The FReeper Foxhole Remembers The Battle of Brandywine (9/11/1777) - May 2nd, 2003

http://64.41.64.113/11thpa/elk_news_3.html ^

[SAMWolf]

Dear Lord,

There's a young man far from home,
called to serve his nation in time of war;
sent to defend our freedom
on some distant foreign shore.

We pray You keep him safe,
we pray You keep him strong,
we pray You send him safely home ...
for he's been away so long.

There's a young woman far from home,
serving her nation with pride.
Her step is strong, her step is sure,
there is courage in every stride.
We pray You keep her safe,
we pray You keep her strong,
we pray You send her safely home ...
for she's been away too long.

Bless those who await their safe return.
Bless those who mourn the lost.
Bless those who serve this country well,
no matter what the cost.

Author Unknown

.

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

.

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

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The Battle of Brandywine

The rutted road from Dilworth to Chester is clotted with weary soldiers, trudging to safety in the darkness that has just fallen on a long and bloody day in late summer.

The Continental Army is in retreat - but an orderly retreat, by troops who have been defeated but not demoralized.

The date is Sept. 11, 1777. The Americans and British have just fought the biggest battle of the Revolutionary War thus far, with about 30,000 soldiers blasting away at one another along the Brandywine Creek - sometimes "almost muzzle to muzzle," in the words of one American commander.


General Sir William Howe

Gen. Sir William Howe, commander in chief of the British army in the rebellious colonies, has finally drawn George Washington into the battle Howe sought unsuccessfully earlier in the summer.

Howe has come away with a victory, but not an impressive one. His veteran Redcoats and German mercenaries have outmaneuvered but not outfought the Continental troops.

Most important of all, Howe has failed to destroy the American army.

At midnight, Gen. Washington sits down in Chester to write a letter to John Hancock, president of Congress, informing him of the day's action.

"I am sorry to have to tell you that in this days engagement, we have been obliged to leave the enemy masters of the field," Washington writes.

But the news is not all bad, the commander in chief adds, putting the best face he can on the situation.



"Though we fought under many disadvantages, and were... obliged to retire; yet our loss of men is not, I am persuaded, very considerable; I believe much less than the enemys... Notwithstanding the misfortunes of the day, I am happy to find the troops in good spirits, and I hope another time we shall compensate for the losses now sustained."

The British army, which lands near Head of Elk, Md., on Aug. 25 with a force that probably numbers at least 16,000 men, reaches Kennett Square in Chester County by Sept. 10.

Howe's objective is Philadelphia. He believes that if he captures the capital of the rebellion, loyalists will rally to King George III and the American insurrection will be fatally damaged.

But first he must get over the Brandywine Creek, which traverses the hinterland south of Philadelphia like a narrow but unbridged moat that can be crossed only at a few fords.

Washington, who has decided that he must risk a battle with Howe to save Philadelphia, has concentrated his force of probably 13,000 men along the east bank of the Brandywine at Chad's Ford (the 18th-century spelling). There the Nottingham Road, the main route to Philadelphia, crosses the creek.



On Sept. 5, as Washington prepares for battle, he issues a rousing call to the Continental Army for "one bold stroke" to drive the enemy from the land: "If we behave like men, this third Campaign will be our last. Ours is the main army; to us our Country looks for protection."

Early on Sept. 11, the British army leaves Kennett Square in two columns. Howe knows that Washington is waiting for him at the Brandywine, and the British general splits his force in two to outflank the Americans.

One column, with about 7,000 men under the German Lt. Gen. Baron Wilhelm von Knyphausen, marches straight up the Nottingham Road (now known as Baltimore Pike) toward Chad's Ford.

The other, with about 9,000 men under Maj. Gen. Earl Charles Cornwallis, sets off to the north under a cover of thick fog to cross the Brandywine farther upstream, beyond the American right. Howe himself accompanies Cornwallis.

While Cornwallis hurries to the north on Sept. 11, Knyphausen moves forward as if he means to force a crossing at Chad's Ford.

Knyphausen's forces attack American troops that have crossed to the west side of the creek and in a series of sharp skirmishes push the Americans back across the creek by late morning.


Major General Greene

Then, Knyphausen settles in, continuing to fire his artillery to keep the Americans fooled and waiting for Cornwallis to complete his march around the American right flank.

The British flanking movement is aided by local loyalists, who lead the British across the hills and fields of the unfamiliar countryside. Capt. Johann Ewald, a Hessian mercenary officer who is at the head of the column, writes in his journal: "Lord Cornwallis sent me a guide who was a real geographical chart and almost a general by nature... . His description was so good that I was often amazed at the knowledge this man possessed of the country."

Just above the point where the Brandywine splits into its east and west branches six miles north of Chad's Ford, Cornwallis' column turns east, crossing the west branch at Trimble's Ford late in the morning and the east branch at Jeffries' Ford about 2 p.m.

Washington expects Howe to try to outflank him. It is a standard Howe tactic. What Washington does not know is how far up the Brandywine Howe and Cornwallis have gone.

Washington wants to push straight across the Brandywine and engage Knyphausen. But he can't do that without knowing for sure where the other British column is.



If Howe and Cornwallis have gone a good distance up the Brandywine, Washington could attack Knyphausen, defeat him and turn to face the other British contingent. But if Howe and Cornwallis have gone only a short distance upstream, they could fall on the American rear while the Americans are still fighting Knyphausen - something Washington cannot risk.

Washington receives only spotty and contradictory information at first about the British flanking movement - a failure that leaves him fuming.

Lacking reliable information, he hesitates, uncertain what to do next.

Finally, a local justice of the peace, Thomas Cheyney, brings word that British troops are across the Brandywine near the Birmingham Meeting House. Belated confirmation soon comes in from American dragoons scouting beyond the Continental Army's right flank.

Washington now must move troops quickly to counter Howe and Cornwallis, while still contending with Knyphausen, who launches an attack across the Brandywine once he knows Cornwallis and Howe have begun their assault.

American soldiers rush to take up positions on a hill near Birmingham Meeting House. For more than an hour and a half, the fight goes back and forth and the hill changes hands five times.

Finally, with dead and wounded from both sides covering the plowed ground, the British are masters of Birmingham Hill. The Americans who have been fighting for the hill withdraw to Dilworth, about a mile to the east. Meanwhile, troops who had been in reserve at Chad's Ford come up to cover the retreating Americans. The reserves make their stand in Sandy Hollow and fight the British to a standstill. The fighting ends when night falls.

Back at Chad's Ford, other American troops, mostly Pennsylvanians, try to hold off Knyphausen.



"We fought without giving way on either side until dark," Lt. James McMichael, of the 13th Pennsylvania Regiment, writes in his journal. "Our ammunition almost expended, firing ceased on both sides, when we received orders to proceed to Chester."

Edward Hector, a soldier in the Third Pennsylvania Artillery and one of about 5,000 African Americans to serve in the Continental Army during the war (Washington, a slave owner, initially refused to enlist black soldiers), insists on saving the team of horses pulling his ammunition wagon. "The enemy will not have my team," he declares. "I will save my horses, or perish myself." And calmly, Hector gathers up arms discarded on the battlefield, loads them into his wagon, and drives away.

The British are so exhausted that they camp on the battlefield and do not pursue the retreating Americans.

The number of casualties is not known for certain.

About 200 Continental soldiers are thought to have died, 500 were wounded (including the Marquis de Lafayette, who takes a musket ball in the leg but is not seriously injured), and about 400 captured.

The British report about 90 killed, nearly 500 wounded, and six missing.

