Marines.TogetherWeServed.com
Marine Corps History from the month of
October

Oct 1
1880 – John Phillip Sousa was named leader of the Marine Band.
1945 – The 1st Battalion 7th Marine Regiment landed and occupied Chinwangtao, China.
1949 – The 5th Marines became part of the 1st Marine Division under Colonel Victor Krulak.
1997 – Colonel Gilda A. Jackson became the first African-American female Colonel in the Marine Corps and was promoted during a ceremony at MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina.

Oct 2
1918 – Marines participated in the Battle of Blanc Mont in France.
Private John Kelly received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions at BLANC MONT RIDGE, France. (Navy Award)
Private John Kelly received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions at BLANC MONT RIDGE, France. (Army Award)
1942 – Major J.L. Smith shot down his 18th Zero, making him the highest scoring ace to date and received the MEDAL OF HONOR for his actions.
1952 – Private Jack W Kelso received the MEDAL OF HONOR posthumously for actions with I/3/7 in Korea.

Oct 2, 1918 – Private John J Kelly received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions at BLANC MONT RIDGE, France. (Army Award)

CITATION: Private Kelly ran through a barrage 100 yards in advance of the front line and attacked an enemy machine- gun nest, killing the gunner with a grenade, shooting another member of the crew with his pistol, and returning through the barrage with eight prisoners.

Oct 2, 1918 – Private John J Kelly received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions at BLANC MONT RIDGE, France. (Navy Award)

CITATION: Private Kelly ran through a barrage 100 yards in advance of the front line and attacked an enemy machine- gun nest, killing the gunner with a grenade, shooting another member of the crew with his pistol, and returning through the barrage with eight prisoners.

Oct 2nd, 1942 – Major John L Smith received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions as CO of VMF-223 in the Solomon Islands

CITATION: For conspicuous gallantry and heroic achievement in aerial combat above and beyond the call of duty as Commanding Officer of Marine Fighting Squadron TWO TWENTY-THREE, during operations against enemy Japanese forces in the Solomon Islands Area, August- September, 1942. Repeatedly risking his life in aggressive and daring attacks, Major Smith led his squadron against a determined force, greatly superior in numbers, personally shooting down sixteen Japanese planes between August 21 and September 15, 1942. In spite of the limited combat experience of many of the pilots of this squadron, they achieved the notable record of a total of eighty-three enemy aircraft destroyed in this period, mainly attributable to the thorough training under Major Smith and to his intrepid and inspiring leadership. His bold tactics and indomitable fighting spirit and the valiant and zealous fortitude of the men of his command not only rendered the enemy's attacks ineffective and costly to them but contributed to the security of our advance base. His loyal and courageous devotion to duty sustain and enhance the finest traditions of the United States Naval Service.

Oct 2, 1952 – Private Jack W Kelso received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions with I/3/7 in Korea.

CITATION: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a Rifleman of Company I, Third Battalion, Seventh Marines, First Marine Division (Reinforced), in action against enemy aggressor forces in Korea on 2 October 1952. When both the platoon commander and the platoon sergeant became casualties during the defense of a vital outpost against a numerically superior enemy force attacking at night under cover of intense small-arms, grenade and mortar fire, Private Kelso bravely exposed himself to the hail of enemy fire in a determined effort to reorganize the unit and to repel the onrushing attackers. Forced to seek cover, along with four other Marines, in a near-by bunker which immediately came under attack, he unhesitatingly picked up an enemy grenade which landed in the shelter, rushed out into the open and hurled it back at the enemy. Although painfully wounded when the grenade exploded as it left his hand, and again forced to seek the protection of the bunker when the hostile fire became more intensified, Private Kelso refused to remain in his position of comparative safety and moved out into the fire-swept area to return the enemy fire, thereby permitting the pinned-down Marines in the bunker to escape. Mortally wounded while providing covering fire for his comrades, Private Kelso, by his valiant fighting spirit, aggressive determination and self-sacrificing efforts in behalf of others, served to inspire all who observed him. His heroic actions sustain and enhance the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.

Oct 3
1899 – Marines skirmished with Filipino Insurrectionists at Luzon.
1912 – Marines participated in the Battles of Coyo Tepe and Barranca Hills in Nicaragua.
1918 – Corporal John H Pruitt received the MEDAL OF HONOR posthumously for actions at Blanc Mont Ridge, France.  Corporal Pruitt single-handed attacked two machine-guns, capturing them and killing two of the enemy and then capturing 40 prisoners in a dugout nearby.
1942 – Marines occupied Funafuti in the Ellice Islands.
1944 – PFC Richard E Kraus received the MEDAL OF HONOR posthumously for actions with the Eighth Amphibian Tractor Battalion on Peleliu.
PFC Wesley Phelps received the MEDAL OF HONOR posthumously for actions with 3/7 on Peleliu.

Oct 3, 1918 – Corporal John H Pruitt received the MEDAL OF HONOR posthumously for actions at Blanc Mont Ridge, France.

CITATION: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty in action with the enemy at Blanc Mont Ridge, France, October 3, 1918. Corporal Pruitt single-handed attacked two machine-guns, capturing them and killing two of the enemy. He then captured 40 prisoners in a dugout nearby. This gallant soldier was killed soon afterward by shell-fire while he was sniping at the enemy.

Oct 3, 1944 – PFC Richard E Kraus received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions with the Eighth Amphibian Tractor Battalion, on Peleliu.

CITATION: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the Eighth Amphibian Tractor Battalion, Third Amphibious Corps, Fleet Marine Force, in action against enemy Japanese forces on Peleliu, Palau Islands, on 3 October 1944. Unhesitatingly volunteering for the extremely hazardous mission of evacuating a wounded comrade from the front lines, Private First Class Kraus and three companions courageously made their way forward and successfully penetrated the lines for some distance before the enemy opened with an intense, devastating barrage of hand grenades which forced the stretcher party to take cover and subsequently abandon the mission. While returning to the rear, they observed two men approaching who appeared to be Marines and immediately demanded the password. When, instead of answering, one of the two Japanese threw a hand grenade into the midst of the group, Private First Class Kraus heroically flung himself upon the grenade and, covering it with his body, absorbed the full impact of the explosion and was instantly killed. By his prompt action and great personal valor in the face of almost certain death, he saved the lives of his three companions, and his loyal spirit of self-sacrifice reflects the highest credit upon himself and the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his comrades.

Oct 3, 1944 – PFC Wesley Phelps received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions with 3/7 on Peleliu.

CITATION: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the Third Battalion, Seventh Marines, First Marine Division, in action against enemy Japanese forces on Peleliu Island, Palau Group, during a savage hostile counterattack on the night of 4 October 1944. Stationed with another Marine in an advanced position when a Japanese hand grenade landed in his foxhole, Private First Class Phelps instantly shouted a warning to his comrade and rolled over on the deadly bomb, absorbing with his own Body the full, shattering impact of the exploding charge. Courageous and indomitable, Private First Class Phelps fearlessly gave his life that another might be spared serious injury and his great valor and heroic devotion to duty in the face of certain death reflected the highest credit upon himself and the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.

Wesley Phelps was born in Neafus, Kentucky, on 12 June 1923. He was educated in the Ohio County, Kentucky, elementary schools and graduated from Horse Branch High School in 1942. Radio was his hobby and he had built some one-tube sets. Deciding to turn his hobby into an occupation, he went to school in Owensboro, Kentucky, for four months where he studied basic electricity, then took a three-month course in radio repair work at the Lafayette Trade School at Lexington, Kentucky. He followed that with studies in field radio repair work, and radio repair work on aircraft receivers at the Johnson Pre-Frequency Modulation School.
Although he was the sole support of his aged parents who owned and operated a 70-acre farm with his help, he was called up by the draft and was inducted into the Marine Corps on 9 April 1943 in Indianapolis, Indiana.

After boot camp at San Diego, Pvt Phelps was assigned to the Signal Battalion at the Marine Base at San Diego for one month and then was transferred to the Infantry Training Battalion at Camp Elliot, California. He successfully completed an eight-week course on the Browning Heavy Machine Gun, 30 caliber, and was classified as a heavy machine gunner. Pvt Phelps joined the 27th Replacement Battalion in September and left the United States on 23 October 1943, joining Company M, 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines of the 1st Marine Division in December, just a few days before the unit left for the combat landing on Cape Gloucester, New Britain. After the Cape Gloucester campaign, all machine gun companies in the division, of which Company M was one, were broken up and their personnel were assigned to rifle companies. In this shuffle, Pvt Phelps became a crewman on a light machine gun in Company K of the same battalion. He was promoted to private first class in April 1944.

After a so-called "rest" at Pavuvu Island in the Russell Islands, the 1st Division left for the little-publicized Peleliu Island operation. After nineteen days of bitter and costly fighting, the night of 4 October 1944 found Company K strung out along the military crest of one of the coral mountains for which Peleliu is noted. With the Marines on one slope of the hill and the Japanese on the opposite slope, rifles became useless and a series of hand grenade battles took place over a period of several days.
During the night of the fourth the enemy launched a particularly vicious counterattack. PFC Phelps and a fellow Marine were in a foxhole when a Japanese grenade landed with a thud between them.  Private First Class Phelps shouted, "Look out, Shipley!" then unhesitatingly rolled over on the grenade, taking the full force of the explosion with his own body. Phelps was killed while PFC Richard Shipley received only a small scratch. The Kentucky farm boy had sacrificed his own life to save that of his buddy.

Private First Class Phelps was initially buried in the United States Armed Forces Cemetery on Peleliu, but was later reinterred in Rosine Cemetery, Rosine, Kentucky.

The Medal of Honor was presented to the hero's mother in Rosine, Kentucky, on 26 April 1946 by the Commanding Officer of the Naval Ordnance Plant at Louisville, Kentucky.

Oct 4
1776 – Marines participated in the USS Wasp’s capture of a British ship off the coast of New England.
1906 – Marines protected Americans during the revolution in Cuba.

Oct 5
1775 – The first time the Continental Congress mentioned the Marines was when it directed General Washington to give order for the "Proper encouragement to the Marines and seamen” who served on two armed vessels under "Continental risqué and pay".
1813 – Marines participated in the action between four ships of Chauncey’s squadron and four British ships on Lake Ontario.
1912 – A Marine detachment engaged revolutionaries in the Battle of Leon, Nicaragua.
1917 – The first elements of the 6th Marine Regiment arrived in St. Nazaire, France, with the 5th and 6th Marine Regiments shortly being brigaded as the 4th Marine Brigade, assigned to the 2nd Division, United States Army.
1918 – On the Western Front, further advance to St. Etienne, the large village located at the north foot of Blanc Mont, was made the 6th Marines which, with the 2nd Battalion leading and covering a sector of 1.5 kilometers in width, passed through the front lines of the 5th Marines at about 1500. This regiment, as was the case with the 5th, by this time had been greatly depleted by casualties.
1940 – The secretary of the Navy ordered all organized reserve divisions and aviation squadrons on call for active duty.
Air Detachment, Marine Barracks, Parris Island, later Marine Corps Air Station, Parris Island, was organized.
1942 – In the Solomons, U.S. carrier aircraft raided the Buin-Faisi-Tonelei area, Bougainville.
1943 – In the Pacific, Admiral Nimitz, CinCPOA, issued Operation Plan 13-43 directing ComCenPac to capture, occupy, defend, and develop Makin, Tarawa, and Apamama and vigorously deny Nauru
1950 – In Korea, after being relieved in place by other forces, the 1st Marine Division moved back to Inchon in preparation for further action. The division's losses in the Inchon-Seoul campaign totaled 411 dead and missing and 2,029 wounded.
1967 – Marine astronaut, Major Clifton C. Williams, Jr., was killed when his T-38 jet trainer crashed at Tallahassee, Florida. Major Williams was en route to Cape Kennedy. He was the eighth American astronaut to be killed since the space program began.
2004 – More than 3,000 U.S. and Iraqi troops, including the 24th MEU, launched an offensive operation in the southern approaches to Baghdad and took control of a bridge across the Euphrates River. Numerous weapons caches were discovered and 35,000 pounds of explosives were destroyed.

