320th Barrage Balloon Battalion
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320th Barrage Balloon Battalion
The 320th Barrage Balloon Battalion was an African American United States Army unit that saw combat in Europe during World War II. This VLA (Very Low Altitude) barrage balloon battalion "was raised up in 1942 just a year after the Coast Artillery Corps took over responsibility for barrage balloons from the Army Air Corps." Their first assignment was Utah and Omaha beaches on 6 June 1944 (the D-Day invasion). The mission of the 621-man assault force was to raise hydrogen-filled barrage balloons to protect assaulting infantry and armor from being strafed by enemy aircraft. "They flew at an altitude of around 200 feet to defend soldiers landing on the beaches against strafing attacks by German aircraft." A commendation by Supreme Allied Commander Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower cited the unit for conducting "its mission with courage and determination, and proved an important element of the air defense team". The battalion served 140 days in France. In late July 1944, Battery A of th ...
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United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United States Constitution (1789). See alsTitle 10, Subtitle B, Chapter 301, Section 3001 The oldest and most senior branch of the U.S. military in order of precedence, the modern U.S. Army has its roots in the Continental Army, which was formed 14 June 1775 to fight the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783)—before the United States was established as a country. After the Revolutionary War, the Congress of the Confederation created the United States Army on 3 June 1784 to replace the disbanded Continental Army.Library of CongressJournals of the Continental Congress, Volume 27/ref> The United States Army considers itself to be a continuation of the Continental Army, and thus considers its institutional inception to be th ...
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Cherbourg Harbour
Cherbourg Harbour (French: ''rade de Cherbourg''; literally, the "roadstead of Cherbourg"), is a harbour situated at the northern end of the Cotentin Peninsula, on the English Channel coastline, in Normandy, northwestern France. With a surface area of 1,500 hectares, it is the second largest artificial harbour in the world, after the 4,500 hectare Ras Laffan Harbour in Qatar. As well as Cherbourg Naval Base, it has been used for mercantile shipping. It was begun in 1783, with its central harbour breakwater completed in 1853 – this was 3.64 km long, an average of 100 m wide at its base and an average of 12 m wide at its top, and sited 4 km from the coast. Three forts were added to its central wall in 1860. This and the two other breakwaters stretch for more than 6 km. The eastern opening into the harbour is 950 m wide and the western one 2.3 km wide. The harbour's maximum depth is 13 m at low tide. History Cherbourg had been a strategic stronghold for seve ...
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Air Defense Artillery Battalions Of The United States Army
The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing for liquid water to exist on the Earth's surface, absorbing ultraviolet solar radiation, warming the surface through heat retention (greenhouse effect), and reducing temperature extremes between day and night (the diurnal temperature variation). By mole fraction (i.e., by number of molecules), dry air contains 78.08% nitrogen, 20.95% oxygen, 0.93% argon, 0.04% carbon dioxide, and small amounts of other gases. Air also contains a variable amount of water vapor, on average around 1% at sea level, and 0.4% over the entire atmosphere. Air composition, temperature, and atmospheric pressure vary with altitude. Within the atmosphere, air suitable for use in photosynthesis by terrestrial plants and breathing of terrestrial animals is found only in E ...
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Military History Of African Americans
The military history of African Americans spans from the slavery in the United States, arrival of the first enslaved Africans during the colonial history of the United States to the present day. In every war fought by or within the United States, African Americans participated, including the American Revolutionary War, Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Mexican–American War, the American Civil War, Civil War, the Spanish–American War, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021), War in Afghanistan, and the Iraq War. Revolutionary War African Americans, both Slavery in the colonial United States, as slaves and Free black, freemen, served on both sides of the Revolutionary War. Gary Nash reports that recent research concludes there were about 9,000 black soldiers who served on the American side, counting the Continental Army and Navy, state militia units, as well as privateers, wagoneers in the Army, ...
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Henry Parham
Henry Parham (November 15, 1921 – July 4, 2021) was an African American veteran of D-Day invasion and WWII. Born November 15, 1921, in Greenville, Virginia, Parham was drafted in 1942 to serve in the Second World War. He landed on Omaha Beach on June 6, 1944, as part of Operation Overlord. His battalion, the 320th Very Low Altitude Anti-Aircraft Barrage Balloon Battalion, downed 73 planes through the use of barrage balloons. He was to have served in the War in the Pacific after VE Day Victory in Europe Day is the day celebrating the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces on Tuesday, 8 May 1945, marking the official end of World War II in Europe in the Easter ..., but his transport was delayed due to mechanical problems and Japan surrendered before he shipped out. He was awarded the Legion of Honor in 2013. At the time of his death on July 4, 2021, he was the "last surviving African American combat v ...