The British version of the day's events is that, with a little luck, they would have destroyed the American army. Howe will write several weeks later that "the enemy's army escaped a total overthrow that must have been the consequence of an hour's more daylight."

Washington insists that the American loss at Brandywine was the result of "some unlucky incidents."

But neither Washington nor Howe has time to dwell on what might have been. The Philadelphia Campaign continues.

[SAMWolf]

British Casualties

Casualties at Brandywine were strewn across a 10-square mile area of the battlefield, making final determinations particularly difficult. General Howe in his official report to Parliament counted: 90 killed, 488 wounded and 6 missing in action. Howe, once again clearly underestimated casualty figures. Before the Battle of Germantown, an adjutant in the British army, reckoned British killed and wounded at 1,976. This is the exact same number arrived at by Jacob Hitzheimer, a civilian at Brandywine who recorded the number of British wounded in a diary entry. Some reports have the Queens Rangers losing 290 out of 480 men, while Ferguson's Riflemen suffered 46 casualties out of 80.

The 2nd Light Infantry and 2nd British Guards who were involved in some of the fiercest fighting at Brandywine (including hand-to-hand combat) are listed as having lost 612 of 1,740 troops.

American Casualties

Major General Greene estimated American losses at 1,200 men. He also reported the loss of 10 irreplaceable cannon and a Howitzer. A Hessian officer listed the American casualty and captured rate at 1,300. An American officer under Brigadier General Nash reported British losses at 1,960 and the Americans at 700.

The Result: The British Take Philadelphia

Although the American army was forced to retreat after the Battle of Brandywine, the defeat did not demoralize the men. They believed the defeat was not the result of poor fighting ability but rather because of unfamiliarity with the landscape and poor reconnaissance information.

During the next several days, General Howe and his Army moved closer to Philadelphia with little opposition from Washington. The two armies maneuvered in hopes of finding the other at a disadvantage, but no decisive military actions were taken during the next two weeks. Congress abandoned Philadelphia and moved first to Lancaster and then to York to escape before the British takeover. Important military supplies were moved out of the Philadelphia area to Reading, Pennsylvania, where they could be defended. Washington responded cautiously after the battle. The impending loss of Philadelphia hurt the patriot cause, and Washington's force had dropped from a high of nearly 15,000 prior to the battle to only 6,000.

Washington wrote to Alexander Hamilton on the 22nd, "The distressed situation of the army, for want of blankets and many necessary articles of clothing, is truly deplorable, and inevitably must bring destruction to it, unless a speedy remedy is applied." Local leaders did what they could to supply the army with food and clothing. Reinforcements sent by Congress began to arrive, and Washington felt the army was sufficiently ready to mount an attack. However, it was too late to save Philadelphia, for on September 26th a column of British soldiers marched into the patriot capital unopposed.

[SAMWolf]

Little Known Facts about the Battle of Brandywine

The one-day Battle began at 3:30 a.m. and lasted nigh unto midnight.

It was a victory won at great expense for the British. Their casualties were estimated at about 2,000; American casualties, at about 1,200. The British took 5 days to regroup and move on; the Americans marched over 40 miles the next day.

The American Loyalist unit, the Queen’s York Rangers, greatly distinguished themselves on the field. After the war, they founded a city in the Canadian wilderness (Toronto) and became the first, and still active, unit of the Canadian army.

Two of the American units that served on the Battlefield are still in operation today. They are the 3rd U.S. Infantry (the Old Guard) and the 111th and 113th Pennsylvania National Guard.

The Marquis de LaFayette joined the Continental Army just before Brandywine. He showed such courage and energy, carrying on even when wounded, that he became a permanent favorite with George Washington and many of the soldiers.

The local citizens were devastated by the fighting and the subsequent foraging by both armies. Three townships were so stricken that they were exempt from providing tax returns for several years.

African-American Edward Hector, a private in Proctor’s Pennsylvania Artillery, received a very rare honor—the formal thanks of Congress for outstanding bravery. He rescued some of the Artillery’s equipment in the face of Hessian advance.

The first effective use of cavalry took place at the Battle of Brandywine, under the command of Casimir Pulaski, a Polish volunteer. He helped cover Washington’s retreat from the Battle of Brandywine.

General Howe and the British troops never missed a meal. Howe authorized the advance guard’s early afternoon break—for tea—at Osborne Hill. And, according to one account, before 9 p.m. they sat down and refreshed themselves with cold pork and grog.

[SAMWolf]

'Although the Battle of Brandywine receives scant attention in the annals of military history, it is significant as one of the largest land battles, as the only battle in which Washington and Howe fought head to head, as a great morale booster for the American army, and is thought to be one of the first battles in which the Ferguson rifle was used and in which the Betsy Ross flag was flown.'

[SAMWolf]

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[SAMWolf]

[Valin]

