USS McCall (DD-28)-- Part 1

This month I am writing about American War of 1812 hero Edward R. McCall in my Not So Forgotten:  War of 1812 blog.  He received a Congressional Gold Medal and had a special medal made for him for his actions on board the brig USS Enterprise in its battle with the British brig HMS Boxer off the coast of Maine in 1813.

He had two ships named after him.  The first one which I am writing about here, took part in World War I and was one of the U.S. Navy's earliest destroyers.  The second one fought in the World War II and I am writing about that in my Tattooed on Your Soul: World War II blog.

World War I and World War II with a War of 1812 connection.

--Cooter

How 25 Christmas Traditions Started-- Part 5: Saint Nicholas, Luminaras, Twelve Days, Poinsettias, Salvation Army

Again, for more information, go to the site (listed in Part 1.)

21.  A VISIT FROM SAINT NICHOLAS

Best known as "The Night Before Christmas."  The classic by poet Clement Moore was written on Christmas Eve 1822.  He was embarrassed by it and it wasn't released until the following year.

22.  LUMINARIAS

Simple, folded brown bags filled with sand and lit by votive candles.  One of my favorite things to see, but very rare.

23.  TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS

This spans the 12 days between the birth of Jesus and the visit of the Magi, December 2 to January 6.  The cost to do this in 2019 would be $38, 993.59.

24.  POINSETTIAS

America's Christmas flower.  They were brought to America by our first ambassador to Mexico, Joel Roberts Poinset.  (I have two big ones that are now 25 years old.)

25.  SALVATION ARMY BELL RINGERS

What would the holidays be without these folks.  This started in  San Francisco in 1891.  

--RoadMas

How 25 Christmas Traditions Started--Part 4: Wonderful Life, Lights, Santas, Fruitcakes & Cookies

16.  IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE

Frank Capra's Christmas classic debuted in 1946 with Jimmy Stewart playing George Bailey, a suicidal man who was shown what life would have been like if he had never been born.  It wasn't nice.  It was a flop at the  box office when it premiered, but did get five Academy award nominations, but no wins.

It wasn't until the owner neglected to renew the copyright that statins started showing it and that's when it took off.

My 3rd favorite Christmas movie and favorite non-comedy one.

17.  CHRISTMAS LIGHTS

Edward Hibbard Johnson, a friend of Thomas Edison, came up with the idea of stringing lights around a Christmas tree in New York in 1882.  Now over 150 million sets are sold in the U.S. each year.  (I still want to know why I usually have one half of the lights go out in a string and then can't get them relit.)

18.  DEPARTMENT STORE SANTA

Dates back to 1890 when James Edgar of Brockton, Massachusetts, had a Santa suit made for himself  at his dry goods store.  Some say Macy's has had one since 1862.  (Still my favorite department store Santa was the one at Higbee's.)

19.  MAKING FUN OF FRUITCAKE

A favorite of the British (and me), but the subject of a long-running American joke.  Manitou Springs in Colorado has an annual Fruitcake Toss Day.

20.  COOKIE SWAPS

For over a hundred years in America.  I don't exchange.  I want them ALL!!!!

Ho, Ho, Ho!!  --RoadDog

In 1985, Johnny Carson joked:  "The worst Christmas gift is a fruitcake.  There is only one fruitcake in the entire world and people keep sending it to each other."

How 25 Christmas Traditions Started-- Part 3: Cookies, Candy Canes, Egg Nog, Wreaths & Cards

11.  COOKIES AND MILK FOR SANTA

Dates back to ancient Norse mythology, but Americans started it during the Great Depression.

12.  CANDY CANES

Whether eaten or hung from the tree.  Candy canes are the #1 non-chocolate candy seller during December.  The white and red candy arrived in the U.S. in 1847 from a German-Swedish immigrant in Wooster, Ohio. By the 1950s, the automated candy cane making machines had been developed and it really took off.

13.  BOOZY EGG NOG

This yuletide  cocktail stems from posset, a drink made of hot curdled milk and ale or wine in Medieval Europe.  Even George Washington had a special recipe.

14.  DOOR WREATHS

Have been around since ancient Greek and Roman times but took on a Christian meaning, but mostly seen as a secular winter tradition.

