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Naval History and Heritage Command

Naval History and Heritage Command

Today in Naval History
July 31
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1874 - USS Intrepid is commissioned, the first U.S. warship equipped with torpedoes.
On This Day

1865

The East India Squadron, later known as Asiatic Squadron, is established under Commodore Henry H. Bell, USN, to operate from Sunda Strait to Japan. The squadron consists of USS Hartford, USS Wachusett, USS Wyoming and USS Relief.

1874

USS Intrepid is commissioned, the first U.S. warship equipped with torpedoes.

1941

The Japanese government reports that the bombing of USS Tutuila (PR 4), which happens the previous day during the bombing raid on Chungking, China, is just an accident, pure and simple. USS Tutuilas motor boats were badly damaged and motor sampan is cut loose when one bomb falls eight yards astern of the vessel. There were no causalities.

1943

PBM (VP 74) and Brazilian A-28 and Catalina sink German submarine U-199 off Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Small seaplane tender USS Barnegat (AVP 10) rescues the survivors.

1951

Dan A. Kimball takes office as the 50th Secretary of the Navy, serving until January 1953. His tenure is marked by the continuation of the Korean War, expansion of the Nation's defense, and technological progress in aviation, engineering and other defense-related fields.

1959

President Dwight D. Eisenhower responds to Secretary of the Navy William B. Franke's recommendation to name three SSBNs (nuclear-powered fleet ballistic missile submarines) with these names: USS Sam Houston, USS Thomas A. Edison, and USS John Marshall. The proposed name from Secretary Franke, USS Nathan Hale, is used two years later.

2010

USS Missouri (SSN 780) is commissioned at Groton, Conn., her homeport. The seventh Virginia-class attack submarine is the fourth Navy vessel to honor the state of Missouri.