The FReeper Foxhole Remembers S/Sgt. Lafayette Pool, The Tanker Legend - Jul 28th, 2004

Journal of Military Ordnance ^ | March 1998 | Dean and Nan Kleffman

[SAMWolf]

Lord,

Keep our Troops forever in Your care

Give them victory over the enemy...

Grant them a safe and swift return...

Bless those who mourn the lost.
.

FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer
for all those serving their country at this time.

...................................................................................... ...........................................

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THE TEXAS TANKER
32nd Armored Regiment,
3rd Armored Division

This story is about a tank commander who destroyed 258 enemy vehicles, but he never was awarded the Knights Cross. He was never presented to Hitler, he never wore a fancy black uniform with death heads and S.S. runes, and he never commanded a Panther or Tiger. The reason? He was an American GI and he set the above record in a Sherman tank! Contrary to popular belief other countries besides Germany were capable of producing tank aces too.

Staff Sergeant Lafayette G. Pool was typical of some of the fine tankers produced by the U.S. Army during World War II. Pool was born on July 23, 1919, on a farm in Odem, Texas. He graduated from high school in Taft, Texas in 1938. Pool tried to enlist in the Navy. He was turned down due to an eye injury, although his twin brother was accepted. he then enrolled in an all boys Catholic Academy where he graduated as class valedictorian. Afterwards, he enrolled in Texas, A and I College, as an engineering major.

He quit to enlist in the Army on June 13, 1941. He took basic training at San Antonio, Texas, and then was sent to Camp Beauregard, Louisiana, to the newly forming Third Armor Division. Pool joined the Third Battalion, 32nd Armored Regt, when the division was reorganized in January of 1942. He took time out from training to get married to Evelyn Wright in December of 1942.


Here's a shot of my M4A1(76) as crewed by Lafayette Pool in Late Summer of 1944. - Scott Dimmick

Pool had been a boxer in college and he joined the division's golden gloves team. He became regional champ in his weight class and was to go to the national meet in Chicago, Illinois in the spring of 1942. He turned down the opportunity because the division had gotten a shipment of new M-4 Sherman Tanks and Pool wanted to start training with his men on the M-4 immediately.

Pool was a tall, lanky 6'3" Texan, who drove his men and himself and trained them rigorously. He always wanted things done right and would not tolerate slipshod methods, whether in maintenance, gunnery, or driving. He demanded the best out of his men and he got it.



The 3rd Bn, 32nd Armor moved to the Desert Training Center near Victorville, California, followed by final training at Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania.

Before sailing to England in September, 1943, Pool was promoted to Staff Sergeant in Company I. He was also given the opportunity to go to OCS, but he turned it down as he was later to turn down a battlefield commission stating "I just want to have one of the best tank crews in the division."



His crew consisted of driver, Wilbert "Baby" Richards, one of the best drivers in the ETO according to Pool; Bert "Schoolboy" Close who was just seventeen years old and was his bow gunner. Given the choice of prison on a manslaughter rap or the Army, Del "Jailbird" Boggs elected to be Pool's loader. Willis "Groundhog" Oller was the gunner. Pool said of Oller "He could shoot the eyebrows off a gnat at 1500 yards." He was very quick and alert. One time near Origny in France it was getting dark when the order came down to halt and coil up for the night. Pool opened his mouth to say "Driver, Halt," but found himself looking down the barrel of a German 88mm in the gloom ahead. He said "Gunner, Fire!" and Oller, without hesitation, holed the enemy gun before its crew could recognize the Sherman Tank.

While in England Pool did some more boxing. In Liverpool in early 1944 he boxed against Joe Louis. It was ment to be an exhibition bout, but Pool got a little too enthusiastic and rapped Louis a few good ones. Louis then put his arm around Pool and said "White man, I'm going to teach you a big lesson." He then proceeded to give Pool a good going over, although there was no knockout.


Tank from the 32nd Armored Regiment. Note the "hedgerow cutter"

Pool is what we would call today a "hard charger." He was also inclined to have things his own way. He believed that the quickest way home was to smash the German Army to pieces, and he believed that he was the guy with the crew and the tank that could do it. He made friends easily and also made enemies. He had a quick temper and was not above ignoring orders when they didn't suit him.

Pool landed at Normandy in June, 1944. His battalion fought its first engagement on June 29, 1944 near Villierfossard, northeast of St. Lo.

