https://thisdayinusmilhist.wordpress.com/2014/11/01/november-1/1 November
1620 – 41 Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower, anchored off Massachusetts, signed a compact calling for a “body politick.” 102 Pilgrims stepped ashore. They called themselves Saints and the others Strangers. One passenger died enroute and 2 were born during the passage. Their military commander was Miles Standish.
1765 – The Stamp Act went into effect, prompting stiff resistance from American colonists. In the face of widespread opposition in the American colonies, Parliament enacts the Stamp Act, a taxation measure designed to raise revenue for British military operations in America. Defense of the American colonies in the French and Indian War (1754-63) and Pontiac’s Rebellion (1763-64) were costly affairs for Great Britain, and Prime Minister George Grenville hoped to recover some of these costs by taxing the colonists. In 1764, the Sugar Act was enacted, putting a high duty on refined sugar. Although resented, the Sugar Act tax was hidden in the cost of import duties, and most colonists accepted it. The Stamp Act, however, was a direct tax on the colonists and led to an uproar in America over an issue that was to be a major cause of the Revolution: taxation without representation. Passed without debate by Parliament in March 1765, the Stamp Act was designed to force colonists to use special stamped paper in the printing of newspapers, pamphlets, almanacs, and playing cards, and to have a stamp embossed on all commercial and legal papers. The stamp itself displayed an image of a Tudor rose framed by the word “America” and the Latin phrase Honi soit qui mal y pense–“Shame to him who thinks evil of it.” Outrage was immediate. Massachusetts politician Samuel Adams organized the secret Sons of Liberty organization to plan protests against the measure, and the Virginia legislature and other colonial assemblies passed resolutions opposing the act. In October, nine colonies sent representatives to New York to attend a Stamp Act Congress, where resolutions of “rights and grievances” were framed and sent to Parliament and King George III. Despite this opposition, the Stamp Act was enacted on November 1, 1765. The colonists greeted the arrival of the stamps with violence and economic retaliation. A general boycott of British goods began, and the Sons of Liberty staged attacks on the customhouses and homes of tax collectors in Boston. After months of protest and economic turmoil, and an appeal by Benjamin Franklin before the British House of Commons, Parliament voted to repeal the Stamp Act in March 1766. However, the same day, Parliament passed the Declaratory Acts, asserting that the British government had free and total legislative power over the colonies. Parliament would again attempt to force unpopular taxation measures on the American colonies in the late 1760s, leading to a steady deterioration in British-American relations that culminated in the outbreak of the American Revolution in 1775.
1783 – Continental Army dissolved and George Washington made his “Farewell Address.”
1784 – Maryland granted citizenship to Lafayette and his descendents.
1800 – John and Abigail Adams moved into “the President’s House” in Washington DC. It became known as the White House during the Roosevelt administration.
1835 – Godfrey Weitzel, Union General, was born in Cincinnati, Ohio; died in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19 March, 1884. He was graduated at the United States military academy in 1855, became 1st lieutenant of engineers in 1860, and was attached to the staff of General Benjamin F. Butler as chief engineer of the Department of the Gulf. After the capture of New Orleans he became assistant military commander and acting mayor of the city. He was commissioned brigadier-general of volunteers, 29 August, 1862, routed a large force of the enemy at Labadieville, Louisiana, in October of that year, and was brevetted major in the United States army for that service. He became captain of engineers, 3 March, 1863, commanded the advance in General Nathaniel P. Banks’s operations in western Louisiana in April and May, 1863, a division at the siege of Port Hudson, Louisiana, and a division in the 19th army corps in the Lafourche campaign. On 8 July, 1863, he was brevetted lieutenant-colonel, United States army, “for gallant and meritorious services at the siege of Port Hudson.” He joined in the western Louisiana campaign, and from May till September, 1864, was chief engineer of the Army of the James, being engaged at Swift’s Creek, the actions near Drury’s Bluff, and in constructing the defences of Bermuda Hundred, James River, and Deep Bottom. In August, 1864, he was brevetted major-general of volunteers “for meritorious and distinguished services during the civil war.” He commanded the 18th army corps from September till December, 1864, was brevetted colonel in the United States army “for gallant and meritorious services at the capture of Fort Harrison, 30 September, 1864,” became full major-general of volunteers on 7 November, was second in command of the first expedition to Fort Fisher, and in March and April, 1865, was in charge of all troops north of Potomac river during the final operations against General Robert E. Lee’s army, taking possession of Richmond, 3 April, 1865. In March, 1865, he was brevetted brigadier-general in the regular army for services in that campaign, and major-general in the same rank “for gallant and meritorious services in the field during the civil war.” He commanded the Rio Grande district, Texas, in 1865-‘6, and was ‘: mustered out of volunteer service on I March of the latter year. He became major of engineers in 1866, and lieutenant-colonel in 1882, and from that date was in charge of various works of improvement in and near Philadelphia, and chairman of the commission advisatory to the board of harbor commissioners of that city.