Oct 6
1813 – Marines participated in the capture of the British schooner 'Lady Gore' by the U.S. schooner 'Sylph' on Lake Ontario.
1858 – Marines and seamen from the U.S. sloop 'Vandelia', transshipped in the Mechanic, went ashore at Waya, Fiji Islands; to avenge murder of Americans engaged the natives in a fierce conflict.
1918 – On the Western Front, during the night of 5-6 October, the 3rd Battalion, 6th Marines, relieved the 2nd Battalion, and, at 0630 of 6 October, pushed ahead to the second line of trenches east of St. Etienne. Here the casualties were heavy, due largely to machine-gun fire from the village cemetery.
1924 – A detachment of Marines, commanded by First Lieutenant John T. Thornton, from the USS Asheville and the 1st Expeditionary Force of 101 Marines, commanded by Captain Francis S. Kieren, landed at Shanghai, China, to protect American interests as civil unrest continued.
1943 – In the New Georgia Group, action in the central Solomons came to a close when U.S. Army units made an unopposed landing on Kolombangara.
1945 – In China, Major General Keller E. Rockey, commanding the III Amphibious Corps, accepted the surrender of the 50,000 Japanese troops in the Tientsin-Tangku, Chinwangtao area.
Headquarters of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing was established at the French Arsenal near the airfield west of Tientsin.
Marine engineers, guarded by a rifle platoon, sent to clear roadblocks on the Tientsin-Peiping road, were fired upon by 40-50 Chinese troops. This was the first major armed clash between Marines and Chinese Communists in North China.
1950 – In Korea, after being relieved in place by other forces, the 1st Marine Division moved back to Inchon in preparation for further action. The division's losses in the Inchon-Seoul campaign totaled 411 dead and missing and 2,029 wounded.
1952 – In Korea, the 7th Marines made another attempt to get back Outpost Seattle and lost 12 dead and 44 wounded without achieving the goal. That night the Chinese attacked and seized Outposts Detroit and Frisco. A dawn counter-attack on 7 Oct retook Frisco, but division decided to abandon the exposed position. The fighting cost the Marines 32 killed and missing and 128 wounded.
Major Alexander J. Gillis, of VMF-311, on his last day as an exchange pilot with the Air Force, shot down two MIGs. During the fray, he, too, was shot down and spent four hours in the Yellow Sea before being rescued. During his 90-day tour with the Air Force he destroyed three MIGs.
1960 – Unaccompanied tours (without dependents) with FMF units in the Far East were reduced from 15 months to 13.
1962 – In Vietnam, five Marines and two Navy medical personnel died in an accidental crash of a Shufly helicopter. They were the first Marines to die in the Vietnam War.

Oct 7
1810 – Marines from the U.S. sloop Wasp assisted in fighting a fire at Charleston, South Carolina.
1846 – Marines and seamen from the U.S. frigate Savannah joined Gillespie's company from the American Merchantman Vandalia to land and recapture the town of San Pedro, California.
1918 – On the Western Front, near Blanc Mont, during the night of 7-8 October, the 1st Battalion, 6th Marines, occupied a gap that had developed between the French and the left of the brigade line while the 76th Company went into St. Etienne supported by the 74th, 75th and 96th Companies, respectively.
1919 – Some 300 of the followers of Charlemagne Peralte attacked Marines and gendarmes in the Battle of Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
1942 – On Guadalcanal, in an advance to extend the perimeter, the 5th Marines engaged the Japanese at the mouth of the Matanikau River while the 7th Marines (-) and the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marines (rein) crossed the river inland and raided the Point Cruz and Matanikau village areas. The raid thwarted an attempt by the 4th Japanese Infantry to cross the Matanikau and establish artillery positions there.
1944 – In the Pacific, CinCPOA published a Joint Staff study and issued it to his major subordinate commanders for use in the preliminary planning of the Iwo Jima invasion.
1945 – In China, roadblocks on the Tientsin-Peiping road were removed by Marine engineers supported by a rifle company of the 1st Marines, a tank platoon, and carrier air cover. The 5th Marines arrived in Peiping, 65 miles beyond Tientsin.
1946 – In Japan, Marine Aircraft Group 31 was returned to naval control by the Fifth Air Force.
1952 – S/Sergeant G Watkins received the MEDAL OF HONOR posthumously for actions with a Rifle Platoon of I/3/7.
1969 – In Vietnam, the last units from the initial group of 5,900 Marines to depart Vietnam were airlifted to Okinawa to join the 9th Marines Amphibious Brigade. The other elements returned to the US.
2001 – After launching from the USS Peleliu (LHA-5) in the Arabian Sea, the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit (SOC) secured two airfields in Pakistan a few hours before the first bombs were dropped on the Taliban forces in Operation Enduring Freedom.


Oct 7, 1952 – Staff Sergeant Lewis G Watkins received the MEDAL OF HONOR posthumously for actions with a Rifle Platoon of I/3/7, First Marine Division (Reinforced) in Korea.

CITATION: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a Guide of a Rifle Platoon of Company I, Third Battalion, Seventh Marines, First Marine Division (Reinforced), in action against enemy aggressor forces in Korea during the hours of darkness on the morning of 7 October 1952. With his platoon assigned the mission of re-taking an outpost which had been overrun by the enemy earlier in the night, Staff Sergeant Watkins skillfully led his unit in the assault up the designated hill. Although painfully wounded when a well-entrenched hostile force at the crest of the hill engaged the platoon with intense small-arms and grenade fire, he gallantly continued to lead his men. Obtaining an automatic rifle from one of the wounded men, he assisted in pinning down an enemy machine gun holding up the assault. When an enemy grenade landed among Staff Sergeant Watkins and several other Marines while they were moving forward through a trench on the hill crest, he immediately pushed his companions aside, placed himself in position to shield them and picked up the deadly missile in an attempt to throw it outside the trench. Mortally wounded when the grenade exploded in his hand, Staff Sergeant Watkins, by his great personal valor in the face of almost certain death, saved the lives of several of his comrades and contributed materially to the success of the mission. His extraordinary heroism, inspiring leadership and resolute spirit of self-sacrifice reflect the highest credit upon himself and enhance the finest traditions of the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.

Oct 8
1846 – Marines from the U.S. frigate Savannah were part of a land expedition from San Pedro to take Los Angeles. The expedition failed and returned on 9 October.
1899 – A force of 376 Marines under command of future Commandant George F. Elliott, attacked and captured the insurgent town of Novaleta, Luzon, Philippine Islands, and linked up with U.S. Army troops.  There were 11 Marine casualties.
1918 – 2nd Lieutenant Ralph Talbot received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions with Squadron C, First Marine Aviation Force, in France.
Gunnery Sergeant Robert G Robinson received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions as an observer in the 1st Marine Aviation Force at the front in France.
On the Western Front, the 71st Infantry Brigade, 36th Division, which had relieved the Marine Brigade, 2nd Division, on the night of 6-7 October, attacked towards St. Etienne in the early morning of the 8th but, after making a substantial gain, was driven back almost to its former front line.
During that operation the 1st Battalion, 6th Marines, was assigned as a connecting group to maintain contacts with the French to the west and to capture St. Etienne. The town was captured by the 76th Company, assisted by a few French soldiers. The 75th Company on its right was left in a desperate position by the retirement of the 71st Brigade but, despite the fact that the strength of the company was reduced to a mere handful of men under Sgt. Aralzaman C. Marsh and all of the officers were killed or wounded, it held to its advanced position. The Germans made a counterattack to retake the town during the early evening, but were successfully repulsed. The 3rd Battalion, like most of the other battalions of the Marine Brigade, was by this time reduced to fewer than 300 men.
1943 – In the Pacific, MajGen A.A. Vandergrift reassumed command of the I Marine Amphibious Corps on the death of MajGen Charles D. Barrett.
1950 – In Korea, The Fifth Air Force assumed operational control of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, and began to dictate how its sorties would be used.
1990 – The first fatal accident for Marines in Operation Desert Shield claimed the lives of eight when two UH-1N Huey helicopters crashed into the North Arabian Sea during a night training mission. The Marines were assigned to Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 164 for deployment.
2004 – The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005 was passed. The bill called for the increase in the end strength of the Marine Corps from 175,000 Marines to 178,000. The extra 3,000 Marines would be phased-in over three years and two-thirds of them would be used to bring the 24 infantry battalions up to full strength.

Oct 8, 1918 – Gunnery Sergeant Robert G Robinson received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions as an observer in the 1st Marine Aviation Force at the front in France.

CITATION: For extraordinary heroism as observer in the 1st Marine Aviation Force at the front in France. In company with planes from Squadron 218, Royal Air Force, conducting an air raid on 8 October 1918, Gunnery Sergeant Robinson's plane was attacked by nine enemy scouts. In the fight which followed, he shot down one of the enemy planes. In a later air raid over Pitthan, Belgium, on 14 October 1918, his plane and one other became separated from their formation on account of motor trouble and were attacked by 12 enemy scouts. Acting with conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in the fight which ensured, Gunnery Sergeant Robinson, after shooting down one of the enemy planes, was struck by a bullet which carried away most of his elbow. At the same time his gun jammed. While his pilot maneuvered for position, he cleared the jam with one hand and returned to the fight. Although his left arm was useless, he fought off the enemy scouts until he collapsed after receiving two more bullet wounds, one in the stomach and one in the thigh.

First Lieutenant Robert G. Robinson, who earned the Medal of Honor as a gunnery sergeant in World War I, died 5 October 1974, at his home in St. Ignace, Michigan. Although seriously wounded during aerial action over Belgium, he continued to fight and successfully drove off attacking enemy scout planes before two additional bullet wounds forced his collapse.
For his heroism and gallantry in this and previous action with enemy planes, while attached to the 1st Marine Aviation Force as an observer, GySgt Robinson received this Nation's highest award.
Gunnery Sergeant Robinson, shot 13 times in the abdomen, chest, and legs, and with his left arm virtually blown off at the elbow, helped bring the plane down in Belgian Territory. His arm, hanging by a single tendon, was grafted back on by the surgeon-general of the Belgian army. The pilot of his plane, Lt Ralph Talbot of Weymouth, Massachusetts, who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for this same action, was killed in a plane crash a few days later.
The Michigan native was born in Wayne, 30 April 1896. In May 1917, he enlisted with the Marines and the action in France followed. He was honorably discharged in 1919 as a gunnery sergeant and was appointed a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps Reserve. His retirement was effected in May 1923 and his promotion to the rank of first lieutenant, in September, 1936. Upon retirement, he made his home at St. Ignace, Michigan. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia.

Oct 8, 1918 – 2nd Lieutenant Ralph Talbot received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions with Squadron "C", First Marine Aviation Force, in France.

CITATION: For exceptional service and extraordinary heroism while attached to Squadron "C", First Marine Aviation Force, in France. He participated in numerous air raids into enemy territory, and on October 8th, 1918, while on such a raid, he was attacked by nine enemy scouts, and in the fight that followed shot down an enemy plane. Also, on October 14th, 1918, while on a raid over Pittman, Belgium, Lieutenant Talbot and one other plane became detached from the formation on account of motor trouble, and were attacked by twelve enemy scouts. During the severe fight that followed, his plane shot down one of the enemy scouts. His observer was shot through the elbow and his gun jammed. He cleared the jam with one hand while Talbot maneuvered to gain time, and then returned to the fight. The observer fought until shot twice in the stomach and once in the hip. When he collapsed Lieutenant Talbot attacked the nearest enemy scout with his front guns and shot him down. With his observer unconscious and his motor failing he dived to escape the balance of the enemy and crossed the German trenches at an altitude of fifty feet, landing at the nearest hospital and left his observer and returned to his aerodrome.