The loss of Pool's first tank "In The Mood," (all succeeding tanks were called "In The Mood!") was to a Panzerfaust at the village of Les Forges not far from the beach-head. Pool's crew survived and got a new Sherman, and pushed on undauntedly against the Panzers.



Falaise Gap on August 7, 1944, was the big battle and Pool was, as usual, right up front. As the 3d Armored Division was near to closing the ring with the British forces around the Germans, Lt. Col. Walter B. Richardson, commanding task force Y of CCA, 32nd Armored heard Pool say over the radio "Ain't got the heart to kill um," meaning the Germans. The rattle of machinegun fire came over thr radio followed by Pool's Texas drawl "Watch those bastards run, - give it to 'em Close."

Thanks to my Partner Snippy for suggesting this thread

[SAMWolf]

At Fromentel, Pool's tank headed the task force Y column as usual which closed the gap. During the closing, Pool's second tank was destroied by enemy bombers, which only made Pool more mad at the Germans. Again the crew survived intact. At Colombrier, France, Pool's tank leading the column almost collided with a Panther. The Panther fired twice and missed. Ollier, the gunner, fired a single shot which penetrated the turret and internal explosions blew the turret clean off the hull of the Panther.



At Namur, Belgium, "In The Mood's" crew destroyed sixteen enemy vehicles, including assault guns, self propelled anti-tank guns, plus several armored personnel carriers in one day. At Dison, Belgium, Pool distinguished himself while acting as a platoon leader. He decided to use his own tank to clean out an annoying pocket of resistance on the left flank of the route they were traveling. After finding and destroying six armored personnel carriers Pool discovered that the head of his column had been fired upon by a German Panther. Quickly he ordered his driver to regain the column. Upon arriving upon the scene of the action he spotted the enemy tank, gave a single estimated range to Oller. The gunner fired an A.P. projectile at 1500 yards to destroy the Panther. The column then moved on with Pool again in his customary place in the lead. Although Pool had two tanks knocked out from under him, he had nerves of steel. His crew added confidence from his bearing and as a result they moved as a single unit, like clockwork.

Pool's one problem was that he was claustrophobic and preferred to remain, as much as possible, on the outside of his tank. Col. Richardson said that Pool rode that tank like a "bucking bronco." He was always exposed in the turret or on top of it.

His driver, Richards, shared his commander's condition in that he always drove with his overhead hatch open, having been trapped once with a jammed hatch. Corporal Richards said "Pool hated the Germans and thought he could lick them all. The men would draw straws to see who would lead the spearhead the next day. Pool would just say, 'Ah'm leading this time' and stand there grinning while we cussed him out."

Pool's luck ran out at the town of Munsterbusch, south of Aachen, Germany, on September 19, 1944, while leading the breakthrough through the Westwall. The crew was due to rotate home in a few days for a war bond tour. "In The Mood" was not leading this time but was flank guard for the task force that day. Pool spotted a heavy anti-tank gun hidden in a house. They had a substitute loader that day as Boggs was sent back for a hearing check-up prior to rotating to the states. The new guy shoved a round in the breech of the 76mm gun and jammed it.

Unable to fire, Pool yelled "Back up baby!" as the first shell hit the turret blowing Pool off the tank onto the ground. He landed running and his right leg folded up like an accordion. He quickly gave himself a morphine injection, sat down and tried to cut his shattered leg off with his pocket knife. Meanwhile, a second shell hit the tank well forward as Richards backed the tank up slowly. To Richards, Oller, the loader and Close, there was only the bell sound of the hit, the stench of powder and shower of sparks. Richards didn't know that Pool had been thrown clear of the turret and kept on backing up. Col. Richardson saw "In The Mood" slowly reach a cut bank and, as if in slow motion, topple over, almost upside down.

Oller felt the blood on his leg and knew that he had been wounded. The others were unhurt and all four crawled out of the overturned tank.

Col. Richardson came up to Pool and gave him another shot of morphine. Aid men then reached Pool who was bleeding badly from the splinter wound. They gave him a third shot of morphine. Two of them quickly attended to Oller. Pool cursed the Germans bitterly as the aid men bandaged his wound. As they put him in the litter he twisted suddenly and said, "Somebody take care of my tank."

The war was over for Lafayette G. Pool. He knew that he and his crew could beat the Germans. He proved it so often that his record is almost an unbelievable document of total victory. The amazing score by the Texan and his crew is fully authenticated by the 3d Armored Division.