1841 – “Mosquito Fleet” commanded by LCDR J. T. McLaughlin, USN, carries 750 Sailors and Marines into the Everglades to fight the Seminole Indians.
1843 – Secretary of Treasury Spencer issued new “Rules and Regulations for the governing of the Revenue Cutter Service” centralizing control of cutters under Revenue Marine Bureau, but leaving superintendence and direction with Collectors of Customs.
1861 – Lieutenant General Winfield Scott, 50 year veteran and leader of the U.S. Army at the onset of the Civil War, retired. Gen. George B. McClellan was made General-in-Chief of the Union armies. President Lincoln names George Brinton McClellan general in chief of the Union armies, replacing the aged and infirm Winfield Scott. In just six months, McClellan had gone from commander of the Ohio volunteers to the head of the Union army. McClellan’s prewar career presaged his meteoric rise to the ranking Union general in the first year of the war. The Pennsylvania native graduated from West Point second in his class in 1846. He served with distinction under General Winfield Scott in the Mexican-American War. McClellan left his successful military career in 1857 for an engineering position with the Illinois Central Railroad, and by the time the war broke out in 1861 he was president of the St. Louis, Missouri, and Cincinnati Railroad. He resigned to accept command of the Ohio volunteers with the rank of major general. During the summer of 1861, McClellan lead Union troops in a series of small battles in western Virginia that resulted in Federal control of the strategic region, and he earned a national reputation-though it is debatable just how much McClellan contributed to the achievements; in several cases, decisions by his subordinates were the main reason for the success. Nonetheless, he provided Northern victories when they were in scarce supply. On July 16, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution recognizing his accomplishments in Virginia. Just five days later, the main Union force, commanded by General Irwin McDowell, suffered an ignominious defeat at the First Battle of Bull Run. In the aftermath of the debacle, many turned to McClellan to save the war effort. McClellan arrived in Washington on July 26 to take command of the disorganized and demoralized Army of the Potomac. He quickly began to build a magnificent fighting force, establishing a rigorous training procedure and an efficient command structure. He also demonstrated brashness, pomposity, and arrogance for many of the nation’s political leaders. He loudly complained about Scott, and he treated the president with utter contempt. Still, he was the only real choice to replace Scott. No other Union general had achieved much of anything to that point in the war. After alienating much of the administration by early 1862, McClellan moved the Army of the Potomac to the James Peninsula for an attack on Richmond. As a field commander, he proved to be sluggish and timid, and he retreated from the outskirts of the Confederate capital when faced with a series of attacks by General Robert E. Lee during the Seven Days’ battles in June. In July, Henry W. Halleck was named general in chief, and much of McClellan’s Army of the Potomac was transferred to General John Pope’s Army of Virginia. After Pope was defeated at Second Bull Run in August, much of McClellan’s command was restored to him. Lee invaded Virginia, and McClellan defeated him at the Battle of Antietam in September. Despite this victoriy, his refusal to pursue the retreating Confederates led to his permanent removal in November 1862. In 1864, he challenged Lincoln for the presidency as the Democratic nominee but lost decisively.
1866 – 1st Civil Rights Bill passed.
1869 – Louis Riel seized Fort Garry, Winnipeg, during the Red River Rebellion. Louis Riel, Metis leader, helped stage an uprising against the influx of white settlers in Manitoba that resulted in a provisional government that he led. Manitoba was admitted as Canada’s 5th province and the Metis were allocated 1.4 million acres of land, but Riel fled charged with failing to stop the execution of Thomas Scott, an English Protestant captured during the fighting.
1870 – The U.S. Weather Bureau made its first meteorological observations, using reports gathered by telegraph from 24 locations.