Oct 9
1776 – Marines participated in the capture of a British ship by the Wasp off the northeast coast of the US.
1917 – The 8th Marine Regiment was activated at Quantico, VA.  Although the regiment would not see combat in Europe during World War I, the officers and enlisted men of the 8th Marines participated in operations against dissidents in Haiti for over five years during the 1920s.  During World War II, the regiment was assigned to the 2nd Marine Division and participated in combat operations on Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Saipan, Tinian, and Okinawa, and earned three Presidential Unit Citations.
1918 – On the Western Front, in the vicinity of Blanc Mont and St. Etienne, to the right of the 2nd Division, AEF, the French 73rd Division attacked on October 9 and advanced the line to the northern edge of the woods north of the Orfeuil-St. Etinne road, troops of the 141st Infantry participating. To the left, the French 7th Division stated that it was going to attack, and requested the 2nd Division to maintain liaison Company E, 2nd Engineers, and the 76th Company, 6th Marines, consolidated a line around St. Etienne and advanced to positions north of the stream north of the town.
The 71st Infantry Brigade ordered the 142nd Infantry to move forward in the center and gain contact with the 141st Infantry, which was erroneously reported to be some distance in advance. At 11 a.m. a provisional battalion, designated as the 3rd Battalion, 142nd Infantry, advanced about 200 meters and dug in. About 10 p.m. this battalion later relieved the engineers and Marines in St. Etienne.
1942 – On Guadalcanal, Marine Fighter Squadron 121, commanded by Major Leonard K. Davis, and the rear echelon of the 2nd Marines, 2nd Marine Division, arrived on the island.
1943 – In the New Georgia Group, the 3rd New Zealand Division declared Vella Lavella secured.
In the Ellice Islands, Nukufetau airstrip became operational.
1944 – In the Pacific, MajGen Holland M. Smith received a CinCPOA directive ordering the seizure of Iwo Jima and naming the following commanders to the operation: Admiral Raymond A. Spruance, USN, Operation Commander; Vice Admiral Richmond Turner, USN, Joint Expeditionary Force Commander; General Smith, Commanding General, Expeditionary Troops; and Rear Admiral Harry W. Hill, USN, Second in Command, Joint Expeditionary Force.
In the Palaus, elements of Regimental Combat Team 321, USA, secured Garakayo, the largest island lying off Peleliu(s northern approach.
1950 – In Korea, despite warnings from Communist China that it would intervene in the war if any non-Korean forces entered North Korea, the President and the U.N. authorized US elements of Eighth to cross the 38th parallel. Army units moved into North Korea on this date.
1967 – In Vietnam, LtCol Gorton C. Cook, commanding Marines at Con Thien, said that, until a few days before, North Vietnamese forces had surrounded the outpost on three sides and were within 300 yards of Con Thien.
1968 – A memorial service was held for Marines, who died in the fighting at Khe Sanh where Operation SCOTLAND II took place. During the siege, American casualties totaled more than a thousand.
2001 – The 15th MEU (SOC) (-) moved ashore to Jacobabad, PK for security and TRAP operations.

Oct 10
1775 – Marines participated in the action between the Hannah (Washington’s fleet) and the British sloop Nautilus off the Massachusetts coast.
1847 – Marines participated in the capture of the Chilean brig Argo by the U.S. sloop Portsmouth in the Gulf of Mexico.
1918 – On the Western Front, near St. Etienne, the 36th Division took over the zone of action of the 2nd Division during the night of October 9-10, the 72nd Infantry Brigade relieving all units in support and reserve, and the 71st Infantry Brigade reorganizing and extending its front so as to relieve the units of the 2nd Division still in the front line. The Machine-Gun Company, 6th Marines, and Company E, 2nd Engineers, remained in the line until the night of October 10-11; Company F, 2nd Engineers, having been relieved early in the afternoon of the 10th. Command of the sector passed to the 36th Division at 10 a.m., October 10. The 2nd Engineers and the 2nd Field Artillery Brigade remained in line under the command of the 36th Division until October 28. The remainder of the division assembled near Souain and Suippes. Here, on October 10, the Infantry Brigade passed to the reserve of the French XXI Corps and the Marine Brigade was assigned to the reserve of the French Fourth Army. The division remained in this area until October 14.
1926 – A detachment of Marines and seamen from the USS ‘Denver' landed at Corinto, Nicaragua, to protect American lives and property.
1944 – On Peleliu, Companies E and G, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines, attacking Umurbrogol Pocket, secured Baldy Ridge.
In the Ryukyus, the fast carrier force of the Third Fleet struck Okinawa, and intelligence photographs were acquired.
1945 – Marine Separation Centers were activated at the U.S., Naval Training Centers in Bainbridge, Maryland, and Great Lakes, Illinois.
In China, the 50,000 Japanese forces in the Peiping area surrendered to the Eleventh War Area commander.
In the Volcano-Bonins, the advance echelon of the 1st Battalion, 3rd Marines, landed on Chichi Jima as part of the Bonins Occupation Force.
1947 – The first contingent of U.S. war dead was returned on the transport ‘Honda Knot’ to San Francisco.
1966 – In Vietnam, units of III MAF were shifted northward to prevent a possible North Vietnamese push across the demilitarized zone. The 1st and 3rd Divisions were moved north, while an Army airborne battalion moved into Da Nang to reinforce the Marine base there. For the first time, an Army infantry unit had been committed in the Marine sector in the Vietnamese war.
1968 – The 1st Marine Division and 1st MAW were awarded the Presidential Unit Citation.
1969 – The Marine Corps reduced unaccompanied tours in Japan and Okinawa from 13 months to 12.

Oct 11
1776 – Marines participated in the action between Arnold's fleet and the British on Lake Champlain.
1812 – Marines participated in the recapture of the American ship Mandarin by the U.S. frigate United     States in the North Atlantic.
1813 – Marines participated in the Maddequeeham Fight between the U.S. privateer 'Prince of Neufelatel' and boats of the British frigate 'Endymion' off Tom Nevers' Head, Nantucket.
1906 – A detachment of Marines landed and established a naval station at Baracoa, Cuba.
1942 – In the Solomons: The Battle of Cape Esperance. A United States task force of four cruisers and five destroyers, protecting a convoy carrying reinforcements to Guadalcanal, turned back a Japanese bombardment group with its reinforcing fleet headed for an attack on the island.
1944 – In the Pacific, the final decision on the status of Fleet Marine Force, Pacific, was given in Pacific Fleet Letter 53L-44 which stated that the Commanding General, Fleet Marine Force, Pacific, was a type commander for all units comprising the force and as such was under the direct control of CominCh. Aircraft, Fleet Marine Force, Pacific, was defined as a major component of Fleet Marine Force, Pacific, although operational control of its tactical units was to remain with the Commander, Air Force, Pacific Fleet, unless otherwise assigned.
On Peleliu, Hill 140, a position of tactical importance situated north of the Five Brothers, was secured by elements of the 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines. It provided a site from which fire could be directed on the Horseshoe and the draw between Walt and Boyd Ridges.
1945 – In China, the 6th Marine Division command post at Tsingtao was opened.
1949 – Brigadier General Vernon A. Magee, assistant director of Marine Corps aviation, told the House Armed Services Committee that the Air Force was neglecting the close air support mission.
1951 – In Korea, for the first time, a Marine battalion, 3/7 and its equipment was flown by transport helicopter (HMR-161) to a front line position in Operation BUMBLEBEE northeast of Yanggu.
Marines continued patrol and defensive operations in the east central front, north of the Punchbowl.
1954 – The Communist Viet Minh regime formally took over control of Hanoi and North Vietnam.
1968 – The Department of Defense announced that 17,500 men would be drafted in December and that 2,500 would go into the Marine Corps. This was the first time since May that the Marines were required to use draftees.
One of the three astronauts on Apollo VII during its 11-day space voyage was Marine Reserve Major Walter Cunningham.

Oct 12
1803 – Peace reestablished with Morocco after Reciprocal acts of hostilities.
1814 – Marines participated in the capture of the British ship Mary by the U.S. sloop Peacock off Barbuda, West Indies.
1917 – The First Marine Aviation Squadron and the First Marine Aeronautic Company were formed at Philadelphia from the Marine Aeronautic Company.
1920 – Men of the 4th Marine Regiment helped fight a severe fire in the center of the business district of Santiago, Dominican Republic.
1943 – In the Pacific, Admiral Nimitz, CinCPOA, issued Operation Plan 16-43, the first formal operation plan to deal with the Marshalls.
In the Bismarcks, Allied Air Forces, in the first of a series of raids to support the Bougainville operation, mounted the largest strike of the war against Rabaul airfield, and Simpson Harbor.
1944 – On Peleliu, the assault phase of the operation was declared ended, signifying a transfer of command functions from the assault forces to the Central Pacific echelons which comprised the Forward Area (Vice Admiral J.W. Reeves, Jr., USN), and the Island Command (Brig Gen H.D. Campbell).
1945 – In China, Observation planes of Marine Observation Squadron 6 landed at Tsangkou airfield near Tsingtao.
1946 – In the Carolinas, Administrative control of the provisional Marine detachment of the Commander, Truk and Central Caroline Islands passed to the Department of the Pacific.
1947 – Corregidor was formally turned over to the Republic of the Philippines.
1949 – Congress passed the Career Compensation Act. Among other provisions, it turned the existing enlisted pay grade structure on its head; privates were E-1s, instead of the other way around.
1960 – 1st Force Reconnaissance Company began to deploy elements as part of the transplacement rotation of units to Okinawa.
1966 – Operation Teton RVN initiated.
1967 – Corporal William T Perkins Jr. received the MEDAL OF HONOR posthumously for actions as a combat photographer with C/1/1, RVN, during Operation Medina.
2000 – The USS Cole (DDG 67) was disabled following a terrorist explosion that killed 17 sailors and wounded 39 while refueling in the harbor of Aden, Yemen. The ship was in transit from the Red Sea to Bahrain. Marines of the 2d Fleet Antiterrorism Security Team (FAST) were deployed to the Cole to assist in securing and investigating the area. The USS Cole was named after Sergeant Darrell Samuel Cole, USMC, who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for gallantry in World War II.

Oct 12, 1967 - Corporal William T Perkins Jr. received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions as a combat photographer with C/1/1, First Marine Division, RVN, during Operation -Medina-.

CITATION: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a combat photographer attached to Company C, First Battalion, First Marines, First Marine Division, in the Republic of Vietnam on 12 October 1967. During Operation MEDINA, a major reconnaissance in force, southwest of Quang Tri, Company C made heavy combat contact with a numerically superior North Vietnamese Army Force estimated at from two to three companies. The focal point of the intense fighting was a helicopter landing zone which was also serving as the Command Post of Company C. In the course of a strong hostile attack, an enemy grenade landed in the immediate area occupied by Corporal Perkins and three other Marines. Realizing the inherent danger, he shouted the warning, "Incoming Grenade" to his fellow Marines, and in a valiant act of heroism, hurled himself upon the grenade absorbing the impact of the explosion with his own body thereby saving the lives of his comrades at the cost of his own. Through his exceptional courage and inspiring valor in the face of certain death, Corporal Perkins reflected great credit upon himself and the Marine Corps and upheld the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.


