The FReeper Foxhole Remembers The Seabees on Guadalcanal

Seabees Return to Guadalcanal
Cyclone Namu brings the Three-Bees
By Steve Karoly

It seems the Seabees have a calamitous relationship with Guadalcanal. They only call on the tropical isle after tragedy shakes the island. Today is no different than World War II.

Japanese occupation of Guadalcanal and construction of the airfield, which threatened nearby Espiritu Santo and New Caledonia, brought the Seabees in 1942. The watchwords of the day were stop Japanese aggression and liberate conquered territories. This meant airfields — lots of them. That’s what drew the Seabees to Guadalcanal the first time.

This Thread is Dedicated to the Memory of Roger Sigo
4/1947 - 12/2001
American, Sailor, SeaBee, Best Friend

The force of nature brought them the second time. Cyclone Namu swept across the island in May 1986, leaving a path of destruction. This time natural disaster and the politics of the Cold War drew the Seabees.

EO2 Anthony Missico, Jr. remembers the political rumors about the deployment. Originally, he remembers, they were to take an amphibious ship directly from Port Hueneme. But because of political wrangling, the 93-man detail deployed to Okinawa with the main body of the battalion. A New York Times article reported on November 4, 1986 that the Seabee deployment was part of an effort to counter increasing Soviet influence in the region.

Seabees rebuild road and bridges

So 41 years after that last Seabees left the island, the USS Bristol County (LST 1198) bearing NMCB 3’s Detail Guadalcanal eased into its berth in Honiara. The Seabees came to repair the damaged infrastructure. September 9, 1986 marked the first time since CBMU 520's departure on August 22, 1945 that Seabees lived on the island.

Detail Guadalcanal arrived 44 years and eight days after the first Seabees of the 6th NCB landed on Guadalcanal. After the 10-day sea voyage from Okinawa, the Seabees initiated Operation Kennel Sun to "test their capabilities in amphibious and construction operations." That was the official reason for their deployment. In truth, they spent 90 days on the islands of Guadalcanal and nearby Malaita repairing storm damage from Cyclone Namu.

Instead of boarding in the luxurious hotels used by the thousands of sport divers and environmentally minded tourists who flock to Guadalcanal each year, they set up a tent camp on the west end of Kukum Field, an airfield built by the 18th NCB. Although long abandoned, Missico said, "The airfield was still flat and as straight as the day it was laid."

The Seabees were tasked with setting up "a non-tactical military camp in an austere and adverse environment." All the amenities of home like showers, laundry and heads made the camp self-sufficient. A Seabee master chief who visited the Seabees said it reminded him of the Seabee camps in Vietnam, according Missico.

Their primary mission, however, was to "perform extensive disaster recovery project work and civic action on the islands of Guadalcanal and Malaita," according NMCB 3’s deployment completion report. "Construction maintained a rapid pace throughout the 90-day deployment as detail personnel worked 12 hours a day, 6 days a week under arduous and extreme conditions of this remote site."

Seabee tours battlefields of World War II

Memorials are everywhere on Guadalcanal. Monuments to the dead have been erected at several key locations. Thirteen American, Australian and Japanese ships lay entombed in Iron Bottom Sound. And many battlefields, like Bloody Ridge and Alligator Creek, remain littered with the instruments of war.

Its nature resources and a long forgotten war are important elements of Guadalcanal’s economy. Tropical beauty, breath taking scuba diving sites and remnants of war draw some 11,500 visitors annually. The war continues to play a substantial role in the struggling nation’s economy.

From the minute the airplane turns into its final approach, visitors are reminded of battle. Henderson Field, built on the Lunga Plain by Marines Engineers and Seabees of the 6th NCB, is the gateway to the Solomon Islands. They drive over Seabee built roads and bridges to the luxurious resort hotels of Honiara.

Missico called himself the tourist’s tourist. He many non-working hours touring the battlefields. As the equipment dispatcher for the unit, he had access to vehicles. "Being dispatcher I always drove a car. I would rent [a car] and get some of my crew and some of the mechanics and we’d tour," Missico said.

They made friends with a teenage boy who, when dismissed by his school teacher, became their tour guide. He took Missico and his buddies to Galloping Horse and Sea Horse Ridges on the Matanikau River, site of fierce fighting between the Japanese and Americans late in the campaign for Guadalcanal. And they visited Bloody Ridge, a flat north-south ridge system that guards the approaches to Henderson Field.

Their guide knew all the war sites. As a child, he played around the foxholes and ridges. He traced the battle lines and knew were war relics were hidden in the thick jungle. He guided them to a Japanese Zero buried deep in the forest. He took them on walking tours to battlegrounds littered with the waste of war. "You could look down on the ground and still see the canvas buttons, the bullet rounds, the shells. The place is littered."

"What made Bloody Ridge so unusual was the grassy plain in the middle of a jungle," Missico said as he described steep terrain formed by a ravine along the ridge. "A lot of the trails going up and down the ravine needed to be guarded. So you’re on these trails and it’s hot and humid and you’re slipping and falling. You can barely keep your footing."

Residents of Guadalcanal welcomed the Seabees into their homes and their hearts. The young Seabees followed a time-honored American tradition of giving chocolate to children as their fathers and grandfathers had in wars past. Missico’s assessment of his hosts was to the point: "I tell you those people loved us."