1871 – Steven Crane, poet and novelist, was born. He is best remembered as the author of “The Red Badge of Courage” (1895), a realistic portrayal of one soldier’s Civil War battle experience. Crane’s novels and short stories, which were influenced by the French Naturalistic writers, showed individuals at the mercy of natural and social forces. In the early 1890s Crane became a freelance writer in the Bowery area of New York City and, resulting from his firsthand observation of poverty in the slums, he wrote “Maggie: A Girl of the Streets” (1893), a book considered shocking at the time. Crane covered the Greco-Turkish War in 1897 and the Spanish-American War in 1898 as a news correspondent. His later short-story collections, such as “The Open Boat” and “Other Tales of Adventure” (1898), are recognized as masterpieces of the form. Stephen Crane died of tuberculosis in 1900 at the age of 28.
1915 – Parris Island is officially designated a United States Marine Corps Recruit Depot.
1918 – The third and final phase of the US-led Meuse-Argonne Offensive opens. The US First Army commanded by General Hunter Liggett resumes its northward advance and punches a way through the German defenses at Buzancy, thereby allowing the French Fourth Army to make a major crossing of the Aisne River. German resistance is collapsing and US forces move more rapidly along the valley of the Meuse River in the direction of Sedan.
1918 – 4th Marine Brigade participated in action at Meuse-Argonne. Americans and French advance between Aisne and Meuse in Argonne Forest.
1918 – British, French and Americans reach Gavere, on Scheldt (ten miles south of Ghent).
1924 – The 118th Observation Squadron, an element of the 43rd Division receives federal recognition on this date. Originally issued with obsolete Curtis JN-4 “Jennies” left over from World War I, the unit was later equipped with experimental Curtis OX-12’s with rotary engines and a swept-wing design. While the planes proved an unstable photo-recon platform, the technology continued to improve so by World War II many American aircraft were propelled by rotary engines. When the unit was mobilized in February 1941 for World War II it was flying North American O-47B observation aircraft. Once on active duty it flew antisubmarine patrols off the coasts of South Carolina until it deployed to India in 1943. It ended the war flying reconnaissance missions in China.
1932 – Werner von Braun was named head of German liquid-fuel rocket program.
1936 – In a speech in Milan, Italy, Benito Mussolini described the alliance between his country and Nazi Germany as an “axis” running between Rome and Berlin after Count Ciano’s visit to Germany.
1939 – 1st jet plane, a Heinkel He 178, was demonstrated to German Air Ministry.
1940 – 1st US air raid shelter was made in Fleetwood, Pa.
1941 – Japanese marine staff officers Suzuki and Maejima arrived in Pearl Harbor.
1941 – President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Executive Order 8929 transferred the Coast Guard to Navy Department control. President Roosevelt announces that the U.S. Coast Guard will now be under the direction of the U.S. Navy, a transition of authority usually reserved only for wartime. The Coast Guard was established as the Revenue Marine Service by Alexander Hamilton, secretary of the treasury, in 1790. In 1915, the U.S. Lifesaving Service, formed in 1878, and the RMS combined to become the Coast Guard. During peacetime, the Guard was under the direction of the Department of Treasury until 1967, when the Department of Transportation took control. But during war, it was under the control of the U.S. Navy. What made FDR’s November 1 announcement significant was that the United States was not yet at war-but more and more American ships were nevertheless becoming casualties of the European war. The Coast Guard’s mission is to enforce all laws applicable to the waters within U.S. territory, including laws and regulations promoting personal safety and protection of property. It provides support and aid to all vessels within U.S. territorial waters. It is charged with inspecting sailing vessels and their equipment for violations of safety regulations, as well as lighthouses, buoys, navigation equipment, and radio beacons. The Guard operates and maintains a network of lifeboat and search-and-rescue stations, which also employs aircraft. The Guard’s wartime duties include escorting ships, providing port security, and inspecting ships for everything from illegal drugs to munitions. They also have powers of interdiction-the right to stop, board, and inspect any vessel suspected of threatening U.S. security. In fact, Coast Guard ranks are analogous to those of the U.S. Navy; even the uniforms are similar. The Guard is headed by an admiral appointed by the president.
1942 – On Guadalcanal, two Marine regiments begin an attack west across the Matanikau River. American engineers have built bridges to aid supplying the attacks. There is heavy fighting. East of the American positions, American troops advance toward Koli Point to preempt an expected Japanese landing.