15.  CHRISTMAS CARDS

The first Christmas card was in England in 1843. The idea of a mailed  winter holiday greeting caught on with the Kansas City-based Hall Brothers (now Hallmark) in 1915.  According to the Greeting Card Association, today, more than1.6 billion of them are sold.  That's a lot of stamps.

--Cooter

How 25 Christmas Traditions Started-- Part 2: Logs, Calendars, Houses, Nutcracker and Sweaters

6.  YULE LOG

Part of ancient solstice celebrations.  But, airing on TV of a fire blazing away was 1966 on WPIX-TV in New York City.

7.  ADVENT CALENDARS

Early versions started in Germany in 1903.  Children open one small door or window each day in the countdown and get something.

8.  GINGERBREAD HOUSES

Queen Elizabeth I gets  credit for decorating it, but started in Germany

9.  THE NUTCRACKER

Music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and originally choreographed by  Marius Petipa.    Premiered  December 18, 1892, in St. Petersburg, Russia.

10.  UGLY CHRISTMAS SWEATERS

Sounds like a Canadian thing. Hosers!!

--DaCoot

How 25 Christmas Traditions Started-- Part 1: Trees, Rockettes, Charlie, Pickles & Elves

From the History site.

1.  CHRISTMAS TREES

Started in Germany  It is believed the first Christmas tree lot in the U.S. opened in 1851.

2.  ROCKETTES

First called the  Missouri Rockets back in 1925.  Officially became the  Radio City Music Hall Rockettes in 1934.  Give me one of those great line kicks!!!!!!!!!!!

3.  A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS

First aired December 9, 1965

4.  CHRISTMAS PICKLES

Hide one and te first child to find it gets something.  As a shareholder with the Mount Olive Pickle Cp. I like this one.  But growing up, I never had this.  Bah!! Humbug!!

5.  ELF ON THE SHELF

Since 2005.  We didn't have them growing up, but that was quite a ways before us.  My brother and sister are quite old.

Twenty to Go.  --CootChris

Ten Facts About the Battle of Princeton: Sneaking Away and That 'Intelligent Young Gentleman'

From George Washington's Mount Vernon.

The American victory at the Battle of Princeton (January 3, 1777)  was one of the most consequential f the American Revolution.  George Washington and his soldiers marched north from Trenton and attacked a British force south of Princeton.

Washington's victory  bolstered American  morale and provided  great confidence to his soldiers.

1.  WASHINGTON ESCAPED ONE ENEMY TO ATTACK ANOTHER AT PRINCETON.

The Americans had been able to repulse several attacks on January 2 at the Battle of Assunpink Creek (Battle of Second  Trenton), but still had the prospects of an all-out attack by  Gen. Charles Cornwallis' 8,000 man British Army the next day.

They were able to slip away through deceptive campfires and quietness to attack Princeton.

2.  "A VERY INTELLIGENT YOUNG GENTLEMAN" PROVIDED WASHINGTON WITH INTELLIGENCE.

Col. John Cadwalader was able to get detailed information and a map from this "intelligent young gentleman."  They didn't say who he was, though. But Washington had a detailed map of the British defenses and positions at Princeton.

--Brock-Perry

Battle of Princeton-- Part 2: From Defeat, Washington Gets a Victory

When the Americans spotted the British troops around William Clarke's farm, Washington detached Hugh Mercer's brigade to investigate.  Mercer ran headlong into the 17th Foot Regiment, firmly stationed behind a fence at the end of Clarke's orchard.  In the ensuing volleys,  Mercer was wounded and his men routed by a bayonet charge.

With the British on the verge of splitting his army, Washington quickly detached  John Cadwalader's  Philadelphia Associatiors (militia) to plug the gap.  These green troops fought valiantly, but were also broken by British bayonets.

With the battle, and the war, hanging in the balance, Washington personally led fresh troops onto the field while grapeshot and canister battery from Joseph  Moulder's artillery forced the British back towards Clarke's farmhouse.  Washington's counterattack broke the British line, which quickly turned into a route.

Further nearer the town, two smaller engagements at Frog Hollow and on the grounds of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University), also resulted in a British retreat.

Washington had won a great victory, defeating a smaller force of British regulars, but British Colonel Mawhood was also praised for delaying the Americans long enough to rescue most of his supplies.

