Hist-Story-MHRS

18/12/2023

The Battle of the Bulge: The 30th Division’s reconnaissance troop, and the 119th Infantry Regiment, led the way, arriving in the vicinity of the Belgian town of Malmedy by 1630 on December 17. During the night, the long regimental columns interspersed with tanks and tank destroyers meandered south almost unopposed. A couple of stray German fighter planes dropped a few flares on the columns. It was about this time that the ominous tones of Axis Sally could be heard on frequent broadcasts informing the troops mockingly that, “The fanatical 30th Division, Roosevelt’s SS, was going to save First Army… but it won’t work!” By the time the 30th Division was heading south through Eupen, and Spa, they encountered columns of demoralized and panic-stricken US troops in vehicles moving in the opposite direction. General Bradley, meanwhile, had given orders to move First Army’s headquarters south to Luxembourg. Bradley now fully comprehended that this was no minor enemy incursion; it was an all-out counterattack by a determined enemy. The all-night move south had them shouldering the responsibility to seize and defend both Stavelot, and Malmedy.

01/11/2023

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19/08/2023

12/08/2023

The picture above depicts the founder of Hist-Story-MHRS’ (R.W. Byrd) relatives who served in the U.S. military in Italy during World War II, including his great uncle, Leslie Houde, a B-17 Bomber pilot with fifty missions out of Foggia, Italy (419th Squadron, 301st Bomb Group, 15th Airforce). His mother’s oldest brother, Charles A. Maxfield, was an army captain at the time, serving first as acting commander of the 492nd AAA battery (Bofors 40mm), and then as a company commander of a transportation company (running trucks to 5th Army in Italy), and later the Yellow Ball Express in occupied Germany (he retired as a Lt. Col. after further service in Korea and Vietnam). Maxfield’s wife, whom he met in North Africa just before sailing to Naples, Italy, was a U.S. Army nurse who served in North Africa, Italy, and Europe (unfortunately we do not have her unit designation at this time, but Hist-Story-MHRS is fairly certain she was at Anzio, and then attached to 7th Army for the Operation Dragoon landings, in Southern France). And finally, there is Uncle Red (Lawrence White), married to the founder’s mother’s oldest sister (who was a WAC during the war). Red was assigned to the 345th Engineer General Service Regiment, first located in Naples, but later the unit provided repair services, and de-mining to the whole of the peninsula (see unit citation).

06/08/2023

06/08/2023

Hist-Story-MHRS had the opportunity to visit Italy, Germany, and Belgium in the month of July. Our first posting from the trip will be the area we visited related to the Battle of the Bulge, and Tech Sgt. Robert Helmick's effort with the 30th Infantry Division along the northern shoulder of the battle area. We ended the tour at La Gleize, the hamlet just outside Stoumont, Belgium, and the scene of SS commander Joachim Piper's last stand before he ran out of gas and supplies, having then to escape back to his own lines on Christmas eve, 1944. Further postings of the trip to Italy-including that of Rome, Anzio, Monte Cassino, and the Migano Gap battles will follow.