1943 – The US 3rd Marine Division (General Turnage) lands on Bougainville, in Empress Augusta Bay at Cape Tarokina. By the end of the day 14,000 American troops are ashore. Task Force 31 (Admiral Wilkinson) provides transport, Task Force 39 (Admiral Merrill) provides support with 4 cruisers and 8 destroyers and Task Force 38 (Admiral Sherman) with the carriers Saratoga and Princeton conduct raids against Buka and the Buna airfields. Coast Guard units also are in support. The local garrison of about 200 Japanese are overcome quickly. However, the island is defended by the Japanese 17th Army (General Hyakutake) with 40,000 troops and 20,000 naval personnel concentrated in the south. After unsuccessful air attacks on the landings the Japanese dispatch Admiral Omori from Rabaul in New Britain with 4 cruisers and 6 destroyers. Nearby a marine battalion occupies Puruata Island after defeating Japanese resistance. Meanwhile, the US 2nd Marine Parachute Battalion on Choiseul continues to engage Japanese forces. This is a diversion from the attack on Bougainville.
1943 – President Roosevelt orders the Solid Fuels Administration, headed by Ickes, to take over the operation of coal mines. There are 530,000 miners on strike at this time. Roosevelt also urges Congress to continue food subsidies to encourage production and prevent inflation.
1943 – In the Battle of Empress Augusta Bay, United States Marines, the 3rd Marine Division, land on Bougainville in the Solomon Islands.
1943 – The British 10th Corps (part of the US 5th Army) continues attacks on German defenses between Monte Massico and Monte Santa Croce in Italy.
1944 – On Leyte, Japanese forces in the line are reinforced by 2000 men for the base at Ormoc. The defending Japanese forces now consists of forces of the 36th Army (General Suzuki) including the original 16th Division and the new 30th and 102nd Divisions. The attacking US 7th Division (part of US 24th Corps) captures Baybay. Offshore, an American destroyer is sunk, and 5 others are badly damaged by Japanese Kamikaze and bombing attacks.
1944 – The first of some 9000 paper balloons, carrying bombs intended to be dropped over North American land, are released near Tokyo.
1944 – The US B-29 Superfortress “Tokyo Rose” of the 3rd Photo Reconnaissance Squadron makes the first American flight over Tokyo since 1942.
1949 – Authority to reestablish the Women’s Reserve of the Coast Guard Reserves (SPARS), approved by the President on 4 August 1949 became effective.
1950 – Griselio Torresola and Oscar Collazo attempt to assassinate President Harry S. Truman at the Blair House in Washington, D.C. Truman, who had avoided an attempt on his life from the right-wing Israeli Stern Gang a few years earlier, escaped unscathed. In the autumn of 1950, the White House was being renovated and President Truman and his family were living in the nearby Blair House on Pennsylvania Avenue. On the afternoon of November 1, Truman and his wife were upstairs when they heard a commotion on the front steps of the house. Alerted by the sound of gunshots, Bess Truman glanced out the window and exclaimed, “Harry, someone’s shooting our policemen!” Indeed, the pair of would-be assassins had strolled up to the front door of Blair House and opened fire. They never made it past the entry steps, however, due to the quick reaction of police officers and guards. Secret Service Agent Leslie Coffelt was mortally wounded in the ensuing melee, but not before he managed to kill Torresola. Collazo later revealed to police just how poorly planned the assassination attempt was: the assailants were unsure if Truman would even be in the house when they launched their attack at 2 o’clock in the afternoon. Torresola and Collazo were political activists and members of the extremist Puerto Rican Nationalist Party, a group fighting for full independence from the United States. The “Independistas,” as they were commonly called, targeted Truman despite his support of greater Puerto Rican autonomy. Apparently unfazed by the attempt on his life, Truman kept his scheduled appointments for the day. “A President has to expect these things,” he remarked dryly. Oscar Collazo was sentenced to death, but in an admirable act of forgiveness on July 24, 1952, Truman commuted the sentence to life imprisonment.
1950 – The 24th Infantry Division’s 21st Infantry Regiment achieved the northernmost progress of any U.S. ground unit in Eighth Army as it captured the village of Chonggo-do only 18 miles from Sinuiju on the Yalu River.
1950 – The 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, began movement from the port of Hamung on the east coast to the Chosin (Changjin) Reservoir 56 miles to the northeast.
1950 – MiG-15 jet fighters made their first appearance during the Korean War as they flew along the Yalu River to contest the Fifth Air Force’s then complete dominance of the skies over North Korea.