On this Day In History


Birthdates which occurred on May 02:
1551 William Camden English historian (Brittania, Annales)
1601 Athanasius Kircher German Jesuit/inventor (magic lantern)
1660 Pietro Alessandro Gaspare Scarlatti Palermo Italy, composer (Tigrane)
1729 Catherine II (the Great) empress of Russia (1762-96)
1729 Florian Johann Deller composer
1740 Elias Boudinot lawyer/patriot, found American Biblical Society
1752 Ludwig August Lebrun composer
1754 Vicente Martin y Soler composer
1768 Jean-Louis M Alibert French dermatologist
1772 Novalis writer
1779 John Galt Scotland, novelist (Ayrshire Legatees, Lawrie Todd)
1810 Hans Christian Lumbye composer
1810 Leo XIII 257th Roman Catholic pope (1878-1903)
1817 Zikmund Michal Kolesovsky composer
1821 Abram Sanders Piatt Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1908
1837 General Henry Martyn Robert parliamentarian (Robert's Rules of Order)
1840 Theodor Herzl founded Zionist movement
1843 Carl Michael Ziehrer composer
1844 Elijah McCoy black inventor, held over 50 patents including a lubricator for steam engines ("the Real McCoy")
1846 Zygmunt Noskowski composer
1849 Fürst Bernhard HM von Bülow German chancellor/Prussian PM (1900-09)
1853 Marie Verstraete actress (Louise-Frou Frou)
1855 Theodore Moses Tobani composer
1857 Frederic Cliffe composer
1859 Eugene D'Harcourt composer
1860 Sir D'Arcy Thompson zoologist/classicist (On Growth & Form)
1860 Theodor Herzl Austria, journalist/founder (Zionist movement)
1862 Marie F M Emmanuel French composer/musicologist (Salamine)
1869 Tyrone Power Sr London England, actor (Alexanders Ragtime Band)
1872 G G van der Hoeven Dutch editor-in-chief (NRC)
1884 François de Vries Dutch economist
1886 Gottfried Benn writer
1887 Edward Collins New York, Hall of Fame infielder (White Sox, A's)
1890 E[dward] E[lmer] "Doc" Smith US, sci-fi author (Triplanetary)
1892 Manfred Freiherr von Richthofen [the Red Baron], German WWI ace
1893 Beppie Nooij Jr Dutch actress (Rooie Sien) [or May 13, 1912]
1895 Alfred Kurella writer
1895 Peggy Bacon Ridgefield CT, author/illustrator (Off With Their Heads)
1898 Jef [Josephus C F] Last Dutch poet/politician (The Spark)
19-- Matt Thorr rocker (Jailhouse-Alive in a Mad World)
1900 Helen Morgan singer/actress (Applause, Frankie & Johnny)
1901 Lev N Lunts Russia, writer (Outside the Law, City of Truth)
1901 Robert Elliott Storey Wyatt cricketer (England batsman 1927-37)
1901 Willi Bredel writer
1902 Brian Aherne Worcestershire England, actor (Juarez)
1902 Erin O'Brien-Moore Los Angeles CA, actress (Peyton Place, Our Little Girl)
1903 Benjamin Spock New Haven CT, pediatrician/author (Common Sense Book of Baby Care)
1903 Oivin Fjeldstad composer
1904 Georgi Dimitrov composer
1905 Alan Rawsthorne Haslingden England, composer (Cortéges)
1906 Aileen Riggin Newport RI, springboard diver (Olympics-gold-1920, 24)
1906 Maurice Thiriet composer
1907 Pinky Lee children's show host (Pinky Lee Show)
1908 William Bakewell Los Angeles CA, actor (Stage manager-Pinky Lee Show)
1910 Laurie Nash cricketer (Tasmanian fast-bowler, 2 Tests for Australia)
1911 Lillian Rambach teacher violinist
1912 Axel Springer German newspaper magnate
1912 Marten Toonder writer/cartoonist (Mr Bommel)
1913 Nigel Patrick London England, actor/director (Sapphire, Prize of Gold)
1914 Dennis Dyer cricketer (opened batting for South Africa vs England 1947)
1915 Jan Hanus composer
1915 Van Alexander New York NY, orchestra leader (Gordon MacRae Show)
1918 Frederick Archibauld Warner diplomat
1919 Than Wyenn New York NY, actor (Pete Kelly's Blues)
1920 Jacob Gilboa composer
1921 Satyajit Ray Calcutta India, director (Goddess, Adversary)
1922 Abraham Rosenthal editor (New York Times)
1923 Christina Spierenburg Dutch singer
1924 Aafje Heynis Dutch singer
1924 Theodore Bikel Austrian/US folk singer/actor (The Russians Are Coming)
1925 David Ironside cricketer (South Africa swing bowler in 3 Tests vs New Zealand 1953-54)
1925 John Neville actor (Adventures of Baron Münchausen)
1925 Roscoe Lee Browne Woodbury NJ, actor (McCoy, Saunders-Soap)
1925 Svatopluk Havelka composer
1929 Edward Levy Irving composer
1929 Luc Ferrari composer
1929 Sydney Gedye cricketer (opening batsman in four Tests for New Zealand 1964)
1930 Morris Courtright manned spaceflight pioneer and Arizona State legislator
1932 Bruce Glover Chicago IL, actor (Diamonds are Forever)
1932 Kees de Galan Dutch economist
1932 Malcolm Leyland Lipkin composer
1933 Bunk Gardner rocker (Mothers Of Invention)
1935 Faisal II King of Iraq (1939-58)/son of Ghasi I
1935 Hussain ibn Talal King of Jordan (1952-99)
1935 Link Wray rocker (Link Wray & His Ray Men)
1936 Michael Rabin New York NY, violinist (In Memorium)
1936 Quinn Redeker Woodstock IL, actor (Dan Raven, Young & Restless)
1937 Gisela Elsner writer
1937 Lorenzo Music Brooklyn NY, writer/actor/voice (Carlton the doorman-Rhoda, Garfield)
1938 Constantine Bereng Seeiso king Moshushoe II of Lesotho
1940 Bryan Davis cricketer (brother of Charlie; West Indies batsman vs Australia 1965)
1940 Roger Robinson Seattle WA, actor (Warren-Friends, Newman's Law)
1940 Sari van Heemskerck Pillis-Duvekot Dutch MP (VVD)
1941 Jules Wijdenbosch premier Suriname
1944 F Innerhofer writer
1944 John Verity rocker (Argent)
1945 Bianca Pérez Morena de Macias Jagger Nicaragua, model/Mick's ex-wife
1945 Bob Henrit English pop drummer (Kinks-Waterloo Sunset)
1945 Goldy McJohn rocker (Steppenwolf)
1945 Randy Cain US soul singer (4 Gents/Delfonics)
1945 Robert Henrit England, rocker (Argent)
1946 Lesley Gore Tenafly NJ, singer (It's My Party)
1947 Bill Lowery (Representative-R-CA, 1981- )
1947 Jo Ann Pflug Atlanta GA, actress (MASH, Candid Camera, Rituals)
1948 Larry Gatlin Seminole TX, country singer (Gatlin Brothers-Broken Lady)
1949 Joey Phillips percussionist (Atlantic Star-Touch a 4 Leaf Clover)
1950 Lou Gramm Rochester NY, rocker (Foreigner-I Want to Know What Love Is)
1952 Christine Baranski Buffalo NY, actress (Maryann-Cybill, Birdcage)
1953 "Keith" Jamaal Wilkes NBA forward (Golden State-Rookie of Year 1975)
1954 Bulelani T Ngcuka South African attorney/leader (UDF)
1955 Ian Callen cricketer (one Test Australia vs India 1978, six wickets)
1955 Jay Osmond rocker (Osmond Brothers)
1955 Joe Callis rocker
1957 Domonic L Pudwill Gorie Lake Charles LA, USN/astronaut (STS-91)
1958 Kim Jones Sonoma CA, 5k runner
1959 Brian Tochi Los Angeles CA, actor (Dr Alan Poe-St Elsewhere, Renegades)
1960 Ravi Ratnayeke cricketer (Sri Lankan pace bowler & opening batsman)
1961 Doctor Robert [Bruce R Howard] rocker (Blow Monkeys-Wicked Ways)
1961 Peter Doohan Australia, tennis star
1962 Elizabeth Berridge Westchester NY, actress (Amadeus, Funhouse)
1962 Nancy Harvey Swift Current Sask, LPGA golfer (1995 Youngstown-11th)
1963 Jos van Eck Dutch soccer player (Sparta)
1963 Kenton Leonard CFL cornerback (Calgary Stampeders)
1964 Kelly Michael Gibson New Orleans LA, PGA golfer (1995 Bob Hope-7th)
1967 Kerryn McCann Australian marathoner (Olympics-96)
1968 Reggie Slack CFL quarterback (Saskatchewan Roughriders)
1968 Will Furrer WLAF quarterback (Amsterdam Admirals)
1969 Brian Lara cricketer (West Indies left-hand bat Smashed world records in 1994)
1969 Glen Young NFL linebacker (San Diego Chargers)
1970 Vania Thomas Miss US Virgin Islands Universe (1997)
1971 Greg Bishop NFL guard (New York Giants)
1972 Erik Maes Dutch soccer player (MVV)
1972 Jennifer Miriam Oklahoma City OK, playmate (March, 1997)
1972 Jill Savery Fort Lauderdale FL, synchronized swimmer (Olympics-gold-96)
1972 Peter Ogilvie Vancouver British Columbia, 100 meter sprinter (Olympics-96)
1973 Rich Yurkiewicz NFL/WLAF linebacker (Atlanta Falcons, Amst Admirals)
1974 Miles Joseph West Springfield MA, soccer forward (Olympics-gold-96)
1975 Mark Johnson Dayton OH, baseball pitcher (Olympics-bronze-96)
1975 Murray William Burdan Wellington New Zealand, swimmer (Olympics-96)
1976 Ailleen Damiles Miss Universe-Philippines/Miss Photogenic (1996)
1976 Nancy Feber Antwerp Belgium, tennis star
1977 Amy D'Entremont Stoneham MA, figure skater (1995 New England Jr champion)
1977 Jenna Von Oy actress (Six LeMeure-Blossom)