Pool was twice nominated for the Medal of Honor. The first time the papers were lost,the second time it was turned down as the higher-ups felt that it was a crew, not an individual effort. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Purple Heart, French Croix de Guerre with Bronze Star, Belgium Fourragere and Order of St. George Medal.

Pool's career was far from over though, but first he had an ordeal he had to go through with his wounded right leg. After three shots of morphine he awoke nineteen days later in a hospital in Belgium. Due to rain and exposure he contracted double pneumonia. He did not get back to the states until January, 1945. When he was wounded he weighed 196 pounds and when he returned to the United States he weighed 85 pounds! The bone in his leg from the knee to the ankle was gone but his toenail would still grow so doctors hesitated to amputate. Later they amputated it eight inches above the knee at Temple, Texas Army Hospital. He was discharged in June of 1946, and went home with an artificial leg, later to farm and run a gas station. In 1948 he was called back to active duty along with seven other amputees because of their technical skills as specialists.

"The Tanks Are Coming" lobby card (1951)

He returned as a staff sergeant and taught tank mechanics as a master mechanic. After a promotion to Warrant Officer in 1952, he worked as an ordnance inspector. He was classified as "Z.I." (no duty out of zone interior).

While at Fort Knox, he was offered the job as technical advisor for the movie "The Tanks Are Coming" (released in 1951). He refused and decided to sue Warner Brothers for one million dollars. He was under contract to Universal Studios for his life's story and he felt that Warner Brothers plagiarized his script. The judge ruled that Warner Brothers had changed the names and scenario in their version enough that it was not an infringement. Pool thought that actor Steve Cochran, in the Warner Brothers version, did a good portrayal of himself, although the name in this movie was changed to "Sgt. Sullivan."

Pool retired from the Army as a Chief Warrant Officer Second Class, at Ft. Sam Houston, Texas on September 19, 1960. Afterwards he went to business college, followed by a job as a preacher for $25.00 a week. He also coached little league.

[SAMWolf]

In 1986, while living quietly in Taft, Texas, he was contacted by 3-32 Armor members who were doing research on the unit history. He was invited to visit then at Ft. Hood. He was very surprised to find out they remembered him. The first thing that he did when he got to Ft. Hood was go for a ride in an M-1 tank. Afterwards, Pool told the young 3-32 tankers gathered around him some differences between being a tanker in WWII and being one today. "The most important thing for a tank commander to do is keep his crew alive. The tank crews today have the technology to do what we had to do with our eyes and ears," Pool said. "We did very little fighting at night." He added "I only fought once at night and I never wanted to do it again. Today you have the thermal sighting capability that we didn't have."


GET'EM - World War II Hero Lafayette G. Pool, right, and Lt. Col. Len Hawley, commander of the 3d Battalion, 32d Armor Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, watch a tank and crew head down range Thursday at Fort Hood. Pool noted the differences between today's M-1 tank and his WWII Sherman.

On his third visit to the post he watched the tanks live fire on the range. "Colonel, if we had the equipment back then that you have now, we would have cleaned up," he told the commander of the 3-32 Armor. The Colonel said of Pool, "I want him to talk to the soldiers. He tells them the same kinds of things that I try to teach them, but coming from him it's special because he's lived it."

Later Pool was the honored guest speaker at the battalion NCO ball. Three hundred twenty five NCO's attended. Lafayette was adopted by the 3-32 Armor and he, in turn, adopted them, referring to them as "His Boys."



Desert Storm found the 3-32 Armor in the thick of battle against the Iraqi Armor. Lafayette was in a hospital bed, very ill, but he watched the war constantly on television fretting and worrying about "his boys." When the fighting had ceased he kept asking his wife Evelyn, "Honey, are my boys back yet?" When they finally got back to Fort Hood, Evelyn told him they were back and soon after this on May 30, 1991, Pool passed away in his sleep.

Pool was survived by his wife Evelyn, three sons and four daughters. One other son Capt. Jerry L. Pool, was missing in action in Cambodia in 1970. Before his death, the Army decided to name its new M-1 tank driver training facility after Pool, even waving the fact that he was still alive. Dedicated on July 1, 1993, today the facility at Fort Knox serves to train new tank drivers to drive the M-1 series of tanks.



