The FReeper Foxhole Remembers The American Expeditionary Force to Siberia - Mar. 11th, 2003

http://www.worldwar1.com/dbc/siberia.htm ^ | Christine L. Putnam

[SAMWolf]

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American Expeditionary Force - Siberia

It was a war few Americans knew about then or now. Orchestrated behind closed doors, inspired by panic, and plagued by futility, America's military intervention in Siberia during the First World War continued long after the Armistice sent the doughboys in France home.

Doughboys Marching Through Siberia

President Woodrow Wilson considered the order to send American troops to Siberia, a region besieged by civil war, lawlessness, and murder, one of the most difficult decisions of his presidency. Despite Russia's separate peace treaty with Germany ending the war on the Eastern Front early in 1918, Wilson hesitated to get involved in Russia's civil war even at the Allies insistence. By Summer 1918 things changed. The mounting Japanese occupation of Siberia threatened American business interests in the East. Piles of Allied military goods amassing to over 600,000 tons of war materials laid vulnerable around the crowded city. The plight of the stranded Czech Legion vulnerable to the merciless Red Army gave Wilson a much needed moral foundation for intervention. Intervention, Wilson realized, could be used later to pressure the Allies into adopting his ideas for a League of Nations.

Alone at his typewriter, Wilson outlined America's intentions in sending troops to Siberia in a seven-page document titled, "Aide Memoire." It was distributed to the Allies July 17, 1918. Based on complete neutrality in Russian politics and territorial integrity, it contained more diplomatic hypotheses than decisive military strategies. It was the only directive given to the commander of America's military in Siberia.

To lead U.S. forces in Siberia, the War Department turned to Major General William S. Graves, an intelligent and experienced officer training Eighth Division recruits at Camp Fremont, California for duty in France. On August 2, 1918, Graves received a mysterious message from the War Department ordering him to take the first train directly to Kansas City. At the train station, Secretary of State, Newton D. Baker handed Graves an unsigned copy of the Aide Memoire: "This is the policy of the United States in Russia which you are to follow. Watch your step; you will be walking on eggs loaded with dynamite." Graves was now Commander of the AEF, Siberia.


AEF Siberia Headquarters

The first American troops, 1,590 from the Twenty-Seventh Infantry Regiment, arrived in Vladivostok to a cheering crowd of White Russians on August 16, 1918 followed by 1,421 troops from the Thirty-First Infantry Regiment on August 21. Under the temporary command of Colonel Henry D. Styer, they disembarked into a city buried in the depths of anarchy, collapse, and ruin. Streets were littered with debris. A rancid stench filled the air. Local leaders battled for control. Without orders, Styer and his men waited for Graves to arrive and wondered why they were in this godforsaken place.

In the meantime, Colonel Styer agreed to send a regiment from the 27th Infantry to accompany a Japanese division on a reconnaissance operation along the Trans-Siberian Railway. The Japanese told Styer that 15,000 German and Austrian prisoners of war and Bolsheviks headquartered in the Ussuri Valley threatened Vladivostok. Despite the frigid temperatures and difficult ground, the regiment marched over 1,000 miles in pursuit of the retreating Bolsheviks resulting in the capture of Blagoveschensk. The Russians, impressed with American drive, nicknamed the 27th Infantry, the "Wolfhounds".

Major General Graves arrived at Vladivostok on September 1, 1918 with 5,000 Eighth Division troops. Finding no threat to the city, he ordered the troops back to their garrison. Graves had hoped to avoid situations like the Ussuri Campaign, and interpreted from the Aide Memoire that U.S. troops were "not here to fight Russia or any group or faction in Russia." A strict policy of neutrality was immediately announced to the troops. Bolsheviks and White Russians would be treated equally.

By the time Graves arrived in Siberia, circumstances had changed. The Czech Legion no longer needed rescuing. The Japanese had 72,000 troops spread all over the region. The search for German and Austria-Hungarian prisoners of war was unnecessary as they willingly turned themselves in preferring American rations and humane treatment to freedom. With little else do to, American troops patrolled and guarded the city.