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Deaths which occurred on May 02:
0649 Maruta of Tagrit theology/1st mafriaan Jakobitische church, dies
1250 Toeransa sultan of Egypt, murdered
1459 Pierozzi Antoninus Italian archbishop of Florence/saint, dies
1488 Jacob van Horne Burgundy statesman, dies
1519 Leonardo Da Vinci artist/scientist, dies at 67
1567 Marin Drzic Croatian playwright (Dundo Maroje), dies
1669 Pieter Jansz Post master builder (Waag, Gouda), dies at 61
1685 Adriaen van Ostade Dutch painter, buried
1727 Paul Aler French jesuit/poet (Gradus ad Parnassum), dies at 70
1736 Albert Seba Amsterdam pharmacist, dies at 71
1799 Henri-Joseph Rigel composer, dies at 58
1818 Herman W Daendels Governor-General of Guinea (1815-18), dies at 55
1845 August Pauly German writer (Real Encyclopedia), dies at 48
1849 David H Chassé Baron/General (fought Napoleon at Waterloo), dies at 84
1857 LC Alfred the Musset French poet (Lesson caprices Marianne), dies
1864 Giacomo Meyerbeer composer, dies at 72
1892 Wilhelm Rust composer, dies at 69
1897 William Cleaver Francis Robinson composer, dies at 63
1919 Gustav Landauer German socialist, dies
1937 Arthur Somervell composer, dies at 73
1945 Martin Bormann propoganda minister for Hitler, dies
1954 Pauline de Cock-Manifarges singer, dies at 82
1955 Tadeusz Jarecki composer, dies at 66
1957 Joseph McCarthy commie hunting senator (R-WI), dies at 47
1957 Tadeusz Zygfryd Kassern composer, dies at 53
1958 Alfred Weber German economist/sociologist, dies at 89
1959 Yrlö Henrik Kilpinen Finnish composer, dies at 67
1960 Caryl Chessman rapist executed after 12 years of appeals at 39
1961 J C White cricketer (49 wickets in 15 Tests for England 1921-31), dies
1963 Jack Crawford cricketer (469 runs & 39 wickets in 12 Tests), dies
1963 Tomas Vackar composer, dies at 17
1963 Van Wyck Brooks US historian (Ordeal of Mark Twain), dies at 77
1964 Nancy N Witcher Astor US/Eng feminist/ex of Waldorf Astor, dies
1968 Donald L Hall airplane designer (Spirit of St Louis), dies at 69
1969 Franz von Papen German chancellor (1932), dies at 89
1972 Hugo Hartung writer, dies at 69
1972 J Edgar Hoover head of FBI (1924-72)/cross dresser, dies at 77
1973 Alan Carney actor (Herbie-Take it from Me), dies at 61
1980 Clarrie Grimmett cricket (36 Tests for Australia, 216 wickets), dies
1982 Helmut Dantine
1982 Hugh Marlowe actor (Ellery Queen, Jim Matthews-Another World), dies at 71
1983 Marius F Duintjer architect, dies
1984 Jack Barry game show emcee (Joker's Wild), dies at 66
1984 Piet van Aken Flemish writer (Failing God, Niggers), dies at 64
1985 Hal LeRoy dancer/actor (Harold Teen), dies at 71 after cardiac surgery
1985 Milton S Eisenhower US diplomat, dies at 85
1990 David Rappaport 3'11' actor (Wizard, LA Law), shoots himself at 38
1990 Oleg Anatolyevich Yakovlev Russian cosmonaut, dies at 49
1990 William Levi Dawson composer, dies at 90
1991 Hal Bell dies at 65
1991 Leib Lensky dies at 82
1992 Joey Cuevas dancer, dies at 34
1992 Lee Salk baby doctor/author, dies of cardiac arrest at 65
1992 Margareth Wallmann Austrian opera director, dies at 88
1992 Philip Dunne screenwriter, dies of cancer at 84
1992 Wilbur Mills (Representative-D-AR)/involved with Fanne Foxe, dies at 82
1993 Julio Gallo wine maker (Gallo), dies in a car accident at 82
1993 Will Weng Sunday Times crossword puzzle editor (1968-78), dies at 86
1994 Louis Calaferte writer (Requiem of the Innocents), dies at 65
1994 Wilson Charles Geoffery Baldwin hero, dies at 75
1996 Arthur Leslie Noel Douglas Houghton civil servant, dies at 97
1996 Emile Habibi writer, dies at 73
1996 Peter John Swales football club chairman, dies at 63
1995 Michael Hordern actor (Fool, Green Man, Scoop), dies at 83

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Reported: MISSING in ACTION

1966 WOOD WALTER S. FORT BRAGG NC.

1968 ENGLANDER LAWRENCE J. VAN NUYS CA.

1969 MASCARI PHILLIP L. CALDWELL NJ.

1970 CROWSON FREDERICK H. PENSACOLA FL.
02/12/73 RELEASED BY PRG INJURED ALIVE IN 98

1970 GRIFFIN RODNEY L. CENTRALIA MO.
"HELO FOUND, NO TRACE OF SUBJ"

1970 MASLOWSKI DANIEL L. CHICAGO IL.
02/12/73 RELEASED BY PRG ALIVE IN 98

1970 PRICE BUNYAN D. JR. BELMONT NC.
"HELO FOUND, NO TRACE OF SUBJ"

1970 RICHARDSON DALE W. CASHTON WI.
"HELO FOUND, NO TRACE OF SUBJ"

1970 VARNADO MICHAEL B. FERRIDAY LA.
"09/70 DIED IN CAMBODIA, ON PRG LIST" REMAINS RETURNED 07/25/89

1970 YOUNG ROBERT M. NEW ALEXANDRIA PA.
09/72 ON PRG DIC LIST (EGRESS MURDRD BY LACK OF RR 12/07/97 MED TREAT/COLD/CONVUL/DEATH/BURIED

