How a Marine singlehandedly fought off an entire Japanese regiment at Guadalcanal
They say the most dangerous weapon is a pissed-off Marine. Imagine how angry a Marine would have to be after an enemy regiment annihilates the rest of his machine gun…
Historic WWII destroyer and museum ship USS The Sullivans in danger of sinking
On November 13, 1942, the light cruiser USS Juneau (CL-52) was sunk by a Japanese submarine during the Battle of Guadalcanal. 687 men were killed including the five Sullivan brothers:…
7 things you didn’t know about Guadalcanal
During the seven months of the Guadalcanal campaign, 60,000 U.S. Marines and soldiers killed about 20,000 of the 31,000 Japanese troops on the island.
The main objective of the fighting was a tiny airstrip that the Japanese were building at…
This might be the most important moment in Marine aviation
In the 109 years of Marine Corps aviation, there have been significant accomplishments, happenings and many global conflicts. However, there’s one moment that’s considered the defining moment in Marine Corps…
A US Navy destroyer once won a surface engagement with potatoes
In 1943, the USS O’Bannon was on patrol near the Solomon Islands when it came in contact with a Japanese submarine. This encounter would end with one of the greatest…
This Marine stayed at his machine gun after taking a grenade to the face
On December 9, 1941, Al Schmid was in Philadelphia working as an apprentice steel burner. He was listening to the radio on Monday, December 8 when he learned about the…
6 times the Army destroyed Japanese troops in the Pacific
The general narrative of World War II credits the Marines and Navy for the victory in the Pacific and the Army and U.S. Army Air Corps for victory in Europe. In reality, there are actually a few Marine veterans of fighting in Europe and a massive nu…
Why the US used an island-hopping campaign in World War II
In World War II’s Pacific Theater, the United States had a big problem: the operating area was humongous. In one sense, it’s no surprise — the Pacific is the world’s largest ocean and they needed to get across that ocean in order to defeat Japa…
How this Coast Guardsman earned a Silver Star at Guadalcanal
Douglas Carlton Denman was born in Tallapoosa, Georgia, in February 1922. At the age of 18, he decided to join the Coast Guard and travelled to Atlanta’s recruiting office where a Coast Guard chief boatswain filled out his paperwork. Early on, he m…