The Armistice in November 1918 ending the conflict in Europe gave Graves and most American soldiers in Siberia hopes of returning home. Instead, four American companies settled with the first snows of winter 300 miles south in Spasskoe. While Congress questioned the intervention, Wilson found new excuses for the troops to stay.

American troops survived a dismal winter. Temperatures frequently dropped to below sixty degrees. Frostbite was common and in some cases led to amputation. The Chief Surgeon noted that "practically" no sanitary conditions existed. Drinking at the popular vodka houses and engaging prostitutes became the most popular pastimes for many bored and lonely doughboys needing an escape from the harsh conditions.

By Spring 1919, the 27th Infantry found themselves divided between the Trans-Baikal region and Habarovsk on the Amur River; while detachments of the 31st Infantry were distributed along the railroad from Vladivostok to the Suchan Valley. In March, the need to transport military supplies and maintain communications for the White Russians produced the Inter-Allied Railway Agreement which divided the 6,000 mile-long Trans-Siberian Railway into sectors. Allied military detachments would protect their sectors from guerilla attacks and keep the railway and lines of communication open.


MG Wm. Graves

Graves immediately issued orders to his troops: "Our aim is to be of real assistance to all Russians in protecting necessary traffic movements within the sectors on the railroad assigned to us...All will be equally benefited, and all will be treated alike by our forces..." However, the railway was the main artery of White Russian forces and American detachments soon discovered that Russians along the Trans-Siberian Railway sympathized with the Bolsheviks.

At the village of Sviyangino, Bolshevik Partisans frequently wrecked havoc with the tracks and telegraph poles. As one soldier noted, "Almost daily we had been called to repair destroyed stretches [of track]". At Novitskaya, a Partisan ambush led to the deaths of five American soldiers. Partisan duplicity disturbed most Americans. Locals who sold them milk and vegetables in the morning often tried to kill them at night.

Cossack guerilla bands plagued American detachments along the railroad. Cossack warlords such as Semenov and Kalmikov were pathological murderers who tortured, raped, and decapitated innocent Siberians. Nick Hochee of the 27th Infantry later recalled Kalmikov: "His cutthroat Cossack Army was one of the most ruthless, cruel, inhuman animals of that time." Graves and American officers constantly received pleas from local Russians for protection against the Cossacks.

American soldiers also became the targets of Cossack terror. Colonel Styer informed Graves in February 1919: "[Kalmikov's] power of life and death has been so indiscriminately used as to create a reign of terror, and the life of no solider or civilian is safe." At Posolskaya, Cossocks commanded by Semenov opened fire with machine guns from their armored train into a boxcar of sleeping doughboys. At Habarovsk, Kalmikov's men killed an American Signal Corpsman working on a telegraph pole.



The Japanese financed many Cossack guerillas and condoned similar violence against the Russian people. Outnumbering Americans 10 to 1, they masked terror as anti-Bolshevism. The last thing many innocent people witnessed was the blade of a Japanese sword toward their throat. Bitter relations between American and Japanese officers resulted in March 1919 when Graves refused to participate in their counterattack against a group of Partisans who had killed 247 Japanese soldiers. Graves replied that the Japanese probably deserved it.

Graves had other difficult matters to attend. A miner's strike instigated by the Red Army in the Suchan Valley immobilized coal production needed by the railroad. The American detachment sent to the Suchan Mines had to restore stability without interfering between the Bolshevik miners and Anti-Bolshevik administration. Graves's refusal to arrest striking miners infuriated Anti-Bolsheviks who accused him of harboring Red sympathies.

On May 23, 1919, Bolshevik leader Yakov Triapitsyn, who had assisted striking miners, threatened to murder every American soldier in the Suchan Valley unless they withdrew from the area. Graves ordered that all Partisans be removed by force. In August, Captain B. H. Roads with a 40-man detachment did just that. Triapitsyn retreated from the valley, and the mines operated quietly from then on.



Patrolling a sector near Romanovka , American soldiers from the 31st Infantry, now nicknamed the Polar Bears, faced certain death. At 4am on June 25, 1919 Partisans opened fire into their camp. Using single shot rifles, the Partisans took advantage of the unguarded camp left vulnerable between sentries and surrounded it. According to Sergeant Joseph B. Longuevan bullets pierced into their tents causing "some of the cots to topple" and one solider "[was] hit 17 times." In the panic, few soldiers grabbed rifles or ammo as they headed for cover in nearby log houses.