Oct 13
1775 – Congress directed two vessels for the regular Navy be acquired and fitted out. Personnel were also authorized and, since Marines were a normal part of ships' complements, this is the first authorization of Continental Marines.
1776 – Marines participated in the action between Arnold's fleet and the British on Lake Champlain.
1836 – A force of Marines and seamen from Commodore Dallas' squadron, who were embarked in the U.S. sloop Vandalia, left the ship at Key West in boats on an expedition to Cape Florida, up the Miami River, and to New River, Florida, in search of Indians, returning to the ship on 9 December.
1891 – Retired Commandant of the Marine Corps, Colonel Charles G. McCawley, died at Rosemont, Pennsylvania; he was buried at Abington, Pennsylvania.
1911 – Ten Marines and seamen from the USS Helena landed at Hankow, China, to protect Standard Oil Company property from violent elements.
1918 – Squadron No. 9 of Marine Aviation, as part of a British Aviation group, made its first raid over enemy lines in France.
1942 – On Guadalcanal, U.S. transports McCawley and Zeilin arrived at Kakum with reinforcements from the 164th Infantry, Americal Division, USA and the 1st Aircraft Wing, and casual Marines and supplies. The 1st Marine Division reorganized the perimeter into five defensive sectors with the greatest strength concentrated on the Matanikau River where the Japanese attack was expected from the west. Two Japanese air strikes damaged Henderson Field and Fighter 1 and destroyed 5,000 gallons of aviation fuel.
1944 – The V Amphibious Corps headquarters moved to Pearl Harbor to facilitate planning for the Iwo Jima operations.
1945 – In China, the 6th Marine Division command post at Tsingtao was opened.
In Japan, all units of the 8th Marines, 2nd Marine Division, had established themselves in and around Kumamoto and begun the process of inventory and disposition.
The 26th Marines, north and east of Sasebo, was alerted for transfer to the Palau Islands.
On Okinawa, the Marine Detachment (Provisional), Naval Operating Base, Okinawa, was activated.
1951 – Tests of a flak jacket designed to protect the wearer form shrapnel and low-velocity bullets were completed with a handful of Marines in Korea.
1954 – In Vietnam, the South Vietnamese government assumed control of North Vietnam.
1958 – VMA-212 and 214 flew 4,800 miles from Hawaii to Japan, the first ever squadron-strength trans-Pacific flight by Navy or Marine fighter-type aircraft.
1965 – For its Vietnam service, which commenced on this date and lasted until 13 July 1966, Marine Attack Squadron 211 was awarded the Republic of Vietnam Armed Forces Gallantry Cross.

Oct 14
1917 – The First Marine Aeronautic Company was transferred from Philadelphia to Camp May, New Jersey, where its pilots began flying seaplanes.
1942 – On Guadalcanal, Japanese night bombers struck Henderson Field, damaging 42 of the 90 operable planes and causing heavy casualties; air operations were moved to Fighter 1. Later, Japanese cruisers bombarded the field, while six transports, carrying Lieutenant General M. Maruyama, 2nd Division were moved to Tassafaronga.
1943 – In the Pacific, Admiral Nimitz, CinCPOA, issued a plan for operations in the Marshalls, assigning troops to definite objectives and calling for the capture, occupation, and development of bases at Wotje, Malcelap, and Kwajalein; the target date for Wotje and Maloelap was set at 1 January 1944 and, for Kwajalein Atoll, the following day.
In the Southwest Pacific, Allied general headquarters approved a plan for the New Britain operations which proposed a landing by the 7th Marines (less one battalion) organized as Combat Team C on north shore beaches between Cape Gloucester and Borgen Bay; the remaining battalion was to land near Taual. The 1st Marines, organized as Combat Team B, would be in immediate reserve.
1944 – In the Pacific, the Commanding General, Fleet Marine force, Pacific, designated MajGen Harry Schmidt as Landing Force Commander for the Iwo Jima operation and directed him to prepare plans.
1950 – MAG-12 began operations out of Wonsan Airfield in North Korea.
1964 – 1st Lt Billy Mills won the gold medal in the 10,000 meter race at the Tokyo Olympics.
1966 – In Mexico, Marines participated in a joint-service task force airlifting food to victims of Hurricane Inez in Tampico.
1967 – Sgt Paul Foster received the MEDAL OF HONOR posthumously for actions with an Arty Battalion from 2/4, RVN.
1969 – The UH-34D Sea Horse helicopter went out of active service after 12 years in Marine Corps aviation.  The helicopters were transferred to units of the 4th Marine Aircraft Wing, Marine Corps Reserve located throughout the country.
1983 - One Marine killed, three wounded by sniper fire. Marine sharp-shooters responded, setting off three-hour fire-fight. Ceasefire of 26 September allegedly still in place.
2004 – Marines launched air and ground attacks against an insurgent stronghold in Fallujah, Iraq, after peace talks were suspended. Two Marine battalions from the I MEF engaged in the fighting with the goal of disrupting the anti-Iraqi forces. The peace talks fizzled over the demand that the insurgent mastermind Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and other foreign fighters be handed over to the authorities. On 30 October, heavy fighting in the area claimed the lives of eight Marines and nine others were wounded.

Oct 14, 1967 - Sgt Paul Foster received the MEDAL OF HONOR actions with Arty Battalion 2/4 at Con Thien.

CITATION: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as an Artillery Liaison Operations Chief with the Second Battalion, Fourth Marines, Third Marine Division, near Con Thien in the Republic of Vietnam. In the early morning hours of 14 October 1967, the Second Battalion was occupying a defensive position which protected a bridge on the road leading from Con Thien to Cam Lo. Suddenly, the Marines' position came under a heavy volume of mortar and artillery fire, followed by an aggressive enemy ground assault. In the ensuing engagement, the hostile forces penetrated the perimeter and brought a heavy concentration of small arms, automatic weapons, and rocket fire to bear on the Battalion Command Post. Although his position in the Fire Support Coordination Center was dangerously exposed to enemy fire and he was wounded when an enemy hand grenade exploded near his position, Sergeant Foster resolutely continued to direct accurate mortar and artillery fire on the advancing North Vietnamese troops. As the attack continued, a hand grenade landed in the midst of Sergeant Foster and his five companions. Realizing the danger, he shouted a warning, threw his armored vest over the grenade, and unhesitatingly placed his own body over the armored vest. When the grenade exploded, Sergeant Foster absorbed the entire blast with his own body and was mortally wounded. His heroic actions undoubtedly saved his comrades from further injury or possible death. Sergeant Foster's courage, extraordinary heroism, and unfaltering devotion to duty reflected great credit upon himself and the Marine Corps and upheld the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.


Oct 15
1827 – Marines participated in the action between the U.S. schooner Porpoise and 200 Greek pirates in the Doro Passage in the Aegean Sea.
1846 – Marines of Connor’s squadron participated in the second expedition against Alvarado, Mexico. The expedition withdrew after shelling the enemy.
1940 – Orders mobilizing the Marine Reserve were by Headquarters Marine Corps.
1942 – On Guadalcanal, SBDs of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, supported by planes from Espiritu Santo, attacked the Japanese force unloading troops and supplies at Tassafaronga. About 3,000-4,000 men of the 230th and 16th Infantry Regiments, as well as 80% of the ships cargo, were taken ashore before the Japanese were forced to flee up Sealark Channel; these troops, the last the Japanese were able to land before their concentrated attack on Henderson Field, brought the Japanese strength on the island to about 20,000 men. LtGen H. Hyakutake, commanding the Japanese forces on Guadalcanal, ordered his 2nd Division to attack Henderson Field and tentatively set the assault for 18 October.
1943 – In the Pacific, I Marine Amphibious Corps issued Operation Order No. 1 directing the 3rd Marine Division to seize Cape Torokins, Bougainville.
In the Solomons, Allied aircraft began an intensive pre-invasion bombardment of Bougainville.
1944 – On Peleliu, the permanent relief of the 1st Marine Division by the 81st Infantry Division, USA, began when the 2nd Battalion, 321st Infantry, took over the area held by the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines, across the northern end of the Umurbrogol Pocket.
On Saipan, Aslito airfield became operational for B-29s.
1945 – In Japan, the Oita Occupation Force - Company A (rein) of the 5th Tank Battalion operating as the infantry set up in Oita City and conducted a reconnaissance of the military installation in the coastal prefecture. The company served as an advance party for troops of the 32nd Infantry Division, USA.
1946 – In the Pacific, the administrative authority of the commanding General, Marine Garrison Forces, 14th Naval District, was extended to embrace all garrisons in the POA except for Fleet Marine Force units, Marine Corps air stations, and shore-based air warning units. The headquarters was redesignated Headquarters, Marine Garrison Forces, Pacific, and the garrison commander became the Commanding General, Marine Garrison Forces, Pacific.
1950 – In Korea, the 1st Marine Division embarked for movement to the city of Wonsan on the east coast of North Korea. Originally slated to be an amphibious assault, ROK forces will already have taken the objective by land on 10 Oct. VMF-312, VMF(N)-513, and ground crews of MAG-12 will have begun flying into the city’s airfield by 14 Oct.
1963 – Headquarters Marine Corps announced that Colonel Michael R. Yunck was named Marine Aviator of the year and recipient of the Alfred A. Cunningham Award.
1969 – Nearly all units of the 5th MarDiv, with the exception of the division headquarters, were deactivated
1970 – At An Hoa, the Marines turned over An Hoa Combat Base to the South Vietnamese.
Both U.S. and Philippine Marines conducted Exercise Fortress Light in the Philippines.
1983 – Marine sharpshooters kill four snipers.
1985 – A CH-46 crashed off Camp Lejeune, killing 14 Marines and a Navy chaplain.

Oct 16
1812 – Marines participated in the recapture of the American ship Ariadne by the U.S. brig ‘Argus’, in the North Atlantic.
1820 – LtCol Anthony Gale, 4th Commandant of the Marine Corps, was found guilty during a general court martial and was dismissed from the Corps.
1821 – Marines participated in the capture of five pirate vessels by the U.S. brig Enterprise, at Cape Antonio, Cuba.
1827 – Marines participated in the action between the U.S. schooner Porpoise and several pirate vessels off the island of Andros in the Cyclades Islands, off Greece.
1942 – On Guadalcanal, Marine Aircraft Group 14 relieved Marine Aircraft Group 23 as the administrative and maintenance agency at Henderson Field. Its commander, Lieutenant Colonel Albert D. Cooley was named to head an Air Search and Attack Command organized to control of all bombing reconnaissance and rescue operations on the island.
1944 – On Peleliu, Command of operations in the Umurbrogol Pocket passed officially to the Commanding Officer, 321st Infantry, USA, thus completing the relief of the 5th Marines who remained on the island in general reserve. The 7th Marines commenced movement to Purple Beach for embarkation to the Russells.
1957 – In Spain, Marines of HMR (L)-262, from the USS Lake Champlain, aided flood victims at Valencia by helicopter evacuation and distribution of emergency supplies.
1964 – LtCol Thomas J. Ross was named Marine Aviator of the Year by Headquarters USMC. He was the third recipient of the Alfred A. Cunningham Award and Trophy.


Anthony Gale, born September 17, 1782 in Dublin, Ireland was the fourth Commandant of the United States Marine Corps and the only one ever fired. Fewer records survive concerning him than any other Commandant but it is known that he was commissioned a Second Lieutenant on September 2, 1798.  Thereafter he fought, in fairly quick succession, the French, the Barbary pirates, the British, and one of his Navy mess-mates. As a young Marine officer serving in the Ganges, he had been struck by a Navy junior officer whom he "called out" and shot.  The action was received as honorable by then Commandant William Burrows.  This encounter, involving an affront to the Corps, brought about the naval officer's sudden demise and Commandant Burrows’ approval for Gale's defense of his Corps' honor.  

Unfortunately for Gale, increasing rank brought other difficulties not resolved so directly. In 1815, while commanding at Philadelphia, he fell out with then Commandant Franklin Wharton over construction of barracks.  A court of inquiry cleared him, but he was banished to a less desirable post, where he nursed a feeling of persecution and resumed drinking.

Following the death of Commandant Wharton in 1818 the position was filled in an acting capacity by Adjutant and Inspector, Brevet Major Samuel Miller and then by Brevet Major Archibald Henderson.  As a consequence of these and other alleged shortcomings, Captain Gale, although next senior at the time of Wharton's death, had to battle for the job.  Captain Archibald Henderson, second in line, was characteristically blunt in assessing Gale's qualifications, or lack of them, to the Secretary of the Navy.  After a court of inquiry exonerated him, Captain Gale, with 21 years of service, became Lieutenant Colonel Commandant on March 3, 1819.  By then, the Corps had been without a leader for six months.

Soon after came troubles with Navy Secretary Smith Thompson, who frequently countermanded LtCol Gale's orders in a humiliating manner.  Finally, Gale courageously submitted a letter analyzing the proper division of function between himself and the Secretary, and respectfully pointed out the impossibility of his position.  He paralleled this official reaction to infringements of his authority by unofficial retreats to alcohol.  Three weeks later on September 18, 1820 he was under arrest, charged with conduct unbecoming an officer.  The specifications included, "being intoxicated in common dram shops and other places of low repute." He pleaded not guilty by reason of temporary insanity but was found guilty and sentenced to dismissal from the service.  By October 8, 1820, the court had found him guilty, President James Monroe approved the verdict, and Gale was removed from office and the Marine Corps.