Once again, the Seabees had a lasting effect on Guadalcanal. Although on a smaller scale than their World War II brothers, the Seabees of NMCB 3 built roads and bridges. This time, these infrastructure repairs were for the people of Guadalcanal, not to support a massive war machine. Then on December 6, 1986, the USS Schenectady (LST 1185) called on Honiara to return NMCB 3’s Detail Guadalcanal to Okinawa.

Six years later, another group of Seabees came. This time a much smaller group, Civic Action Team 0703, landed to support Marine Task Force Guadalcanal for Operation Remembrance, a Marine led expedition to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the First Marine Division’s landings on the island.

The American Embassy characterized the influence a small group of young Seabees had on Guadalcanal: "The Seabees returned to a dying World War II legend on Guadalcanal, cherished by the elders but forgotten by the youth. By their cheerful hard work they brought the legend alive."

Seabees — their simple motto tells the story: "We build, we fight". From the island hopping of World War II and the cold of Korea, to the jungles of Vietnam, to the mountains of Bosnia, and to the desert of Afghanistan, the Seabees have built entire bases, bulldozed and paved thousands of miles of roadway and airstrips, and accomplished a myriad of construction projects.

Over the past 50 years the Seabees have repeatedly demonstrated their skills as fighters and builders. From the islands of the Pacific to the jungles of Vietnam to the sands of Saudi Arabia and to the mountains of Bosnia, they have built and fought for freedom. In peacetime, they have been goodwill ambassadors. In peace and in war, they have lived their motto: "Can Do!"

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Today's classic warship, (CL-101)

Cleveland class light cruiser
Displacement. 10,000
Lenght. 610' 1"
Beam. 66' 4"
Draft. 24'
Speed. 31.6 k.
Complement. 1,426
Armament. 12 6', 12 5", 28 40-mm., 10 20-mm.; 4 Aircraft

USS AMSTERDAM (CL-101) was laid down on 3 March 1943 at Newport News, Va., by the Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Co.; launched on 25 April 1944, sponsored by Mrs. William E . Hasenfuss, the first "Gold Star Mother" of Amsterdam, N. Y. who had lost a son in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941; and commissioned at the Norfolk Navy Yard Portsmouth, Va., on 8 January 1945, Capt. Andrew P. Lawton in command.

After final fitting out at Norfolk, the light cruiser got underway on 5 February for shakedown training in the Chesapeake Bay. On 17 February, she stood out from Hampton Roads and headed south for Trinidad, British West Indies, and the second phase of her shakedown cruise. AMSTERDAM operated from Trinidad through 13 March, when she set a course for Norfolk. During the return voyage, she held shore bombardment practice off the island of Culebra and then arrived back at Norfolk on the 20th. Following a short cruise to Cape May, N.J., for gunnery exercises, the ship entered the Norfolk Navy Yard on 24 March for availability.

AMSTERDAM left the yard on 20 April for training exercises in Chesapeake Bay and, four days later, sailed for the Caribbean. She held training exercises off Culebra and at Guantanamo Bay Cuba, and then proceeded to the Panama Canal which she transited on 5 May. The warship reached Pearl Harbor on 18 May and, during her stay in Hawaiian waters, carried out numerous gunnery and tactical exercises.

On 9 June, the cruiser set a course for Leyte, Philippine Islands. Upon her arrival in San Pedro Bay on the 21st, she reported to the 3d Fleet for duty. After a period of provisioning and refueling, the ship sortied on 1 July with Task Force (TF) 38 to cover air strikes against the Japanese home islands. On 10 July, the force's planes began a series of raids on Japanese airfields, factories, and shipping. During these actions, AMSTERDAM protected the carriers from attack by enemy air or surface forces. Among the cities the task force attacked were Tokyo, Kure, Kobe, and Osaka. On 15 August, TF 38 was preparing to launch another attack on Tokyo when its ships received word of Japan's capitulation.

During the next few weeks, AMSTERDAM remained in waters off the east coast of Honshu guarding against possible Japanese aggression during armistice negotiations. She steamed into Tokyo Bay on 5 September and remained there through the 20th and then shaped a course for the United States. After brief layovers at Buckner Bay, Okinawa, and Pearl Harbor to take on personnel for transportation to the United States, the cruiser arrived at Portland, Oreg., on 15 October and remained at that port for a fortnight to participate in Navy Day ceremonies. On the 29th, she got underway for San Pedro Calif.

The ship reached San Pedro on 1 November. After a period of leave and upkeep, the cruiser left the west coast on 19 November bound for Pearl Harbor. She touched there on the 25th and took on personnel and equipment for transportation to the west coast. The cruiser set sail again on 12 December, arrived back at San Pedro on the 18th, and rode at anchor there into early 1946. On 21 January, she got underway for San Francisco. Shortly after her arrival, her crew began work to prepare the ship for inactivation and entry into the Pacific Reserve Fleet. She was decommissioned on 30 June 1947 and was laid up at San Francisco. AMSTERDAM's name was struck from the Navy list on 2 January 1971, and the vessel was sold on 11 February 1972 to National Metal & Steel Corp., Terminal Island, Calif., and later scrapped.

AMSTERDAM earned one battle star for her World War II service.

