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DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY -- NAVAL
HISTORICAL CENTER
805 KIDDER BREESE SE -- WASHINGTON NAVY YARD
WASHINGTON DC 20374-5060
Dates in American Naval History: September
September 1
1781 - French fleet traps British fleet at Yorktown, VA
1814 - USS Wasp captures HMS Avon
1925 - CDR John Rodgers and crew of 4 in PN-9 run out of fuel on first San Francisco to Hawaii flight. Landing at sea, they rigged a sail and set sail for Hawaii.
1941 - U.S. assumes responsibility for trans-Atlantic convoys from Argentia, Canada to the meridian of Iceland
1942 - Establishment of Air Force, Pacific Fleet, VADM Aubrey W. Fitch, USN
1942 - First Seabee unit to serve in a combat area, 6th Naval Construction Battalion, arrives on Guadalcanal.
1945 - USS Benevolence (AH-13) evacuates civilian internees from 2 internment camps near Tokyo, Japan
September 2
1918 - Navy ships and crews assist earthquake victims of Yokohama and Tokyo, Japan
1940 - Destroyer-for-Bases agreement between U.S. and United Kingdom
1944 - USS Finback (SS-230) rescues Lieutenant (jg) George Bush, USNR (VT-51), shot down while attacking Chichi Jima
1945 - Japan signs surrender documents on board USS Missouri (BB-63) at anchor in Tokyo Bay. FADM Chester W. Nimitz, USN, signs for the U.S. In different ceremonies, Japanese forces on Palau Islands, Truk, and on Pagan Island and Rota in the Marianas surrender.
September 3
1782 - As a token of gratitude for French aid during American Revolution, the U.S. gives America (first ship-of-the-line built by U.S.) to France to replace a French ship lost in Boston.
1783 - Signing of Treaty of Paris ends American Revolution
1885 - First classes at U.S. Naval War College begin
1925 - Crash of rigid airship Shenandoah near Byesville, OH
1943 - American landings on Lae and Salamaua
1944 - First combat employment of a missile guided by radio and television takes place when Navy drone Liberator, controlled by Ensign James M. Simpson in a PV, flew to attack German submarine pens on Helgoland Island.
1945 - Japanese surrender Wake Island in ceremony on board USS Levy (DE-162)
September 4
1804 - USS Intrepid (LT Richard Somers) blew up in failed attack on Tripoli
1941 - German submarine, U-652, attacks USS Greer, which was tracking the submarine southeast of Iceland. Greer is not damaged, but drops depth charges, damaging U-652.
1954 - Icebreakers, USS Burton Island (AGB-1) and USCG Northwind, complete first transit of Northwest passage through McClure Strait.
1954 - P2V from VP-19 shot down by Soviet aircraft near Swatow, China
1960 - USS Bushnell and Penguin begin relief operations in Marathon, FL, after Hurricane Donna.
September 5
1776 - Adoption of first uniforms for Navy officers
1813- USS Enterprise captures HM brig Boxer off Portland, ME
1918 - USS Mount Vernon torpedoed by German submarine off France
1923 - U.S. Asiatic Fleet arrives at Yokohama, Japan, to provide medical assistance and supplies after Kondo Plain earthquake.
1939 - President Franklin D. Roosevelt orders Navy to form a Neutrality Patrol to report the presence of foreign warships within 300 miles of eastern United States.
1946 - USS Franklin Delano Roosevelt (CVB-42) and 4 escorts visit Greece to underscore U.S. support for the Greek Government which faced a Communist insurgency.
1990 - USS Acadia (AD-42) departs San Diego for first war-time deployment of male-female crew on combat vessel
September 6
1918 - Sailors fire first of the 5 railroad batteries at Tergnier, a German rail head in the Comeigne Forest. These 14"-50 caliber guns were originally designed for battleships.
1939 - Navy begins formation of Neutrality Patrol for Atlantic Ocean
1940 - First destroyers transferred to Great Britain at Halifax, Nova Scotia, under "Destroyers-for- Bases agreement.
1944 - USS Independence (CVL-22) begins use of specially trained air group for night work. First time that a fully equipped night carrier operates with fast carrier task force.
