Sarah Sundin's Blog, page 357
January 3, 2015
Today in World War II History—January 3, 1940 & 1945
Men of US 290th Infantry Regiment in snowy terrain near Amonines, Belgium, 4 Jan 1945. (US Army)
75 Years Ago—Jan. 3, 1940: Finland bans smorgasbords to conserve food. President Roosevelt calls for $1.8 billion in defense appropriations.
70 Years Ago—Jan. 3, 1945: In the Battle of the Bulge, US First Army begins offensive on the north flank of the Bulge. US Navy organizes hunter-killer group to intercept U-boat believed to be bound for New York with V-weapons.
January 2, 2015
Today in World War II History—January 2, 1940 & 1945
Charles Edison, 1945 (US National Park Service)
75 Years Ago—Jan. 2, 1940: Charles Edison (son of Thomas) becomes US Secretary of the Navy.
Adm. Sir Bertram Ramsay, Allied Naval Commander-in-Chief of the Expeditionary Forces, at his London Headquarters at Norfolk House, 1944. (Imperial War Museum)
70 Years Ago—Jan. 2, 1945: Adm. Sir Bertram Ramsey, Allied Commander in Chief, Expeditionary Force, dies in plane crash at Toussus-le-Noble, France. American Sikorsky helicopter is used in convoy escort for first time.
January 1, 2015
Today in World War II History—January 1, 1940 & 1945
Destroyed US P-47s at Metz-Frescaty Airfield, France, 1 January 1945 (US Army Air Forces)
75 Years Ago—Jan. 1, 1940: In the Rose Parade, Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy serve as grand marshals.
70 Years Ago—Jan. 1, 1945: 900 Luftwaffe aircraft strafe Allied air bases in France and Belgium, destroying 200 aircraft but losing 300. Former president Herbert Hoover serves as Rose Parade grand marshal.
December 31, 2014
Today in World War II History—December 31, 1939 & 1944
Finnish troops gathering captured Soviet weapons, Taipale, Finland, 27-28 Dec 1939
75 Years Ago—Dec. 31, 1939: Finns secure Suomussalmi, Finland after Soviets retreat.
70 Years Ago—Dec. 31, 1944: Germans launch Nordwind offensive just before midnight against US Seventh and French Armies in Alsace, the last major German offensive of the war. In the US, rationing is tightened again on meats, fats, and canned vegetables due to the Battle of the Bulge.
December 30, 2014
Today in World War II History—December 30, 1944
Brig. Gen. Anthony McAuliffe and Lt. Col. Harry Kinnard II at Bastogne, Belgium, late Dec 1944 (US War Dept. photo)
70 Years Ago—Dec. 30, 1944: Germans attack Bastogne, Belgium, but US forces hold firm. Second German spy (Erich Gimpel) who landed in Maine by U-boat on 11/29/44 is arrested by FBI in New York City; William Colepaugh had turned himself in on 12/26/44.
December 29, 2014
Today in World War II History—December 29, 1939 & 1944
Finnish Army Colonel Hjalmar Siilasvuo receiving a briefing during the Battle of Suomussalmi, Finland, Dec 1939-Jan 1940
75 Years Ago—Dec. 29, 1939: In Soviet-Finnish war, Finnish ski troops tear up the Leningrad-Murmansk rail line. Movie premieres of Destry Rides Again, starring Jimmy Stewart & Marlene Dietrich; The Hunchback of Notre Dame, starring Charles Laughton & Maureen O’Hara; and Of Mice and Men, starring Burgess Meredith, Betty Field, and Lon Chaney Jr.
70 Years Ago—Dec. 29, 1944: In Italy, Germans retreat in Serchio Valley after counterattack against US Fifth Army.
December 28, 2014
Today in World War II History—December 28, 1939 & 1944
Consolidated XB-24 Liberator in flight, 1939. (US Air Force photo)
75 Years Ago—Dec. 28, 1939: First flight of the XB-24 Liberator, at Lindbergh Field, San Diego, the prototype for what will be America’s most-produced four-engine bomber of the war.
70 Years Ago—Dec. 28, 1944: Corrie ten Boom is released from Ravensbrück concentration camp due to a clerical error; she would later write The Hiding Place about her experiences. Musical On the Town premieres on Broadway.
December 27, 2014
Today in World War II History—December 27, 1939 & 1944
75 Years Ago—Dec. 27, 1939: US State Department protests British removal and censorship of US mail from neutral ships.
70 Years Ago—Dec. 27, 1944: Soviets encircle Budapest, Hungary, beginning 102-day siege.
December 26, 2014
Today in World War II History—December 26, 1944
Troops of US 101st Airborne Division watching C-47 Skytrain aircraft delivering supplies to their unit, Bastogne, Belgium, 26 Dec 1944. (US Army Signal Corps)
70 Years Ago—Dec. 26, 1944: US Third Army under Patton opens corridor to Bastogne, relieving the defenders. German Ardennes Offensive grinds to a halt due to supply problems caused by Allied bombing. In Italy, Germans launch counterattack against US Fifth Army in Serchio Valley, retaking territory. Tennessee Williams’s play The Glass Menagerie premieres in Chicago.
December 25, 2014
Today in World War II History—December 25, 1939 & 1944
Finnish Army Lieutenant Aarne Juutilainen and his company holding a Christmas service near the Kollaa River, Finland, 24 Dec 1939
75 Years Ago—Dec. 25, 1939: Soviets attempt to break out at Suomussalmi, Finland, but fail.
70 Years Ago—Dec. 25, 1944: US lands at Palompon on Leyte in the Philippines, cutting off the last Japanese port on the island, and ending the assault phase of the campaign.