14/06/2023

On this Flag Day-Father’s Day, 2023, Hist-Story-MHRS, commemorates the World War II experience of a friend and co-worker’s father, U.S. Navy Radarman, 2nd Class, Henry Frank Lacabanne, who is still alive, and celebrates turning 98 years young this year: U.S. Navy Radarman, Henry Frank Lacabanne, attended boot camp at the San Diego Naval Base, Liberty Center, San Diego, California.
From here he went to Radar & CIC [Combat Information Center] School at Point Loma, also in the San Diego area.
According to Lacabanne, “I liked what I was learning to do, and I knew that I would be good at it… I was very fast, and up to the job.” Lacabanne would move forward and serve on the San Carlos, the “Agnostic”, as she was known, a seaplane tender which saw action in the Philippines during World War II, in the war against Imperial Japan.
Departing on 4 November 1944, she made a cargo trip to Humboldt Bay, New Guinea, returning to San Pedro Bay on 18 November 1944. During this run, Lacabanne joined the ship.
November 9, 1944: Lacabanne boarded the San Carlos as Radar-C-I-C operator at Weondi Bay. During its pickup of supplies at Humbolt Bay:
Our job was to take care of the planes PBMs & PBYs, and of course the crews. Their main job was to fly out about 600 miles and see if they could spot enemy planes or ships; a lot of them came back all shot up, but most of them usually made it back. From that information our Air Force would go back and bomb the targets, etc...
November 10: San Carlos arrived Hollandia, New Guinea: Lacabnne, while here, helped unload the hospital ships totally full of wounded and dying coming from the battles on Leyte; “… it was very sad. One of the medics in charge would say, “take this one-that one will not make it. It was very sad.”
Nov. 14: Departed for Weondi Bay to pick up es**rt (DE-Destroyer), then departed for Leyte in the Philippines. November 18: Arrived Leyte, San Pedro Harbor, at 1400 hours: San Pedro Bay is a bay in the Philippines at the northwest end of Leyte Gulf, about 15 km east-west and 20 km north-south. The bay is bounded by two islands: on the north and east by Samar, and on the east by Leyte. According to Lacabanne,
One of the Japanese kamikaze planes was coming toward our side …it was going to crash into us. Fortunately, its wing hit the watch and that flipped it over. We found a Japanese lady in the plane with its crew …of the fighting, we were shot at continuously in Leyte for three and a half hours, and for a few days after that. We also shot back. I did my job reporting enemy planes, their courses, speed, and I hoped that the rest of the crew was also doing there jobs well. They did. We came out of it in one piece. During this incident our gunners became upset with the captain of the ship. They were sure they had shot down several planes, but the captain did not want to take credit for that because other ship crews were shooting at these same planes.
November 26: shot down another Japanese plane … tended seaplanes there [Leyte, San Pedro Harbor] until 22 January 1945: We were under fire for three and a half hours when we first got there. And the fighting continued. Tokyo Rose gave us a message, she said: Agnostic [our ship’s nickname] we know who you are, and we are going to get you. Just in case this was true, we pulled up anchor and moved to another location.
Jan. 25, 1945: Moved out into harbor proper to care for squadrons 54, 33, & 20 planes.
February 8: Left Leyte at 8 am for Mindoro Straights, arriving on the 11th at 11 pm. Anchored in bay near (PT base-Advance Base-Mangarin Bay) and tended Squadron 20 PBMS. Acquired Squadron 25.
After duty at Mindoro Island in February 1945, tended seaplanes near Cavite on Luzon from March 1945 until 11 August 1945. Lacabanne spent a large portion of his time in the Pacific anchored in the Manila Bay area of the Philippines, close to the town of Cavite.
March 7: left Mindoro for Manila, Squadron 20 went aboard Tangier, and San Carlos acquired Squadron 25.
March 8: ventured by Bataan Peninsula, arrived at Corregidor where San Carlos was stopped to receive berthing instructions, observed some light bombing of Corregidor and arrived Manila Harbor around 2 pm.
Lacabanne observed fighting all along the coast. Anchor dropped at 1430.
March 13: Crew of the San Carlos awarded liberty in Manilla: According to Lacabanne:
We observed an awful mess on Dewey Blvd., and all the way to the river were many signs of the recent fighting. The whole city was destroyed, and there were a lot of dead Japanese. The odor was awful and I had to hold a handkerchief over my mouth and nose.
We discovered that we had not bombed the San Miguel Brewery and went ashore, retrieving a 5 gallon can filled with beer. It was very good, and me and some of the crew enjoyed that.
Also, at times I was sent to Manila to pick up written messages for the ship in a part of the building that was an area about 25’ by 20’. I walked on Japanese invasion money. The money was neatly in stacks but was loosely scattered around and probably was over two feet deep. If the Japanese were still in control, I would have been very rich!
March 19: Left today for Subic Bay to try and get supplies. Left at 9 am and arrived 1400.
March 20: Returned to Manilla. Same anchorage.
April 4: Returned to Manilla same day from trip to Subic Bay for gas.
April 28: Left Manilla at 6:30 to go on maneuvers-rugged day-returned late in the afternoon:
At one point we were in rough seas and the captain was giving the quartermaster deck directions. I was there on a radar and sonar, but it was really useless. The ship was on its aft side, and then would roll back again. I looked straight ahead of our bow and it was going straight down, and then you could see the sky when the bow of the ship came back up. Yes, I was scared, that was worse than fighting the Japanese! The captain looked at me and smiled, he said we were fine. Anyway, I was glad when we were out of that storm.
August 6: First atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, Japan.
August 9: Second atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan.
Went out to test fire, maneuvers, drills, etc. returned same day-Capt. Mills relieved of command by Michael O’ Conner.
August 11: Left Manilla at 1210 for Puget Sound, Washington.
August 15: Japan announces surrender to the Allied forces. The war is over. San Carlos received three battle stars for her World War II service.
August 19: Arrived in the Marshalls at Eniwetok Island at 1830. Refueled, then left for Pearl Harbor.
August 26: Arrived Pearl Harbor on Sunday… tied up on Ford Island, and then given Liberty. Captain Mills dropped off here.