Outnumbered 20 to 1, they faced an imminent slaughter. Running low on ammo and seeing no reprieve, Corporal Brodnicki volunteered to go for help. Although seriously wounded, he found another American company. Four hours after the first gunshots, machine gun fire from Lieutenant Lorimer's platoon on the enemy's flank caused the Partisans to withdraw. American casualties were heavy: 26 men died in the first minutes alone. Among the dead Partisans, soldiers recognized a local man who regularly sold them milk.

In Iman, just north of Vladivostok, Kalmikov's men kidnapped an American captain and corporal. The captain managed to escape, but the corporal remained. Major Charles A. Shamotulski arrived at Iman with 150 men from rifle and machine gun detachments for a showdown with the Cossacks. While the Japanese threatened to side with the Cossacks in an attack, Shamotulski stood his ground and they backed off. Brutally beaten and tortured by his captors, the corporal was released days later. Graves suspected the Japanese had orchestrated the whole thing.

American detachments along the railroad found themselves exposed to increasing harassment from Partisans and Cossacks. On September 12, 1919, American headquarters at Spasskoe received orders to use their entire force against any Cossack attacks. By December, American soldiers were in grave danger of a massive assault. Graves cabled the War Department: "Safety of American troops demands concentration which results in abandoning parts of our sector."[29] The orders were approved.

Winter of 1919-1920 brought more bad news. The White Russian Army was defeated at the Volga Front. The Siberian government collapsed. Congress demanded the complete withdrawal of American troops. Wilson realized the intervention was over.



Without grace nor glory, American forces left Siberia. The 27th and 31st Infantries returned to the Philippines. As Graves left with the last troops on April 1, 1920, a Japanese band played "Hard Times Come Again No More". The intervention, which cost the lives of 353 American soldiers (including 127 listed as killed in action despite suspicions that they had been taken as prisoners) was officially over. Many soldiers returned home traumatized by the hardships endured and atrocities witnessed. Major General Graves never overcame the plague of accusations that he harbored Red sympathies.

Years later, Secretary Baker confessed, "The expedition was nonsense from the beginning and always seemed to me one of those sideshows born of desperation." An insufficient number of troops, political misconceptions, a lack of military strategy all contributed to the failed intervention. And yet, the war against Bolshevism had every opportunity for victory. Trotsky remarked at the time, "When the Allies manage to act unanimously and undertake a campaign against us, all shall be lost." Coordinated effort, a clear purpose, and more troops had the chance to make history.

It is to the men who died in the forgotten war in Siberia and served their country nobly when their brothers in France had long since returned home, that deserve respect and honor. The local Russians they protected, the harsh winters they endured, the atrocities they tried to stop, and the railroad they rebuilt time and time again defy all definitions of failure.

Thanks to Freeper Decimon for the Idea and Research on this Thread

[SAMWolf]

The 27th Infantry - AEF Siberia
In 1918, the Russian government under the Bolshevik's, signed a separate peace treaty with the German government ending Russia's participation in World War I. This treaty dissolved the Eastern Front in Russia and released German troops to the Western Front in France. Because Russia had been an ally of the Western Powers, vast quantities of supplies had been shipped to Russian ports. The Allies were concerned the supplies would fall into the hands of warring Russian factions who the Allies feared would turn the supplies over to the Germans. Civil war had broken out in Russia among the Communists, the Reds, and factions loyal to the old Czarist regime the Whites, along with other less significant factions.

In Siberia, the Trans Siberian railroad was the only East-West transportation link in the entire country. Whoever controlled the railroad would also control the movement of the supplies stockpiled in the Russian port of Vladivostok, located in eastern Siberia on the Sea of Japan.