1950 – The 8th Cavalry Regiment of the 1st Cavalry Division became the first U.S. unit to engage the Chinese in major ground combat when its 3rd Battalion was overrun at Unsan and suffered 600 killed or captured out of a strength 800. The entire regiment was reduced to 3/4 strength. After the battle, the attacking 115th and 116th Divisions of the Chinese 39th Army disappeared into the mountains of North Korea.
1951 – Operation Buster–Jangle: Six thousand five hundred American soldiers are exposed to ‘Desert Rock’ atomic explosions for training purposes in Nevada. Participation is not voluntary.
1952 – The United States exploded the first hydrogen bomb, in a test at Eniwetok in the Marshall Islands. The United States detonates the world’s first thermonuclear weapon, the hydrogen bomb, on Eniwetok atoll in the Pacific. The test gave the United States a short-lived advantage in the nuclear arms race with the Soviet Union. Following the successful Soviet detonation of an atomic device in September 1949, the United States accelerated its program to develop the next stage in atomic weaponry, a thermonuclear bomb. Popularly known as the hydrogen bomb, this new weapon was approximately 1,000 times more powerful than conventional nuclear devices. Opponents of development of the hydrogen bomb included J. Robert Oppenheimer, one of the fathers of the atomic bomb. He and others argued that little would be accomplished except the speeding up of the arms race, since it was assumed that the Soviets would quickly follow suit. The opponents were correct in their assumptions. The Soviet Union exploded a thermonuclear device the following year and by the late 1970s, seven nations had constructed hydrogen bombs.
1954 – The US Senate admonished Joseph McCarthy for his slander campaign.
1955 – A time bomb aboard United DC-6 killed 44 above Longmont, Colorado. Jack Gilbert Graham rigged a time bomb for the Denver to Seattle flight and put it into his mother’s suitcase in order to collect the insurance money. Graham was executed in the gas chamber Jan 11, 1957. Graham had pioneered airliner bombing.
1956 – Walter Brattain, John Bardeen and William Shockley were awarded the Nobel Prize in physics for the invention of the transistor. The trio invented the transistor in 1948 at the Bell Laboratories. William Schockley, co-developer of the transistor, founded Schockley Semiconductor Laboratory in Palo Alto. Two of his hires, Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore, later went on to start Intel Corp.
1956 – The 3d Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment helped evacuate Americans from Alexandria, Egypt.
1961 – Following his one week mission to Vietnam, General Maxwell Taylor writes to President Kennedy from the Philippines, urging the commitment of a ‘US military task force’ to Vietnam and advocates a ‘massive joint effort’ with the South Vietnamese to cope with the flood and the Vietcong. He feels the presence of US ground troops is essential ‘to reverse the present downward trend of events.’ Cabling from japan, Secretary of State Dean Rusk acknowledges the great importance of the security of Southeast Asia, but questions Diem’s abilities as well as the ability of South Vietnam to succeed against the Communists even with US help.
1962 – Cuban missile crisis ended. JFK said USSR was dismantling missile bases.
1963 – Dissidents organized by the key generals of the South Vietnamese Army lay siege to the presidential palace, which is captured by the following morning. Diem and Nhu at first believe the attack to be the opening of a counter-coup engineered by Nhu and General To That Dinh, who controls nearly all forces in and around Saigon, but Dinh has joined with the dissident generals. Diem is unable to summon any support, but he and Nhu manage to escape.
1964 – The Vietcong assaulted the Bien Hoa airport at Saigon.
1967 – Operation Coronado IX began in Mekong Delta
1968 – Lyndon B. Johnson called a halt to bombing in Vietnam, hoping that this would lead to progress at the Paris peace talks.
1971 – The Eisenhower dollar was put into circulation.
1979 – Beginning of retirement of Polaris A-3 program begins with removal of missiles from USS Abraham Lincoln. Last Polaris missile removed in February 1982.
1983 – 300 Marines of the 22d Marine Amphibious Unit staged an amphibious and helicopter landing on the island of Carriacou, 15 miles northeast of Grenada, in a search for Cuban military installations or personnel. 17 Grenadian soldiers were captured, and arms, ammunition, and training sites were found. The next day the 22d MAU left the Caribbean area and proceeded to Beirut, Lebanon to replace the 24th MAU.
1984 – The largest marijuana bust to date in West Coast history took place November 1 as the cutter Clover nabbed the 63-foot yacht Arrikis 150 miles southwest of San Diego. The yacht was loaded with 13 tons of marijuana.