29/05/2023

On this Memorial Day, 2023, Hist-Story-MHRS celebrates the life and military service of this author’s Great-Aunt’s father, Technician, Fifth Grade, Robert W. Helmick, born on November 22, 1924, in Mannington, West Virginia, and at induction into the United States Army on May 29, 1943, was five foot eleven, weighed 195 pounds, had brown eyes, and brown hair.
Helmick entered the service at Fort Hayes, Ohio, on June 7, 1943, and was eventually assigned to A Company, 105th Combat Engineer Battalion, 30th Infantry Division, with an MOS [Military Occupational Specialty] listed as: Demolition Specialist- #533:
Demolition Specialist-533: Determined type of explosive to be used, size and location of charge to be placed and type of detonator to be used in setting off charge. Rendered bridges unserviceable to enemy. Removed roadblocks placed by enemy by use of explosives. Used cap crimples and small hand powered electric generator.
Technician Helmick joined the unit during the Battle of the Bulge, after they had a brief rest period after the fight in Aachen. On 17 December the division was rushed south to the Malmedy-Stavelot area to help block the powerful enemy drive in the Battle of the Bulge—the Germans’ last attempt to win a decisive victory over the Western Allies...

The 30th Infantry Division: The Division established its reputation as a top line fighting division during the Normandy breakout, and by the time of the Battle of the Bulge, had gained the notice of Axis Sally in Berlin who in the name of fanaticism and dedication nicknamed the division, “Roosevelt’s SS.” Several engagements had produced this respect, firstly, the attack against St. Lo, in Normandy, Jun-Jul 1944, secondly, stopping the SS counterattack at the battle of Mortain, in August, 44, thirdly, breaching the Siegfried Line in October, then, taking the German city of Aachen by November, and later, as if this was not enough, the routing of the 1st SS Panzer Division at the Ardennes battles, in Dec., 1945.
The 30th Infantry Division was regarded by a team of historians led by S.L.A. Marshall as the number one American infantry division in the European Theater of Operations (ETO) during World War II, involved in 282 days of intense combat over a period from June 1944 through April 1945. It was nicknamed the "Old Hickory" division, in honor of President Andrew Jackson.

Again, the division met the German 1st SS Panzer Division, as they had in France, and again broke the spearhead of their assault, isolating and destroying them at La Gleize, Belgium. Before they achieved this success, they had fought a desperate fight in Staumont over an old sanitorium, and were able to blow the bridges here, and at Trois Ponts. Once the huge German tanks were bottled up in the small villages, and low on petrol, they were systematically abandoned by their owners, or destroyed by Allied infantry or air attack.

The 30th Division launched a counterattack on 13 January 1945 and reached a point two miles south of St. Vith, Belgium, on 26 January, before leaving the battle and moving to an assembly area near Lierneux, on 27 January, and to another near Aachen to prepare for an attack deeper into the western edge of Germany at the Roer River.