From Washington, Gale went first to Philadelphia where he spent several months in hospitals, then took up residence in Stanford Kentucky.  Armed with proof that he had been under the strain of temporary mental derangement while Commandant, he spent 15 years attempting to have his court-martial decision reversed.  Eventually, in 1835, the government partially cleared him and awarded him a stipend of $15 a month which was later increased to $25 and continued until his death in 1843 in Stanford, Kentucky.  He died about 1843 and his place of burial is unknown. He also remains the only Commandant for whom no likeness exists.


Oct 17
1812 – Marines participated in the capture of the British packet Swallow by the U.S. frigate President, in the Atlantic.
1814 – Marines and seamen again landed on Grand Terre Island, Louisiana, to punish pirates.
1858 – Marines were aboard ships of Commodore Shubrick's expedition to Paraguay, which lasted until February 1859, to demand retribution for firing on a U.S. warship.
1871 – Marines, commanded by LtCol John L. Broome, from the Navy Yard at Brooklyn, New York, established a guard over seized illicit distilleries in Irishtown, Brooklyn.
1941 – Prince Fumumaro Knoye's cabinet was forced to resign and General Hideki Tojo became Japan's premier and minister of war.
1944 – In the Southwest Pacific, the Commander, Army Air Force, issued detailed instructions concerning air facilities for the Luzon campaign and named actual units to participate, including the seven dive-bomber squadrons of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.
In the Philippines, the 6th Ranger Infantry Battalion, USA, captured Dinagat, Suluam, and Homonhon Islands in the Leyte Gulf completing Phase One of the Leyte campaign. Four Marine air officers from the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, including Major General Ralph J. Mitchell (ComAirNOrSols), landed as observers.
On Peleliu, the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines, engaged Japanese infiltrators who had occupied caves a short distance south of Umurbrogol Pocket; this was the last combat action of the 1st Marine Division on the island.
1949 – The 2nd Marines was reorganized and enlarged to full regimental strength. At the same time, the 6th Marines were also reactivated on the regimental level.
Commandant of the Marine Corps General Clifton B. Cates maintained that the Army general staff was attempting to "destroy" the Marine Corps. Marine authorized strength stood at 100,000 men but would be reduced to 67,000 by 30 June 1950. Cates stated that the Army wished to cut this to 50,000 or 60,000. Cates' views were supported by retired Marine Commandant Alexander A. Vandergrift.
1966 – To meet its needs in Vietnam, the Marine Corps deferred the resignation and retirement requests of 500 pilots and aviation maintenance officers.
1973 – In the Middle East, Arab nations instituted an oil embargo against countries supporting Israel as it battled Egypt and Syria following their surprise attack on 6 October. The U.S. bore the brunt of the embargo as it rushed arms to Israel.

Oct 18
1799 – Marines participated in the action between the U.S. revenue cutter brig Pickering and the French privateer schooner L'Egypte Conquiese, off Guadalupe.
1812 – Marines participated in the action between the U.S. sloop Wasp and the British brig Frolic, in the Atlantic.
1820 – Lieutenant Colonel Archibald Henderson became the 5th Commandant of the Marine Corps.
1845 – Lt. Archibald N. Gillespie, USMC, received orders to be ready to go to California on a secret mission for the President.
1859 – John Brown and his men were captured after the Marines attacked the Fire-engine house in Harpers Ferry, WV.
1942 – In the Pacific, Admiral Ghormley, ComSoPac, was relieved of the South Pacific Area command by Admiral W.F. Halsey.
1944 – The Joint War Plans Committee issued Operations for the Defeat of Japan in which Iwo Jima was listed as a contributing operation to the overall objective of the war, the ultimate invasion of the industrial centers of Japan.
1945 – In Japan, the 127th Army Infantry, less the 1st Battalion, landed at Sasebo under operational control of the 5th Marine Division to take over the 26th Marines' zone.
1948 – Colonel Katherine A. Towle reported for duty as the Director of Women Marines and the first to head the regular female component of the Corps.
1952 – In Korea, Rear Admiral Lucien A. Moebus, Chief of Naval Air Reserve Training, stated that two of every three strikes flown from carriers operating off Korea were manned by reserve Navy or Marine pilots recalled to duty. The Navy and the Marines expected reservists to comprise up to 76% of their strike power.
1958 – RLT-6 departed Lebanon, ending the deployment of US combat forces in that nation.
1982 – The High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV) was announced as the replacement for the venerable jeep. The Corps would take its first deliveries in late 1985.

Oct 19
1800 – Marines participated in a tribute to Dey of Algiers.
1944 – In the Pacific, Major General Harry Schmidt, commanding the Iwo Jima Landing Force, issued the first tentative operation blue-print to his troops.
1945 – In Japan, the 26th Marines was detached from the 5th Marine Division and returned to Fleet Marine Force, Pacific, control.
1962 – Following the discovery of Soviet offensive nuclear missiles in Cuba, Marine units began to receive alert orders. Nine hours after that order, 2/1 was ready to fly from El Toro and did so the next day.
1966 – Marines initiated Operation Dover, RVN. (Concluded 30 October)
1968 – In Vietnam, Operations MAUI PEAK, a combined operation which began on 6 October, ended in the area 11 miles northwest of An Hoa. The operation involved elements of the 1st Marine Division and claimed 203 enemy killed. Marines lost 28 killed and 148 wounded.
1969 – In Vietnam, Marines from Battalion landing Team 1/4, 3rd Marine Division, began embarking on board ships of the Seventh Fleet at Da Nang and Cua Viet to return to the division's home base on Okinawa. All elements of BLT 1/4 had left Vietnam by 25 October. The 4th Marines had been in Vietnam over four years.
1979 – Typhoon Tip ruptured a 5000-gallon fuel bladder at Camp Fuji, Japan. The gasoline poured downhill into the Marine base camp where it ignited and caused the death of 13 Marines of 2/4.

Oct 20
1800 – Marines participated in the capture of the French privateer brig Phoenix by the U.S. frigate Merrimack, off St. Christopher, West Indies.
1847 – Marines from U.S. sloop Portsmouth and Marines and seamen from the U.S. frigate ‘Congress' landed and seized the town of Guaymas in lower California.
1918 – On the Western Front, orders, received on the previous day from the Fourth French Army, directed that the Marine Brigade to Suippes to relieve the French Seventy-third Division. This order, which was to send the Marine Brigade back to the front of its last battlefield, not only separated the two Infantry brigades of the Second Division, but split the artillery by ordering part of it from the Thirty-sixth Division to accompany the Marine Brigade.  Other divisional services were likewise disrupted: medical, supply and ammunition trains, and the signal battalion. The elements which made up the Second Division were placed under three different French commands. The Marine Brigade was placed provisionally at the disposal of the Ninth Corps, French, to hold the sector of the Seventy-third French Division, in the region of the Attigny-Vone-Aisne River. The orders provided for a march of the Brigade, on 20 October, to the area of Suippes-Nantivet-Somme-Suippes where further orders were to be received. Necessary medical and signal services to enable the brigade to function independently were to be provided from the remaining train of the Second Division.  On October 20th, starting out from their briefly occupied billets just north of Chalons-sur-Marne, the Marine Brigade marched through a cold rain to Suippes and adjacent camps where it bivouacked for the night.
1926 – President Calvin Coolidge approved the use of 2,500 Marines to guard the United States mails.
1942 – On Guadalcanal, LtGen M. Maruyama, IJA, postponed the assault on Henderson Field until 22 October. A Japanese combat patrol augmented by two tanks, appeared on the west bank of the Matanikau River but was turned back by fire from the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines.
1943 – The First Joint Assault Signal Company was activated at Camp Pendleton, California, to coordinate supporting fires during amphibious operations; it was later attached to the 4th Marine Division for the Marshalls operation.
On New Georgia, Commander, Aircraft, Solomons, displaced forward to Munda Airfield and began operations from that strip.
In the Solomons, fighter-bomber groups of the Allied air forces struck the Simpson Harbor and Rabaul airfields, causing considerable damage to Japanese installations, reducing the Japanese ability to strike at the Bougainville assault forces.
1944 – In the Pacific, the Commanding General, Fleet Marine Force, Pacific, issued a directive to the Commanding General, Iwo Jima Landing Force, in which troop assignments for training, planning, and operations were designated. The V Amphibious Corps was to be ready for combat by 15 December.
On Peleliu, the 81st Infantry Division, USA, established its command post on the island, and the III Amphibious Corps and the 1st Marine Division staffs departed.
In the Philippines, the main invasion of Leyte began when the X and XXIV Corps, Sixth U.S. Army, went ashore on the east coast of the island.
1960 – In the Caribbean, BLT 2/2, VMA-331 and HMR (L)-261 departed for standby duty at Vieques. They would return to North Carolina on 17 Jan 1961.
1962 – At 1100, October 19th, the 2nd Battalion (Rein), 1st Marines, received orders to be prepared to move out, combat ready. The battalion was ready nine hours later. On the 20th, it was transported to El Toro and embarked on jet aircraft for Guantanamo Bay.
1963 – Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 162 (MAG-26) from New River arrived in Port au Prince Bay, on board the USS Tueh's Bay, to deliver food and supplies to hurricane-stricken areas of Haiti's southern peninsula.
1967 – In Vietnam, Operation MEDINA, which began on 11 October, was terminated in southern Quang Tri Province. During the operation 54 enemy and 34 Marines were killed.
1978 – President Carter signed legislation that made the Commandant a full member of the JCS.

Oct 21
1842 – Marines and seamen from the U.S. frigate United States and the U.S. sloop Cyane landed at  Monterey, California, and seized the town under impression the United States was at war with Mexico. When this was found to be untrue, they withdrew.
1918 – On the Western Front, early in the morning, under ideal weather conditions, the Marine Brigade resumed the march over its recent battle ground to the Leffincourt-Mozagran-Medeah Farm area.  Disposition plans for taking over the front called for the Fifth Regiment with two battalions to relieve the Three Hundred Sixty-seventh Regiment (French) in the right sector and the Sixth, with two battalions, to relieve the Five Hundred Fifty-sixth (French) in the left Subsector. The remaining battalions of the brigade were to be held in reserve at Leffincourt. Owing to marching conditions, and the 40-kilometer length of the march, all organizations did not reach their assigned positions in scheduled time. Preliminary reconnaissance of the sector was to start during the night, but was stopped by French orders (73rd D.I.) Directing the Brigade to remain in place after it had concentrated all troops within the assigned area.
1942 – Admiral Kink, CNO, informed CinCPOA that the JCS had agreed to strengthen the air forces in the South Pacific by 1 January 1943.
1944 – Marines of V Amphibious Corps landed at Leyte, Philippines, in support of the U.S. Army.
The JCS ordered CinCSWPA to assault Luzon on 20 December and CinCPOA to land Marines on Iwo Jima on 20 January 1945. The invasion of the Ryukyus was to follow on 1 March 1945.
Marine Carrier Groups, Aircraft, Fleet Marine Force, Pacific, was established as a tactical command with headquarters at Santa Barbara, California.
The Provisional Air Support Command was organized.
1945 – In China, the flight echelon of Marine Aircraft Group 32 reached Tsingtao.
In Japan, the 26th Marines (less the 2nd Battalion to be disbanded) departed Sasebo for the Palau Islands to supervise the repatriation of Japanese troops from the Western Carolinas.
1949 – Secretary Johnson assured Congress that the Marine Corps would continue in existence. There was conflicting testimony over the reason for the forced resignation of former Navy Secretary John L. Sullivan, who claimed he was pushed out in April 1949 because he was opposed to the abolition of Marine and Navy aviation and the slow death of the Marine Corps.
1950 – In Korea, Gen MacArthur publicly announced that the end of the war was near.
1951 – Marine Corps Commandant General Clifton B. Cates, 58, announced in Honolulu that he would not retire when his four-year term as commandant expired on January 1. Cates would be the second commandant in Marine Corps history to accept a lower post.
1962 – In Cuba, elements of the 1st and 2nd Marine Divisions began arriving at Guantanamo Bay to reinforce the garrison there.
1966 – Marines initiated in Operation Madison, RVN. (Concluded 30 October)
1970 – In the Philippines, SLF Alpha (primarily HMM-164) assisted in disaster relief operations in the wake of Typhoon Joan.
1977 – A CH-53D helicopter crashed during an exercise on Mindoro Island in the Philippines, killing 23 Marines and one corpsman, and injuring 13.
1983 – In Grenada, following a Communist coup in this Caribbean nation, 22nd MAU was ordered to divert to the area to protect American citizens. It had just started its journey toward Lebanon.