At present the facility has ten systems of two simulators each. One system has been converted to M1 AR configuration. The authors were able to try out a simulator thanks to Irene Armstrong, secretary of protocol and found it an excellent approach to learning to drive. The savings in fuel, thrown tracks, and wear and tear, plus damage to real tanks is tremendous, and will more than pay for its initial cost. Each new tanker is given twelve hours of training before he transitions into the real thing. Scenarios can be varied from desert and artic terrain to urban driving. Weather can vary, artillery fire can be received, the tank's main gun can be fired by the controller, plus night or day time driving with open hatches or closed down on periscopes, all these things make this simulator the closest thing to actual driving a real tank to date. Our controller, SFC Byrd, told us the simulator is much more difficult that actually driving the "real" M1.

Today Lafayette G. Pool is remembered not only as our top tank ace but also as a man who believed in training hard and doing the job right the first time, as there may not be a second time in modern warfare.

Additional Sources:

images.amazon.com
www.timem.com
www.3ad.com
www.network54.com

[SAMWolf]

By the time the Siegfried Line had been reached, the young "Texas Tanker" had been awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the Legion of Merit and the French Croix de Guerre with gold star. He was also twice nominated for the Congressional Medal of Honor. By the time Pool was wounded in action near the German border, he and his crew had accounted for the destruction of 258 enemy armored vehicles, taking 250 enemy prisoners and killing over 1,000 German soldiers...quite a record for a single tank crew! Pool survived the war and lived to receive high honors from US Armor Association Awards Program. His CO later said of him, "Pool is the tanker of tankers."

[SAMWolf]

Veterans for Constitution Restoration is a non-profit, non-partisan educational and grassroots activist organization. The primary area of concern to all VetsCoR members is that our national and local educational systems fall short in teaching students and all American citizens the history and underlying principles on which our Constitutional republic-based system of self-government was founded. VetsCoR members are also very concerned that the Federal government long ago over-stepped its limited authority as clearly specified in the United States Constitution, as well as the Founding Fathers' supporting letters, essays, and other public documents.

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UPDATED THROUGH APRIL 2004



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[snippy_about_it]

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Good Wednesday Morning Everyone



If you would like to be added to our ping list, let us know.

[SAMWolf]

Good Night Snippy.

[snippy_about_it]

Goodnight Sam.

[Neil E. Wright]

Hiya Snippy and SAM, just thought I'd drop by for a beer ... :)

Don't get up, I know where it's at and I'll just help myself and then sit back quietly and raise a cold one or two to SSgt Pool ... :)

BTW ... Good luck on the other project, here's hoping it's a ROUSING SUCCESS!!!!!

±

"The Era of Osama lasted about an hour, from the time the first plane hit the tower to the moment the General Militia of Flight 93 reported for duty."
Toward FREEDOM

[snippy_about_it]

Good evening Neil. Help yourself, we're always open. ;-)

I'm up, just reading about S/Sgt. Pool. What a soldier! The tanker of all tankers. Neat story. I never knew we had a tank ace.

[snippy_about_it]

Great story Sam. We have our very own tank ace and I had never heard of him. This is really neat. I went out to look for more stuff, always encouraged to learn more from your threads.:-)

[snippy_about_it]

Couldn't resist. Pool named his tanks "In the Mood".

Now I really am going to bed! Goodnight.

[Aeronaut]

Good morning Snippy.

[E.G.C.]

Good morning, Snippy and everyone at the Foxhole. Be sure to update your anti-virus software.

[alfa6]

Treadhead Tuesday on Wednesday Foxhole Bump

Shoot, between SSgt Poole in the 3rd Armoured and Audie Murphy in the 3rd ID them Texans gave the Nazis a bad time.

Regards

alfa6 ;>}

[The Mayor]

July 28, 2004

A Matter Of Taste

Read: 2 Corinthians 6:1-7:1

Let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit. —2 Corinthians 7:1

Bible In One Year: Psalms 46-48; Acts 28

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Two cockroaches decided to visit their favorite restaurant. While the larger of the two was enjoying his meal, the smaller one said,“You wouldn’t believe the house I just left. It was spotless. The lady had to be a cleanaholic. Everything was immaculate—the sink, the counter, the floors. You couldn’t find a crumb anywhere.”The other cockroach stopped his munching, looked with some annoyance at his companion, and said,“Do you have to talk like that while I’m eating?"