After delays and intense preparation training, the Roer was successfully crossed on 23 February 1945, near Jülich. The 30th then moved back for training and rehabilitation on 3 March, and on 24 March made its assault crossing of the Rhine River, south of Wesel. It pursued the enemy across Germany, mopping up SS remnants at the Herman the German statue, at the Teutoburger Forest, took Hamelin on 7 April, Braunschweig on 12 April, and helped to reduce Magdeburg on 17 April. As the 30th was capturing Braunschweig, elements of the Division also liberated Weferlingen, a sub-camp of Buchenwald. Approximately 2,500 prisoners were freed through the efforts of the 30th.

The Russians were contacted at Grunewald on the Elbe River. The end of World War II in Europe came soon afterwards and, after a short occupation period the 30th Division, and Sgt Helmick, began their return to the United States, arriving on 19 August 1945.

The surrender of Japan followed soon which brought the war to an end, and the division was subsequently deactivated on 25 November 1945.

By disbandment, the unit had spent a cumulative 282 days in combat and had participated in the campaigns and battles of Normandy, Northern France, Rhineland, Ardennes-Alsace and Central Europe.

Robert Helmick lived beyond his days as a combat engineer with the 30th Infantry Division during the Battle of the Bulge, and the major river crossings he experienced, living in Ohio, and becoming a successful educator.

Casualties:
• Total battle casualties: 18,446
• Killed in action: 3,003
• Wounded in action: 13,376
• Missing in action: 903[]
• Prisoner of war: 1,164

25/01/2022

The following pictures were taken by the founder of Hist-Story-MHRS last month at the Combat Aviation History Museum of the Commemorative Air Force, at Falcon Field, in Mesa, Arizona. Research at the museum contributed to the completion of the Lt. Insley report; a WWII B-25 Mitchell pilot with the Antilles Command, 25th Bomb Group, 417th Bomb Squadron, flying anti-sub missions out of Borinquen, Puerto Rico. Lt. Insley also flew the Stearman bi-wing trainer.

08/12/2021

Hist-Story-MHRS recognizes the Punchbowl National Cemetery, Oahu, Hawaii on this December 7, 2021,: Designated as National Memorial Cemetery of The Pacific in 1949, Punchbowl Hawaii was a barren expanse of a volcanic crater with no trees and no memorial shrines or buildings. The first to be interned here in 1949 were many unknown sailors from the Pearl Harbor attack and one civilian, Pulitzer Prize winning war correspondent Ernie Pyle.
President Harry Truman said of Pyle, “No man in this war has so well told the story of the American fighting man as American fighting men wanted it told. He deserves the gratitude of all his countrymen.” He along with hundreds of unidentified remains from the Pearl Harbor attack were the first to be buried here on July 4th, 1949.
Other notables interned at Punchbowl are Hawaii’s late senator Spark Matsunaga, Ellison Onizuka (the first astronaut from Hawaii) who perished in the Challenger shuttle accident and Charles L. Veach, the second astronaut from Hawaii.

During the 1930’s the interior of the crater was used as a rifle range for the Hawaii National Guard and during World War II tunnels were dug through the rim for gun emplacements to guard Honolulu Harbor and the south edge of Pearl Harbor against Japanese invasion.

After the war, in 1947, pressure to designate this crater as a National Cemetery was put on the military by congressmen and veterans who lobbied for the remains of thousands of war dead, waiting in Guam for burial, to be brought to Oahu. The site was approved, and construction began in 1948 with the opening to the public in 1949.
Note
MORE THAN 13,000 SOLDIERS AND SAILORS WHO GAVE THE ULTIMATE SACRIFICE DURING WWII HAVE BEEN LAID TO REST IN PUNCHBOWL CRATER.

