Today in World War II History—January 6, 1940 & 1945

Today in World War II History—January 6, 1940 & 1945: 80 Years Ago—Jan. 6, 1945: Lt. (j.g.) George H.W. Bush marries Barbara Pierce. First contingent of WAVES arrives in Hawaii; 4,000 will serve there.

Wednesday, September 4, 1974. Recognizing East Germany.

The United States established diplomatic relations with East Germany.

Gen. Creighton Abrams, Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army, died at age 59 due to complications following a lung removal surgery.  He was a heavy cigar smoker.

Abrams had entered the Army following West Point as a cavalry officer.  He was a highly successful commander under Patton during the Second World War.  His tenure as commander in Vietnam was less successful.  Following that, he was appointed Chief of Staff by President Nixon.

All three sons of the general and his wife became Army general officers and all three daughters married Army officers.  Raised as a Methodist, he converted to Catholicism in Vietnam.

President Ford appointed George H. W. Bush to be the Chief of the U.S. Liaison Office to the People's Republic of China.

Last edition:

Monday, August 19, 1974. Gerald Ford on the cover of Time and Newsweek.

Labels: 1970s, 1974, Gerald Ford, press, Watergate

Thursday, June 12, 1924. Coolidge nominated, train robbed, disaster on USS Mississippi

Calvin Coolidge was nominated for President at the GOP convention.

The Newton Gang robbed the express mail train number 57 of the Milwaukee Road (the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad) near Rondout, Illinois.  The train was stopped at the time. The gang made away with more than $3M, worth about $54.3M today.  Their success was brief as one of their own members wounded another, preventing their escape.

Asphyxiation following a main battery turret explosion killed 44 crewmen of the USS Mississippi. The incident was the largest peacetime loss of life in the Navy up to that time.

The ship would serve until 1956 and was broken up in 1957.

George H. W. Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts.

Last prior edition:

Tuesday, June 10, 1924. GOP Platform adopted.

Labels: 1920s, 1924, Albania, Cleveland Ohio, Diplomacy, Election of 1924, Iraq, Mexican Revolution, Mexico, Ohio, Ohio (Cleveland), Politics, Radio, Republican Party, United Kingdom