This story about roaches can apply to human nature as well. The second letter to the Corinthians shows that Paul’s readers had much to learn about clean living. They needed to develop a stronger hunger and thirst for righteousness. So the apostle pleaded with them to turn away from all filthiness (7:1). He reminded them that God wants His people to separate themselves from spiritual garbage.

If “cleanness”of heart sounds unappealing, perhaps we’ve been satisfied with the crumbs of our earthly desires. We need to learn to savor the flavor of godliness.

Father, forgive us for feeding the cravings of our sinful flesh. Help us to cultivate instead the tastes that Your Holy Spirit wants to produce in us. —Mart De Haan

If we desire to taste what’s good
And lose our taste for sin,
We must with ruthless honesty
Expose the dirt within. —D. De Haan


Sin cannot flourish where godliness is cultivated.

[Professional Engineer]

Good morning ladies. Flag-o-gram.

[CholeraJoe]

Shoot, between SSgt Poole in the 3rd Armoured and Audie Murphy in the 3rd ID them Texans gave the Nazis a bad time.

Nimitz was from Texas, too.

[Valin]

On This Day In History


Birthdates which occurred on July 28:
---- Lu Pan Hong Kong
1165 Ibn al-'Arabi Muslim mystic/philosopher
1746 Thomas Heyward soldier, signed Declaration of Independence
1809 Ormsby McKnight Mitchel, astronomer/Major General (Union volunteers)
1825 William Duncan Smith, Brig General (Confederate Army), died in 1862
1833 James Henry Lane, Brig General (Confederate Army) [or Jun 22 1814]
1859 Balington Booth founded Volunteers of America
1866 Beatrix Potter England, children's author (Tale of Peter Rabbit)
1874 Ernst Cassirer Germany, philosopher/educator (Essay on Man)
1887 Marcel Duchamp painter (Nude Descending a Staircase)
1892 Joe E Brown Holgate Ohio, comedian (Buck Circus Hour)
1901 Rudy Vallee Vt, singer (Vagabond Dreams, My Time Is Your Time)
1907 Earl S Tupper invented Tupperware
1907 Vivian Vance Cherryvale Ks, actress (Ethel Mertz-I Love Lucy)
1909 Malcolm Lowry novelist (Under the Volcano)
1916 David Brown NYC, director (Jaws, Planet of the Apes)
1922 Jacques Piccard Switzerland, undersea explorer (bathyscaph Trieste)
1923 Kent L Lee, US vice-admiral (WW II-Marianas/Palau)
1929 Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis 1st lady (1961-63)
1938 Robert Hughes [Studley Forrest], Australia, writer/critic
1940 Phil Proctor comedian (Firesign Theater)
1943 Mike Bloomfield blues musician (Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Electric Flag, Super Sessions)
1945 Jim Davis cartoonist (Garfield)
1945 Richard Wright rocker (Pink Floyd-The Wall)
1947 Sally Struther Portland Oregon, actress (Gloria-All in the Family)
1948 Georgia Engel Wash DC, actress (Georgette-Mary Tyler Moore Show)
1949 Marilyn Quayle wife of vice president Dan Quayle
1949 Vida Blue major-league pitcher (Cy Young & AL MVP 1971)
1961 Scott E Parazynski Little Rock Ark, MD/astronaut
1967 Lori Loughlin NY, actress (Edge of Night, New Kids, Secret Admirer)
1979 Kimberly Whiting, Miss Idaho Teen USA (1997)

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Deaths which occurred on July 28:
0450 Theodosius II de Jongere, emperor Austrian Empire, dies
1057 Victor II, [Gebhard], Pope (1055-57), dies
1101 Su Tung-p'o, Chinese poet/essayist/painter/calligrapher, dies at 64
1540 Thomas Cromwell King Henry VIII's chief minister, executed
1655 Cyrano de Bergerac, French dramatist/novelist, dies at 36 in Paris
1655 Suzuki Shosan, Samurai/monk/propagator of Zen Buddhism, dies at 76
1746 John Peter Zenger journalist, involved in 1st admendment fight, dies
1750 Johann Sebastian Bach German composer (Art of the Fugue), dies at 65
1794 Robespierre & 22 other terrorists executed to thunderous cheers
1863 James Deshler, US Confederate brig-general, dies in battle at 30
1864 Samuel Benton, US Confederate brig-general, dies in battle at about 44
1915 Vilbrun G Sam, rebellion leader/president of Haiti, lynched
1937 Joseph Lee father of Playgrounds movement, dies
1968 Otto Hahn, German physicist/chemist (Nobel 1944), dies at 89
1971 Diane Arbus photographer, commits suicide at 48 (shocking news)
1985 Grant Williams actor, dies of toxic poisoning at 54
1987 James Burnham philosopher (Coming Defeat of Communism), dies at 81

