America has thousands of years of rich and diverse history dating back before the arrival of Columbus in 1492. In a world that has changed so much, do you ever wonder what happened on this day in U.S. history? On this day, July 11th…
1782
British vacate Savannah, Georgia as the American Revolution comes to a close.
1786
Morocco agreed to stop attacking American ships in the Mediterranean. A treaty was signed between Morocco’s sultan and Thomas Barclay. Today it remains the longest unbroken treaty relationship in U.S. history.
1798
President John Adams signed a bill that re-established the Marine Corps. The service was disbanded in 1783 at the end of the American Revolution.
1804
Aaron Burr, a prominent Republican, and Alexander Hamilton, leader of the opposing Federalist Party were political rivals and personal enemies. They met in Weehawken, New Jersey to settle their difference with a duel. They fired their pistols in close succession, with Burr’s shot fatally wounding Hamilton, he died the following day.
1861
Battle of Rich Mountain, a Union victory in the struggle for Western Virginia under General George McClellan.
1862
General Henry Halleck was appointed as General in Chief of the Federal Army by President Abraham Lincoln.
1864
Confederate General Early’s army reach the outskirts of Washington near Silver Spring. The city was manned by only Home Guards, clerks, and recovering troops. General Early’s troops pulled back the following day.
Landing party from U.S.S. James L. Davis destroyed Confederate salt works near Tampa, Florida. The works were capable of producing more than 150 bushels of salt per day.
1869
Tall Bull, a prominent leader of the Cheyenne Dog Soldier warrior society, was killed during the Battle of Summit Springs, an armed conflict between the U.S. army and a group of Cheyenne Dog Soldiers as a result of a series of raids in north-central Kansas.. The Dog Soldiers are historically one of six military societies of the Cheyenne Nation.
1916
President Woodrow Wilson signed the Federal Aid Road Act, the first grant-in-aid enacted by Congress to assist states in building postal roads. The bill was passed to include a stipulation that all states have a highway agency staffed by professional engineers who would administer the federal funds as they saw fit.
1934
President Roosevelt became the first Chief Executive to travel through the Panama Canal while in office.
1941
Congress reconfirmed the military “status” of the Coast Guard as a branch of the land and naval forces, operating as part of the Navy during wartime and under the Treasury Department during peacetime.
William Donovan was appointed “Coordinator of Defense Information,” a new civilian intelligence agency that will lead to the creation of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the modern CIA.
1942
Marine Corps Air Station El Centro is activated.
1943
U.S. Navy surface ships break German-Italian tank attack at Gela, Sicily
1944
President Roosevelt announces the U.S. will recognize the French Provisional Government as the interim government of Free France.
1945
During several wartime conferences, the Soviet Union promises to hand over power to British and U.S. forces in West Berlin.
1945
Napalm was first used. American forces drop thousands of napalm bombs on Japanese packets on the Sierra Madre and in the Kiangan area.
1953
Lieutenant Colonel John Bolt became the 37th Korean War ace (a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat) and the only U.S. Marine Corps pilot to qualify as an ace during the Korean War.
1955
The New Air Force Academy was dedicated at Lowry Air Base in Colorado, opening with 300 cadets.
1972
American forces broke the 95-day siege at An Loc in Vietnam
1979
Parts of America’s first space station crashed on Australia and into the Indian Ocean five years after the last manned mission ended. Skylab was the world’s first successful space station.
1995
President Bill Clinton established full diplomatic relations with Vietnam.
2003
Spain, a U.S. ally during the war to oust Saddam Hussein, agreed to send 1,300 soldiers to Iraq.
“A Tragic Duel.” Library of Congress. 2018. loc.gov/item/today-in-history/july-11/
“Civil War.” American Battlefield Trust. 2018. battlefields.org/learn/civil-war/battles/fort-stevens
“Civil WAr Naval History.” History Central. 2018. historycentral.com/navy/cwnavalhistory/July1864.html
“July 11.” The Day in U.S. Military History. 11 July. thisdayinusmilhist.wordpress.com/2005/07/11/july-11/
“Today in Military History.” Strategy Page. 2018. strategypage.com/today-in-military-history.aspx
“Union Notches a Victory at the Battle of Rich Mountain.” This Day in History. The History Channel. 2018. history.com/this-day-in-history/union-notches-a-victory-at-the-battle-of-rich-mountain