The Battalion departed Manila on 7 August, 1918, aboard the "Crook" arriving in Vladivostok on 16 August. The Battalion's mission was to assist the Regiment in safeguarding stockpiled war supplies in Vladivostok, protecting the Trans Siberian Railroad, and assisting the in the evacuation of the Czech Legion, which had fought its way from the Ukraine, across the breath of Russia, to Vladivostok.The 27th Regiment (commanded by Colonel Henry D. Styer) was not the only Allied force in Siberia. The U.S. 31st Infantry Regiment (the Polar Bears) as well as British, Canadian, Czech, Chinese, Italian, French and Japanese troops also participated in the expedition.All American forces fell under the command of General Graves.

The Battalion's first mission was to move to the Ussuri sector and operate with the 12th Division of the Japanese Army under the command of LTG Oi. (The Battalion would again reestablish their relationship with the 12th Division when the Battalion trained with the 12th Division's 30th Regiment during "Orient Shield 94".) From late August to early November, 1918 the Battalion helped secure the Trans Siberian Railroad from Vladivostok north to Khabarovsk. It was during this period that the Regiment earned its reputation for marching prowess, moving over 1000 miles in less than a month! In the first winter campaign the Battalion accompanied White Russian and Japanese forces in pursuit of the Bolsheviks or "Reds", who were retreating near Spasskoe and Ussuri. During the campaign, the Japanese and White Russians became weary from the tremendous cold and rapid pace of the pursuit and soon fell out alongside the route, unable to go on. But the men from the 27th Regiment, though subjected to the same hardships continued to advance and soon passed their allies, continuing their pursuit of the retreating Bolsheviks. The Bolsheviks were soon subjected to continuous attacks from different directions. The tireless soldiers of the Regiment exhausted the Communists as Russian Wolfhounds wear down a wolf, resulting in the capture of a Bolshevik strongpoint. The Japanese commander, GEN Yamada, despite his chagrin for the failure of his own troops, sent a note to the Regimental commander: "The Chief of the General Staff at Tokyo congratulates you upon your fast and able occupation of Khabarovsk."



From mid November 1918 until the Spring of 1920, the Battalion guarded the Railroad in the vicinity of Yefgenyefka, 200 miles north of Vladivostok. In the spring of 1920, the Regiment was given the responsibility to guard the Trans Siberian Railroad west toward lake Baikal. Companies A and B were ordered to the Lake Baikal sector while the remainder of the Battalion remained at Yefgenyefka erroneously called Spasskoe by the Americans. (Spasskoe was a town two hundred miles away from the railroad.) As a result of the Regiment"s actions in Siberia and earlier exploits in the Philippines, the Wolfhound legend was born; from this time forth, the Regiment and its Battalions would be known as the "Wolfhounds". In addition to its nickname, the Regiment's Coat of Arms was now complete. With its crest representing its first campaign in the Philippines, the Siberian service is represented by the blue Polar Bear with a white "S" for Siberia, outlined by an artillery shell. This was the emblem of the Allied force in Siberia.

In early January, 1920 The Battalion received orders to consolidate at Vladivostok for redeployment to the Philippines. On 17 January the Battalion, minus C and D embarked aboard the "Great Northern" and sailed to Manila arriving on 26 January. C and D company would not complete their arrival at Vladivostok until 25 February. With the remainder of the Regiment, C and D companies embarked aboard the "Thomas" on 10 March arriving in Manila on 17 March. While in the Philippines the Battalion(-) was headquartered in Manila, while C and D companies were headquartered at Cuartel de Infanteria. The next move would take the Battalion to Hawaii.

[SAMWolf]

Where does a four footed Wolfhound march in a Parade? You won't find the answer in FM 22-5, Drill and Ceremonies or the old Infantry Drill Regulations, but the famous Wolfhound Regiment has it's present mascot, Kolchak XI lead the procession.

The first mascot, a pure bred Russian Wolfhound, was presented to the regiment in 1929. He was named after Admiral Aleksandr Vassilyevich Kolchak, who fought the Bolsheviks during the regiments stay in Siberia. Sergeant John Martin -- who served with the regiment in both the Philippines and Siberia -- took charge and promised to have "Kolchak" at all gatherings of the regiment.



