Category History
‘THE GREAT ESCAPE’ 77 YEARS AGO TODAY MORE THAN JUST A NIGHT AT THE MOVIES
On this day in 1944, 76 Allied prisoners of war escaped from the German camp Stalag Luft III. Their story would be told 19 years later in the American-made film, “The Great Escape,” which starred Steve McQueen and, by many accounts, embellished the role of the camp’s American POWs while still managing to stick to […]
FINDING ROMANCE IN ARMY BOOTS AND A MESS HALL
By Les Goldberg / Special to CalVet Connect After a few less-than-memorable dates in high school and college, the last place Les Goldberg expected to find his future bride was in the Army – especially right at the start of the Vietnam War. But, believe it or not, that is exactly what happened. Just a […]
FINALLY AND OFFICIALLY, ‘STAR-SPANGLED BANNER’ BECAME AMERICA’S NATIONAL ANTHEM 90 YEARS AGO TODAY
The overwhelming majority of living Americans cannot remember a time when the Star-Spangled Banner” was not our national anthem. Francis Scott Key watched the British pound Maryland’s Fort McHenry during the War of 1812 and then wrote about that moment in history in a poem originally titled “The Defence of Fort McHenry.” A newspaper in Baltimore published the work on September 14, 1814, and he later changed the name to […]
HOW SOME PAST PRESIDENTS SPENT THEIR PRESIDENTS DAY
Presidents keep on working on the national holiday that many U.S. citizens have off.
CALIFORNIA ASTRONAUT FIRST TO FLY IN SPACE – NO STRINGS ATTACHED – 37 YEARS AGO TODAY
Imagine, being in outer space with no secure connection to the mothership. A bit unnerving, perhaps? Too Hollywood for you? Decades before George Clooney vanished into the galaxy in “Gravity” and Matt Damon took his chances in “The Martian,” Navy Captain Bruce McCandless II became the first person ever to fly untethered in outer space. […]
WORLD WAR II ENDED 49 YEARS AGO TODAY FOR THE LAST JAPANESE STRAGGLER ON GUAM
To most everyone else on the planet, World War II formally ended on September 2, 1945, when representatives of the Japanese government boarded the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay and signed the papers of surrender. One Japanese soldier on Guam, however, did not get the memo – or apparently any of the leaflets, or heard […]
JANUARY 14, 1784: THE DAY THE UNITED STATES BECAME A SOVEREIGN NATION
On January 14, 1784, the Continental Congress officially declared the sovereignty of the United States of America by ratifying the Paris Treaty.
SEVEN ON CALVET’S MEDAL OF HONOR WALL ALSO EARNED DISTINGUISHED SERVICE CROSS
Seven Californians received both the Medal of Honor and the Distinguished Service Cross. Their names grace the Medal of Honor Hall in California’s Department of Veterans Affairs headquarters in downtown Sacramento.
TODAY MARKS 231st ANNIVERSARY OF THE FIRST STATE OF THE UNION, BY GEORGE
Ratified in 1788, the Constitution of the United States of America contained a specific requirement for the nation’s first president, George Washington, and all others who followed. Article II, Section 3, Clause 1 mandated then, as it does to this day, that the president “shall, from time to time give to the Congress Information on […]
HAPPY NEW YEAR, WITH A LOOK BACK AT HISTORIC EVENTS HAPPENING ON THAT DAY
We tend to think of New Year’s Day as one of parades, college football games, replacing last year’s wall calendar, and for those who reveled too much the night before a day of aspirin and ice packs. However, some very significant events happened on New Year’s day throughout American history. Here is a sampling to […]
calvetconnect.blog 