Army history in February

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 of selfless service. It is also your story.

1700--Rhode Island authorizes enlistment of free blacks and slaves to form the 1st Rhode Island Regiment, the first primarily black American regiment.

1779--COL George Rogers Clark's small force of 170 men recaptures Fort Sackville at Vincennes, III., on Feb. 26. Clark led the 180-mile march over icy, flooded prairies to surprise the British.

1800s

1808--LT Zebulon Pike's party reaches and explores the Rio Grande River, Feb. 7.

1847--In a two-day battle on Feb. 22 and 23, BG Zachary Taylor defeats a much larger Mexican force at Buena Vista, Mexico. The continued American victories by Taylor and MG Winfield Scott lead to the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo on Feb. 2, 1848, ending the Mexican-American War.

1864--In the largest escape of the Civil War, 109 Union Soldiers tunnel out of the Confederate's Libby Prison, Feb. 9, in Richmond, Va. Half of the escapees reach Union lines.

1870--The Army Signal Corps establishes the first weather service.

1881--"The father of American bacteriology," MAJ George N. Sternberg, discovers the germ that causes pneumonia. His continuing research also leads to advances in the battles against cholera, yellow fever and other diseases.

1885--In Washington, D.C., Feb. 21, the Washington Monument is dedicated, following its completion by the Army Corps of Engineers.

1862

MG Ulysses S. Grant conducts a joint Army-Navy campaign, Feb. 6-16, to capture Forts Henry and Donelson, opening the Tennessee River as a route deep into the Confederacy.

1901--Congress establishes the Army Nurse Corps, Feb. 2. The original group includes 202 female members.

1903--The Army General Staff and the position of Army chief of staff are created, Feb. 14, as a result of reforms by Secretary of War Elihu Root.

1918--Feb. 5, over Saarbrucken, Germany, Signal Corps LT Stephen Thompson becomes the first Army aviator to down an enemy plane.

1932--Army Chief of Staff GEN Douglas MacArthur approves establishment of the Purple Heart medal for combat wounds, Feb. 22.

1943--U.S. II Corps is hit by a massive German counterattack at Kasserine Pass, Tunisia, Feb. 19. After suffering heavy losses, the Allies recover the pass five days later. In Burma, Army engineers begin construction of the Ledo Road over the mountains to link Burma and China.

1944--The 1st Cavalry Division makes an amphibious landing in the Admiralty Islands, Feb. 29, and begins clearing out the Japanese defenders.

1945--Sixth Army units recapture Bataan, Philippines, Feb. 21. In Europe, units of XIII and XIX Corps cross the Roer River, Feb. 23, moving deeper into Germany.

1949--The Army launches a Bumper-WAC rocket, Feb. 24. It's the first man-made object to enter space.

1951--Although surrounded, the 23rd Inf. Task Force holds firm, Feb. 13 through 15, stopping the Chinese army at Chipyong-Ni, Korea.

1955--The U.S. agrees to send Soldiers to train the South Vietnamese army.

1956--The Army successfully fires the first Redstone rocket, from White Sands Proving Ground, N.M., Feb. 21.

1960--The Army successfully launches the first solid fuel Pershing ballistic missile from a mobile tactical launcher, Feb. 25. The missile can carry a nuclear warhead.

1963--The 11th Air Assault Div. is activated, Feb. 14, to test and demonstrate the Army's use of aviation and air-assault concepts.

1967--North Koreans ambush a 2nd Inf. Div. unit patrolling the Demilitarized Zone, killing one Soldier, Feb. 12. In South Vietnam, a battalion of the 173rd Airborne Bde. makes the only U.S. parachute assault of the Vietnam War, Feb. 22.

1984--LTC Robert L. Stewart becomes the first Army astronaut in space, Feb. 3, as a crewmember of space shuttle Challenger flight STS-41 B.

1999--Army helicopters and medical personnel are sent to assist in the rescue of avalanche victims in Austria, Feb. 25.

1912 The Army establishes the new rating of "military aviator."

1991 Offensive ground action of Operation Desert Storm begins, Feb. 23. The successful campaign to drive Iraqi forces from Kuwait lasts 100 hours.

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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