Wolfhounds were used in ancient times as hunting dogs in Russia. The Russian aristocracy later used them for coursing wolves and other game. They were imported into the United States in the late 1880's and given the name "Borzoi" in 1936. Kolchak, and his 10 successors are more than a mere mascot. They personify both the name, Wolfhounds, by which the 27th Infantry is known throughout the Army, and the tenacious and ferocious fighting nature of the regiment.

Kolchak II entered service in 1939. He was often found rooting on Wolfhound athletic teams and marched with the regiment in all ceremonies. The Cossack hat or Shaktoes, belt and boots worn by the color guard may have been designed to please Kolchak II as well as the spectators at ceremonies who approved of the colorful trappings of a colorful regiment.

The current mascot is Kolchak XI. Kolchak X retired to the care of his handler, Staff Sergeant White of the 1st Battalion Scouts.

[SAMWolf]

Those who say that US and Russian soldiers have never fought each other forget about the allied intervention in Siberia in 1918. The political situation was confused, to say the least, but it ended up that US Marines, Czechs who'd fought their way all the way across Russia, British, and Japanese (among others) faced off against the Bolsheviks. This page, part of the 27th Infantry's regimental history site, will introduce you to this rather obscure bit of military history.

The Battalion's mission was to assist the Regiment in safeguarding stockpiled war supplies in Vladivostok, protecting the Trans Siberian Railroad, and assisting the in the evacuation of the Czech Legion, which had fought its way from the Ukraine, across the breath of Russia, to Vladivostok.The 27th Regiment (commanded by Colonel Henry D. Styer) was not the only Allied force in Siberia. The U.S. 31st Infantry Regiment (the Polar Bears) as well as British, Canadian, Czech, Chinese, Italian, French and Japanese troops also participated in the expedition.All American forces fell under the command of General Graves.