1945 - U.S. troops begin returning to U.S. when Task Force 11 left Tokyo Bay for U.S.
1953 - Exchange of prisoners of war from Korean War (Operations Big Switch) ends
September 7
1775 - The first prize, the British supply ship, Unity, was captured by the Continental schoonerHannah.
1776 - David Bushnell attempts to destroy a British Ship of the Line, HMS Asia, in New York harbor with his submarine Turtle.
1942 - First air evacuation of casualties to hospital ships off shore occurs at Guadalcanal.
September 8
1923 - In disaster at Point Honda, California, 7 destroyers run aground through faulty navigation
1939 - President Franklin D. Roosevelt proclaims limited national emergency and increases enlisted strength in the Navy and Marine Corps; also authorizes the recall to active duty of officer, men and nurses on the retired lists of the Navy and Marine Corps
1954 - U.S. signs Manila Treaty forming SEATO
1958 - LT R. H. Tabor, wearing a Navy developed pressure suit, completes 72-hour simulated flight at altitudes as high a 139,000 feet. It was another step in the development of the Navy spacesuit, which NASA accepted in 1959 for use by Mercury astronauts.
September 9
1825 - USS Brandywine sails for France to carry the Marquis de Lafayette home after his year long visit to America.
1841 - First iron ship authorized by Congress
1940 - Navy awards contracts for 210 ships, including 12 carriers and 7 battleships
1943 - Operation Avalanche, Western Naval Task Force under VADM Hewitt, USN, lands Allied forces at Salerno, Italy
1944 - Fifth Fleet carrier aircraft begin air strikes on Japanese shipping and facilities at Mindanao, Philippines
1945 - A "computer bug" is first identified and named by LT Grace Murray Hopper while she was on Navy active duty in 1945. It was found in the Mark II Aiken Relay Calculator at Harvard University. The operators affixed the moth to the computer log, where it still resides, with the entry: "First actual case of bug being found." They "debugged" the computer, first introducing the term.
September 10
1813 - In Battle of Lake Erie, Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, flying his "Don't give up the ship" flag, defeats British squadron and says: "We have met the enemy and they are ours..."
1925 - Submarine R-4 rescues crew of PN-9 10 miles from their destination of Hawaii (See also September 1)
September 11
1814 - In Battle of Lake Champlain, Commodore Thomas Macdonough defeats a British Squadron.
1939 - Bear (AG-29) is commissioned by the U.S. Navy for Antarctic operations under command of RADM Richard Byrd, USN (Ret.).
1941 - President Franklin D. Roosevelt announces order to the Navy to "shoot on sight" vessels threatening U.S. shipping or ships under U.S. escort.
1942 - Pharmacist's Mate First Class Wheeler B. Lipes, USN, performs emergency appendectomy on Seaman First Class Darrell D. Rector, USNR, on board USS Seadragon on patrol in South China Sea.
1943 - Italian Navy surrenders to Allies
1945 - Operation Magic Carpet, the return of troops to the U.S., begins.
2001 - American Flight 77 hijacked by terrorists struck the Pentagon. Casualties include 33 sailors, 6 Department of the Navy civilians, and 3 Navy civilian contractors reported missing, Arlington, VA. Two commercial airliners also struck the World Trade Center in New York City, NY, destroying both towers.
2002 - The "Don't Tread on Me" First Navy Jack is flown by Navy ships marking the first anniversary of the terrorists attacks on the Pentagon and World Trade Center
September 12
1916 - First demonstration of automatic stabilization and direction gear in aircraft
1944 - 5th Fleet carrier aircraft begin 3-day attack on Japanese shipping and facilities in Visayas, Philippines
1952 - USS Coral Sea (CVB-43) took Marshall Josip Tito for a one-day cruise in the Adriatic Sea where he was shown flight operations.
1961 - Navy task force sails to aid the Galveston area after hurricane Carla hits Texas
1966 - Launch of Gemini 11, piloted by CDR Charles Conrad Jr., USN and LCDR Richard F. Gordon Jr., USN. Their mission lasted 2 days and 23 hours and included 44 orbits at an altitude of 1368.9 km.. Recovery was by HS-3 helicopter from USS Guam (LPH-9)
1967- Operation Coronado V began in Mekong Delta
1992 - Joint Task Force Hawaii activated to provide humanitarian aid after Typhoon Iniki struck Hawaiian Islands
September 13
1814 - British bombardment of Fort McHenry inspires the Star Spangled Banner.