Oct 22
1777 – Continental Marines helped foil Gen. William Howe's plans to capture Philadelphia.
1782 – Marines participated in the capture of the ship Thomas by the Connecticut privateer Marshall.
1917 – The 5th and 6th Marines and the 6th Machine Gun Battalion became part of the AEF.
1918 – On the Western Front, the Marine Brigade was ordered to rejoin the First American Army and to march back to the Souain-Perthes area and camps southward. The procrastinating and confusing character of French orders depressed the troops.
1943 – In the Pacific, I Marine Amphibious Corps ordered the 2nd Parachute Battalion to land on Choiseul in the northern Solomons on the night of 27-28 October to conduct a diversionary raid preliminary to the Bougainville landings.
The Commander, V Amphibious Corps, ordered his Reconnaissance Company to land on Apamama Atoll, Gilbert Islands, 19-20 November, and determine Japanese strength there.
1962 – President Kennedy publicly announced a quarantine to force Soviet withdrawal of missiles from Cuba.
The 5th Marine Expeditionary Brigade of over 11,000 men was on board ships in San Diego harbor by 0800 awaiting orders to sail for the Caribbean.
Dependents were evacuated from the U.S. Naval Base, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
1968 – Private First Class Gary W. Martini was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor by Secretary of the Navy Paul R. Ignatius for action in Vietnam during Operation UNION in 1967.
1969 – Marine Observation Squadron 6 departed Vietnam for Okinawa. The squadron had begun operations in Vietnam on 1 September 1965.

Oct 23
1846 – In the First Expedition up the Tabasco River, Marines from Commodore Perry’s squadron landed and captured the town of Fronters, Mexico.
1856 – Marines and seamen from the U.S. sloop Portsmouth went ashore at Canton, China, to protect American lives and property during a Chinese religious war. They were later reinforced by Marines and seamen from the U.S. steamer San Jacinto and the U.S. sloop Levant.
1918 – On the Western Front, the Marine Brigade, retracing its steps, again moved back over the wreckage of the Blanc Mont battlefield. It passed over the devastated country surrounding the Souain-Suippes road and on to the old Champagne billet-holes, now far from the active front. When the brigade arrived in this locality, late in the afternoon, the troops dropped like inert bodies into the chicken-wire bunks of the dark, rat-and-louse infested dugouts. These movements taxed the strength of the troops.  The men had marched from 80 to 110 kilometers in 4 days, with only 1 day of rest. A large part of the march was made under bad weather conditions. Remarkably few men were evacuated because of foot disorders, but on the last day about 20% of the command marched with difficulty and conditions were beginning to grow serious. Blisters and abrasions were caused by the stiffness of English shoes which had been issued prior to leaving the Buoy area on 20 October. Replacements, recently joined, stood the marches well.
1942 – The 4th Raider Battalion under Major James Roosevelt was organized.
On Guadalcanal, Japanese mortar and artillery fire was intensified along the Marine east bank positions of the Matanikau River. A Japanese tank and infantry assault across the river was repelled.
In the Pacific, at a conference in Noumea, Admiral Halsey, ComSoPac, promised MajGen A.A. Vandergrift, commanding forces on Guadalcanal, more support for the Guadalcanal operation and requested additional help from CinCPac and Washington.
1944 – In the Philippines, the Battle of Leyte Gulf. The Third and Seventh U.S. Fleets destroyed the power of the Japanese Navy in the last serious threat to the U.S. reinvasion of the islands. The Japanese lost four carriers, three battleships, ten cruisers, nine destroyers, and a submarine; the U.S. also sustained heavy losses.
1950 – United Nations troops pushed the remnants of North Korea's army into the high mountains and toward Manchuria, only a little more than fifty miles away.
1951 – In Korea, VMA-121 arrived at K-3 airfield from the U.S.
VMF-441 was reestablished as a reserve squadron at Niagara Falls, New York.
1962 – Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara announced that U.S. military forces throughout the world had been put on alert - Tours of duty of all Navy and Marine Corps personnel were extended until further notice.
1968 – In Vietnam, Operation MAMELUKE THRUST, conducted by elements of the 1st Marine Division and the 26th Marines, ended 25 miles southwest of Da Nang. The operation began on 19 May and accounted for 2,730 enemy killed. Friendly casualties were 296 killed.
Operation HENDERSON HILL: the 5th Marines launched a series of search and destroy operations south of Da Nang. When the operation wound up on 6 Dec, the regiment had killed 700 enemy and lost 35 Marines dead and 272 wounded.
1983 – In Beirut, Lebanon, a truck bomb destroyed the building housing the headquarters of BLT 1/8.  Marine casualties were 220 killed and 70 wounded, with 21 other American servicemen also dead.  This was the highest one-day death toll in the Corps since WWII. A similar attack was made against the French position, killing 58. Elements of 2/6 began deploying that day from Camp Lejeune to reinforce the BLT, while the Marine detachment of New Jersey came ashore in the meantime..
2003 – Today marked the 20th anniversary of the bombing of the US Barracks in Beirut, Lebanon. The 1983 suicide attack killed 241 American servicemen, including 220 Marines, and launched a new era in the Middle East. Although no one knows for sure who was behind the bombing, a federal judge in Washington in a lawsuit filed by 153 families ruled in May 2003 that Iran funded the bombing. The governing body of Iran was ordered to pay restitution to survivors and relatives.

Oct 24
1813 – Marine Barracks established at Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
1901 – US Marines under Major Littleton W.T. Waller land in Samar during the Philippine Insurrection, to avenge the recent slaughter and mutilation of a company of American 9th Infantry regulars.
1915 – Gunnery Sergeant Dan Daly received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions at Fort Liberte, Haiti (2nd Award)
Captain William P Upshur received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions at Fort Liberte, Haiti.
A Marine reconnaissance patrol was ambushed by Cacos rebels, but successfully routed the attackers in the Battle of Grosse Roche, Haiti.
Marine Corps Recruit Depot was moved from Norfolk, Virginia, and established at Paris Island, South Carolina.
1918 – On the Western Front, the Marine Brigade, unable to continue its march without impairing its combat efficiency, established bivouac at Camp Montpelier and the men were allowed to rest and clean up while the medical personnel gave attention in innumerable sore feet. Three hot meals went far toward reviving the spirits of the troops. Except for sore feet the general health of the men remained good, despite the hardships undergone.
1942 – On Guadalcanal, the Japanese launched an assault against the south flank of the defense perimeter; the 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, supported by fire of the 2nd Battalion, 164th Infantry, USA, and reinforced by the 3rd Battalion, 164th Infantry, USA, repelled repeated attacks.
1943 – In the Solomons, Colonel William O. Brice relieved LtCol Samuel S. Jack as head of the Fighter Command. In the Solomons, fighter-bomber groups of the Allied air forces again struck the Simpson Harbor and Rabaul airfields, causing considerable damage to Japanese installations, reducing the Japanese ability to strike at the Bougainville assault forces.
1944 – In the Pacific, Fleet Marine Force, Pacific, General Order No. 30-44 was issued, enumerating the relationships between Fleet Marine Force, Pacific, and the Air Force, Pacific Fleet, in aviation matters.
1945 – In Japan, the Fukuoka Occupation Force was dissolved when the 32nd Infantry Division, USA, opened its command post in Fukuoka. A base command force comprising the service elements that had been assigned to the occupation force was set up to support the operations in northern Kyushu.
The 27th Marines, less the 1st Battalion, established its headquarters in Kurume and assumed responsibility for the central portion of the 5th Marine Division zone.
1947 – The Marine Corps first jet fighter squadron, VMF-122, was organized at Cherry Point, North Carolina, commanded by Major Marion E. Carl. It was equipped with McDonnell (Phantom) FH-1s.
1954 – President Dwight D. Eisenhower, in a letter to Premier Ngo Dinh Diem of South Vietnam, stated that American assistance would be given thereafter not through the French authorities, but directly to the government of South Vietnam.
1967 – In Vietnam, Marine, Navy, and Air Force jets hit Phuc Yen Airfield, which was the control center for North Vietnamese air defense. During the raid 10 MIGs were destroyed.
1972 – In Vietnam, The U.S. halted bombing attacks north of the 20th parallel due to progress in peace talks.


Oct 24, 1915 - Gunnery Sergeant Dan Daly received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions at Fort Liberte, Haiti (2nd Award)

CITATION: Serving with the Fifteenth Company of Marines on 22 October 1915, Gunnery Sergeant Daly was one of the companies to leave Fort Liberte, Haiti, for a 6-day reconnaissance. After dark on the evening of 24 October, while crossing the river in a deep ravine, the detachment was suddenly fired upon from three sides by about 400 Cacos concealed in bushes about 100 yards from the fort. The Marine detachment fought its way forward to a good position, which it maintained during the night, although subjected to a continuous fire from the Cacos. At daybreak the Marines, in three squads, advanced in three different directions, surprising and scattering the Cacos in all directions. Gunnery Sergeant Daly fought with exceptional gallantry against heavy odds throughout this action.

Oct 24, 1915 - Captain William P Upshur received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions at Fort Liberte, Haiti.

CITATION: In company with members of the Fifteenth Company of Marines all mounted, Captain Upshur left Fort Liberte, Haiti, for a 6-day reconnaissance. After dark on the evening of 24 October 1915, while crossing the river in a deep ravine, the detachments was suddenly fired upon form three sides by about 400 Cacos concealed in bushes about 100 yards form the fort. The Marine detachment fought its way forward to a good position, which it maintained during the night, although subjected to a continuous fire from the Cacos. At daybreak, Captain Upshur, in command of the three squads which advanced in three different directions, led his men forward, surprising and scattering the Cacos, and aiding the capture of Fort Dipitie