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On This Day In History


Birthdates which occurred on March 11:
1544 Torquato Tasso Italy, Renaissance poet (Aminta, Apologia)
1549 Hendrik L Spieghel Dutch merchant/Renaissance poet (Hertspiegel)
1596 Isaac Elsevier book publisher
1654 Heinrich Georg Neuss composer
1683 Giovanni Veneziano composer
1726 Madame Louise-Florence d'Épinay France, writer (Woman, Man & 2 Kingdoms)/salon hostess
1731 Robert Treat Paine judge, signer of Declaration of Independence
1754 Juan Meléndez Valdés Spanish lawyer/poet
1781 Anthony Philip Heinrich composer
1793 Jan F Willems Flemish writer/philologist
1811 Marsena Rudolph Patrick Bvt Major General (Union volunteers)
1811 Urbain Jean Joseph le Verrier co-discovered Neptune
1812 James Speed Attorney General (Union), died in 1887
1812 Pieter Blussé van Oud-Alblas Dutch liberal minister of Finance
1812 William Vincent Wallace composer
1818 John Wilkins Whitfield Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1879
1819 Henry Tate English sugar producer (Tate Gallery)
1819 Marius Petipa French ballet dancer/choreographer (Don Quiotte)
1822 Allison Nelson Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1862
1827 Septimus Winner composer
1832 Franz Melde German physicist (Melde test)
1832 William Ruffin Cox Brigadier General (Confederate Army-2nd North Carolina Infantry), died in 1919
1840 Edmund Kirby Jr Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1863
1846 António C G Crespo Brazilian/Portuguese poet
1860 Thomas Hastings New York NY, architect (New York Public Library)
1863 Andrew Stoddart cricketer (My Dear Victorious Stod)
1863 Wobbe de Vries Dutch linguist
1872 Abraham van Stolk Jzn lumber merchant/art collector
1876 Carl Ruggles Marion MA, composer (Evocations)
1876 David Wijnkoop Dutch revolutionary socialist
1879 Justus Hermann Wetzel composer
1879 Niels Bjerrum Danish chemist (ph tests)
1884 Jan Lemaire Dutch writer/actor (Beautiful Juliet)
1885 Malcolm Campbell 1st auto racer to travel 5 miles/minutes (8 km/minute)
1890 Vannevar Bush developed 1st electronic analogue computer
1892 Raoul Walsh New York NY, director (Thief of Baghdad, Battle Cry)
1892 Wladyslaw Anders Polish General (WWI, WWII)
1897 Henry Dixon Cowell Menlo Park CA, composer (New Musical Resources)
1898 Dorothy Gish Massillon OH, stage & silent film actress (Orphans of the Storm)
1899 Frederick IX king of Denmark (1947-72)
19-- Nancy Sloan actress (Katie-Bold & Beautiful)
1902 Josef Martin Bauer writer
1903 Dorothy Schiff publisher (New York Post)
1903 George Dickinson cricketer (bowled for New Zealand in their 1st 3 Tests)
1904 Cornelis Jan Bakker Dutch/US nuclear physicist
1904 Maurits Wertheim Dutch writer (Isaac De Fuentes)
1906 Aasan Ferit Alnar composer
1907 Eleni Gatzoyiannis heroine (saved her kids)
1907 Helmuth J von Moltke German politician (July 20th plot)
1907 Jessie Matthews London England, actress (Gangway, First a Girl)
1907 Margaret Herbison British minister (Lab)
1908 Lawrence Welk Strasburg ND, orchestra leader (Lawrence Welk Show)
1909 Ljubica Maric composer
1910 Robert H G Havemann German chemist
1911 Alan Gifford Boston MA, actor (Time Lock, Up Periscope)
1911 Fitzroy Maclean British diplomat soldier politician/historian
1912 Robert Clifford Latham Pepys Scholar
1912 Xavier Montsalvatge Spanish composer (El gato con botas)
1913 John Jacob Weinzweig Toronto Canada, composer (Enchanted Hill)
1913 Thomas Gray professor/anaesthetist
1914 Ralph Ellison writer (Invisible Man, Shadow & Act)
1915 Karl Krolow writer
1915 Vijay Hazare cricketer (prolific Indian batsman 1946-54)
1916 Sir [James] Harold Wilson (L) British Prime Minister (1964-70, 1974-76)
1917 GE Göran Schildt Finnish art historian/writer (Solbåten)
1918 Al Eben Philadelphia PA, actor (Doc Bergman-Hawaii Five-0)
1919 Mercer Ellington son of Duke Ellington/bandleader
1920 D J Enright England, poet/novelist (Some Men are Brothers)
1920 Henry Marking CEO (British Airways)
1920 Kenneth Dover chancellor (St Andrews University)
1921 Astor Piazzolla Argentina composer (Tango Nuevo)
1921 F[rancis] M[arion] Busby Jr US, sci-fi author (Star Rebel)
1922 Abdul Razak bin Hussain premier of Malaysia (1970-77)
1922 Thom Kelling Dutch singer/guitarist (Programa de Manha)
1922 Vinnette Carroll New York NY, actress (Alice's Restaurant, Reivers)
1923 A Louise Brough Clapp Oklahoma, tennis player (4 time Wimbledon champion)
1923 A X Gwerder writer
1923 Ad[rianus C] de Besten Dutch literary (River Basin)
1923 Morschi Mirando [Thomas Weiss], German/Dutch gypsy artist
1923 Terence Alexander London England, actor (Tony-Behind the Scenes)
1925 James Miskin QC/recorder of London
1926 Adrienne Keith Cohen travel editor
1926 Ilhan Mimaroglu composer