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Landing Craft
Landing craft are small and medium seagoing watercraft, such as boats and barges, used to convey a landing force (infantry and vehicles) from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. The term excludes landing ships, which are larger. Production of landing craft peaked during World War II, with a significant number of different designs produced in large quantities by the United Kingdom and United States. Because of the need to run up onto a suitable beach, World War II landing craft were flat-bottomed, and many designs had a flat front, often with a lowerable ramp, rather than a normal bow. This made them difficult to control and very uncomfortable in rough seas. The control point (too rudimentary to call a bridge on LCA and similar craft) was normally at the extreme rear of the vessel, as were the engines. In all cases, they were known by an abbreviation derived from the official name rather than by the full title. History In the days of sail, the ship's boats were us ...
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The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large national audience. Daily broadsheet editions are printed for D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. The ''Post'' was founded in 1877. In its early years, it went through several owners and struggled both financially and editorially. Financier Eugene Meyer purchased it out of bankruptcy in 1933 and revived its health and reputation, work continued by his successors Katharine and Phil Graham (Meyer's daughter and son-in-law), who bought out several rival publications. The ''Post'' 1971 printing of the Pentagon Papers helped spur opposition to the Vietnam War. Subsequently, in the best-known episode in the newspaper's history, reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein led the American press's investigation into what became known as the Watergate scandal ...
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Medal Of Honor
The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. The medal is normally awarded by the president of the United States, but as it is presented "in the name of the United States Congress", it is sometimes erroneously referred to as the "Congressional Medal of Honor". There are three distinct variants of the medal: one for the Department of the Army, awarded to soldiers, one for the Department of the Navy, awarded to sailors, marines, and coast guardsmen, and one for the Department of the Air Force, awarded to airmen and guardians. The Medal of Honor was introduced for the Department of the Navy in 1861, soon followed by the Department of the Army's version in 1862. The Department of the Air Force used the Department of the Army's version until they received their own distinctive version i ...
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Waverly B
Waverly may refer to: Education ;United States * Waverly Community Schools, a school district located in Lansing, Michigan * Waverly School District 145, Nebraska * Waverly Central School District, New York * Waverly High School (other) * The Waverly School, a private school in Pasadena, California Hotels * Hotel Waverly, Toronto, Ontario, Canada * Hotel Waverly (New Bedford, Massachusetts), United States, on the National Register of Historic Places * The Waverly, Hendersonville, North Carolina, United States, a historic hotel on the National Register of Historic Places Places ;United States * Waverly, Alabama, a town * Waverly, Colorado, an unincorporated community * Waverly, Florida, a census-designated place * Waverly, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Waverly, Illinois, a small city * Waverly Lake, Illinois, a reservoir * Waverly, Indiana, an unincorporated community * Waverly, Iowa, a city * Waverly, Kansas, a city * Waverly, Kentucky, a city * Waverly, ...
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Combat Medic
A combat medic, or healthcare specialist, is responsible for providing emergency medical treatment at a point of wounding in a combat or training environment, as well as primary care and health protection and evacuation from a point of injury or illness. Additionally, medics may also be responsible for the creation, oversight, and execution of long-term patient care plans in consultation with or in the absence of a readily-available physician or advanced practice provider. Combat medics may be used in hospitals and clinics, where they have the opportunity to work in additional roles such as operating medical and laboratory equipment and performing and assisting with procedures. Training and certifications All military medical training in the United States takes place at Joint Base San Antonio, Fort Sam Houston, Texas. Here, among other medical jobs, Army Combat Medics, Air Force Medical Technicians, and Navy Hospital Corpsman complete their respective medical training progra ...
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Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state geographically located within the tropics. Hawaii comprises nearly the entire Hawaiian archipelago, 137 volcanic islands spanning that are physiographically and ethnologically part of the Polynesian subregion of Oceania. The state's ocean coastline is consequently the fourth-longest in the U.S., at about . The eight main islands, from northwest to southeast, are Niihau, Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Lānai, Kahoolawe, Maui, and Hawaii—the last of these, after which the state is named, is often called the "Big Island" or "Hawaii Island" to avoid confusion with the state or archipelago. The uninhabited Northwestern Hawaiian Islands make up most of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, the United States' largest protected ...
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Pacific Ocean Theater Of World War II
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continents of Asia and Oceania in the west and the Americas in the east. At in area (as defined with a southern Antarctic border), this largest division of the World Ocean—and, in turn, the hydrosphere—covers about 46% of Earth's water surface and about 32% of its total surface area, larger than Earth's entire land area combined .Pacific Ocean
. '' Britannica Concise.'' 2008: Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
The centers of both the