1972 BERKSON JOSEPH MIKE CHICAGO IL.
07/72 REMAINS RECOVERED

1972 JESSE WILLIAM CLIFTON LAWTON OK.
07/72 REMAINS RECOVERED

1972 MORGAN CHARLES VERNON WARSAW KY.
07/72 REMAINS RECOVERED

1972 PETRILLA JOHN JOSEPH JR. PHILADELPHIA PA.
07/72 REMAINS RECOVERED

1972 PORTERFIELD DALE KYETTE LOS ANGELES CA.
07/72 REMAINS RECOVERED





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

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On this day...
1345 "Quaden Maendach" in Gent: Battles between volders & weavers
1497 John Cabot departs to North-America
1526 German evangelical monarchy joins Schmalkaldische League
1536 King Henry VIII accused Anna Boleyn of adultery & incest
1595 King Philip II names Albrecht of Austria land guardian of Netherlands
1598 France & Spain signs Peace of Vervins
1652 Frederik Hendriks daughter Albertine Agnes marries Willem Frederik
1668 1st peace of Aken: ends French-Spanish war in The Netherlands
1668 Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, ends War of Devolution
1670 King Charles II charters Hudson Bay Company
1703 Portugal signs treaty with England to become a Great Covenant
1749 Empress Maria Theresa signs "Haugwitzschen State reform"
1750 Carlo Goldoni's "La Botega di Caffè" premieres in Mantua
1776 France & Spain agree to donate arms to American rebels
1780 William Herschel discovers 1st binary star, Xi Ursae Majoris
1808 Uprising against French occupation begins in Madrid
1824 Goethe visits Ettersberg (Buchenwald)
1833 Czar Nicolas bans public sale of serfs
1845 Domingo Sarmiento publishes "Civilización y Barbarie"
1847 Sabbath famine
1853 Franconi's Hippodrome opens (New York NY)
1863 Stonewall Jackson attacks Chancellorsville VA, wounded by his own men; South defeats North
1865 President Johnson offers $100,000 reward for capture of Jefferson Davis
1876 Ross Barnes hit 1st homerun in the National League
1878 US stops minting 20¢ coin
1885 "Good Housekeeping" magazine is 1st published
1885 Congo Free State established by King Leopold II of Belgium
1887 G Rossini's corpse transfered to Santa Croce, Florence
1887 Hannibal W Goodwin patents celluloid photographic film
1889 Abyssinian emperor Menelik II/Italy signs Treaty of Wichale
1890 Territory of Oklahoma created
1900 George Bernard Shaws "You Never Can Tell" premieres in London
1902 The 1st science fiction film, "A Trip To The Moon", is released
1903 29th Kentucky Derby: Hal Booker aboard Judge Himes wins in 2:09
1904 30th Kentucky Derby: Shorty Prior aboard Elwood wins in 2:08½
1905 French newspapers publish lists of Jules Vernes unpublished work
1906 32nd Kentucky Derby: Roscoe Troxler aboard Sir Huon wins in 2:08.8
1907 Belgium Jules baron de Trooz forms Belgian Government
1909 Honus Wagner steals his way around bases in 1st inning against Cubs
1911 French troops occupy Fès El Bali Morocco
1915 Old Fordham Road in the Bronx renamed Landing Road
1916 2nd Ave & Bronx Terrace renamed Bronx Blvd; Seward Place renamed Sycamore Ave; Herald Ave renamed Dickinson Ave; Monroe & Selwyn Avenue named
1916 US President Wilson signs Harrison Drug Act
1917 Cincinnati's Fred Tooney & Chicago's Hippo Vaughn pitch duel no-hitter, Vaughn gives up 2 hits & a run in the 10th, so Cincinnati wins 1-0
1919 1st US air passenger service starts
1920 1st game of National Negro Baseball League played in Indianapolis
1921 Begin 3rd anti-German revolt in Upper-Silesia
1922 WBAP-AM begins broadcasting from Fort Worth TX
1923 Senator Walter Johnson pitches his 100th shutout, beats Yankees 3-0
1924 Netherlands refuses to recognize USSR
1925 Kezar Stadium in San Fransisco's Golden Gate Park opens
1926 US military intervenes in Nicaragua
1927 International Economic Conference (52 countries including USSR) opens
1927 Pulitzer prize awarded to Louis Bromfield (Early Autumn)
1928 KPQ-AM in Wenatchee WA begins radio transmissions
1930 Des Moines (Western League) defeats Wichita 13-6 to open 1st ballpark with permanently installed lights
1932 Jack Benny's 1st radio show premieres (NBC Blue Network)
1932 Pulitzer prize awarded to Pearl S Buck (The Good Earth)
1933 In Germany, Adolf Hitler bans trade unions
1934 Nazi-Germany begins People's court
1936 "Peter & the Wolf" premieres in Moscow
1936 62nd Kentucky Derby: Ira Hanford aboard Bold Venture wins in 2:03.6
1936 Emperor Haile Selassie & family flee Abyssinia
1938 Ella Fitzgerald records "A-Tisket, A-Tasket"
1938 Pulitzer prize awarded to Thornton Wilder (Our Town)
1939 Lou Gehrig ends 2,130 consecutive game streak, Yankees beat Tigers 22-2
1941 FCC approves regular scheduled commercial TV broadcasts to begin July 1
1941 Martin Bormann succeeds Rudolf Hess as Hitler's deputy
1941 Nazi occupied Netherlands layoff Jewish journalists
1941 Ted Williams lowest average (.308) in the year he hit over .400
1942 68th Kentucky Derby: Wayne D Wright aboard Shut Out wins in 2:04.4
1942 Japanese troops occupy Mandalay Burma
1943 German troops vacate Jefna Tunisia
1944 WABD (WNEW, now WNYW) TV channel 5 in New York NY (DUM/MET/FOX) 1st broadcast
1945 Allies occupy Wismar
1945 Dutch Queen Wilhelmina & Princess Juliana reach Gilze-Rijen
1945 German Army in Italy surrenders
1945 Russia takes Berlin; General Weidling surrenders
1945 Yugoslav troops occupy Trieste
1946 Prisoners revolt at Alcatraz, 5 die
1947 Eugene O'Neill's "Moon for the Misbegotten" premieres in NYC
1949 Arthur Miller wins Pulitzer Prize for "Death of a Salesman"
1949 Bolivian state of siege proclaimed
1949 Don Newcombe, 1st start, shuts out Cincinnati on 5 hits to win 3-0
1950 Carlo Terrons "Giuditta" premieres in Milan
1950 Dutch 1st Chamber accept Laws on immigration
1950 Dutch PM Malan recognizes South-Africa but not China People's Republic
1952 1st performance of John Cage's "Water Music"
1952 1st scheduled jet airliner passenger service begins with a BOAC Comet
1952 Operations begin at United Suriname Workers of Netherlands which flew from London to Johannesburg carrying 36 passengers
1953 79th Kentucky Derby: Hank Moreno aboard Dark Star wins in 2:02
1953 Feisal II installed as king of Iraq
1953 Hussein I installed as king of Jordan
1954 Stan Musial hits 5 homeruns in a doubleheader
1955 India poses discrimination "onaanraakbaren" punishable
1955 Pulitzer prize awarded Tennessee Williams for (Cat on Hot Tin Roof)
1955 WGBH TV channel 2 in Boston MA (PBS) begins broadcasting
1956 US Lab detects high-temperature microwave radiation from Venus
1956 US Methodist church disallows race separation
1958 Yankees threaten to broadcast games nationwide if National League goes ahead with plans to broadcast, games into NYC
1959 85th Kentucky Derby: Bill Shoemaker aboard Tomy Lee wins in 2:02.2
1960 Harry Belafonte's 2nd Carnegie Hall performance
1960 House investigating committee, looking into payola questions
1960 Pulitzer prize awarded to Allen Drury (Advise & Consent)
1962 Benfica wins 7th Europe Cup I
1962 OAS strikes in Algeria
1962 US performs atmospheric nuclear test at Christmas Island
1962 WMHT TV channel 17 in Schenectady-Albany NY (PBS) 1st broadcast
1964 90th Kentucky Derby: Bill Hartack aboard Northern Dancer wins in 2:00
1964 Beatles' "Second Album" goes #1 & stays #1 for for 5 weeks
1964 Mad Dog Vachon beats Verne Gagne in Omaha, to become NWA champion
1965 "New Faces of 1965" opens at Booth Theater NYC for 52 performances
1965 Early Bird satellite goes into commercial service
1965 Kathy Whitworth wins LPGA Shreveport Kiwanis Golf Invitational
1965 Marilynn Smith wins LPGA Peach Blossom Golf Open
1966 Pulitzer prize awarded Arthur M Schlesinger Jr (Thousand Days)
1967 Stanley Cup: Toronto Maple Leafs beat Montréal Canadiens, 4 games to 2
1968 1st performance of Roger Sessions' 8th Symphony
1968 22nd NBA Championship: Boston Celtics beat Los Angeles Lakers, 4 games to 2
1968 Gold reaches then record high ($39.35 per ounce) in London
1968 Israeli television begins transmitting
1969 British liner Queen Elizabeth II leaves on maiden voyage to New York
1970 1st woman jockey at Kentucky Derby (Diane Crump)
1970 96th Kentucky Derby: Mike Manganello on Dust Commander wins 2:03.4
1970 KOAI (now KNAZ) TV channel 2 in Flagstaff AZ (NBC) 1st broadcast
1971 Sandra Haynie wins LPGA Dallas Civitan Golf Open
1972 Electrical fire in Sunshine Silver mine - 126 die (Kellogg Idaho)
1972 Lieutenant General Vernon A Walters, USA, becomes deputy director of CIA
1972 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1974 Former Vice President Spiro Agnew is disbarred
1975 Apple records closes down
1976 Joanne Carner wins LPGA Lady Tara Golf Classic
1977 "The King & I" opens at Uris Theater NYC for 719 performances
1978 NBA championship: Portland Trailblazers win in 4 games
1979 "Quadrophenia" premieres in London
1979 14th Academy of Country Music Awards: Kenny Rogers & Barbara Mandrell win
1980 Joseph Doherty & 3 other IRA men arrested for murder
1980 Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in Wall (Part II)" is banned in South Africa
1980 Pope John Paul II begins African tour
1980 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1981 107th Kentucky Derby: Jorge Velasquez on Pleasant Colony wins in 2:02
1981 Radio Shack re-releases Model III TRSDOS 1.3 with 2 fixes
1982 Beth Daniel wins LPGA Birmingham Golf Classic
1982 Falklands War: Argentine cruiser General Belgrano sunk by British submarine Conqueror, killing more than 350 men
1983 6.7 earthquake injures 487 in Coalinga CA
1984 "Sunday in the Park with George" opens at Booth NYC for 604 performances
1984 Indians' Andre Thornton ties record for most walks (6 in 16 innings)
1984 Mattingly's single breaks up Lamarr Hoyt's perfect game bid
1984 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1985 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1986 Dynamo Kiev wins 26th Europe Cup II
1986 Transportation Expo 86 opens in Vancouver British Columbia
1987 113th Kentucky Derby: Chris McCarron aboard Alysheba wins in 2:03.4
1988 Baltimore Orioles sign a 15 year lease to remain in Baltimore & get a new park
1988 David Mamet's "Speed-the-Plow" premieres in NYC
1988 Jackson Pollock's "Search" sold for $4,800,000
1988 Reds manager Pete Rose is suspended for 30 days for pushing an umpire
1990 "Some Americans Abroad" opens at Vivian Beaumont NYC for 62 performances
1990 South Africa & African National Congress open talks to end apartheid
1991 Pope John Paul II's encyclical on Centesimus annus
1992 "High Rollers Social & Pleasure Club" opens at Helen Hayes Theatre NYC fpr 14 performances
1992 118th Kentucky Derby: Pat Day aboard Lil E Tee wins in 2:03
1992 Yugoslav Army seize Bosnian President Alija Izetbegovic
1993 "5 Guys Named Moe" closes at Eugene O'Neill NYC after 445 performances
1993 "Candida" closes at Criterion Theater NYC after 45 performances
1993 "Redwood Curtain" closes at Brooks Atkinson Theater NYC after 40 performances
1993 "Tango Passion" closes at Longacre Theater NYC after 5 performances
1993 Kristi Albers wins Sprint Golf Classic
1993 Sandra Palmer wins LPGA Sprint Senior Challenge Golf Tournament
1994 Bus crashes into a tree at Gdansk Poland, 30 killed
1994 Dr Kevokian found innocent on assisting suicides
1994 Michael Bolton found to have plagiarized Isley Brothers "Love is Wonderful Thing"
1995 "Hamlet" opens at Belasco Theater NYC for 121 performances
1995 Expos bat out of order against Mets in 6th inning
1995 Serb missiles exploded in the heart of Zagreb, killing six
1997 Donald Trump & Marla Maples announce they are separating
1997 Mercury Mail announces its 1 millionth internet subscriber
1997 Police arrest transsexual hooker Atisone Seiuli with Eddie Murphy
1997 Republic of Texas security chief Robert Scheidt surrenders
1998 124th Kentucky Derby: Kent Desormeaux aboard Real Quiet wins in 2:02.4

