Army history in September

Beyond its role in defense of the nation, the Army and its Soldiers have contributed to medicine, technology, exploration, engineering and science, The milestones listed in this monthly chronology offer only a small glimpse of that proud story For more about Army history, go of selfless service, It is also your story.

For more about Army history, go to www.ArmyHistoryFnd.org and www.Army.mil/cmh.

1700s

1775--Sept. 7. Continental Army SGT Ezra Lee pilots the first U.S. combat submarine, Turtle, in an unsuccessful attack on a British warship off Staten Island, N.Y. On the same day, the Continental Army is forced to withdraw after battles with the British at Brandywine, Pa.

1780--Three militiamen capture British Maj. John Andre and seize suspicious papers he'd hidden in his boot. The discovery uncovers a plot by American BG Benedict Arnold to turn over the defenses at West Point, N.Y., to the British Army.

1800s

1814--Defense of Fort McHenry. As dawn breaks on Sept. 13, MAJ George Armistead orders the raising of the American flag over the besieged fortress. The event, witnessed by Dr. Francis Scott Key, is the inspiration for Key's poem "The Star Spangled Banner."

1847--Battles of Molino del Rey and Chapultepec. Soldiers and Marines break the last defenses protecting Mexico City, which is surrendered to the Americans on Sept. 14.

1861--Union Soldiers in Virginia loft a gas-filled balloon on Sept. 24 to observe troop movements and adjust artillery fire using telegraph communications between air and ground crews.

1862--The Army of the Potomac clashes with the invading Confederate army at Antietam Creek, Md., on Sept. 17. It is the bloodiest day in Army history, with almost 13,000 killed, wounded or missing.

1863--Twelve-year-old Union drummer boy Willie Johnston of the 3rd Vermont Infantry Regiment is awarded the Medal of Honor on Sept. 16. The youngest Soldier ever to receive the award, he was cited for gallantry during the Peninsula Campaign in June 1862.

1900s

1908--Army Signal Corps LT Thomas Selfridge becomes the first person killed in a powered airplane accident when the Wright Flyer in which he is a passenger crashes at Fort Myer, Va., on Sept. 17.

1918--The Meuse-Argonne Campaign begins when the U.S. First Army quickly shifts forces north and launches a nine-division attack against German lines on Sept. 26. The offensive penetrates deep into enemy-held territory.

1919--On Sept. 23 Congress appoints John J. Pershing as "General of the Armies of the United States." He is the first man to hold the title.

1941--Birthday of the Military Police Corps, established on Sept. 26.

1942--Newly promoted Army Engineer BG R. Leslie Groves is placed in command of the super-secret "Manhattan Project" to develop an atomic bomb.

1944--On Sept. 17 the 82nd and 101st Airborne divisions make a daylight parachute assault in the Netherlands as part of Operation Market Garden. Four days later the 9th Inf. Div. advances into the Hurtgen Forest of Germany, beginning a battle that will last for months and involve five U.S. divisions.

1945--On Sept. 2, aboard the USS Missouri, anchored in Tokyo Bay, Japan signs the official surrender documents ending the war in the Pacific. The next day, recently released prisoner of war LTG Jonathan M. Wainwright receives the surrender of Japanese forces in the Philippines, where he had been captured.

1950--On Sept. 21 General of the Army George C. Marshall is appointed secretary of state, the first professional military man to fill that office.

1955--The Army adopts a new green uniform with black shoes, ending the days of the "brown-shoe" Army.

1957--President Dwight D. Eisenhower orders the 101 st Abn. Div. to Little Rock, Ark., to enforce federal laws requiring school integration.

1967--MG Keith L. Ware, commander of the 1st Inf. Div., is killed when his helicopter is shot down in Southeast Asia. A World War II Medal of Honor recipient, he is the first of five Army general officers to be killed by enemy action during the Vietnam War.

1979--With her promotion and appointment as chief of the Army Nurse Corps on Sept. 1, BG Hazel W. Johnson becomes the Army's first black female general officer.

1983--The Army officially receives delivery of its first AH-64 Apache helicopters, which will become the mainstay of its attack-helicopter forces.

1994--Units of the 10th Mountain Div., 3rd Special Forces Group, 25th Inf. Div. and others land in Haiti to restore the constitutionally elected government. The operation lasts until March 1996.

2000s

2001--Hijacked aircraft hit the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon, near Washington, D.C., on Sept. 11. National Guard and Reserve units are activated to respond to the attacks.

2002--In Operation Enduring Freedom, elements of the 82nd Abn. Div. and 75th Ranger Regiment air assault into areas near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, hunting for Taliban and al Qaeda groups.

2003--The first group of service members to receive "R & R" from Operation Iraqi Freedom arrives Sept. 26 at Baltimore-Washington International Airport. They are warmly greeted by hundreds of supporters who cheer their homecoming and assist with their connecting flights home.

By COL Raymond K. Bluhm Jr. (Ret.) An officer of the Army History Foundation and co-author of "The Soldier's Guide" and "The Army."

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