On this Day In History

Birthdates which occurred on March 20:
1634 Balthasar Bekker Frisian theologist (Examiner of Comets)
1680 Baron Emanuele d' Astorga Italian composer (Stabat mater)
1725 Abdül-Hamid I 27th sultan of Turkey (1774-89)
1728 Franciscus L Kersteman Dutch lawyer/astrologist
1739 Eligio Celestino composer
1750 Martinus van Marum Dutch chemist/physicist (Homo Diluvii Testus)
1770 Johann Friedrich Hölderlin Tübingen Germany, lyric poet (Der Rhein, Andenken)
1774 John Braham composer
1804 Neal Dow Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1897
1811 George Caleb Bingham US, politician/painter (Country Election)
1811 Napoleon Bonaparte II Napoleon's son/King of Rome
1812 George Bibb Crittenden Major General (Confederate Army), died in 1880
1813 Matthias Keller Ulm Germany, hymn writer (O Farther un High)
1820 Alexander J Cuza monarch of Moldavia/Wallachia/Romania
1823 John Echols Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1896
1825 William Nelson Rector Beall Brigadier General (Confederate Army)
1826 Carel Vosmaer Dutch art historian/poet/editor
1828 Henrik Ibsen Norway, dramatist (Peer Gynt, Hedda Gabler)
1829 Charles Albert White composer
1830 Eugene Asa Carr Bvt Major General (Union Army), died in 1910
1833 Henry Southwick Perkins composer
1834 Charles William Elliot Boston MA, President of Harvard (1869-1909)
1846 Auguste Bender writer
1853 George Godfrey Chelsea MA, heavyweight boxer (Old Chocolate)
1856 Frederick Winslow Taylor father of scientific management
1863 Ernesto Nazareth composer
1868 Obe Postma Frisian poet/geography/historian (Frisian Clay Farm)
1870 Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck Prussian General/politician (East Africa)
1872 Bernhard Seklas composer
1872 Karin Michaelis writer
1882 René Coty Le Havre France, President of France (1953-58)
1883 Colin Campbell Falkirk Scot, actress (High Bright Sun, Leather Boys)
1883 Karl Hasse composer
1885 Eugen Herrigel Germany, philosopher/early pioneer of Zen in Europe
1885 Hendrik A de Fish [Henri Pauwels], Flemish philological/sociologist
1888 S V Vegesack writer
1890 Lauritz Melchior Copenhagen Denmark, baritone tenor (National Symphony)
1896 Hal Walker Ottumwa IA, director (I Married Joan)
19-- Big Bird muppet (Sesame Street)
1902 Edgar Buchanan Humansville MO, actor (Uncle Joe-Petticoat Junction)
1902 Kathryn Forbes short story writer (Mama's Bank Account)
1903 Vincent Richards hall of fame tennis pro (elected 1961)
1904 B(urrhus) F(rederic) Skinner Susquehanna PA, Behaviorism pioneer (Skinner box)
1906 Abraham Beame (Mayor-Democrat-NYC), NYC's 1st Jewish mayor
1906 Ozzie Nelson Jersey City NJ, actor (Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet)
1906 Pavel P Parenago Russian astronomer
1908 Frank Stanton Muskegon MI, broadcasting executive (CBS)
1908 Philip "Felix" Bekkers actor (Czardasvorstin)
1908 Sir Michael Redgrave Bristol England, actor (Browning Version, The Lady Vanishes)
1911 Mieke Verstraete Belgian/Dutch actress (Pleasantly Settled)
1913 Judith Evelyn Seneca SD, actress (13th Letter, Tingler, Rear Window)
1914 Sviatosiav Richter Zhitomir Ukraine, pianist (Stalin Prize-1945)
1914 Wendell Corey Dracut MA, actor (11th Hour, Peck's Bad Girl)
1914 William Baddeley rector (St James' Piccadilly)
1915 Dr Rudolf Kirchschläger President of Austria (1974-86)
1916 Pierre Messmer Prime Minister (France)
1917 Dame Vera Lynn singer (Anniversary Waltz)
1917 Dolf Verspoor literary/interpreter (M Nijhoff Prize 1958)
1917 Kalervo H Hortamo Finnish poet (Sydänmaa)
1917 Peter Caddy founder (Findhorn Community)
1918 Bernd-Alois Zimmermann German composer (Soldiers)
1918 Jack Barry Lindenhurst NY, game show emcee (Joker's Wild)
1920 Bryan Genesse actor (Bold & Beautiful)
1920 Douglas G Chapman biomathematical statistician
1920 Marian McPartland jazz pianist (Bill Mayer, Jimmy McPartland)
1920 Werner Klemperer Cologne Germany, actor (Colonel Klink-Hogan's Heroes)
1921 Amadou-Mahtar M'Bow Senegal, director general of UNESCO
1921 Primoz Ramovs composer
1922 Carl Reiner Bronx NY, comedian/actor (2000 Year Old Man, Dick Van Dyke Show)
1922 Doug Barnard Jr (Representative-Democrat-GA, 1977- )
1922 Jack Kruschen Winnipeg Canada, actor (Papa-Webster, Busting Loose)
1922 Larry Elgart New Haven CT, bandleader/alto sax (Elgart Orchestra)
1922 Ray Goulding Lowell MA, comedian (Bob & Ray)
1922 Sir Arnold Burgen college president (Academia Europaea)
1923 Marc Saporta French writer/essayist (Le Grand Défi)
1925 James Pickles judge
1925 John D Erlichman Politician (Nixon aide, Watergate conspirator)
1927 John Pierre Herman Joubert composer (Chamber Music for brass quintet)
1928 Anthony Blond British publisher (The Publishing Game, Book Book)
1928 Christopher Benstead race horse trainer
1928 Hans Küng Swiss religious theologist
1928 Jerome Cousins Biffle Denver CO, long jumper (Olympics-gold-1952)
1928 Mr [Fred McFeely] Rogers Latrobe PA, children's television host (Mr Roger's Neighborhood)
1930 Michel Magne composer
1931 Antonio Tauriello composer