Oct 25
1812 – Marines participated in the action between the U.S. frigate United States and the British frigate Macedonian, in the Atlantic.
1813 – Marines participated in the capture of the British ship Rose by the U.S. frigate Congress, in the Atlantic.
1827 – Marines participated in the capture of a pirate brig by the U.S. sloop Warren, off Greece.
1846 – As Perry's squadron continued up the Tabasco River, Marines landed below Fort Accachappa, a few miles downriver from San Juan Bautista) and advanced to capture the fort; whereupon, they reembarked and the expedition proceeded upriver. Perry's squadron arrived at San Jan Bautista, Mexico, on the Tabasco River where Marines landed and captured the town.
1876 – Per Mare, Per Terram was authorized by the Navy Department as the motto for the Marine Corps flag in commemoration of the service of the Marine Corps with the Army during the war with Mexico.
1915 – A Marine patrol fought the Battle of Fort Kipitie, Haiti, against Cacos rebels.
1918 – On the Western Front, in the morning, along the Somme-Suippes-Somme-Tourbe highway, the infantry elements of the Marine Brigade embossed in camions and proceeded eastward through Valmy and St. Menehould to Les Islettes. The machine-gun companies of the regiments had been attached to the Sixth Machine Gun Battalion during the previous days at Somme-Suippes and marched to Valmy. Resuming the march, on the morning of the 25th, passing over the same route taken by the infantry, they went to Les Islettes, and to bivouacs in the Argonne Forest at Camp Cabaud. The 5th Marines proceeded a short distance northeast of Les Islettes by marching and at 1500 settled in Camps Cabaud, La Houe, and Brune. The 6th Marines, after having debussed at Les Islettes, marched northward over the Les Islettes-Losheres-Croix de Pierre road to Camp Lenhart. At this point the Marine Brigade reunited with the Second Division.
1942 – Sergeant John Basilone received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions with 1/7 at Lunga Area, Guadalcanal.
On Guadalcanal, Japanese destroyers harassed U.S. shipping in Sealark Channel and beach positions of the 3rd Defense Battalion at the same time that Japanese bombers attacked Henderson Field. An assault against the south flank of the Lunga Perimeter, defended by the 1st Battalion of the 164th Infantry, USA (rein), was repulsed. A second Japanese attack, south of Hill 676 in the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines' zone, penetrated the Marine line but was later driven off by elements of the 2nd Battalion, joined by a company of the 5th Marines.
1943 – In the Solomons, fighter-bomber groups of the Allied air forces again struck the Simpson Harbor and Rabaul airfields, causing considerable damage to Japanese installations, reducing the Japanese ability to strike at the Bougainville assault forces.
1944 – On Tinian, the 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, assumed responsibility for the mop-up of the island when other elements of the regiment returned to Saipan.
1945 – In China, the Japanese formally surrendered the Tsingtao garrison in Shangtung to MajGen Lemuel C. Shepherd and LtGen Chen Pao-Tsang, CNA, acting for the Chinese Central Government. In Japan, Marine Aircraft Group 22, at Sasebo, was returned to the operational control of the U.S. Navy.
1949 – In the largest post-WWII amphibious exercise to date, Navy, Army, and Marine forces launched a simulated assault on Hawaii to liberate it from an aggressor.
1951 – In Korea, for the first time, a flight of Corsairs from VMF-312 was attacked by eight enemy MIGs as the Marine aircraft attacked a railroad and three trains near Myong-dong. Sixteen other MIGs were observed in the area, but the Red planes were not aggressive and their shooting was inaccurate. A direct hit on a locomotive and two hits on rail cars were scored by the F4U-4Bs.
1966 – Marines initiated Operation Kern in Quang Nam, RVN
1967 – Major Howard V. Lee received the Medal of Honor from President Johnson for his actions in Vietnam, in August 1966.
1969 – LtCol Paul W. Nielsen was named Marine Aviator of the Year. He was awarded the 1969 Alfred A. Cunningham Trophy for outstanding contributions to Marine Aviation while commanding Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 161 at Quang Tri, Republic of Vietnam.
1983 – BLT 2/8, of the 22nd MAU, landed at Grenada at 0500 to rescue 800 college students on the eastern Caribbean island.

Oct 25, 1942 - Sergeant John Basilone received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions with 1/7 at Lunga Area, Guadalcanal.

CITATION: For extraordinary heroism and conspicuous gallantry in action against enemy Japanese forces, above and beyond the call of duty, while serving with the First Battalion, Seventh Marines, First Marine Division, in the Lunga Area, Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, on October 24 and 25, 1942. While the enemy was hammering at the Marines' defensive positions, Sergeant Basilone, in charge of two sections of heavy machine guns, fought valiantly to check the savage and determined assault. In a fierce frontal attack with the Japanese blasting his guns with grenades and mortar fire, one of Sergeant Basilone's sections, with its gun crews, was put out of action, leaving only two men able to carry on. Moving an extra gun into position, he placed it in action, then, under continual fire, repaired another and personally manned it, gallantly holding his line until replacements arrived. A little later, with ammunition critically low and the supply lines cut off, Sergeant Basilone, at great risk of his life and in the face of continued enemy attack, battled his way through hostile lines with urgently needed shells for his gunners, thereby contributing in a large measure to the virtual annihilation of a Japanese regiment. His great personal valor and courageous initiative were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.

Oct 26
1778 – Marines were aboard the Lee when she returned to Marblehead, ending the last cruise of a ship of Washington's fleet.
1898 – Marine Barracks was established at Naval Station, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
1918 – On the Western Front, at 1330, the Marine Brigade of the 2nd Division, AEF, started its march to front-relief positions, over difficult roads and old trenches, as it moved up the Argonne Forest via Varennes and Charpentry to the area southeast of Exermont.
1940 – A Marine Parachute Detachment was organized at the Naval Air Station, Lakehurst, New Jersey.
1942 – Platoon Sergeant Mitchell Paige received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions with the 2/7 on the Solomon Islands.
In the Solomons, the Battle of Santa Cruz, the USS Enterprise and Hornet carrier groups moved in to Sealark Channel and met a Japanese naval force in an air-air and air-surface battle; the Japanese force withdrew after hearing of its army's failure on the island. The USS carrier Hornet was fatally damaged.
1945 – In the Palaus, the 26th Marines arrived on Peleliu Island to relieve the 111th Infantry, USA, as the garrison force.
1950 – In Korea, the 1st Marine Division made an unopposed landing at Wonsan, Korea, on the east coast which began operations in Northeast Korea and established security for the port of Wonsan. When joined by other units, the Marines were to move northward toward the Manchurian border.
1952 – 2nd Lt Sherrod E Skinner Jr. received the MEDAL OF HONOR posthumously for actions as an Artillery Forward Observer of Battery F, Second Battalion, Eleventh Marines in Korea.
In Korea, following an extremely heavy bombardment, Chinese troops attacked the Hook and nearby Outposts Ronson and Warsaw. They took all three. The 1st MarDiv received unusually heavy air support, much of it from 1st MAW, and makes determined counterattacks throughout the 27th and 28th that finally succeeded in regaining all the lost ground. Chinese attacks against other outposts along the division line were repulsed. The enemy is estimated to have fired as many as 34,000 shells during this battle, a level far exceeding anything the Marines faced in WWII. Marine losses over the two days totaled 118 killed or missing and 435 wounded. The outpost war quieted down thereafter as winter settled in. The division used the respite to alter its defensive positions from the military crest to the topographical crest, digging deeper, and employing better barbed wire obstacles.
1955 – In Vietnam, following elections, Ngo Dinh Diem proclaimed the Republic of Vietnam in the south and became its first president.
1964 – Exercise ‘Steel Pike I' began in Spain with 22,000 Marines, 33,000 sailors, and 2,000 Spanish Marines.
1968 – Major David L. Althoff was named Marine Aviator of the Year and received the Alfred A. Cunningham Trophy. While serving in Vietnam, Major Althoff won 3 Silver Stars, 3 Distinguished Flying Crosses, and 50 Air Medals. He completed 1,000 combat and combat-support missions in Vietnam, and made numerous rescues of reconnaissance Marines.

Oct 26, 1942 - Platoon Sergeant Mitchell Paige received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions with the Second Battalion, Seventh Marines, First Marine Division, in combat on the Solomon Islands.

CITATION: For extraordinary heroism and conspicuous gallantry in action above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the Second Battalion, Seventh Marines, First Marine Division, in combat against enemy Japanese forces in the Solomon Islands Area on October 26, 1942. When the enemy broke through the line directly in front of his position, Platoon Sergeant Paige, commanding a machine-gun section with fearless determination, continued to direct the fire of his gunners until all his men were either killed or wounded. Alone, against the deadly hail of Japanese shells, he manned his gun, and when it was destroyed, took over another, moving from gun to gun, never ceasing his withering fire against the advancing hordes until reinforcements finally arrived. Then, forming a new line, he dauntlessly and aggressively led a bayonet charge, driving the enemy back and preventing a break through in our lines. His great personal valor and unyielding devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.

Oct 27
1806 – The Secretary of the Navy directed the Commandant to organize a detachment of 4 officers and 74 enlisted Marines to reinforce or take the place of the garrison at New Orleans with a view to Spanish operations.
1846 – Marines were part of a landing force taking the town of San Pedro, California.
1898 – The Marine Band and two battalions of Marines from the east coast barracks and ships' detachments took part in the Peace Jubilee in Philadelphia.
1918 – On the Western Front, the elements of the Marine Brigade, arriving at all hours of the day and night of October 27, bivouacked for three days in the surrounding woods and open fields of Chaudron Ferme, southeast of Exermont. Men, animals, and equipment were scattered in the open fields during this bivouac. There was no attempt at concealment. The nights and mornings were cold, but the days were bright and comfortably warm. Although everybody was required to sleep on the ground, protection afforded by personal blankets and overcoats was sufficient and the men were able to catch up on needed rest. The unorthodox open bivouac of the brigade was expected to attract the enemy's attention, and this it soon did in the form of long-range artillery fire and considerable activity in the air. Enemy aviators paid nightly visits and dropped bombs. During the day enemy fliers gave most of their attention to American observation balloons, many of which went down in balls of smoke and flame. American antiaircraft batteries maintained a constant aerial barrage during the hours in which observation was possible. There were also frequent showers of propaganda dropped by the enemy.
1919 – A Marine battalion and the Marine Band rendered honors to King Albert of Belgium, Queen Elizabeth, and the Prince of Wales on their arrival in Washington, D.C.
1943 – The first Marine observation squadron (VMO-1) was activated at Quantico.
On Bougainville, a Marine advance party landed at Atainima Bay, north of the Karuma River, to prepare for an assault on the island.
In the Treasury Islands, elements of the 8th New Zealand Brigade Group (I Marine Amphibious Corps) made unopposed landings on Soanotalu and Sterling Islands and went ashore, against light opposition, at Blanca Harbor, Mono Island.
1944 – In the Philippines, the Army Air Force assumed control of air activities in Leyte from U.S. Navy carriers when the first P-38s landed at Tacloban field.
1945 – In Japan, the 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marines, 2nd Marine Division, assigned to the eastern half of Kagoshima, arrived at Kanoya from Nagasaki and relieved the U.S. Army task force there.
1950 – In Korea, the 5th Marines assumed responsibility for controlling the 50 miles of territory between Wonsan and the port of Hungnam to the north. The 7th Marines moved north to relieve ROK forces at Sudong, 30 miles northwest of Hungnam. 1/1 relieved Korean soldiers in the town of Kojo, 25 miles south of Wonsan. That night, NKPA forces attacked 1/1. Losses in the fighting totaled 27 dead and missing and 47 wounded.
1952 – 2nd Lieutenant George H O’Brien Jr. received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions as a Rifle Platoon Commander of H/3/7, Korea.
1962 – The 2nd Marine Division and the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing deployed during the Cuban Missile crisis.
1966 – Women Marines first served in West Pac units, the first time west of Hawaii.
1967 – DOD announced a plan to double the number of African-American officers in the Marine Corps, from 155 (fewer than 1%).

Oct 27, 1952 - 2nd Lieutenant George H O-Brien Jr. received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions as a Rifle Platoon Commander of H/3/7, First Marine Division in action against enemy forces in Korea.

CITATION: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as a Rifle Platoon Commander of Company H, Third Battalion, Seventh Marines, First Marine Division (Reinforced), in action against enemy aggressor forces in Korea on 27 October 1952. With his platoon subjected to an intense mortar and artillery bombardment while preparing to assault a vitally important hill position on the main line of resistance which had been overrun by a numerically superior enemy force on the preceding night, Second Lieutenant O'Brien leaped from his trench when the attack signal was given and, shouting for his men to follow raced across an exposed saddle and up the enemy-held hill through a virtual hail of deadly small-arms, artillery and mortar fire. Although shot through the arm and thrown to the ground by hostile automatic-weapons fire as he neared the well-entrenched enemy position, he bravely regained his feet, waved his men onward and continued to spearhead the assault, pausing only long enough to go to the aid of a wounded Marine. Encountering the enemy at close range, he proceeded to hurl hand grenades into the bunkers and, utilizing his carbine to best advantage in savage hand-to-hand combat, succeeded in killing at least three of the enemy. Struck down by the concussion of grenades on three occasions during the subsequent action, he steadfastly refused to be evacuated for medical treatment and continued to lead his platoon in the assault for a period of nearly four hours, repeatedly encouraging his men and maintaining superb direction of the unit. With the attack halted, he set up a defense with his remaining forces to prepare for a counterattack, personally checking each position, attending to the wounded and expediting their evacuation. When a relief of the position was effected by another unit, he remained to cover the withdrawal and to assure that no wounded were left behind. By his exceptionally daring and forceful leadership in the face of overwhelming odds, Second Lieutenant O'Brien served as a constant source of inspiration to all who observed him and was greatly instrumental in the recapture of a strategic position on the main line of resistance. His indomitable determination and valiant fighting spirit reflect the highest credit upon himself and enhance the finest traditions of the United States Naval Service.


