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Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway was a 5-day battle between U.S. and Japanese naval forces in the Pacific Ocean. During WWII, Japan wanted to extend territory and take away Midway from the U.S. Pacific Fleet, so they could launch more attacks on Pearl Harbor. Aircraft from Japanese carriers attacked Midway. The Marine Corps suffered more severe damage than the facilities. -
D-Day
The D-Day invasion is the largest seaborne invasion in history. It occurred when 156,000 allied forces invaded Normandy, France. The troops landed across 5 beaches, and stormed the region to liberate north-west troops from Nazi occupation. -
G.I. BIll
Also known as the Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, the G.I. Bill was created to provide services and benefits to the veterans of World War II. Benefits of the bill included unemployment insurance, housing, and paid college tuition for honorably discharged veterans. -
Victory in Europe Day
Germany unconditionally surrenders its military forces to the Allies, ending WWII in Europe. Germany surrendered less than a year after the Normandy invasion. The allies still had to defeat the Japanese in the Pacific. -
Hiroshima
Japan refused to surrender following Germany's surrender in WWII. The aircraft named Enola Gay carried the bomb named "Little Boy." Little Boy killed at least 80,000 people upon landing in the Japanese city of Hiroshima. -
Nagasaki
Nagasaki was an important port city located in Japan with about 263,000 people. The bomb on Nagasaki was named "Fat Man" and was carried by a B-29 named Bock's Car. Approximately 100,000 deaths are attributed to Nagasaki. -
V-J Day
V-J Day stands for Victory over Japan Day. The War ended upon the signing of surrender documents aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. More than 400,000 Americans died in the conflict between Japan. Many big and small towns celebrated by waving flags, throwing parades, and lighting fireworks. -
Invention of Microwave
The microwave oven was accidentally invented by Percy LeBron Spencer when he was testing a magnetron. He noticed that food reacted when exposed to microwave radiation. Microwaves can enter metal, but they can not escape. Raytheon introduced the Radarange as a commercial microwave oven. -
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization consists of 30 independent countries who formed an alliance based on safeguarding the allies' freedom and security by military and political means. -
22nd Amendment Ratified
Amendment added to the U.S. Constitution that limits an elected president to a maximum of two terms in office. The amendment was passed after Franklin D. Roosevelt won a third term in office. -
Election of 1952
An election in which Republic Dwight D. Eisenhower won over Democrat Adlai Stevenson by a landslide. Eisenhower had 442 electoral college votes compared to Stevenson's 89 votes. -
Eisenhower's First Inaugural Address
When Eisenhower became president, his inaugural address included a nine-point plan that sought to achieve peace. In his address he says, "The peace we seek, then, is nothing less than the practice and fulfillment of our whole faith among ourselves and in our dealings with others."