---

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

Antigua, Montserrat, St Christopher, USSR : Labor Day
Bhutan : 3rd King's Birthday
Burma : Peasants' Day
Lesotho : King's Birthday
Zambia : Labour Day - - - - - ( Monday )
New Orleans : McDonogh Day (1850) - - - - - ( Friday )

---

Religious Observances
Christian : May Fellowship Day (Church Woman United)
Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Anglican : Memorial of St Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria/doctor
Bahá'í : 12th day of Ridván (festival); Jamál 5, 20

---

Religious History
1507 Two years after entering the Augustinian monastery at Erfurt, future German reformer Martin Luther, 23, was consecrated a priest. (Luther remained in the order until 1521, when he was excommunicated from the Catholic Church.)
1872 A lectureship was established at Yale Divinity School in memory of American clergyman Lyman Beecher (1775-1863). The lectures were to cover topics on preaching and the work of the Christian ministry.
1922 Birth of missions pioneer Bob Finley. In 1953 he chartered the Christian Aid Mission in Washington, D.C. Today, this evangelical group works in over 40 countries, and is headquartered in Charlottesville, Virginia.
1949 American missionary and martyr Jim Elliot wrote in his journal: 'The man who will not act until he knows all will never act at all.'
1956 The General Conference of the Methodist Church, held in Minneapolis, demanded abolishment of racial segregation in all Methodist churches.

---

Thought for the day :
"Never judge a book by its movie."

[aomagrat]

Today's classic warship, USS Philadelphia (CL-41)

Brooklyn class light cruiser
Displacement: 9,700 t.
Length: 608’4”
Beam: 61’9”
Draft: 19’5”
Speed: 32.5 k.
Complement: 868
Armament: 15 6”; 8 5”; 20 40mm; 10 20mm

The USS PHILADELPHIA, a light cruiser, was laid down 28 May 1935 at the Philadelphia Navy Yard; launched 17 November 1936; sponsored by Mrs. George H. Earle, first lady of Pennsylvania; and commissioned at Philadelphia 23 September 1937, Captain Jules James in command.

After fitting out, the cruiser departed Philadelphia 3 January 1938 for shakedown in the West Indies followed by additional alterations at Philadelphia and further sea trials off the Maine coast.

PHILADELPHIA called at Charleston, S.C. 30 April 1938 and hosted President Roosevelt the first week of May for a cruise in Caribbean waters. The President debarked at Charleston 8 May and PHILADELPHIA resumed operations with Cruiser Division 8 off the Atlantic coast. She was designated flagship of Rear Admiral F.A. Todd, Commander, Cruiser Division 8, Battle Force, 27 June. In the following months, she called at principal ports of the West Indies, and at New York, Boston, and Norfolk.

Transiting the Panama Canal 1 June 1939, PHILADELPHIA joined Cruiser Division 8 in San Pedro, Calif. 18 June for Pacific coastal operations. She departed Los Angeles 2 April 1940 for Pearl Harbor, where she engaged in fleet maneuvers until May 1941.

Cruiser PHILADELPHIA stood out of Pearl Harbor 22 May 1941 to resume Atlantic operations, arriving Boston 18 June. At this point she commenced neutrality patrol operations, steaming as far south as Bermuda and as far north as Halifax, Nova Scotia. She entered Boston Navy Yard 25 November for upkeep and was in repair status there when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.

Eleven days after the Japanese attack, PHILADELPHIA steamed for exercises in Casco Bay, after which she joined two destroyers for antisubmarine patrol to Argentia, Newfoundland. Returning to New York 14 February 1942, she made two escort runs to Hafnarfjordur, Iceland. She then joined units of Task Force 22 at Norfolk 16 May, departing two days later for an ASW sweep to the Panama Canal.