1992 – The space shuttle Columbia landed at Cape Canaveral, Fla., ending a 10-day mission that included the deployment of an Italian satellite.
1993 – The space shuttle Columbia landed at Edwards Air Force Base in California, ending a two-week mission.
1994 – The Senate Intelligence Committee released a report saying CIA Director R. James Woolsey’s response to the Aldrich Ames spy case was “seriously inadequate,” but that his predecessors were ultimately to blame for the scandal.
1995 – Bosnia peace talks for the countries of the former Yugoslavia were launched in Dayton, Ohio, with the leaders of Bosnia, Serbia and Croatia present.
1997 – Iraq announced that American weapons inspectors working with the UN would not be allowed to resume work on Nov 3.
1998 – The military arm of the radical Islamic group Hamas made an unprecedented threat against Yasser Arafat, demanding the Palestinian leader halt a crackdown against it, or face violent vengeance.
1999 – In Panama the US handed over Howard Air Force Base, Fort Kobbe and the Farfan residential zone.
2001 – US planes made their heaviest assaults to date in northern Afghanistan. 2001 – Anthrax spores were found in 4 mailrooms in Rockville, Md., a postal facility in Kansas City, 3 new locations in a Manhattan processing center and a 6th postal facility in Florida.
2003 – It was reported that over a dozen members of Saddam Hussein’s government have been shot dead in the streets of Basra over the last month.
2004 – Iraqi gunmen in Baghdad seized an American, a Nepalese and 4 Iraqi hostages working for a Saudi supplier to the US military.
2004 – Gunmen killed Hatim Kamil, deputy governor of Baghdad, on his way to work.
2004 – Diaa Najm, an Iraqi freelance television cameraman, was killed while filming clashes between U.S. troops and insurgents in Ramadi.
2009 – Six Uyghurs detained at Guantanamo Bay detention camp are released by the United States and resettled in Palau.
2011 – The President of the United States, Barack Obama, makes Fort Monroe in Hampton, Virginia, a National Monument.
Congressional Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
TAYLOR, BERNARD
Rank and organization: Sergeant, Company A, 5th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: Near Sunset Pass, Ariz., 1 November 1874. Entered service at: Washington, D.C. Birth: St. Louis, Mo. Date of issue: 12 April 1875. Citation: Bravery in rescuing Lt. King, 5th U.S. Cavalry, from Indians.
FORREST, ARTHUR J.
Rank and organization: Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company D, 354th Infantry, 89th Division. Place and date: Near Remonville, France, 1 November 1918. Entered service at: Hannibal, Mo . Birth: St. Louis, Mo. G.O. No.: 50, W.D., 1919. Citation: When the advance of his company was stopped by bursts of fire from a nest of 6 enemy machineguns, without being discovered, he worked his way single-handed to a point within 50 yards of the machinegun nest. Charging, single-handed, he drove out the enemy in disorder, thereby protecting the advance platoon from annihilating fire, and permitting the resumption of the advance of his company.
FURLONG, HAROLD A.
Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, U.S. Army, 353d Infantry, 89th Division. Place and date: Near Bantheville, France, 1 November 1918. Entered service at: Detroit, Mich. Birth: Pontiac, Mich. G.O. No.: 16, W.D., 1919. Citation: Immediately after the opening of the attack in the Bois-de-Bantheville, when his company was held up by severe machinegun fire from the front, which killed his company commander and several soldiers, 1st. Lt. Furlong moved out in advance of the line with great courage and coolness, crossing an open space several hundred yards wide. Taking up a position behind the line of the machineguns, he closed in on them, one at a time, killing a number of the enemy with his rifle, putting 4 machinegun nests out of action, and driving 20 German prisoners into our lines.
SIEGEL, JOHN OTTO
Rank and organization Boatswain’s Mate Second Class, U.S. Navy. Born: 21 April 1890, Milwaukee, Wis. Accredited to: New Jersey. Citation: For extraordinary heroism while serving on board the Mohawk in performing a rescue mission aboard the schooner Hjeltenaes which was in flames on 1 November 1918. Going aboard the blazing vessel, Siegel rescued 2 men from the crew’s quarters and went back the third time. Immediately after he had entered the crew’s quarters, a steam pipe over the door bursted, making it impossible for him to escape. Siegel was overcome with smoke and fell to the deck, being finally rescued by some of the crew of the Mohawk who carried him out and rendered first aid.
