet to turn around. At a distance of...

Colonel James Helms Kasler One of the great heroes of Rolling Thunder was an Air Force F-105D pilot who led the big strike on 29 June 1966… later he was shot down (8 August) and finished the war as a POW…even planned an escape…Colonel James Helms Kasler Colonel James H Kasler Enlisting in the United States Army Air Forces toward the end of World War II, Kasler flew seven missions as a B-29 Superfortress tail gunner. With the end of the war Kasler used his veteran’s benefits to complete his college degree before returning to the newly formed United States...

20 September 2019 Eleven Letters Honor POW’s Hidden Wound Capt. E. Alan Brudno, USAF, a 1958 graduate of NQHS, joined the U.S. Air Force with the hope that he would one day explore Mars as a member of the Astronaut Program. On October 18, 1965, on his 33rd mission over Vinh, North Vietnam, his F-4 Phantom jet was shot down and he became one of the longest held POWs in America’s history. He returned home in February 1973 deeply scarred by his captivity. He was posthumously awarded two Silver Stars, the Legion of Merit, two Bronze Stars, the Distinguished Flying...

USS George Washington More Than Halfway Through RCOH, Will Leave Dry Dock Next Month By: Megan Eckstein August 27, 2019 12:42 PM The final piece of the new main mast of the aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) is installed at Huntington Ingalls Industries Newport News Shipbuilding, March 15, 2019. The 34-foot upper mast section raises the ship’s distinctive profile 123 feet above the flight deck. Huntington Ingalls Industries photo. Aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN-73) is more than halfway through its refueling and complex overhaul and is set to leave the dry dock at Newport News Shipbuilding next...

US Troops Deprived of Hot Meals, In-Door Toilets as They Train for Possible Conflict With Russia, China 22:02 28.08.2019 Tim Korso In its latest defence strategy guidelines, Washington outlined Russia and China as two possible adversaries in a real-life conflict and has since been conducting numerous military drills in a bid to prepare for a possible war. US Air Force crewmen were forced to live and train under unusually harsh conditions during their stay at Poland's Powidz Air Base, being cut off from running water, hot meals, and indoor toilets, the media outlet Defence News reported, citing US Colonel Donn...