Oct 28 British Royal Marines Birthday
1812 – Marines participated in the capture of the British brig Fly by the U.S. brig Argus in the North Atlantic.
1855 – Marines and seamen from the U.S. sloop John Adams went ashore on Viti Levu, Fiji Islands, in a punitive expedition to force natives to honor a treaty.
1899 – Company A from the 6th Marine Battalion arrived in Manila, Philippine Islands.
1924 – A detachment of 125 Marines arrived at Canton, China, to reinforce the local Marine detachment during a period of political uneasiness.
1925 – A detachment of 100 Marines reinforced Marines already serving in Tientsin, China.
1943 – In the Solomons, the 2nd Marine Parachute Battalion made an unopposed diversionary landing in the vicinity of Voza village, Choiseul, and patrolled the island until withdrawn.
1944 – In China, Lieutenant General Joseph W. Stilwell, USA, commander of U.S. forces in China, was recalled to Washington, and Major General Albert C. Wedemeyer, USA, assumed his command.
1950 – In Korea, Marines began the drive to the Manchurian border. 3/2 moved 30 miles west of Wonsan to occupy the town of Majon-ni, ROK forces engaged Chinese Communist forces (CCF) at Suding and captured 16 prisoners.
1962 – An 11,000-man 5th Marine Expeditionary Brigade left Camp Pendleton by sea for the Caribbean during the Cuban Missile Crisis.  One week earlier, the entire 189,000-man Marine Corps had been put on alert and elements of the 1st and 2nd Marine Divisions were sent to Guantanamo Bay to reinforce the defenders of the U.S. Naval Base.  Other 2nd Division units and squadrons from five Marine Aircraft Groups were deployed at Key West, Florida, or in Caribbean waters during the Cuban crisis.
1965 – In Vietnam, Viet Cong attacks at Chu Lai and Marble Mountain (near Da Nang) resulted in a few sappers getting into the airbases and the destruction of two jets and nineteen helicopters.
1969 – HMM-561 was deactivated at El Toro.

Oct 29
1776 – Marines participated in the capture of the British brig Lively by the Hancock and Franklin of Washington's fleet.
1799 – Marines participated in the capture of the French privateer brig L'Ocean by the U.S. sloop Delaware, off St. Christopher.
1827 – Marines participated in the capture of the Austrian brig, Prize of Pirates, by the U.S. sloop Warren, off Greece.
1847 – Marines participated in the capture of the Mexican schooner Caroline by the U.S. sloop Portsmouth, in the Gulf of Mexico.
1918 – General Summerall, commanding the Fifth Corps, broke all precedents in operations conferences, by going through the regimental areas with a bugler, calling officers and men together and addressing them from a soap box.  Among other things, General Summerall said, The Second Division has no objective but to destroy the enemy ... You will go on and on until he is driven across the Rhine until he is broken and beaten, until he cries, ‘surrender.
1941 – In the Atlantic, the Atlantic Amphibious Force, commanded by Major General Holland M. Smith, was redesignated Amphibious Force, Atlantic Fleet.
1942 – During October and November, Major Joe Foss shot down 23 enemy aircraft.  He was later credited with three more and received the MEDAL OF HONOR.
Major Joe Foss received the MEDAL OF HONOR for his actions in shooting down 26 enemy aircraft
1945 – In China, the 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, moved to Tangku to guard the railhead there and Taku, the main port of entry in North China.
In Japan, a motor convoy carrying the major part of the 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, 2nd Marine Division, moved from Kumamoto to Kagoshima City, to assume control of western Kagoshima.
1952: In Korea, MajGen Edwin A. Pollock, Commanding General, 1st Marine Division, extended the appreciation of the division to Navy and Marine aircraft for the ‘superb demonstration of close air support during engagements of 26-28 Oct' at Sniper Ridge and Triangle Hill.
1956 – In Morocco, Company E of the 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marines, was flown to Port Lyautey, Morocco, to reinforce the Marine Barracks at the Naval Air Station there when friction between French and Moroccans threatened the security of the base.
1968 – Captain James A. Graham was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor by Secretary of the Navy Paul R. Ignatius for action in Vietnam during Operation UNION II.
2004 – Marines and sailors with 2nd Force Service Support Group (2nd FSSG), serving with the unit between 15 December 2001 and 1 June 2003, were awarded the Navy Unit Commendation Medal from the Secretary of the Navy Gordon R. England for exceptional meritorious service during assigned duties in Operations Enduring and Iraqi Freedom.

Oct 29, 1942 - Major Joe Foss received the MEDAL OF HONOR for his actions in shooting down 26 enemy aircraft

CITATION: For outstanding heroism and courage above and beyond the call of duty as Executive Officer of a Marine Fighting Squadron, at Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands. Engaging in almost daily combat with the enemy from October 9 to November 19, 1942, Captain Foss personally shot down twenty-three Japanese planes and damaged others so severely that their destruction was extremely probable. In addition, during this period, he successfully led a large number of escort missions, skillfully covering reconnaissance, bombing and photographic planes as well as surface craft. On January 15, 1943, he added three more enemy planes to his already brilliant successes for a record of aerial combat achievement unsurpassed in this war. Boldly searching out an approaching enemy force on January 25, Captain Foss led his eight F4F Marine planes and four Army P-38s into action and, undaunted by tremendously superior numbers, intercepted and struck with such force that four Japanese fighters were shot down and the bombers were turned back without releasing a single bomb. His remarkable flying skill, inspiring leadership and indomitable fighting spirit were distinctive factors in the defense of strategic American positions on Guadalcanal.


Oct 30
1918 – On the Western Front, as night fell, the units of the Marine Brigade, 2nd Division, AEF, moved up and into the forward areas in the vicinity of Sommerance, relieving some reserve battalions of the 166th Infantry, 43rd Division, AEF. Command of the Marine Brigade passed temporarily to the 42nd Division.
1944 – On Peleliu, the final 1st Marine Division units, the 5th Marines (rein), departed the island.
1945 – In China, the III Amphibious Corps ordered the 6th Marine Division to provide a reinforced infantry battalion for duty in the Chinwangtao area.
In Japan, the 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marines, 2nd Marine Division, assumed operational control of the Army Air Force detachment manning the emergency field at Kanoya from a battalion of the 32nd Division, USA, and the battalion prepared for return to Sasebo to rejoin its regiment.
1949 – DOD announced that a number of Navy ships would be placed in mothballs in line with plans to reduce Navy and Marine Corps personnel by nearly 55,000 by 1 July 1950. To accommodate the reductions, Marine infantry battalions would shrink to two rifle companies of two rifle platoons each.
1952 – Korean PUC awarded the Marine Advisory Group with the Korean Marine Combat Team.
In Korea, HMR-161 set a record with 365 aerial medical evacuations (medevacs) in October. 1st MAW flew its second highest monthly total of sorties of the war with 3,765, of which 36 percent were dedicated to close air support.
1956 – In Suez, following the Israeli invasion of the Sinai Peninsula the day prior, RLT-2 went on alert for possible deployment to reinforce 3/2 in the Mediterranean. The alert for would end on 27 Nov.
1968 – President Johnson announced a complete halt to the bombing of North Vietnam.
1969 – MAG-39 was deactivated in Vietnam.

Oct 31
1799 – Marines participated in the action between the U.S. Brig Norfolk and a Picaroon barge, off the northwest point of Guahani, Haiti.
1833 – Marines and seamen from Commodore Woolsey's squadron went ashore at Buenos Aires, Argentina, to protect American lives and property.
1916 – By this date, Marines of the 2nd Brigade stationed in the Dominican Republic numbered 47 officers and 1,738 enlisted men.
1918 – On the Western Front, during the evening, command of the subsector near Sommerance returned from the 42nd Division, AEF, to the Marine Brigade, 2nd Division, AEF. All units moved into assault position preparatory to the jump off. Enemy artillery was quiet and the movement was executed without difficulty.
1919 – A patrol of Marines, led by Sergeant Herman H. Hanneken, disguised themselves as Cacos and entered the headquarters of the Haitian Caco Leader, Charlemagne Peralte, killing the bandit chief, and dispersing his followers.
Corporal William R. Button received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions near Grande Riviere, Haiti.
Sergeant Hanneken received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions near Grande Riviere, Haiti.
1926 – A detachment of Marines from the USS Rochester landed at Bluefields, Nicaragua, relieving the detachment landed earlier from the USS Galveston.
1942 – Marine Scout-Bomber Squadron 132 and Marine Fighter Squadron 211 arrived at Henderson Field, Guadalcanal.
1943 – Task Force 38 and 39 bombarded Buka and Bonis airfields and Ballali airstrip, as well as Faisi and several of the smaller islands in preparation for the landing at Cape Torokina, Bougainville.  On Bougainville, after preparatory naval and air bombardment in which the Marine aircraft from Munda, New Georgia, participated with the 3rd Marine Division landed at Cape Torokina with the 3rd and 9th Marines and the 2nd Raider Regiment in assault. Against heavy opposition, the division front lines were extended inland about 600 yards of Cape Torokina.
1945 – In China, MajGen Louis E. Woods arrived in Tientsin to assume command of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing from Brig Gen Thomas Larkin.
1955 – Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller, who earned five Navy Crosses, retired as a lieutenant general.
1963 – The escort ship Garcia (DE-1040) was launched at the Bethlehem Steel Co., San Francisco. The ‘Garcia' was named in honor of PFC Fernando Luis Garcia, USMC, posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for sacrificing himself to save the life of another Marine in Korea, 5 September 1952. Garcia was the first Marine of Puerto Rico to be awarded the Medal of Honor.
1968 – President Lyndon B. Johnson announced that at 8 AM EST, 1 November 1968, all air, naval, and artillery bombardment of North Vietnam would cease.
1969 – Vice President Spiro T. Agnew awarded, posthumously, the Medal of Honor to two Marines who were killed in separate operations in Vietnam. The nation’s highest award was given to Sergeant Alfredo Gonzalez for action during Operation HUE CITY and Lance Corporal Jedh C. Barker for action near Con Thien in September 1967.
2004 – Marine Captain Mary Kate Sullivan-Bailey finished first among female competitors with a time of 2:48:31 at the 29th Annual Marine Corps Marathon. She was the first active-duty service member to claim an overall win in the race since 1979. Retta Feyiss of New York finished first among the men with a time of 2:25:35.

Oct 31, 1919 - Corporal William Button received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions at Grande Riviere, Haiti.

CITATION: For extraordinary heroism and conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in actual conflict with the enemy near GRANDE RIVIERE Republic of Haiti, on the night of October 31st-November 1st, 1919, resulting in the death of Charlemagne Peralte, the supreme bandit chief in the Republic of Haiti, and the killing and capture and dispersal of about twelve hundred (1200) of his outlaw followers. Corporal William R. Button not only distinguished himself by his excellent judgment and leadership, but unhesitatingly exposed himself to great personal danger, when the slightest error would have forfeited not only his life but the lives of the detachments of Gendarmerie under his command. The successful termination of his mission will undoubtedly prove of untold value to the Republic of Haiti.

Oct 31, 1919 - 2nd Lieutenant Herman H Hanneken received the MEDAL OF HONOR for actions at Grande Riviere, Haiti.

CITATION: For extraordinary heroism and conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in actual conflict with the enemy near GRANDE RIVIERE, Republic of Haiti, on the night of October 31st-November 1st, 1919, resulting in the death of Charlemange Peralte, the supreme bandit chief in the Republic of Haiti, and the killing and capture and dispersal of about 1200 of his outlaw followers. Second Lieutenant Hanneken not only distinguished himself by his excellent judgment and leadership, but unhesitatingly exposed himself to great personal danger, and the slightest error would have forfeited not only his life but the lives of the detachments of Gendarmerie under his command. The successful termination of his mission will undoubtedly prove of untold value to the Republic of Haiti.