CASAMENTO, ANTHONY
Rank and organization: Corporal, Company D, First Battalion, Fifth Marines, First Marine Division. Place and date: Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands. Entered service at: Brooklyn, New York. Date and place of birth: 16 November 1920, Brooklyn, New York. For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with Company D, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, 1st Marine Division on Guadalcanal, British Solomon Islands, in action against the enemy Japanese forces on 1 November 1942. Serving as a leader of a machine gun section, Corporal Casamento directed his unit to advance along a ridge near the Matanikau River where they engaged the enemy. He positioned his section to provide covering fire for two flanking units and to provide direct support for the main force of his company which was behind him. During the course of this engagement, all members of his section were either killed or severely wounded and he himself suffered multiple, grievous wounds. Nonetheless, Corporal Casamento continued to provide critical supporting fire for the attack and in defense of his position. Following the loss of all effective personnel, he set up, loaded, and manned his unit’s machine gun. tenaciously holding the enemy forces at bay. Corporal Casamento single-handedly engaged and destroyed one machine gun emplacement to his front and took under fire the other emplacement on the flank. Despite the heat and ferocity of the engagement, he continued to man his weapon and repeatedly repulsed multiple assaults by the enemy forces, thereby protecting the flanks of the adjoining companies and holding his position until the arrival of his main attacking force. Corporal Casamento’s courageous fighting spirit, heroic conduct, and unwavering dedication to duty reflected great credit upon himself and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the United States Naval Service.
*HANSON, ROBERT MURRAY
Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. Born: 4 February 1920, Lucknow, India. Accredited to: Massachusetts. Other Navy awards: Navy Cross, Air Medal. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life and above and beyond the call of duty as fighter pilot attached to Marine Fighting Squadron 215 in action against enemy Japanese forces at Bougainville Island, 1 November 1943; and New Britain Island, 24 January 1944. Undeterred by fierce opposition, and fearless in the face of overwhelming odds, 1st Lt. Hanson fought the Japanese boldly and with daring aggressiveness. On 1 November, while flying cover for our landing operations at Empress Augusta Bay, he dauntlessly attacked 6 enemy torpedo bombers, forcing them to jettison their bombs and destroying 1 Japanese plane during the action. Cut off from his division while deep in enemy territory during a high cover flight over Simpson Harbor on 24 January, 1st Lt. Hanson waged a lone and gallant battle against hostile interceptors as they were orbiting to attack our bombers and, striking with devastating fury, brought down 4 Zeroes and probably a fifth. Handling his plane superbly in both pursuit and attack measures, he was a master of individual air combat, accounting for a total of 25 Japanese aircraft in this theater of war. His great personal valor and invincible fighting spirit were in keeping with the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service.
*OWENS, ROBERT ALLEN
Rank and organization: Sergeant, U.S. Marine Corps. Born: 13 September 1920, Greenville, S.C. Accredited to: South Carolina. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with a marine division, in action against enemy Japanese forces during extremely hazardous landing operations at Cape Torokina, Bougainville, Solomon Islands, on 1 November 1943. Forced to pass within disastrous range of a strongly protected, well-camouflaged Japanese 75-mm. regimental gun strategically located on the beach, our landing units were suffering heavy losses in casualties and boats while attempting to approach the beach, and the success of the operations was seriously threatened. Observing the ineffectiveness of marine rifle and grenade attacks against the incessant, devastating fire of the enemy weapon and aware of the urgent need for prompt action, Sgt. Owens unhesitatingly determined to charge the gun bunker from the front and, calling on 4 of his comrades to assist him, carefully placed them to cover the fire of the 2 adjacent hostile bunkers. Choosing a moment that provided a fair opportunity for passing these bunkers, he immediately charged into the mouth of the steadily firing cannon and entered the emplacement through the fire port, driving the guncrew out of the rear door and insuring their destruction before he himself was wounded. Indomitable and aggressive in the face of almost certain death, Sgt. Owens silenced a powerful gun which was of inestimable value to the Japanese defense and, by his brilliant initiative and heroic spirit of self-sacrifice, contributed immeasurably to the success of the vital landing operations. His valiant conduct throughout reflects the highest credit upon himself and the U.S. Naval Service.