--Brock-Perry

Battle of Princeton-- Part 1

From American Battlefield Trust.

I was  aware of the Battle of Trenton, one great surprise attack, but really didn't know what happened afterwards.  Now, I know.

After crossing the Delaware River on December 25, 1776, and surprising the British at Trenton the next morning, George Washington embarked on a ten-day campaign  that would change the course of the war.  Culminating in the Battle of Princeton on on January 3, 1777, Washington snatched victory from the jaws of defeat and proved his amateur army could defeat the British.

The Battle of Princeton was a classic meeting engagement, with both sides stumbling into each other, and neither expecting to fight on the ground where the battle raged.  Initially, the British commander, Charles Mawhood, marched his force south towards Trenton to meet the main British Army, when he spotted the American column.

Washington had stolen a march on Charles Lord Cornwallis, slipping away  from the British forces along Assunpink Creek the night before.

--Brock-Perry

Battle of Princeton (New Jersey)

From the December American Battlefield Trust 2021 Calendar.

PRINCETON, NEW JERSEY

24 acres saved.

On January 3, 1777, General George Washington personally led a daring charge against British regulars and reinvigorated the spirit of America's War for Independence at Princeton.

In one of the most high-profile victories, the Trust worked with the State of New Jersey, Mercer County, the Princeton Battlefield Society and other local partners to save 14.85 key acres of the battlefield, valued at a stunning $4 million.

This occurred a short time after the surprise he gave the British at Trenton on December 26, 1776.

Thanks Trust.  Glad I Belong.  --Cooter

10 Everyday Things That Came From Military Technology-- Part 2: Canned Food, Synthetic Rubber, Virtual Reality

Again, for much more information, go to the site.

5.  CANNED FOOD:  French Army.  Nicholas Appert invented it.    Good other than when you cut your hand in the lid.

4.  BAGGED SALAD:   German Karl Busch during WW II.

3.  SYNTHETIC RUBBER:  After the Japanese stopped our supply of rubber in WW II.

2.  VIRTUAL REALITY:  A whole lot of military training involves this.

1.  ROOMBA:  Military robotic mine sweepers.

--Cooter

10 Everyday Things That Grew Out of Military Technology-- Part 1: Duct Tape, Microwave Oven, Super Glue

 From Listverse December 9, 2021, by Jon F.

I am just listing these interesting items.  For much more information, go to the site.

10.  DUCT TAPE:  What would I do without Duct tape.  Invented by Vesta Stout.

9.  MICROWAVE OVEN:  Again, what would I do without the microwave.  To improve radar.

8.  SUPER GLUE:  Create clear gun sights.  By far best for gluing my fingers together.

7.  GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM:    Began as a way to track submarines during the Cold War.  O hate when mine calls me names in its "polite" way.

6.  THE INTERNET:    What would these blogs do without it.

--Cooter

10 Christmas Themes from the Roaring 20s Compared to Today-- Part 2

Remember, if you want to fond out more about any of these items, go to the site.  A whole lot more information there.

5.  Caroling   

4.  Fruitcake humor   Prohibition took away a key ingredient --  whiskey.  I don't care what folks say, I really like fruitcakes.

3.  The on-going Jesus vs.  Santa arm wrestling  match.  Politically correct, you know.

2.  The Christmas  Tree.    Trees much nicer today

1.  Putting up decorations   Mist homes back in the 20s didn't even put up the tree until right before Christmas.  Very little decorations, especially lighted ones.  But, today we have the Great Christmas Wars to see who can outdo their neighbors.

--DaCoot

10 Christmas Themes from the Roaring 20s Compared to Today-- Part 1

From the December 9, 2021, ListVerse site by Joseph Dupree.

Go to the site and read a whole lot more.

10.  Santa hasn't aged a day.

9.  What about Santa's crew?  Mrs. Santa the same, but Rudolph didn't join until 1939.

8.  The Season of Giving     Definitely different gifts.

7.  What the Dickens!   The idea of a huge Christmas dinner was already here.

6.  Holiday Broadcasting  Well, no television.

--Cooter

USS Montgomery (C-9)-- Part 3: Commissioned and Decommissioned a Whole Bunch

In April 1899, the Montgomery transferred  to the South Atlantic Squadron and operated along the Atlantic coast of South America. In July 1900, she was import to Uruguay with Commander John Merrill as her commanding officer.