1926 Patricia Tindaole England, architect
1926 Ralph Abernathy civil rights leader (Southern Christian Leadership)
1927 Alan Betts emeritus professor (Royal Veterinary College)
1927 Raymond Jackson [Jaki], British cartoonist
1927 Robert Mosbacher US politician
1927 Ron Todd British trade unionist
1928 Albert Salmi Brooklyn NY, actor (Daniel Boone, 79 Park Avenue)
1928 Peter Roger Hunt London England, director (Dr No)
1929 Erskine Childers unofficial/civil servant
1929 Francisco Bernardo Pulgar Vidal composer
1929 Jackie McGlew cricketer (dour South African opening bat of the 50')
1930 David Gentleman designer/painter
1931 Peter Walters CEO (Midland Bank)
1931 Rupert Murdoch Australia, publisher (New York Post), CEO FOX-TV Network
1932 Nigel Lawson British government official (The Power Game)
1932 Valerie French London England, actress (Jubal, The Hard Man)
1933 Terry J Hatter Jr US judge in California
1934 George Stamatoyannopoulos Greece, medical genetics researcher
1934 Joep [Joseph Willem Frederik] Straesser composer (Blossom songs, Ramasasiri)
1934 Keith Speed British MP
1934 Sam Donaldson El Paso TX, ABC White House correspondent (Prime Time)
1934 Sydney Burke cricketer (South African quick, 11 wickets on Test debut vs New Zealand 1961)
1936 Antonin Scalia Trenton NJ, 105th Supreme Court Justice (1986- )
1937 John Ward New Zealand cricket wicket-keeper (8 Tests 1964-68)
1938 Malcolm Keith Speed British high court judge
1942 Peter Eyre actor (Hedda)
1944 Ric Rothwell drummer (Mindbenders-Games of Love)
1945 Harvey Mandel rock guitarist (Drei Amerikanische LP's)
1945 Mark Stein vocalist/organist (Vanilla Fudge-You Keep Me Hanging On)
1945 Timothy Mason consultant (British Arts Council)
1945 Tricia O'Neil Shreveport LA, actress (Piranha Part II)
1946 Brigitte Fossey Tourcoing France, actress (Man Who Died Twice)
1947 Dominique Sanda [Varaigne] Paris France, actress (1900, First Love, Inheritance, Beyond Good & Evil)
1947 Geoffrey Hunt Australia, world-champion squash player
1947 Mark Stein Bayonne NJ, rocker (Vanilla Fudge-You Keep Me Hanging On)
1948 George Kooymans The Hague Netherlands, guitarist/singer (Golden Earring-Radar Love, Twilight Zone)
1949 Richard de Bois Dutch drummer/producer
1950 Bobby McFerrin singer (Don't Worry Be Happy-1989 Grammy)
1950 Jerry Zucker Milwaukee WI, director (Airplane, Naked Gun)
1952 Douglas Adams Cambridge England, author (Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy)
1952 Susan Richardson Coatesville PA, actress (Susan-8 is Enough)
1955 [Kater]Nina Hagen East Berlin German Democratic Republic, actress (Blue Angel)
1956 Curtis L Brown Jr Elizabethtown NC, Major USAF/astronaut (STS 47, STS 66, 77, 85, 95)
1961 Bruce Watson Ontario Canada, rock guitarist (Big Country-Wonderland)
1961 Mike Percy rocker (Dead or Alive-Spin Me Round)
1962 Peter Berg actor (Chicago Hope)
1964 Raimo Helminen Tampere Finland, hockey forward (Team Finland, Olympics-bronze-98)
1965 Eric Jelen West Germany, tennis star
1966 Pavel Petrovich Mukhortov Russian cosmonaut
1966 Ralph Tamm NFL guard/center (Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs)
1966 Steve Reed Los Angeles CA, pitcher (Colorado Rockies)
1967 Andrew Zesers cricketer (played for Australia in 1987 World Cup)
1967 Bill Houlder Thunder Bay, NHL defenseman (Tampa Bay Lightning)
1968 John Barrowman actor (Peter Fairchild-Central Park West)
1969 Dan Lacroix Montréal, NHL left wing (New York Rangers)
1969 John Fina NFL offensive tackle (Buffalo Bills)
1970 Brett Liddle Boksburg South Africa, Canadian Tour golfer (1993 Newcastle)
1970 Evgeniy Koreshkov hockey forward (Team Kazakhstan Olympics-1998)
1971 Bob Kronenberg WLAF corner (Rhein Fire)
1971 Jiri Vykoukai Olomouc Czechoslovakia, hockey player (Team Czechoslovakia Republic, Olympics-gold-98)
1971 Marta Lovera Parquet Miss Paraguay-Universe (1996)
1971 Martin Rucinsky Most Czechoslovakia, NHL left wing (Canadiens, Olympics-Gold-1998)
1972 Carl Greenwood NFL cornerback (New York Jets)
1972 Chris Shelling WLAF cornerback (Rhein Fire)
1972 Jamal Duff NFL defensive end (New York Giants, Washington Redskins)
1973 Kennedy Otieno Kenya cricket wicket-keeper (85 vs Australia 1996 World Cup)
1973 Mike Mihelic CFL offensive tackle (Winnipeg Blue Bombers)
1973 Sammie Brennan CFL defensive back (British Columbia Lions)
1973 Tony Veland NFL defensive back (Denver Broncos-Superbowl 32)
1974 Billy Granville linebacker (Cincinnati Bengals)
1974 David Cameron Australian rower (Olympics-96)
1974 Kevin Donovan Des Plaines IL, figure skater (1997 Great Lakes-2nd)
1975 Cedric Henderson NBA forward (Cleveland Cavaliers)
1975 Shawn Springs cornerback (Seattle Seahawks)
1982 Hasan Raza cricketer (Test cricketer at the age of 14)