She then returned to New York, only to depart 1 July as an escort unit for a convoy bond for Greenock, Scotland. The middle of August found her escorting a second convoy to Greenock. Returning to Norfolk, Va., 15 September, she joined Rear Admiral H. Kent Hewitt's Western Naval Task Force.

This force was to land some 35,000 troops and 250 tanks of General Patton's Western Task Force at three different points on the Atlantic coast of French Morocco. PHILADELPHIA became flagship of Rear Admiral Lyal A. Davidson, commanding the Southern Attack Group which was to carry 6,423 troops under Major General E. N. Harmon, USA, with 108 tanks, to the landing at Safi, about 140 miles south of Casablanca.

PHILADELPHIA's task group departed Norfolk 24 October and set course as if bound for the British Isles. The entire Western Naval Task Force, consisting of 102 ships and spanning an ocean area some 20 by 40 miles, combined 450 miles off Cape Race, Newfoundland 28 October. It was to that time, the greatest war fleet sent forth by the United States.

The task force swept northward 6 November, thence changed course toward the Straits of Gibraltar. But after dark, a southeasterly course was plotted towards Casablanca, and shortly before midnight of 7 November, three separate task groups closed three different points on the Moroccan coast.

PHILADELPHIA took up its fire support station as the transports offloaded troops in the early morning darkness of 8 November. Shore batteries opened fire at 0428, and within two minutes PHILADELPHIA joined NEW YORK (BB-34) in bombardment of Batterie Railleuse which, with four 130mm guns, was the strongest defense unit in the Safi area. Later in the morning, PHILADELPHIA bombarded a battery of three french 155mm guns about three miles south of Safi.

Spotter planes from the cruiser also got into the act by flying close support missions. One of PHILADELPHIA's aircraft discovered and bombed a Vichy French submarine, 9 November in the vicinity of Cape Kantin. The next day, the Vichy submarine MEDEUSE, one of eight that had sortied from Casablanca, was sighted down by the stern and listing badly to port beached at Mazagan, north of Cape Blanco. Thought to be the same submarine previously attacked off Cape Kantin, MEDEUSE was again spotted by a plane from PHILADELPHIA and was subsequently bombed.

Departing Safi 13 November, PHILADELPHIA returned to New York 24 November. Operating from that port until 11 March 1943, she assisted in escorting two convoys to Casablanca. She then joined Rear Admiral Alan G. Kirk's Task Force 85 for training in Chesapeake Bay preparatory to the invasion of Sicily.

A convoy escorted by PHILADELPHIA and nine destroyers sortied from Norfolk, Va. 8 June 1943 and arrived Oran, Algeria, 22 June, where final invasion staging operations took place. The convoy stood out from Oran 5 July and arrived off the beaches of Scoglitti, Sicily, shortly before midnight of 9 July. PHILADELPHIA assisted in furnishing covering bombardment as the troops of Major General Troy Middleton's 45th Infantry Division stormed ashore. By 15 July, she had joined the gunfire support group off Porto Empedocle, where her guns were put to good use.

PHILADELPHIA took departure from her gunfire support area 19 July and steamed to Algiers, where she became flagship of Rear Admiral Davidson's Support Force. This Task Force 88 was formed 27 July and given the mission of the defense of Palermo, gunfire support to the 7th Army's advance along the coast, provision of amphibious craft for "leap frog" landings behind enemy lines, and ferry duty for heavy artillery, supplies, and vehicles to relieve congestion on the railway and the single coastal road. Cruisers PHILADELPHIA and SAVANNAH (CL-42) and six destroyers entered the harbor at Palermo 30 July and the next day commenced bombardment of the batteries near San Stefano di Camatra.

Action in the area of Palermo continued until 21 August, when PHILADELPHIA steamed for Algiers. During her operations in support of the invasion of Sicily, the cruiser had provided extensive gunfire support and, in beating off several hostile air attacks, had splashed a total of six aircraft. She touched at Oran, departing 5 September enroute Salerno.

Her convoy entered the Gulf of Salerno a few hours before midnight of 8 September 1943. PHILADELPHIA's real work began off the Salerno beaches at 0943 the next day, when she commenced shore bombardment. When one of her scouting planes spotted 35 German tanks concealed in a thicket adjacent to Red Beach, PHILADELPHIA's guns took them under fire and destroyed seven of them before they escaped to the rear.

PHILADELPHIA narrowly evaded a glide bomb 11 September, although several of her crew were injured when the bomb exploded. While bombarding targets off Aropoli 15 September, the cruiser downed one of twelve attacking planes and assisted in driving off a second air attack the same day in the vicinity of Altavilla. She downed two more hostile aircraft 17 September and cleared the gunfire support area that night, bound for Bizerte, Tunisia. After upkeep at Gibraltar, PHILADELPHIA departed Oran, Algeria, 6 November as part of the escort for a convoy which arrived at Hampton Roads 21 November.

PHILADELPHIA underwent overhaul at New York and then engaged in refresher training in Chesapeake waters until 19 January 1944, when she steamed from Norfolk as an escorting unit for a convoy arriving Oran, Algeria, 30 January.

PHILADELPHIA joined the gunfire support ships off Anzio 14 February and provided support for the advancing ground troops through 23 May 1944. After overhaul at Malta, she joined Admiral C. F. Bryant's Task Group 85.12 at Taranto, Italy. The cruiser served as one of the escorting units for the group, which reached the Gulf of St. Tropez, France, 15 August. At 0640, she teamed with TEXAS (BB-35) and NEVADA (BB-36) and, with other support ships, they closed the beaches and provided counter-battery fire. By 0815, the bombardment had destroyed enemy defenses and Major General Eagles' famed "Thunderbirds" of the 45th Army Infantry Division landed without opposition.

After replenishing ammunition at Propriano, Corsica, 17 August, PHILADELPHIA provided gunfire support to the French army troops on the western outskirts of Toulon. Four days later her commanding officer, Capt. Walter A. Ansel, accepted the surrender of the fortress islands of Pomeques, Chateau D'If, and Ratonneau in the Bay of Marseilles. After gunfire support missions off Nice, she departed Naples 20 October and returned to Philadelphia, Pa., arriving 6 November.

PHILADELPHIA underwent overhaul at the Philadelphia Navy Yard and then refresher training in the West Indies, returning to Norfolk, Va. 4 June 1945. She steamed for Antwerp, Belgium, 7 July, acting as escort for AUGUSTA (CA-31), who had embarked President Harry S Truman and his party, including Secretary of State Byrnes and Fleet Admiral William D. Leahy. Arriving Antwerp 15 July, the President departed Augusta and was flown to the Potsdam Conference. Before the conference ended, PHILADELPHIA proceeded to Plymouth, England to await return of the President.

On 2 August 1945, PHILADELPHIA rendered honors to King George VI, who visited President Truman in AUGUSTA. The ships departed that same day and PHILADELPHIA arrived Norfolk, Va. 7 August.

PHILADELPHIA stood out of Narragansett Bay for South Hampton, England, 6 September, returning 25 September as escort for the former German liner EUROPA. After operations in Narragansett Bay and in Chesapeake Bay, she arrived Philadelphia 26 October 1945. Steaming for Le Havre, France, 14 November, she embarked Army passengers for the return to New York 29 November. She made another "Magic Carpet" run from New York to Le Havre and return 5-25 December, and arrived Philadelphia for inactivation 9 January 1946. She decommissioned in the Philadelphia Navy Yard 3 February 1947. Struck from the Navy List 9 January 1951, she was sold to the government of Brazil under terms of the Mutual Defense Assistance Program. She served in the Brazilian Navy under the name BARROSO (C-11). BARROSO (C-11) was decommissioned in 1973 and broken up the following year.

