Category Archives: 1940s

Nearly decimated Allied Arctic convoy PQ 17 suffers final losses one day ahead of arrival in Russia 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jul 10 1942)

1940s, World War II


Video: 'The worst naval decision of WW2? - The Destruction of PQ17'

(Friday, July 10, 1942; part of the Second World War, Arctic Campaign) — PQ 17, the code name for an Allied convoy in the Arctic Ocean sailing eastbound from Hvalfjord, Iceland (on June 27, 1942), for the port of Arkhangelsk, Russia, today suffered final losses as German submarine U-251 sank Panamanian freighter El Capitan and German submarine U-376 sank U.S. ship Hoosier in the Barents Sea. Continue reading Nearly decimated Allied Arctic convoy PQ 17 suffers final losses one day ahead of arrival in Russia 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jul 10 1942) →

Anne Frank’s family takes refuge in ‘Secret Annex’ of Amsterdam warehouse to hide from Nazi occupiers 80 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jul 6 1942)

1940s, The Holocaust, World War II


Video: 'Anne Frank - Lembrada - Legendado' (July 6, 1942, at 24:18)

(Monday, July 6, 1942, 7:30 a.m. Central European Summer Time; part of The Holocaust during World War II) — One day after Margot Frank, a 16-year-old Jewish girl living in Nazi-occupied Holland, received a call-up notice to report to a work camp in Germany, the Frank family (Anne, 13, and her parents, Otto and Edith), went into hiding today in rooms above and behind the premesis of her father’s business in Amsterdam, where some of his most trusted employees would help them survive. Continue reading Anne Frank’s family takes refuge in ‘Secret Annex’ of Amsterdam warehouse to hide from Nazi occupiers 80 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jul 6 1942) →

Margot Frank, Anne Frank’s elder sister, receives call-up notice to report for deportation to forced-labor camp 80 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jul 5 1942)

1940s, The Holocaust, World War II


Video: 'Anne Frank - Lembrada - Legendado' (July 5, 1942, at 22:55)

(Sunday, July 5, 1942, 3:00 p.m. Central European Summer Time; during The Holocaust , part of World War II) — Margot Frank, the 16-year-old sister of Anne Frank, 13, received a call-up notice to report for deportation to a forced-labor today from the Zentralstelle für jüdische Auswanderung (Central Office for Jewish Emigration) at their Amsterdam apartment on the Merwedeplein (Merwede Square) in Nazi-occupied Holland. Continue reading Margot Frank, Anne Frank’s elder sister, receives call-up notice to report for deportation to forced-labor camp 80 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jul 5 1942) →

U.S. Army Major General Dwight D. Eisenhower takes command of U.S. forces in Europe 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 25 1942)

1940s, U.S. Presidents, World War II


Video: 'News Briefs (1942)'

(Thursday, June 25, 1942; during World War II) — U.S. Army Major General Dwight D. Eisenhower, a 51-year-old veteran of armored warfare, assumed command today of the newly created European Theater of Operations, United States Army (ETOUSA), a Theater of Operations responsible for directing United States Army operations throughout the European theatre of World War II, headquartered in London. Continue reading U.S. Army Major General Dwight D. Eisenhower takes command of U.S. forces in Europe 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 25 1942) →

Japanese submarine fires 17 shells at Fort Stevens on Oregon coast 80 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 21 1942)

1940s, World War II


Video: 'Japanese Attack Oregon! (Bombardment of Fort Stevens)'

(Sunday, June 21, 1942, around 11:30 p.m. PDT; during the fired shells at Fort Stevens, part of the American Theater during World War II) — The Imperial Japanese submarine I-25, commanded by Akiji Tagami, fired tonight on Fort Stevens, which defended the Oregon side of the Columbia River’s Pacific entrance. Continue reading Japanese submarine fires 17 shells at Fort Stevens on Oregon coast 80 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 21 1942) →

German forces, led by Gen. Erwin Rommel, take control of Tobruk in assault on British forces 80 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 21 1942)

1940s, World War II


Video: '147 - Tobruk: A second siege? - WW2 - June 20, 1942' (Fall of Tobruk at 3:02)

(Sunday, June 21, 1942, 9:40 a.m. Central European Time; during the Axis capture of Tobruk, part of the Western Desert campaign of the Second World War) — German forces, led by Generaloberst (Colonel General) Erwin Rommel, today captured the North African city of Tobruk, Libya — a key port on the Mediterranean Sea — in an assault on British forces. Continue reading German forces, led by Gen. Erwin Rommel, take control of Tobruk in assault on British forces 80 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 21 1942) →

‘Sleepy Lagoon’ by Harry James peaks at #1 in USA 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 20 1942)

1940s, Popular Music 1940s

(Saturday, June 20, 1942) — “Sleepy Lagoon” by Harry James and His Orchestra peaked at #1 on today’s Billboard Best Sellers in Stores chart for the first of four consecutive weeks (June 20/27, July 4/11, 1942). Continue reading ‘Sleepy Lagoon’ by Harry James peaks at #1 in USA 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 20 1942) →

Kazimierz Piechowski, three other prisoners escape Auschwitz death camp 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 20 1942)

1940s, The Holocaust, World War II


Video: 'AUSCHWITZ ,THE NAZIS AND THE FINAL SOLUTION'

(Saturday, June 20, 1942, morning Central European Summer Time; during The Holocaust, part of World War II) — Kazimierz Piechowski, who was among Polish Boy Scouts sent to the camp as political prisoners in 1940, and three other inmates (Stanislaw Gustaw Jaster, Józef Lempart, and Eugeniusz Bendera), conducted a daring escape today from Auschwitz I, the main camp (Stammlager) of the Nazi death camp in Oswiecim. Continue reading Kazimierz Piechowski, three other prisoners escape Auschwitz death camp 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 20 1942) →

Rock music icon Paul McCartney born in Liverpool, England 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 18 1942)

1940s, Popular Music 1940s, The Beatles 1940s


Video: 'Paul McCartney Documentary'

(Thursday, June 18, 1942) — Paul McCartney, an English singer, songwriter, and musician who gained worldwide fame as co-lead vocalist, co-songwriter, and bassist for the rock music band The Beatles, was born James Paul McCartney today at Walton Hospital in the Walton area of Liverpool. Continue reading Rock music icon Paul McCartney born in Liverpool, England 80 years ago #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 18 1942) →

First of two Nazi saboteur teams land on Long Island in New York 80 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 13 1942)

1940s, World War II


Video: 'Operation Pastorius - Hitler's Dream to See New York in Flames'

(Saturday, June 13, 1942, about 12:10 a.m. EDT; during Operation Pastorius, part of the American Theater of World War II) — The first of two four-man Nazi sabotage teams arrived early this morning in the United States, disembarking from U-202 at Amagansett, New York, about 100 miles east of New York City, on Long Island, at what today is Atlantic Avenue beach. Continue reading First of two Nazi saboteur teams land on Long Island in New York 80 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Jun 13 1942) →