*KAPAUN, EMIL JOSEPH
Rank: Captain (Chaplain), Organization: U.S. Army, Company: 3d Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, Division: 1st Cavalry Division, born: April 20, 1916 / Pilsen, Kansas, Departed: Yes (05/23/1951), Entered Service At: Kansas, G.O. Number: , Date of Issue: 04/11/2013, Accredited To: Kansas, Place / Date: Unsan, Korea, November 1-2, 1950. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the 3d Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division during combat operations against an armed enemy at Unsan, Korea, from November 1-2, 1950. On November 1, as Chinese Communist Forces viciously attacked friendly elements, Chaplain Kapaun calmly walked through withering enemy fire in order to provide comfort and medical aid to his comrades and rescue friendly wounded from no-man’s land. Though the Americans successfully repelled the assault, they found themselves surrounded by the enemy. Facing annihilation, the able-bodied men were ordered to evacuate. However, Chaplain Kapaun, fully aware of his certain capture, elected to stay behind with the wounded. After the enemy succeeded in breaking through the defense in the early morning hours of November 2, Chaplain Kapaun continually made rounds, as hand-to-hand combat ensued. As Chinese Communist Forces approached the American position, Chaplain Kapaun noticed an injured Chinese officer amongst the wounded and convinced him to negotiate the safe surrender of the American Forces. Shortly after his capture, Chaplain Kapaun, with complete disregard for his personal safety and unwavering resolve, bravely pushed aside an enemy soldier preparing to execute Sergeant First Class Herbert A. Miller. Not only did Chaplain Kapaun’s gallantry save the life of Sergeant Miller, but also his unparalleled courage and leadership inspired all those present, including those who might have otherwise fled in panic, to remain and fight the enemy until captured. Chaplain Kapaun’s extraordinary heroism and selflessness, above and beyond the call of duty, are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, the 3d Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, the 1st Cavalry Division, and the United States Army.
ROGERS, CHARLES CALVIN
Rank and organization: Lieutenant Colonel, U.S . Army, 1st Battalion, 5th Artillery, 1st Infantry Division. Place and date: Fishhook, near Cambodian border, Republic of Vietnam, 1 November 1968. Entered service at: Institute, W Va. Born: 6 September 1929, Claremont, W Va. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Lt. Col. Rogers, Field Artillery, distinguished himself in action while serving as commanding officer, 1st Battalion, during the defense of a forward fire support base. In the early morning hours, the fire support base was subjected to a concentrated bombardment of heavy mortar, rocket and rocket propelled grenade fire. Simultaneously the position was struck by a human wave ground assault, led by sappers who breached the defensive barriers with bangalore torpedoes and penetrated the defensive perimeter. Lt. Col. Rogers with complete disregard for his safety moved through the hail of fragments from bursting enemy rounds to the embattled area. He aggressively rallied the dazed artillery crewmen to man their howitzers and he directed their fire on the assaulting enemy. Although knocked to the ground and wounded by an exploding round, Lt. Col. Rogers sprang to his feet and led a small counterattack force against an enemy element that had penetrated the howitzer positions. Although painfully wounded a second time during the assault, Lt. Col. Rogers pressed the attack killing several of the enemy and driving the remainder from the positions. Refusing medical treatment, Lt. Col. Rogers reestablished and reinforced the defensive positions. As a second human wave attack was launched against another sector of the perimeter, Lt. Col. Rogers directed artillery fire on the assaulting enemy and led a second counterattack against the charging forces. His valorous example rallied the beleaguered defenders to repulse and defeat the enemy onslaught. Lt. Col. Rogers moved from position to position through the heavy enemy fire, giving encouragement and direction to his men. At dawn the determined enemy launched a third assault against the fire base in an attempt to overrun the position. Lt. Col. Rogers moved to the threatened area and directed lethal fire on the enemy forces. Seeing a howitzer inoperative due to casualties, Lt. Col. Rogers joined the surviving members of the crew to return the howitzer to action. While directing the position defense, Lt. Col. Rogers was seriously wounded by fragments from a heavy mortar round which exploded on the parapet of the gun position. Although too severely wounded to physically lead the defenders, Lt. Col. Rogers continued to give encouragement and direction to his men in the defeating and repelling of the enemy attack. Lt. Col. Rogers’ dauntless courage and heroism inspired the defenders of the fire support base to the heights of valor to defeat a determined and numerically superior enemy force. His relentless spirit of aggressiveness in action are in the highest traditions of the military service and reflects great credit upon himself, his unit, and the U.S. Army.
