Today in World War II History—January 9, 1940 & 1945

US landing barges carrying invasion troops toward Luzon in Lingayen Gulf, 9 Jan 1945. (US National Archives)

75 Years Ago—Jan. 9, 1940: Australian Comforts Fund reestablished, for women to send care packages to soldiers.

70 Years Ago—Jan. 9, 1945: US Sixth Army lands at Lingayen Gulf on Luzon in the Philippines; beachhead established as Japanese have withdrawn inland. Seaman Leon LeRoy, returning home to Antioch, CA to comfort his recently widowed mother, and two other servicemen are bumped off their flight by a dog belonging to Col. Elliott Roosevelt, son of the president. Read more about this story: A Dog, the President’s Son, and a Grieving Sailor.