1931 Dr John Rae British educator (Conscience & Politics)
1931 Hal Linden [Harold Lipshitz] Bronx NY, actor (Barney Miller, Blacke's Magic, Rothchild)
1931 Sir David Montgomery chairman (British Forestry Commission)
1932 Tod Dockstader composer
1933 David James Moore educationalist
1933 Jacquez Guyonnet composer
1934 Eric Hebborn artist/faker
1934 Marion Conti arch bishop (Aberdeen England)
1935 Ted Bessell Flushing Queens NY, actor (Don-That Girl, Frankie-Gomer Pyle)
1936 Lord Mark Saville of Newdigate British high court judge
1937 Elizabeth Gille writer translator/editor
1937 Helmut Recknagel Germany, 90 meter ski jump (Olympics-gold-1960)
1937 Jerry Reed Atlanta GA, singer/actor ('Gator, Bat 21, Smokey & the Bandit)
1937 Joe Rivers rocker (Johnnie & Joe)
1937 Mark Saville QC, British high court judge
1938 Frans J van der Heijden Dutch journal/Dutch MP (CDA)
1939 Brian Mulroney (P-C) 18th Prime Minister of Canada (1984-93)
1939 Earl of Seafield [Ginger] English large landowner
1940 Mickey Preger horse trainer
1941 Carlos Lopez jockey
1945 Larry Combest (Representative-Republican-TX, 1985- )
1945 Pat Riley Schenectady NY, NBA star/coach (San Diego Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, Miami Heat)
1945 Tim Yeo British MP/Under-Secretary (State of Environment)
1946 Ranger Doug [Douglas Green], Illinois, singer (Riders in Sky-Cowboy Way)
1947 Carl Palmer drummer (Asia-Heat of the Moment, Emerson Lake & Palmer)
1947 John Eastburn Boswell medievalist
1948 Bobby Orr Parry Sound Ontario, Hall of Fame NHL defenseman (Boston Bruins)
1948 John de Lancie actor (Q-Star Trek Next Generation, Eugene Bradford-Days of our Lives)
1948 Pamela Sargent US, sci-fi author (Venus of Dreams, Cloned Lives)
1949 Chip Zien Milwaukee WI, actor (Love Sidney, Reggie)
1950 William Hurt Washington DC, actor (Big Chill, Children of a Lesser God)
1951 Guy Perry rock guitarist/vocalist (Motels-Only the Lonely)
1951 Jimmie Vaughan guitarist (Fabulous Thunderbirds)
1951 John Wetton rocker (Asia, UK, King Crimson)
1951 Madan Lal Britishcricketer (Indian medium pacer in the 70's)
1951 Tanya Boyd Detroit MI, actress (Celeste-Days of our Life)
1952 Anand Armitraj India, tennis player (Brother of ViJay)
1954 Charlie Simmer Ontario, NHL Left winger (Los Angeles Kings)
1954 Jim Seales Hamilton AL, singer (Shenandoah-Sunday in the South)
1956 Phillip Oppenhein British MP
1957 Spike Lee Atlanta GA, director (Mo Better Blues, Jungle Fever, Malcolm X)
1957 Theresa Russell [Paup] San Diego CA, actress (Black Widow, Straight Time, Razor's Edge)
1958 Holly Hunter Conyers GA, actress (The Piano, Broadcast News, Roe vs Wade)
1958 Rickey Jackson NFL defensive end (San Francisco 49ers)
1959 Dale Reid Ladybank Scotland, LPGA golfer (European Solheim Cup team)
1959 Richard Drummie rocker (Go West-Call Me, Don't Look Down)
1961 John Clark Gable Los Angeles CA, actor (Bad Jim)
1961 Kathy Guadagnino Albany NY, LPGA golfer (1985 US Women's Open)
1961 Slim Jim Phantom [Jim Mcdonnell] rock drummer (Stray Cats-Stray Cat Strut)
1963 Paul Annacone Southampton NY, tennis star
1963 Paul Mirkovich rock keyboardist (Nelson-Love & Affection)
1963 Ramon Andersson Middle Swan Australia, canoeist (Olympics-bronze-92, 96)
1964 Ruth Davidon Baltimore MD, rower (Olympics-6th-96)
1965 Chris Hoiles Bowling Green OH, catcher (Baltimore Orioles)
1965 Danielle Woodward Melbourne Victoria Australia, canoeist (Olympics-96)
1966 Blas Minor Merced CA, pitcher (Seattle Mariners)
1966 Giulio Caravatta CFL quarterback (British Columbia Lions)
1967 Bryan Genesse actor, (Rocco-Bold & Beautiful, Grady-Street Justice)
1967 Dana Rinehart Dalton Orlando FL, Miss Florida-America (1990)
1967 Mookie Blaylock NBA guard (Atlanta Hawks)
1967 Randy Gullatt horse trainer
1968 Eric Viscaal Dutch soccer star (PSV/AA Gent)
1968 Jurgen Rumrich Miesbach Germany, hockey forward (Team Germany 1998)
1968 Sheree Megan Higgins Matamata New Zealand, golfer (1991 Bridgestone)
1969 Caroline Brunet Québec City Québec Canada, kayaker (Olympics-silver-96)
1969 Konstantine Starikovitch Podolsk Russia, 238lbs US weightlifter (Olympics-96)
1969 Paul Atkinson jockey
1969 Sharon Manning WNBA center/forward (Charlotte Sting)
1969 Thang Thanh Nguyen Soc Trang Vietnam, murderer (FBI Most Wanted)
1970 Kristin Klein Santa Monica CA, volleyball outside hitter (Olympics-96)
1970 Ralph Dawkins NFL running back (New Orleans Saints)
1970 Ron George NFL linebacker (Atlanta Falcons)
1970 Todd Burger NFL guard (Chicago Bears)
1971 Janis Kelly Winnipeg Manitoba, volleyball player (Olympics-96)
1971 Manny Alexander Dominican Republic, infielder (Baltimore Orioles)
1972 Ajah Wilson-Ogechukwu soccer player (Roda JC)
1973 Jane March Edgeware England, actress (Lover)
1973 Nico Boje cricketer (South African ODI left-arm spinner 1996)
1973 Norman Tome Australian soccer striker (Olyroos, Olympics-96)
1974 P J Bogart New York NY, diver (Olympics-96)
1975 Brian Buetsch Rockford IL, figure skater (1997 Great Lakes Sr champion)
1976 Arno Knapen Dutch soccer player (Holten, FC Twente)