 Decommissioned at New York City 15 September 1900 and recommissioned  15 May 1902 and assigned to the Caribbean Division, North Atlantic Squadron and operated in the West Indies until decommissioned again at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 15 September 1904.

The Montgomery was recommissioned yet again 2 January 1908 and  operated in the Fifth Naval District as a torpedo experimental ship.  From 1914 to  1918, she was with the Maryland  Naval Militia.  Renamed the Anniston  14 March 1918, she was assigned to  Division 2, American Patrol Detachment, for patrol and escort duty along the  Atlantic coast and the Caribbean.

Decommissioned at Charleston, South Carolina, for a last time on 16 May 1918,  the Anniston was struck from  the Navy List 25 August 1919 and sold 14 November 1919.

--Cooter

USS Montgomery (C-9)-- Part 2: Took Part in the Spanish-American War

The USS Montgomery was launched 5 December 1891 by Columbian Iron  Works in Baltimore, Maryland; sponsored by Miss Sofia Smith; and commissioned at Norfolk  Navy Yard (Virginia)  21 June 1894, Commander Charles Henry Davis, Jr. in command.

Assigned to the North Atlantic Squadron and operated along the eastern edge of the U.S. as far south as the Caribbean Sea.

During the Spanish-American War she  cruised near Cuba and Haiti in April 1898 and in May joined the blockade of Havana.  She took two prizes, the Lorenzo and Frasquito, on 5 May, and shelled the Spanish forts  a week later.

On 13 June a 280 Krupp gun at the Santa Clara  Battery fired on the Montgomery at a range of 9,000 meters, apparently without effect.

--Cooter

USS Montgomery (C-9): Spanish-American War and WW I

There was also a USS Montgomery in the Spanish-American War which also was still afloat during World War I, although it did not see action.

From Wikipedia.

The 4th USS Montgomery (C-9) was the lead ship of its class and what was termed an unprotected cruiser  It served during two wars and was named after the capital city of Alabama.

GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS

BUILDER:  Columbian Iron Works and Dry Dock Co. of Baltimore, Md.

COST:  $1,037,923 (Hull and Machinery)

COMMISSIONED:  21 June 18 1894

DECOMMISSIONED:  16 May 1918

LENGTH:  269 feet 10 inches

BEAM:  37 feet

DRAFT:  14 feet 6 inches

SPEED:  17 knots

COMPLEMENT:  30 officers, 249 enlisted

ARMAMENT:

Two 6-inch guns

Eight 5-inch guns

Six 6-pounder  guns

Two 1-pounder guns

Two Gatling guns

Three 18-inch torpedo tubes

--Cooter

There Was a USS Montgomery in the American Revolution

Earlier this month, I wrote about the current USS Montgomery (LCS-8).  I found out there were also USS Montgomerys in the War of 1812, Civil War, Spanish-American War and World War II.

I will write about them in my blogs.

From Wikipedia.

USS MONTGOMERY (1776)

Was a three-masted, wooden sailing frigate and one of the first 13 ships authorized by the Continental Congress on 13 December 1775.  

She was built by Lancaster Burling at Poughkeepsie, New York, and launched late in October 1776.  But because the British captured New York City after the Battle of Brooklyn, the Hudson River was closed.  Because of this, the ship was never completed and later destroyed.

It was probably built to the standards of Joshua Humphry's design for a 24-gun frigate mounting twenty-four 9-pounder guns.

It was named in honor of fallen general Richard Montgomery, who had been a British soldier but sided with  the Americans and was appointed  a brigadier general by George Washington  he was later killed in a failed assault on  Quebec,  31 December 1775.

To prevent capture by the British,  the USS Montgomery was burned on 6 October 1777.

--Cooter

101-Year-Old USS Oklahoma Survivor Returns for 80th "Let 'Em Puff the Cigarettes'

I will be writing about Pearl Harbor in seven of my eight blogs today.  This story began in my Saw the Elephant: Civil War blog and my Running the Blockade: Civil War Navy blog.

After the attack, David Russell, 101, and two others went to Ford Island in search for a bathroom.  While there,  they found a dispensary and  enlisted quarters that had been turned into  a triage center and a place  of refuge for hundreds of wounded.  They found  horribly burned sailors lining the walls. Many would die in the hours an d days ahead.