The Honolulu Memorial at Punchbowl
Built in 1964 and expanded in 1980, the memorial is located partially on the slope of the interior rim of the crater It sits atop an extensive stone staircase and on either side of the staircase are marble slabs etched with the names of 28,788 military personnel who are missing in action or buried at sea.
The courtyard at the top of the stairs includes a statue, Lady Columbia, also known as Lady Liberty or Lady Justice. She is said to represent all grieving mothers. At the base of the statue is inscribed the words of Abraham Lincoln written in a letter to a mother who lost her sons during the civil war:
THE SOLEMN PRIDE THAT MUST BE YOURS TO HAVE LAID SO COSTLY A SACRIFICE UPON THE ALTAR OF FREEDOM

Inside the Honolulu Memorial: Inside and behind the statue is a chapel and two extensive hallways on either side. These hallways house huge mosaic panels with illustrative maps showing the battles of the Pacific during WWII, Korea and Vietnam. It is an incredible array of information and artistic beauty that is worth climbing the long flight of stairs if you have the time.

12/11/2021

Hist-Story-MHRS was fortunate yesterday to participate in the Phoenix Veteran's Day Parade, along with our entry representing the 3rd Infantry Division, Outpost 15, 'Arizona Renegades'.

11/11/2021

This Veteran's Day, Hist-Story-MHRS salutes the sacrifices made by all military veterans, and those of the 3rd Infantry Division-Rock of the Marne-Limited Edition Lithograph -by Alan Temple
Third infantry Division soldiers from WWI, WWII, the Korean War, the Cold War, and the Global War on Terror stand guard in front of the Division patch. In the foreground, a silver wyvern (type of dragon, found in medieval heraldry) proudly displays its colors and symbolizes one of the designations by which men of the Division were popularly known: “Blue and White Devils.”

25/10/2021

Hist-Story-MHRS is pleased to announce the completion of the founder’s report on his uncle and aunt’s experiences during World War II; Corporal Lawrence White (Red; 345 General Service Engineer Regiment), and Marie-Maxfield-White (Claire, Sgt. WAC), [please see Feb. 2021 page entry for details on this bio.].
We are also excited to announce the beginning of another World War II report based on the involvement of a B-25 pilot operating anti-submarine patrols with the 25th Bomb Group, 417th Bomb Squadron, out of Borinquen Airfield, Puerto Rico.
Second Lieutenant Insley enlisted in January 1943 as a pilot and transitioned later to advanced four-engine training on a B-24 Liberator, at Smyrna, Texas. Pre-flight training was conducted at Maxwell Field, Alabama; Primary school at Helena Aero Tech; Basic at Gunter Field, Alabama; and advanced twin-engine training at Blytheville, Arkansas.
Primary trainer aircraft:
• Consolidated PT-1 "Trusty"
• Stearman PT-13D "Kaydet"
• Ryan YPT-16
• Fairchild PT-19 "Cornell"
• Ryan PT-22 "Recruit"
• Fairchild PT-26 "Cornell"
• Vultee BT-13) (2-eng,)

Advanced Trainer Aircraft (AT):

• North American AT-6 - See T-6G "Texan"
• Curtiss AT-9 "Fledgling"/"Jeep"
• Beech AT-10 "Wichita"
• Beech AT-11 "Kansan"
• Cessna AT-17 - Cessna UC-78B "Bobcat"

The following is a description of a flight instructor’s briefing from 1942 concerning pylon course flying:
Get this cadet; I’ll only give it once. I want you to make precision ninety degree climbing turns to six-thousand feet. Make two 360-degree steep turns, one right, one left, without gaining or losing altitude, and holding a constant air speed. Make one each power on, and power off stalls while in a left, and then a right, turn. Make a three-turn precision spin to the right, and then recover. Make power off gliding turns to an altitude of 800 feet. Level off at the pylon course and fly two figure eight patterns around the two pylons, keeping your lower inside wing tip lined up on a pylon during the turns, and maintain exact airspeed and altitude throughout the course. Then fly to auxiliary landing field No. 1 for emergency landing practice.
Good luck.

And another entry explaining the importance of transition flying:

When I was a pilot officer student, attending instructor school at Randolph Army Airfield, I learned early on, one very important aphorism. I learned that good pilots know there is no such thing as a fighter pilot, a very-heavy bomber pilot, or anything in between pilot. Simplified, this means that good pilots can fly them all; furthermore, they quickly learn to respect and adjust to their airplanes, so they are one and the same with it. Howard Hood, I/P Instructor Pilot, October 1943.