1847 - Marine Brigade leads U.S. forces that storm Chapultepec Castle near Mexico City, inspiring one line of the Marine Hymn
1906 - Sailors and Marines from USS Denver land in Havana at the request of the Cuban government to preserve order during a revolution.
1939 - Navy suspends transfers to the Fleet Reserve after 20 years service and retains men on active duty.
1985 - Commander Middle East Force orders escort of Military Sealift Ships in Persian Gulf because of Iranian seizure of merchant vessels.
September 14
1899 - Gunboat Concord and monitor Monterey capture two insurgent schooners at Aparri, Philippine Islands
1939 - Atlantic Squadron Neutrality Patrol ships deploy
September 15
1944 - Invasion of Peleliu, Palau Islands, after several days of intensive carrier aircraft bombing and ship bombardment.
1950 - U.S. forces under VADM Arthur Struble achieve an amphibious landing at Inchon, Korea
1967 - Operation Crimson Tide in Mekong Delta
September 16
1854 - CDR David G. Farragut takes possession of Mare Island, the first U.S. Navy Yard on the Pacific.
1917 - Navy Department authorizes establishment of 16 Naval air stations abroad
1922 - Commander Halsey Powell in USS Edsall became the senior officer directing the evacuation of 250,000 Greek refugees from Turkey after war between Greece and Turkey.
1940 - President Roosevelt signs Selective Training and Service Act, the first peacetime draft.
1958 - USS Grayback fires first operational launch of Regulus II surface to surface guided missile off CA coast; Missile carries first U.S. mail sent by guided missile.
1966 - USS Oriskany helicopters rescue 44-men crew of British merchant ship August Moon near Hong Kong
September 17
1861 - Union landing party from USS Massachusetts takes possession of Ship Island south of New Orleans, LA. This was the headquarters for ADM David Farragut's Gulf Coast Blockading Squadron.
1944 - Navy Task Force lands Army troops on Angaur, Palau Islands supported by Navy carrier aircraft and shore bombardment
September 18
1926 - Navy brings relief aid to Miami, FL, after a severe hurricane.
1936 - Squadron 40-T, based in the Mediterranean, established to protect U.S. interests and citizens around Iberian peninsula throughout the Spanish Civil War.
1941 - U.S. Navy ships escort eastbound British trans-Atlantic convoy for first time (Convoy HX-150). Although the U.S. Navy ships joined HX-150, which left port escorted by British ships on 16th, on night of 17 September, the official escort duty began on 18th.
1947 - National Security Act becomes effective
September 19
1915 - SECNAV Josephus Daniels organizes the Naval Consulting Board to mobilize the scientific resources of U.S. for national defense.
1957 - Bathyscaph Trieste, in a dive sponsored by the Office of Naval Research in the Mediterranean, reaches record depth of 2 miles
1992 - Joint Task Force Marianas stands down after providing assistance to Guam after Typhoon Omar
September 20
1911 - Navigational instruments first requested for naval aircraft.
1951 - In Operation Summit, the first combat helicopter landing in history, U.S. Marines were landed in Korea.
1981 - USS Mount Hood and Navy helicopters rescue 18 crew members of Philippine Navy frigate, Datu Kalantiaw
September 21
1858 - Sloop Niagara departs Charleston, SC, for Liberia with African slaves rescued from slave ship.
1923 - Asiatic Fleet completes mission of aiding earthquake victims in Japan.
1939 - President Franklin D. Roosevelt asks Congress to repeal the arms embargo provision of the Neutrality Act.
1944 - Aircraft from 12 carriers commence 2-day attack against Japanese ships and airfields on Luzon, Philippine Islands.
1984 - Mid East Force begins escort of U.S. flagged vessels in Persian Gulf.
September 22
1776 - John Paul Jones in Providence sails into Canso Bay, Nova Scotia, and attacks British fishing fleet.
1943 - U.S. destroyers and landing craft land Australian troops at Finschhafen, New Guinea.