Deaths which occurred on March 20:
0842 Alfonso II the Chaste king of Asturia (791-842), dies
1191 Clement III [Paolo Scolari], Pope (1187-91, 3rd crusades), dies
1351 Mohammed ibn-Tughluq sultan of Delhi India, dies
1393 Johannes Nepomucenus [Jan Nepomucky], Czechoslovakian saint, killed
1415 Henry IV Bolingbroke King of England (1399-1413), dies at 45
1501 Jean Carondelet lawyer/chancellor of Burgundy (1480-96), dies at 72
1531 Sicke Freerks/Frericx [Cutter], Dutch anabaptist, beheaded
1549 Thomas Seymour of Sudely English Lord Admiral, beheaded
1568 Albrecht von Hohenzollern 1st duke of Prussia, dies at 77
1617 Franciscus Aguilon physicist/theologist/mathematician, dies at 50
1619 Matthias II Holy Roman Catholic emperor (1611-19), dies
1646 Matthew Vossius historian (Annales Holland Zelandiaeque), dies at 35
1703 Johann Kunckel/Kunkel German alchemist/ambassador to Sweden, dies
1727 Sir Issac Newton English physicist/astronomer, dies in London at 84
1751 Frederick Louis English prince of Wales/son of George I, dies
1757 Johann Paul Kunzen composer, dies at 60
1767 Firmin Abauzit French huguenot/scholar, dies at 87
1804 Ignaz Malzat composer, dies at 47
1812 Jan Ladislav Dussek Bohemian pianist/composer, dies at 52
1848 Abraham des Amorie van der Hoeven Dutch theologist/poet, dies at 27
1866 Rikard Nordraak composer, dies at 23
1871 Antonio Buzzolla composer, dies at 56
1873 Adolfe Louis Eugene Fetis composer, dies at 52
1874 Hans Christian Lumbye composer, dies at 63
1887 Pavel Annenkov Russian literature historian, dies at 73
1892 Arthor Goring Thomas composer, dies at 41
1894 Lajos Kossuth Hungarian freedom fighter/president (1849), dies at 91
1898 Luis Palés Matos Puerto Rican poet (Tuntún the paso y grifería), dies
1899 Martha M Place of Brooklyn NY, becomes 1st woman to die by electrocution
1910 Félix Tournachon [Nadar], French writer/photographer, dies at 89
1911 Jean-Theodore Radoux composer, dies at 75
1913 Christian Barnekow composer, dies at 75
1913 Song Jiao-ren leader Chinese Guomindang-Party, dies
1920 Venustiano Carranza President of Mexico (1915-20), murdered at 60
1925 George N Curzon British Foreign minister (1919-22), dies at 66
1929 Ferdinand Foch Marshal of France (WWI), dies at 77
1933 Giuseppe [Joe] Zangara electrocuted for assassination attempt on FDR
1934 A Emma W T von Waldeck-Pyrmont Dutch queen (& regent), dies at 76
1936 Durant Clifford Parkin cricketer (Tests for South Africa 1891-92), dies
1941 D A van den Bosch anti-Nazi clergyman (Amersfoort Camp), dies
1942 Theodoro Valcarcel composer, dies at 41
1944 Felix Woyrsch composer, dies at 83
1950 Walter Eucken German economist, dies at 59
1951 Jan Ingenhoven composer, dies at 74
1951 Kathleen Lockhart Manning composer, dies at 60
1953 Graciliano Ramos Brazilian author (Vidas Secas), dies at 60
1962 C Wright Mills US sociologist (Power Elite), dies at 45
1962 Dr Andrew E Douglass Dendrochronologer (Study of Tree Rings) dies
1963 Karl Otten writer, dies at 73
1964 Brendan Behan Irish writer/poet, dies at 41
1964 Jean Rogister composer, dies at 84
1967 A J F Moody 1st US Army General to die in Vietnam
1968 Carl T Dreyer Danish director (Passion of Jeanne d'Arc), dies
1972 Aad de Haas Dutch religious painter/graphic artist, dies at 51
1972 Jan Engelman Dutch poet/art critic (At the Front), dies at 71
1972 Marilyn Maxwell actress (Grace-Bus Stop), dies at 50
1974 [Lavinia] Marian Fleming Poe Black US advocate in Virginia, dies at 83
1974 Chet Huntley newscaster (NBC Huntley-Brinkley Report), dies at 62
1974 Edward Platt actor (Chief-Get Smart), dies at 58
1976 Michael Goodliffe actor (Gorgon, 7th Dawn, Way Out), dies at 61
1982 Hendrik L van Beek Dutch Vice-Admiral, dies at 52
1987 Norman Harris guitarist (O'Jays), dies at 39 of heart failure
1988 Gil Evans Canadian/US jazz composer (Out of the Cool), dies at 75
1990 Jannetje Visser-Roosendaal Dutch writer, dies at 90
1990 Jev Jasjin Russian soccer goalie, dies at 60
1991 Conor Clapton Eric Clapton's son, falls out of 53rd floor window at 4
1992 Avonne Taylor actress (My Best Girl, Honor Among Lovers), dies at 93
1992 Frank Westbrook dancer/choreographer, dies at 82
1992 Georges Delerue French composer (Hiroshima, My Love), dies at 67
1993 Claudia Yeltsin mother of Russian President Yeltsin, dies at 85
1993 Jonathan Ball English youngster, killed by IRA at 3
1995 Merv Harvey cricketer (scored 12 & 31 in Test Australia vs England 46-47), dies
1995 Rachida Hammadi Algerian TV journalist, murdered at 32
1995 Sidney Kingsley US playwright (Pulitzer prize 1934), dies at 88
1996 Alan Ridout composer, dies at 61
1996 Claude Bourdet human rights activist/journalist, dies at 86
1996 Victor Zorza journalist/Russian specialist, dies at 71
1997 ? Hefner mother of Hugh Hefner (playboy), dies at 101
1997 Carlo Fassi figure skating coach (Fleming, Hamill), dies at 67