Insley would transition from the B24 Liberator which he trained on, to the B-25 Mitchell, once he was permanently assigned to the 25th Bomb Group. The B-24 was used extensively in World War II. It served in every branch of the American armed forces as well as several Allied air forces and navies. It saw use in every theater of operations. Along with the B-17, the B-24 was the mainstay of the US strategic bombing campaign in the Western European theater. Due to its range, it proved useful in bombing operations in the Pacific, including the bombing of Japan. Long-range anti-submarine Liberators played an instrumental role in closing the Mid-Atlantic gap [also known as the “Black Hole”] in the Battle of the Atlantic [which is Lt. Insley’s contribution to the war effort, as well as the other members of the 25th Bomb Group].

End Part I.

12/09/2021

The Landing Craft Support (Large), LCS(L), (3) 102, was a shallow draft vessel designed to provide close-in fire support for the troops going ashore in the amphibious landings in the Pacific during World War II. Packed with firepower, the LCSs had two twin 40mm guns, four 20mm guns, and four 50 caliber machine-guns. Mounted on the bow was either a single 3'50, a single 40mm or a twin 40mm. Just aft of the bow were ten Mark 7 rocket launcher that could fire 120 rockets at a time. this class of ship the U.S. Navy ever built, hence the name, "Mighty Midget." The LCS-102 provided radar, smoke, kamikaze over-watch, and fire support ,to the Okinawa landings.

11/09/2021

This post is dedicated to the men and women of the United States armed forces who continually protect the country from hostile threats on the land, air, sea, and space.
The founders of Hist-Story-MHRS visited several military museums in the San Francisco, California, area, during a working vacation over the Labor Day weekend. The trip took us to the Travis Air Force Base Aviation Museum, near Sacramento; then to the USS Landing Craft Support “Mighty Midget” Museum, at Mare Naval Shipyard, in Vallejo, followed by the USS Pampanito, a restored World War II submarine docked in San Francisco Bay; and finally the SS Jeremiah O’ Brian, at the National Liberty Ship Memorial, on Pier 45, in San Francisco (which included a fantastic 1/72nd scale WWII D-Day diorama depicting the landing at Normandy on June 6, 1944, in one of its cargo bays).

17/08/2021

Hist-Story-MHRS this month features a page from the founder’s book (p. 111), Once I Had A Comrade: Karl Roth and the Combat History of the 36th Panzer Regiment, 1939-1945, Helion Books, 2006, about his father-in-law’s experiences in the German Army in World War II. The excerpt explains the activities of those on the ground in Schweinfurt, Germany, during the first major American air raid on the ball-bearing producing city, made on August 17, 1943.
Coincidentally, the founder’s great uncle was training in Arizona at the same time as a B-17 pilot and would conduct 50 missions in 1944 over N**i occupied territory in Europe with the Fifteenth Air-Force, flying to targets from bases in North Africa, and Italy.
His story, and the missions flown, will be researched, and presented in a future post by Hist-Story-MHRS.

15/07/2021

The founder, as a member of the Third Infantry Association recognizes the 3rd Division on the 103rd anniversary of the Second Battle of the Marne.
The Second Battle of the Marne lasted from July 15 to August 6, 1918.Conceived as an attempt to draw Allied troops south from Flanders to facilitate an attack in that region, the offensive along the Marne proved to be the last the German Army would mount in World War I.
In the opening days of the fighting, German forces made only minor gains before being halted by a constellation of Allied troops. Due to intelligence gathering, the Allies were largely aware of German intentions and had prepared a sizable counter-offensive. This moved forward on July 18 and quickly shattered German resistance. After two days of fighting, the Germans commenced a retreat to trenches between the Aisne and Vesle Rivers. The Allied attack was the first in a series of sustained offensives that would bring the war to an end that November.
At midnight on 15 July 1918, the Third Infantry Division earned lasting distinction. Engaged in the Aisne-Marne Offensive as a member of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) to Europe, the division was protecting the French capital of Paris with a position on the banks of the Marne River. The 7th Machine Gun Battalion of the 3rd Division rushed to Château-Thierry amid retreating French troops and held the Germans back at the Marne River. While surrounding units retreated, the 3rd Division, including the 4th, 30th and 38th Infantry Regiments, remained steadfast throughout the Second Battle of the Marne, and Colonel Ulysses G. McAlexander's dogged defense earned the 3rd Division its nickname as the "Rock of the Marne".
The rest of the division was absorbed under French command until brought back together under the command of Major General Joseph T. Dickman and by 15 July 1918 they took the brunt of what was to be the last German offensive of the war. General John Joseph "Black Jack" Pershing, Commander-in-chief (C-in-C) of the AEF on the Western Front, called this stand "one of the most brilliant pages in the annals of military history".
During the massive attack on 16 July, the 3rd Infantry Division's commanding officer, Major General Joseph T. Dickman, famously cried out "Nous Resterons La" (We Shall Remain Here). Their Blue and White insignia also earned them the nickname The Blue and White Devils."