1989 - After Hurricane Hugo, Sailors and Marines provide assistance to Charleston, SC, through 10 October.
September 23
1779 - Captain John Paul Jones in Continental Navy frigate Bonhomme Richard captures HMS Serapis.
1931 - LT Alfred Pride pilots Navy's first rotary wing aircraft, XOP-1 autogiro, in landings and takeoffs on board USS Langley while underway.
1944 - Naval Task Group lands Army troops on Ulithi Atoll, Caroline Islands
1944 - USS West Virginia (BB-48) reaches Pearl Harbor and rejoins the Pacific Fleet, marking the end of the salvage and reconstruction of 18 ships damaged at Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941.
1947 - James Forrestal, former SECNAV, takes office as first Secretary of Defense
1990 - Two Hospital ships (USNS Mercy and USNS Comfort) steam together for first time in Arabian Gulf
September 24
1918 - Ensign David S. Ingalls, USNR, in a Sopwith Camel, shoots down his fifth enemy aircraft, becoming the first U.S. Navy ace while flying with the British Royal Air Force.
1944 - 5th Fleet carrier aircraft attack Japanese in Visayas, Philippines
1960 - First nuclear powered aircraft carrier, USS Enterprise (CVAN-65), launched at Newport News, VA
September 25
1941 - In first successful U.S. Navy escort of convoys during World War II, Navy escort turn over HX-150 to British escorts at the Mid-Ocean Meeting Point. All ships reach port safely.
1957 - In project Stratoscope, Office of Naval Research obtains sharp photographs of sun's corona from first balloon-borne telescope camera.
September 26
1781 - French fleet defeats British at Yorktown, VA
1910 - First recorded reference to provision for aviation in Navy Department organization
1918 - USCGC Tampa lost with 118 men, probably by German submarine
1931 - Keel laying at Newport News, VA of USS Ranger (CV-4), first ship designed and constructed as an aircraft carrier
1963 - First steam-eject launch of Polaris missile at sea off Cape Canaveral, FL (now Cape Kennedy) from USS Observation Island (EAG-154)
September 27
1922 - Report on observations of experiments with short wave radio at Anacostia, DC, starts Navy development of radar
1941 - Launch of first Liberty ship, SS Patrick Henry, in Baltimore, MD
1942 - Armed Guard on SS Stephen Hopkins engages German auxiliary cruiser Stier and supply ship Tannenfels. Stephen Hopkins and Stier both sink.
1944 - Special Air Task Force (STAG-1) commences operations with drones, controlled by TBM aircraft, against Japanese in Southwestern Pacific
1950 - First Marine Division captures Seoul, South Korea
September 28
1822 - Sloop-of-war Peacock captures 5 pirate vessels
1850 - Congress outlaws flogging on Navy ships
1923 - Navy aircraft take first and second places in international Schneider Cup Race
1944 - Marines occupy islands in Palaus under cover of naval aircraft and gunfire support.
1964 - First deployment of Polaris A-3 missile on USS Daniel Webster (SSBN 626) from Charleston, SC
September 29
1944 - USS Narwhal (SS-167) evacuates 81 Allied prisoners of war that survived sinking of Japanese Shinyo Maru from Sindangan Bay, Mindanao
1946 -Lockheed P2V Neptune, Truculent Turtle, leaves Perth, Australia on long distance non-stop, non-refueling flight that ends October 1.
1959 - USS Kearsarge (CVS-33) with Helicopter Squadron 6 and other 7th Fleet units begin 6 days of disaster relief to Nagoya, Japan, after Typhoon Vera.
September 30
1800 - U.S. concludes treaty of peace with France, ending Quasi War with France.
1944 - USS Nautilus (SS-168) lands supplies and evacuates some people from Panay, Philipppine Islands.
1946 - U.S. Government announces that U.S. Navy units would be permanently stationed in the Mediterranean to carry out American policy and diplomacy.
1954 - Commissioning at Groton, CT, of USS Nautilus (SSN-571), the world's first nuclear-powered ship
1958 - Marines leave Lebanon.
1959 - Last flight of airshps assigned to the Naval Air Reserve at Lakehurst, NJ takes place
1968 - Battleship New Jersey arrives off Vietnam
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28 January 2003