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First U.S. aircraft carrier
the USS Langley CV-1 was commissioned as the first American aircraft carrier in the US Navy -
Starting point of WW2
World War II officially started in Europe on September 1, 1939 when Nazi Germany invaded Poland -
End of Great Depression
The United States declares war on Japan and joins World War II. Because the war creates so much money and jobs for the economy, the Great Depression ends soon after the U.S. goes to war -
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Manhattan Project
U.S. government research project to develop the first atomic bombs. The Atomic Energy Act of 1946 takes effect, and the Manhattan Project is officially turned over to the United States Atomic Energy Commission in 1971 -
Pearl Harbor
Japanese made a surprise bombing run on an American Naval base in pearl harbor in Hawaii -
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Rationing
The U.S. had to conserve resources such as sugar, rubber, and gas to save resources so more could become dedicated to the war -
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War Bonds
Debt securities issued by a government to finance military operations and other expenditure in times of war. The face value of these bonds is lower but as time passes the government would pay back a higher amount, after 10 years. Could also be thought of as an investment on the people's part to inject money into the government. -
U.S. declares war
United States declares war on the axis powers -
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Japanese control over Philippines
Japan launched an invasion on the Philippines in hopes to gain more territory, they were successful at claiming the Philippines and forcing Filipino and allies forces to surrender up until September, when the allied forces overcame the Japanese forces and retook the Philippines -
DooLittle's Raid
An air raid by the United States on the Japanese capital Tokyo and other places on the island of Honshu during World War II -
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Battle of Coral Sea
This four-day World War II attack marked the first air-sea battle in history. Both sides suffered damages to their carriers, the battle left the Japanese without enough planes to cover the ground attack of Port Moresby, resulting in an Allied victory -
Battle of Midway
The United States Navy defeated a Japanese attack against Midway Atoll, marking a turning point in the war in the Pacific theatre -
Island hopping
America started to Island hop - sailing island to island capturing it from Japanese forces to regain land and get within bombing range of Japan -
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Guadalcanal
The first major offensive and a decisive victory for the Allies in the Pacific theater. both sides endured heavy losses to their warship contingents. The Japanese suffered a far greater toll of casualties, forcing their withdrawal from Guadalcanal -
Rosie the Riveter
Rosie the Riveter was the star of a campaign aimed at recruiting female workers for defense industries during World War II, often seen on posters and advertisements. -
Invasion of Sicily
The Allies’ Italian Campaign began with the invasion of Sicily in July 1943. After 38 days of fighting, the U.S. and Great Britain successfully drove German and Italian troops from Sicily and prepared to assault the Italian mainland -
Operation Fortitude
Fortitude was a massive operation of deception conducted by the Allied Forces to lead the Germans to believe that they would be landing in Norway and Pas de Calais but instead really landed in Normandy -
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Operation Overlord
Operation Overlord was the code name for the Battle of Normandy, it was a 1,200-plane airborne assault preceded an assault on water involving more than 5,000 ships. Nearly 160,000 troops crossed the English Channel on 6 June, and more than two million Allied troops were in France by the end of August -
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Battle of the Bulge (lol)
The last major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during World War II. The offensive was intended to stop Allied use of the Belgian port of Antwerp and to split the Allied lines, allowing the Germans to encircle and destroy four Allied armies and force the Western Allies to negotiate a peace treaty in the Axis powers' favor -
Tunnels in Iwo Jima
The Japanese dug out tunnels before the battle of Iwo Jima to give them ways to resupply and travel safely through the island -
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The Battle of Iwo Jima
The invasion of Iwo Jima came after Allied forces had island-hopped across the Pacific and had conducted successful campaigns in the Solomon, Gilbert, Marshall, and Mariana Islands -
Unconditional surrender of Germany
The surrender took place in Berlin’s Karlshorst district, where the Soviet forces had set up their main headquarters after the fall of Berlin -
Little Boy
The first nuclear weapon of the war, fell for fifty-seven seconds, it detonated at the predetermined height of 1,900 feet with a blast equivalent to about 13-15 kilotons of TNT, creating an area of complete devastation approximately two miles in diameter. The bomb, with its resulting shock wave and firestorm, effectively destroyed around 4.7 square miles of the city, killing 70,000-80,000 and injuring another 70,000. -
Enola Gay
Named after Enola Gay Tibbets, the mother of the pilot, Colonel Paul Tibbets. During the final stages of World War II, it became the first aircraft to drop an atomic bomb, also known as little boy. -
Fat Man
The Fat Man bomb was an atomic bomb made by the U.S. and was released by the B-29 Bockscar, the 10,000-pound weapon was detonated at a height of around 1,800 feet over the city of Nagasaki, Japan, killing around 70,000 people with the explosion and radiation -
Unconditional surrender of Japan
Japan had to follow all terms laid out by the U.S. without any promises or guarantees given to them
