The Battle of Carrizal: America's Worst Defeat in the Hunt for Pancho Villa
Captain Charles T. Boyd led his mounted troopers across the Mexican desert. He had been ordered to avoid a fight. But on June 21, 1916, outside Carrizal, Mexico, Boyd faced 400 Mexican federal troops blocking his path. Their commander, General Félix Uresti Gómez, warned him to turn back. Three months earlier, Pancho Villa had raided […]
America's Forgotten Doughboys: The 332nd Infantry Destroyed an Empire
While millions of Americans can name Western Front battles like Belleau Wood or the Meuse-Argonne, almost no one remembers the 332nd Infantry Regiment. These Ohio doughboys were the only American combat unit to fight against the Central Powers in a WWI theater outside of France and helped end the war in Italy. The regiment formed […]
Seminole Warriors Fought the US Military to a Stalemate in the Florida Swamps During America's Deadliest War Against the Native Americans
On the morning of Dec. 28, 1835, a single gunshot rang out in the central Florida wilderness. Chief Micanopy fired the initial shot before one hundred eighty Seminole warriors hidden in the shrubs opened up on 110 unsuspecting U.S. soldiers. Soon after, 108 soldiers were dead. The Second Seminole War had begun. Fewer than 2,000 […]
America's Game: How Army and Navy Built One of the Most Legendary College Football Rivalries
Navy started playing organized football in 1879, when first-classman William John Maxwell formed the Naval Academy’s first team. The squad practiced before reveille and after drills, against direct orders from the academy superintendent who had banned the sport. By 1890, Navy needed a similar opponent, but Army didn’t have a football team. When Navy requested […]
A Deadly Flight Out of Wichita Has One of America's Most Historic Aviation Cities Reeling
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — When American Eagle Flight 5342 took off from Wichita, the Midwest city with a proud aviation history was glowing from a big moment. It had just hosted the next generation of Olympic hopefuls at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, the kind of major sporting event that leaders of the largest city […]