On this day...
0141 6th predicted perihelion passage of Halley's Comet
1345 Saturn/Jupiter/Mars-conjunction; thought "cause of plague epidemic"
1525 Paris' parliament begins pursuit of Protestants
1569 Duke van Alva leads "tenth penning" in Ponts the Cé
1598 French king Henri IV & duke van Mercour sign treaty
1602 United Dutch East Indian Company (VOC) forms
1616 Walter Raleigh released from Tower of London to seek gold in Guyana
1627 France & Spain signs accord for fighting protestantism
1697 Willem de Vlamingh returns to Batavia after exploring "South Land"
1760 Great Fire of Boston destroys 349 buildings
1800 French army defeats Turks at Helipolis Turkey, & advance to Cairo
1814 Prince Willem Frederik becomes monarch of Netherlands
1815 Napoleon enters Paris after escape from Elba, begins 100-day rule
1816 US Supreme Court affirms its right to review state court decisions
1833 US & Siam conclude commercial treaty
1848 King Louis I of Bayern abdicates to marry dancer Lola Montez
1852 Harriet Beecher Stowe's "Uncle Tom's Cabin" published (Boston)
1863 Battle of Pensacola FL: evacuated by Federals
1865 2nd day of Battle of Bentonville NC
1865 Michigan authorizes workers' cooperatives
1868 Jesse James Gang robs bank in Russelville KY of $14,000
1883 Unity treaty of Paris signed; protects industrial property
1885 John Matzeliger of Suriname patents shoe lacing machine
1885 Yiddish theater opens in New York with Golldfaden operetta
1886 1st AC power plant in US begins commercial operation, Massachusetts
1888 Start of the Sherlock Holmes Adventure, "A Scandal in Bohemia"
1890 General Federation of Womens' Clubs founded
1890 German emperor Wilhelm II fires republic chancellor Otto Von Bismarck
1896 Marines land in Nicaragua to protect US citizens
1896 Uprising in Matabeleland
1897 1st known intercollegiate basketball game, Yale beats University of Pennsylvania 32-10
1897 1st US orthodox Jewish Rabbinical seminary (RIETS) incorporates in New York
1897 France signs treaty with emperor Menelik II of Abyssinia
1906 George B Shaw's "Captain Brassbound's Conversion" premieres in London
1911 National Squah Tennis Association formed (New York NY)
1911 Winter Garden Theater opens at 1634 Broadway NYC
1914 1st international figure-skating tournament held in US, New Haven
1916 Allies attack Zeebrugge Belgium
1920 1st flight from London to South Africa lands (1½ months)
1920 US Ladies Figure Skating Championship won by Theresa Weld
1920 US Men's Figure Skating Championship won by Sherwin Badger
1922 USS Langley is commissioned, Navy's 1st aircraft Carrier
1922 WIP-AM in Philadelphia PA begins radio transmissions
1923 Bavarian minister of Interior refuses to forbid Nazi SA
1923 Belgian Senate rejects Dutch University in Ghent
1924 Finnair begins scheduled flight of Helsinki-Tallinn
1924 Stanley Cup: Montréal Canadiens (NHL) sweep Vancouver Millionaires (PCHA) in 2
1930 Clessie Cummins sets diesel engine speed record of 129.39 kph
1931 Bishop Schreiber warns against national-socialism in Berlin
1932 Kara-Kalpak Autonomous Region in RSFSR becomes Kara-Kalpak ASSR
1933 Dachau, 1st concentration camp, completed
1934 Female Babe Didrickson pitches hitless inning for Philadelphia A's in exhibition game against Brooklyn Dodgers
1934 Test of practical radar apparatus made by Rudolf Kuhnold in Kiel Germany
1935 "Your Hit Parade" made its debut on radio
1937 Franco-offensive at Guadalajara Spain
1939 7,000 Jews flee German occupied Memel Lithuania
1940 Paul Reynoud becomes French premier
1941 Nazi-German/Yugoslav pact drawn
1942 Convoy PQ13 departs Reykjavik Iceland to Russia
1942 General MacArthur vows, "I shall return"
1942 Major German assault on Malta
1943 British offensive against Mareth-line
1943 German U-384 bombed & sinks
1944 Bus falls off bridge into Passaic River NJ, killing 16
1944 Mount Vesuvius, Italy explodes
1945 US 70th Infantry division/7th Armour division attack Saar
1946 Belgian government of Spaak, resigns
1947 180-metric ton blue whale (record) caught in South Atlantic
1948 1st live televised musical Eugene Ormandy on CBS followed in 90 minutes by 2nd live televised musical Arturo Toscanini on NBC
1948 20th Academy Awards: "Gentleman's Agreement", Ronald Colman, Loretta Young win
1951 Indonesian army offensive against Darul Islam on Java
1952 24th Academy Awards: "American in Paris", Humphrey Bogart & Vivian Leigh win
1952 US Senate's final ratification of peace treaty restoring sovereignty to Japan
1953 Senator Edwin C Johnson offers a bill to give clubs the sole right to ban radio-TV broadcasts of major league games in their own territory
1954 "King & I" closes at St James Theater NYC after 1246 performances
1954 16th NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: La Salle beats Bradley 92-76
1954 1st newspaper vending machine used (Columbia Pennsylvania)
1955 KXTV TV channel 10 in Sacramento CA (CBS) begins broadcasting
1956 E Ochab succeeds Beirut as 1st Secretary of Polish CP
1956 Mount Bezymianny on Kamchatka Peninsula (USSR) explodes
1956 Tunisia gains independence from France
1956 Union workers ended a 156-day strike at Westinghouse Electric Corp
1956 USSR performs nuclear test
1957 Britain accepts NATO offer to mediate in Cyprus, but Greece rejects it