PHILADELPHIA received five battle stars for World War II operations.

[Soaring Feather]

Good morning SAM, everyone!

[GailA]

Morning all

[SassyMom]

Good morning SAM! Thanks for the info this morning! Have a super day! TGIF!

[snippy_about_it]

The Marquis de LaFayette.

When looking for something nice to say about the French I'm reminded there is something after all. :)

[SAMWolf]

Never judge a book by its movie.

LOL! I've found very, very few movies were ever as good as the book

[SAMWolf]

Laid down in 1935 and served until 1973. An amazing career for a Light Crusier.

[SAMWolf]

Good morning Feather.

[SAMWolf]

Morning GailA. Thanks for the "good ole" American CowGirl!

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning Sassy!! Nice to see you this morning.

[SAMWolf]

Unfortunately, he appears to be the exception to the rule.

[Valin]

I don't know if people saw this from yesterday's WSJ
(WARNING: your monitor may get fuzzy)

A Marine Comes Home
Fallen warriors remind us why whiny celebs are irrelevant.

Thursday, May 1, 2003

The battle of Iraq may be over but the warriors for peace struggle on. Theirs is not an easy road, particularly, we hear, in the entertainment industry, which is packed with notables fresh from their vocal campaign against the war, the president, Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney--objects of scorn in all the best circles, from Paris to California.

Now, it appears, some celebrities worry about damage to their careers. The Dixie Chicks have taken a hit. Sean Penn thinks his views have cost him jobs. Tina Brown, whose main concern about the war seems to be that it caused the postponement of her new TV show, announced last week that it would soon air and that she planned to decorate the set with an American flag bigger than anyone else's. She had to scrape up as many core American values as she could, declared Ms. Brown, "to have any hope of being allowed on TV at all in the current climate of punitive patriotism."

No fear. Americans aren't likely to concern themselves much with Ms. Brown's flag--in the event they actually encounter her program. Most of them have matters more pressing on their minds. For some, these days, those matters include funerals and mourning rites for people they have never met.





On April 14 in Vermont, for example, mourners gathered for the funeral of 21-year-old Marine Cpl. Mark Evnin, killed in action on the drive to Baghdad. A thousand people attended the rites at Ohavi Zedek Synagogue in Burlington, at which the Marine's grandfather, a rabbi, presided. Reporters related how the Marine Corps League color guard and local firefighters flanked the walkway into the synagogue, where mourners included the Roman Catholic bishop and the governor.
Crowds lined the streets in salute--some with flags, some with signs--everywhere the funeral procession passed. But what struck the Burlington Free Press reporters most were all the strangers who had been impelled to come to the cemetery to honor the young Marine. One of them was a mother who had brought her two young children and stood holding two American flags. "Every single man and woman out there is my son and daughter," she told the journalists. "He could have done a lot with his life. But he gave it to the nation."

Two days later came the funeral mass for 25-year-old Marine First Lt. Brian McPhillips of Pembroke, Mass., killed not far from Baghdad. Three Marines died in the firefight at Tuwayhah described by Dallas Morning News embedded reporter Jim Landers. The 2nd Tank Battalion had run into an ambush by a band of Islamic Jihad volunteers--Syrians, Egyptians, Yemenis and others. Lt. McPhillips went down firing his machine gun.

The knock that brought the news home in the early hours of April 6 had caused the walls to reverberate, his mother recalled. His father, a Marine veteran of Vietnam, knew at once what the 5:00 a.m. visit meant. They never come because somebody's been wounded: "They want you to know as soon as possible."

Neither of the McPhillips was surprised at Brian's choice of a military career. His father had served, his great-uncle had fought at Guadalcanal; and Julie and David McPhillips had been the sort of parents who wanted to imbue their children with a consciousness of history--that of their country's not least. So they took them to places like Shiloh, Antietam, Gettysburg and other national shrines.

David McPhillips nevertheless used all his powers of persuasion to keep Brian from enlisting in the Marines right out of high school. Heeding his parents, Brian went off to Providence College, a Catholic institution, where he thrived, compiled an academic record most people considered enviable, his father included, and looked to the future. Shortly after graduation in 2000, it arrived, with the commissioning ceremony that made him an officer in the Marines. He would go to war, his father reported, carrying his rosary and his Bible.

At his funeral service at the Holy Family Church in Rockland, where Brian's mother attended daily Mass, David McPhillips recalled his son's generosity and enterprise. Mrs. McPhillips would deliver a eulogy of her own, afterward carried in the local papers, on the subject of her son's life and death. She saw herself, Julie McPhillips said, as one of the fellow Americans for whom he had given his life. It had been her great privilege to be his mother: "To you my dear and faithful son, from earth to heaven I salute you . . . ."





As at Cpl. Evnin's funeral, crowds lined the streets. Brian's uncle Paul Finegan pondered the problems getting to the cemetery in Concord--a 150-car cortege traveling 50 miles on the busiest highway in New England. He had, it turned out, nothing to fear: 50 state troopers, many of them coming in from days off, had closed most of the road for them, a stretch of 35 miles.
Then came another sight he could scarcely believe. At the side of the road, near their halted cars, stood streams of people, standing at attention--paying their respects.

"They stopped all these cars, and people got out to stand holding their hands over their hearts," he marveled.

He should not have been surprised. Scenes like this are the reason all the celebrity protesters can stop worrying about public wrath and punishment. Americans have other things on their minds all right. September 11, for one. What they have on their minds, too, since the just-concluded remarkable war, is the consciousness of who they are and what this society is that it should have produced men and women of the kind who fought in that war and died in it.

People got a powerfully close look at their fellow Americans in uniform these last weeks. This is what impels them now to stand at roadsides in tribute, heedless of where else they had to go. And this is why strangers flock to funerals.

Ms. Rabinowitz is an editorial board member of The Wall Street Journal and author of "No Crueler Tyrannies: Accusation, False Witness, and Other Terrors of Our Times" (Wall Street Journal Books, 2003), which you can buy at the OpinionJournal bookstore.

[SAMWolf]

Thanks Valin. Great read.

[SAMWolf]

Current Military News
Still Work to be Done

An U.S. soldier pulls his gun as he directs a crowd back from the site of an explosion which caused several casualties in Baghdad, May 1, 2003. At least three people were killed and more than 18 were badly burned when Iraqis, celebrating the resumption of electricity, shot up a gas tanker sending waves of fire through a gas station. Photo by Petr Josek/Reuters


US soldiers walk the streets of Fallujah, a town some 50 kms (31 miles) west of Baghdad, following days of protests in which US troops killed 16 residents of the town in two anti-US demonstration.(AFP/Rabih Moghrabi)


A U.S. soldier stands guard next to a looter after arresting him in Baghdad, May 2, 2003. In the absence of a government much still needs to be done in Iraq, including restoring order and restarting critical services like water, electricity and garbage pickups. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra


Specialist Jeff Watkins (R), with the third infantry from Ft. Stewart, Georgia, turns away an Iraqi from a gas station in Baghdad on May 2, 2003. Because of a fuel shortaget he soldiers patrolling the station were turning away walk-in customers and only letting locals in cars use the pumps. REUTERS/Adrees Latif


U.S. soldiers stand guard next to looters they arrested in Baghdad, May 2, 2003. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra


U.S. soldiers carry a looter after arresting him in Baghdad, May 2, 2003