17/06/2021

The Battle of Bunker Hill was fought on June 17, 1775, during the Siege of Boston in the first stage of the American Revolutionary War. The battle is named after Bunker Hill in Charlestown, Massachusetts, which was peripherally involved in the battle. It was the original objective of both the colonial and British troops, though the majority of combat took place on the adjacent hill which later became known as Breed's Hill.
On June 13, 1775, the leaders of the colonial forces besieging Boston learned that the British were planning to send troops out from the city to fortify the unoccupied hills surrounding the city, which would give them control of Boston Harbor. In response, 1,200 colonial troops under the command of William Prescott stealthily occupied Bunker Hill and Breed's Hill. During the night, the colonists constructed a strong redoubt on Breed's Hill, as well as smaller fortified lines across the Charlestown Peninsula.
By daybreak of June 17, the British became aware of the presence of colonial forces on the Peninsula and mounted an attack against them that day. Two assaults on the colonial positions were repulsed with significant British casualties; the third and final attack carried the redoubt after the defenders ran out of ammunition. The colonists, including over 100 African Americans, retreated over Bunker Hill, leaving the British in control of the Peninsula.
The battle was a tactical, though somewhat Pyrrhic, victory for the British, as it proved to be a sobering experience for them; the British incurred many more casualties than the Americans had sustained, including many officers. The battle had demonstrated that inexperienced militia were able to stand up to regular army troops in battle. Subsequently, the battle discouraged the British from any further frontal attacks against well defended front lines. American casualties were comparatively much fewer, although their losses included General Joseph Warren and Major Andrew McClary, the final casualty of the battle.

16/06/2021

On this 246th anniversary eve of the Battle of Bunker Hill, Hist-Story-MHRS celebrates the life of Dr. Joseph Warren. Joseph Warren (June 11, 1741 – June 17, 1775) was an American physician who played a leading role in Patriot organizations in Boston during the early days of the American Revolution, eventually serving as President of the revolutionary Massachusetts Provincial Congress.
Warren enlisted Paul Revere and William Dawes on April 18, 1775, to leave Boston and spread the alarm that the British garrison in the city was setting out to raid the town of Concord, confiscate arms, and arrest rebel leaders John Hancock and Samuel Adams. Warren participated in the Battles of Lexington and Concord the following day, which are commonly considered to be the opening engagements of the American Revolutionary War.
Warren had been commissioned a major general in the colony's militia shortly before the June 17, 1775 Battle of Bunker Hill. Rather than exercising his rank, Warren chose to serve in the battle as a private soldier, and was killed in combat refusing to evacuate when British troops stormed the redoubt atop Breed's Hill. His death, immortalized in John Trumbull's painting, The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker's Hill, June 17, 1775, galvanized the rebel forces. General Gage reportedly said Warren's death was equal to the death of 500 men, and encouraged the revolutionary cause as it was viewed by many Americans as an act of martyrdom.
He has been memorialized in the naming of many towns, counties, streets, and other locations in the United States, by statues, and in numerous other ways. He is buried at the Forrest Hills Cemetery and arboretum, in Jamaica Plains, Massachusetts.