1958 50" snow across the Mason-Dixon line
1958 Greek Clandestine Burasi Bizim Radio (communist), Voice of Truth 1st transmission
1962 Sjoukje Dijkstra becomes world champion figure skater
1963 1st "Pop Art" exhibition (New York NY)
1963 Sikkim crown prince Paldan Thondup Namgyal marries Hope Cooke
1964 "Funny Girl" with Barbra Streisand opens on Broadway
1964 ESRO established, European Space Research Organization
1965 27th NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: UCLA beats Michigan 91-80
1965 Venkataraghavan takes 8-72 vs New Zealand at Delhi
1966 Marilynn Smith wins LPGA St Petersburg Women's Golf Open
1967 Supremes release "The Happening"
1967 WOET (now WPTD) TV channel 16 in Dayton OH (PBS) begins broadcasting
1968 Military intervene in South-Yemen (leftist ministers resign)
1968 President Lyndon Johnson signs a bill removing gold backing from US paper money
1969 Abebe Bikila's auto-accident, near Addis Ababa
1969 Beatle John Lennon marries Yoko Ono in Gibraltar
1969 US President Nixon proclaims he will end Vietnam war in 1970
1971 Boston Bruins win 13th straight NHL game
1972 19 mountain climbers killed on Japan's Mount Fuji during an avalanche
1972 Sicco L. Mansholt succeeds Franco M. Malfatti as chairman of European Committee
1973 Roberto Clemente elected to hall of fame, 11 weeks after his death
1976 Jevgeni Kulikov skates world record 1000 meter (1:15.70)
1976 Patricia Hearst convicted of armed robbery
1977 Parisians elect former Prime Minister Jacques Chirac as 1st mayor in a century
1977 Premier Indira Gandhi loses election in India
1978 Flyers' Rick MacLeash scores on 6th penalty shot against Islanders
1979 Columbia flies on Shuttle carrier aircraft to Kennedy Space Center
1980 The Mi Amigo ship containing England's pirate Radio Caroline sinks
1980 US appeals to International Court on hostages in Iran
1981 Argentine ex-President Isabel Perón sentenced to 8 years
1981 Jean Harris sentenced 15-to-life for slaying of Scarsdale Diet Doctor
1982 1st-class debut of Richie Richardson, Leeward Islands vs Barbados
1982 France performs nuclear test
1982 Joan Jett & Blackhearts' "I Love Rock 'n' Roll" goes #1 for 7 weeks
1982 Reverend A Treurnicht forms Conservative Party of South Africa
1983 Kathy Whitworth wins LPGA Women's Kemper Golf Open
1984 Andy Kaufman & Fred Blassie's "My Breakfast With Blassie" premieres
1984 Senate rejects amendment to permit spoken prayer in public schools
1985 Libby Riddles is 1st woman to win Iditarod Trail Dog Sled Race
1986 228 KPH gust of wind strikes Cairngorm (UK record)
1986 Jacques Chirac become Prime Minister of French government
1987 FDA approves sale of AZT (AIDS treatment)
1987 NASA launches Palapa B2P
1987 Soap opera "Capitol" final episode
1987 Soviet filmmakers arrive in Hollywood for an entertainment summit
1987 Yvonne van Gennip skates ladies world record 5 km (7 :0.36)
1988 David Henry Hwang's "M Butterfly" premieres in New York NY
1988 Laura Davies wins Circle K LPGA Tucson Golf Open
1988 Mike Tyson KOs Tony Tubbs in 2 for heavyweight boxing title
1989 Baseball announces Reds manager Pete Rose is under investigation
1989 Richard J Kerr replaces Robert M Gates as deputy director of CIA
1990 Los Angeles Lakers retire Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's #33
1990 Singer Gloria Estefan breaks her collarbone in a bus accident
1991 Court awards Peggy Lee $3 million in contract violation suit against Disney
1991 Michael Jackson signs $65M six album deal with Sony records
1991 Supreme Court rules unanimously employers can't exclude women from jobs where exposure to toxic chemicals could potentially damage fetus
1991 US forgives $2 billion in loans to Poland
1992 Janice Pennington is awarded $1.3M for accident on Price is Right set
1992 Noriega's wife Felicidad arrested for stealing buttons from dresses
1993 Dan Jansen skates world record 500 meter (36.02 seconds)
1993 IRA-bomb kills 3 year old in Warrington England
1993 Morton Downey Jr weds Lori Krebs
1994 "Cyrano: The Musical" closes at Neil Simon NYC after 137 performances
1994 "Flowering Peach" opens at Lyceum Theater NYC for 41 performances
1994 "No Man's Land" closes at Criterion Theater NYC after 61 performances
1994 14th Golden Raspberry Awards: Indecent Proposal wins
1994 El Salvador's 1st Presidential election following 12-year-old civil war
1994 Laura Davies wins LPGA Standard Register Ping Golf Tournament
1994 Mashonaland U-24 beat Matabeleland on 1st inn to win Logan Cup
1994 Wrestlemania X at Madison Square Garden New York, Bret Hart pins Yokozuna to win WWF championship
1994 Zulu-king Goodwill Zwelithini founds realm in South Africa
1995 Beatles song, "Free As A Bird", with late John Lennon as lead singer, is released, 1st Fab Four single since their 1970 breakup
1995 Dow-Jones hits 4083.68 (record)
1995 Poison Gas released in Tokyo subway 12 killed, 4,700 injured
1996 "Love Thy Neighbor" opens at Booth Theater NYC
1996 Erik & Lyle Menendez found guilty of killing their parents
1996 UK admits humans can catch CJD (Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease aka Mad Cow Disease)
1997 "Play On!" opens at Brooks Atkinson Theater NYC for 61 performances
1997 Liggett admits cigarettes are addictive