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Reported: MISSING in ACTION

1966 MC SWAIN GEORGE P. MONTROSE CA.
[03/04/73 RELEASED BY DRV, ALIVE IN 98]

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

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On this day...
0388 Battle at Aquileja: Emperor Theodosius beats emperor Magnus Maximis
0754 Pope Stephen II, [III] makes Pippin de Korte, King of France
1148 Crusaders attack Damascus
1540 Henry VIII of England marries Catherine Howard.
1586 Sir Thomas Harriot introduces potatoes to Europe
1588 Spanish Armada sails to overthrow England's Queen Elizabeth I
1609 Admiral George Somers settles in Bermuda
1615 French explorer Samuel de Champlain discovers Lake Huron on his seventh voyage to the New World.
1717 Prussian king Frederik Willem I gives compulsory education to 5-12 yrs
1741 Capt Bering discovers Mount St Elias, Alaska
1808 Sultan Mustapha of the Ottoman Empire is deposed and his cousin Mahmud II gains the throne.
1821 Peru declares independence from Spain (National Day)
1849 Memmon is 1st clipper to reach SF, 120 days out of NY
1851 Total solar eclipse captured on a daguerreotype photograph
1858 1st use of fingerprints as a means of identification
1862 Confederate forces defeated at More's Hill, Mo
1864 Atlanta Campaign-Battle of Ezra Church
1866 Metric system becomes a legal measurement system in US

1868 The 14th Amendment to the Constitution, which guarantees citizenship to all those born or naturalized in the United States, is adopted.

1882 The opera "Parsifal" is produced (Bayreuth)
1883 Shocks triggered by the volcano Epomeo (Isle of Ischia, Italy) destroyed 1,200 houses at Casamicciola killing 2,000
1896 City of Miami incorporated
1898 Start of Sherlock Holmes "Adventure of the Retired Colourman"(BG)
1900 Hamburger created by Louis Lassing in Connecticut
1914 Austria-Hungary attacks Serbia-WW I begins
1914 Foxtrot 1st danced at New Amsterdam Roof Garden (NYC, by Harry Fox)
1915 10,000 blacks march on 5th Ave (NYC) protesting lynchings
1915 US forces invade Haiti, stays until 1924
1929 Chicago Cardinals become 1st NFL team to train out of state (Mich)
1930 114ø F (46ø C), Greensburg, Kentucky (state record)
1931 Congress makes "The Star-Spangled Banner" our 2nd national anthem
1932 Pres Hoover evicts bonus marchers from their encampment
1933 1st singing telegram delivered (to Rudy Vallee), NYC
1933 NFL divides into 2, 5 team divisions
1934 118ø F (48ø C), Orofino, Idaho (state record)
1938 K Reinmuth discovers asteroid #1485 Isa
1942 Nazis liquidate 10,000 Jews in Minsk Russia
1943 Italian Facist dictator Benito Mussolini resigns
1943 Pres FDR announces end of coffee rationing in US
1945 Japanese premier Suzuki disregards US ultimatum to surrender
1945 US Army bomber crashes into 79th floor of Empire State Bldg, 14 die
1945 US Senate ratifies UN charter 89-2
1951 Walt Disney's "Alice In Wonderland" released
1959 Hawaii's 1st US election sends 1st Asian-Americans to Congress
1962 Mariner I launched to Mars falls into Atlantic Ocean
1964 Ranger 7 launched toward the Moon; sent back 4308 TV pictures
1965 LBJ sends 50,000 more soldiers to Vietnam (total of 125,000)
1973 Skylab 3's astronauts (Bean, Garriott & Lousma) launched
1976 242,000 die in Tientsin-Tangshan (China) 8.2 earthquake
1976 Eldon Joersz & Geo Morgan set world air speed record of 3,530 kph
1977 1st oil flow through the Alaska pipeline
1977 Roy Wilkins turn over NAACP leadership to Benjamin L Hooks
1978 600,000 attend Watkins Glen Summer Jam in NY
1978 At Old Timer's Game it's announced Martin will again manage Yankees
1978 Perth Observatory discovers asteroid #3188 & #3422
1978 Price of gold tops $200-an-oz level for 1st time
1983 AL Pres Lee MacPhail threw out umpire's decision & allows George Brett's 2 run HR against Yanks on July 24 (pine tar game)
1983 NASA launches Telstar-3A
1986 NASA releases transcript from doomed Challenger, pilot Michael Smith could be heard saying, "Uh-oh!" as spacecraft disintegrated
1987 Angel Cordero Jr becomes the 4th jockey to win 6,000 races
1988 IBM announces price hike on older models
1988 Jordan cancels $1.3 billion development plan in West Bank
1988 Winnie Mandella's home in Soweto, South Africa destroyed by arson
1989 Braves Dale Murphy, hits 2 3-run HRs in an inning, 14th man to hit 2 HRs in an inning. Also ties record of 6 RBIs in an inning
1989 NASA's Lewis Research Center, Cleve, announce new high-temperature superconductors able to operate at 33 to 37 Gigahertz
1990 Blackout hits Chicago
1991 Miguel Indurain of Spain wins the Tour de France bicycle race
1994 Texas Ranger Kenny Rogers pitches baseball's 12th perfect game
1995 Art Modell's rep begins secrets talks to move team to Baltimore
2002 Lance Armstrong won the Tour de France, an international 2,036-mile cycling race, for the fourth consecutive year.
2061 31st recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet

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

Bermuda : Adm George Somers Day (1609)
San Marino : Fall of Facism Day (1943)
US : Joseph Lee Day-honors playgrounds (1937)
US : Volunteers of America founders day (1859)
Virgin Islands : Hurricane Supplication Day ( Monday )
Gilroy, California : Garlic Festival ( Friday )
Peru : Independence Day (1824)
Marry a Millionaire Day
National Ice Cream Month

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Religious Observances
Luth : Commemoration of JS Bach, Heinrich Schtz, GF Handel
RC : Comm of SS Nazarius, Celsus, martyrs & Innocent I, pope
RC : Commemoration of St Victor I, 14th pope (189-199)

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Religious History
1675 Death of Bulstrode Whitelocke 69, an influential English lawyer during theCommonwealth of Oliver Cromwell. Among Whitelocke's last words: 'There has been one true religion in the world; and that is the work of the Spirit of God in the hearts and soulsof men.'
1881 Birth of J. Gresham Machen, an American Presbyterian theologian who taught atPrinceton and Westminster seminaries. Two of his writings still endure: 'New Testament Greekfor Beginners' (1923) and 'The Virgin Birth of Christ' (1932).
1889 The first Divine Liturgy (worship service) of the Armenian Church in America wascelebrated in Worcester, MA. It was led by Rev. Hovsep Sarajian, himself the first Armenianclergyman to come to America.
1942 Death of W.M. Flinders Petrie, 89, English archaeologist. He was regarded bycolleague William Foxwell Albright as 'the greatest genius among biblical archaeologists.'
1960 American Trappist Thomas Merton wrote in a letter: 'I can depend less and lesson my own power and sense of direction... It is so strange to advance backwards and getwhere you are going in a totally unexpected way.'

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

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Thought for the day :
"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power."

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Things To Do If You Ever Became An Evil Overlord...
DO NOT use any plan in which the final step is horribly complicated, e.g. "Align the 12 Stones of Power on the sacred altar then activate the medallion at the moment of total eclipse." Instead it will be more along the lines of "Push the button."

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Letters To God From The Dog...
Dear God,
Is it true that in Heaven, dining room tables have on-ramps?

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Dumb Laws...
Massachusetts:
Snoring is prohibited unless all bedroom windows are closed and securely locked.

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How To Annoy Osama bin Laden If You're Invited To A Dinner Party At His Secret Afghan Lair...
Claim you once saw him at a Hooter's in Muncie wearing a yarmulke.

[SAMWolf]

Morning Neil. Make your self at home.

Good luck on the other project, here's hoping it's a ROUSING SUCCESS!!!!!

Thanks, Looks like a lot of hard work is paying off and there's more to come but the first big hurdles are behind us now.

[SAMWolf]

Nice find! Great pictures of Sgt Poole.