"Most of them wanted a cigarette, and I didn't smoke at the time, but, I got a pack of cigarettes and some matches.  I lit their cigarettes for them," said Russell.  "You feel for these guys, but I couldn't do anything.  Just light a cigarette for 'em and let 'em puff the cigarettes."

Russell still thinks about how lucky he was.  He ponders why he decided to go topside on the Oklahoma, knowing that most of the men who remained behind likely were unable to get out after the hatch was closed.

In the first two days after the attack, a civilian crew from the shipyard rescued 32 men trapped  inside the ship by cutting holes in its upturned hull.  But the rest perished.  Most of those who died in the Oklahoma were buried anonymously in Honolulu graves and listed as unknowns because their remains were too degraded  to be identified by the time they were removed from the ship between 1942 and 1943.

--GreGen

Current U.S. Warships: The USS Montgomery (LCS-8)

From the December 2021 Paralyzed Veterans of America calendar.

GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS

An Independence-class  littoral combat ship.

BUILDER:  Austal USA, Mobile, Alabama

LAUNCHED:  August 6, 2014

HOMEPORT:  San Diego

LENGTH:  418 feet

BEAM:  104 feet

DRAFT:  13 feet

CREW: Ship:  8 officers, 32 enlisted and up to 35 mission crew.

ARMAMENT:  One Mk-110 57mm gun, One SeaRam CIWS

AIRCRAFT:  Two MH-60 helicopters.

--Cooter

Seneca Falls, New York and 'It's a Wonderful Life'

From Wikipedia.

Seneca Falls is reportedly the inspiration for the fictional city of Bedford Falls in the movie "It's a Wonderful Life."

The census of 2010 put the population at 9,040.

The town is on the northern part of the Finger Lakes District.

At the conclusion of the American Revolution, this area was part of the Central New York Military Tract of some 2 million acres of land set aside to  compensate New York soldiers for serving in the war.  The land would be given to the soldiers in lots of 600 acres in size.  This caused a lot of growth in the area's population.

In 1818, a canal was completed connecting  Seneca Lake and Cayuga Lake an d these were later connected to the Erie Canal in 1828.

The Seneca Falls Convention was held there July 19-20, 1848, and was the first women's rights convention organized by women explicitly to discuss the subject.  Elizabeth Cady Stanton was involved with this.

--Cooter

'It's a Wonderful Life' Returning-- Part 4: There's a Tear in My Eye

Jimmy Hawkins, who played 4-year-old Tommy Bailey, said people have come up to both of them and said that watching the film kept them from killing themselves.  It's message is about how important you are to those around you even if you don't think so.

And, even at the age 79, he said he feels like he's 4 all over again when he thinks about the movie.  "When people ask us questions about being on the set, you clock back into it," Hawkins said.  "It's so vivid.  It seems like a million years ago or just yesterday."

The movie itself is pretty dark on multiple levels, and Karolyn Grimes thinks people coming out of World War II, weren't quite ready for it yet.

Jimmy Stewart himself wasn't sure he wanted to even act again after flying naval planes over Germany but, as Hawkins said, actor Lionel Barrymore, who plays the miserly Mr. Potter, convinced Stewart to do it.

I don't know about you, but I have never been able to watch the movie's conclusion without getting a tear in my eye.

And remember, you can see the movie on NBC on December 4 and 24.

--Cooter

'It's a Wonderful Life' Returning-- Part 3: How Each Person's Life Touches Another

And, I see my local Walgreen's has one of those 100-page memory magazine/books for sale in honor of this movie's longevity.  I will be buying one.

In 1980, Karolyn Grimes had no idea how journalists tracked her down because her name had changed and there was no Google.  But the publicity enabled her to reunite with Steward and Reed, and she then became an unofficial ambassador of the movie.

Over the past four decades, she has attended countless screenings, benefits and conventions.  She helped create a museum for the film and returns each December to Seneca Falls, New York, the model for the movie's small-town Bedford Falls, for the "It's a Wonderful Life" Festival.

For grimes, the film's message is timeless:  "How each person's life touches another, and we're given an opportunity to make a difference. That's so important."

Again, my third all-time favorite Christmas movie.

--Cooter