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

Iran : Oil Nationalization Day
Tunisia : Independence Day (1956)

Religious Observances
Anglican : Commemoration of Cuthbert, Bishop of Lindisfarne

Religious History
1739 English founder of Methodism John Wesley wrote in a letter: 'I look upon all the world as my parish.'
1747 American missionary David Brainerd, 28, ended two_andÂone_half years of labor among the colonial Indians of New England, after having been continually plagued with ill health. (Brainerd died of tuberculosis seven months later.)
1840 Scottish clergyman Robert Murray McCheyne wrote in a letter: 'The more God opens your eyes, the more you will feel that you are lost in yourself.'
1852 American abolitionist Harriet Beecher Stowe, 41, published her classic antislavery novel, "Uncle Tom's Cabin." The controversy it kindled helped lead to the American Civil War, nine years later.
1928 Birth of Fred Rogers, American Presbyterian clergyman and __ since its premiere in 1965 __ host of public television's longest running children's program: "Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood."

Thought for the day :
" Beauty is only skin deep, but ugly goes clear through. "

Good Morning, SAM...

What a wonderful way to open the Foxhole, with a prayer for our men and women standing in harm's way. Thank you.

The SeaBee's haven't really changed much, at heart, since those early days. They're still out there building and fighting. God Bless 'em, each and every one.

I'm glad too, because he gave us all a chance to see it.

Great work, Victoria!

Good morning, SAM! Thanks for this tribute to the Seabees!

Morning Feather

I didn't know it was your graphic. I found it on the site that I found the prayer.

Morning aomagrat

FALL IN to the FReeper Foxhole!

To be removed from this list, please send me a blank private reply with "REMOVE" in the subject line! Thanks! Jen

I'm in.
Bouncing around looking at reports on the war.
Seems we have in our little grubby hands the 'H-3" airbase in western Iraq.
Now we need some gear there after we clean it up some to remove the stench.