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Deaths which occurred on March 11:
0222 Varius A Bassianus Syrian emperor of Rome (218-22), murdered at 18?
0638 Sophronius of Jerusalem saint/patriarch of Jerusalem, dies
1486 Albrecht III Achilles elector of Brandenburg, dies at 71
1715 Jan-Erasmus Quellinus Flemish painter, dies at 80
1772 George Reuter composer, dies at 63
1786 Jacobus Bellamy [Zelandus], Dutch/Swiss poet, dies at 28
1787 Maximilian JLP Gardel French ballet dancer/choreographer, dies at 45
1807 Anton Eberl composer, dies at 41
1820 Benjamin West British painter (Death of General Wolfe), dies at 81
1826 Gervais-François Couperin composer, dies at 66
1833 Fridolin Weber composer, dies at 71
1845 John Chapman [Johnny Appleseed] dies in Allen County Indiana
1857 Manuel José Quintana Spanish author/poet (A la paz), dies at 84
1874 Charles Sumner a white civil rights leader, dies at 63
1894 John Selby cricketer (6 Tests for England 1877-82), dies
1897 Berthold Tours composer, dies at 58
1897 Henry Drummond Scottish geologist/evangelist, dies at 45
1900 Edmund Peate cricketer (9 Tests for England 1881-86), dies
1907 Nikola Petkow premier (Bulgaria), murdered
1908 Peter Milne composer, dies at 83
1919 Harald Fryklof composer, dies at 36
1921 Sherburne W Burnham US astronomer (binary stars), dies at 83
1925 Andreas Hallen composer, dies at 78
1926 John Henry Anderson cricketer (score 32 & 11 in Test for South Africa), dies
1937 Paul Scheinpflug composer, dies at 61
1941 Walford Davies British organist/composer, dies at 71
1944 Hendrik W van Loon Netherlands/US radio commentator/writer, dies at 62
1947 Victor Hely-Hutchinson composer, dies at 45
1949 Henri-Honoré Giraud French General/MP, dies at 70
1949 Juan Lamonte de Grignon composer, dies at 76
1950 Florence Arliss actress (Disraeli), dies at 78
1951 Philippe of Isacker Belgian minister, dies at 66
1955 Alexander Fleming English bacteriologist (penicillin), dies at 73
1956 Sergey Nikiforovich Vasilenko Russian opera composer, dies at 83
1957 Richard E Byrd US, explorer (Antarctica), dies at 68
1959 Haydn Wood composer, dies at 76
1960 Roy Chapman Andrews US biologist/explorer, dies at 76
1962 Will Vesper German author (Tristan und Isolde), dies at 79
1963 Mahomed Nissar cricketer (6 Tests for India 1932-36, 25 wickets), dies
1965 James Reeb US vicar/civil rights activist, murdered
1967 Geraldine Farrar soprano/actress (Such Sweet Compulsion), dies at 85
1969 John Wyndham [Parkes Lucas B Harris] author (Day of the Triffids, Chrysalids), dies at 65
1970 Erle Stanley Gardner US writer (Perry Mason), dies at 80
1971 Philo T Farnsworth US TV pioneer, dies at 64
1971 Roy Glenn dies in Los Angeles at 56
1971 Whitney M Young Jr leader (National Urban League 1961-71), dies at 49
1972 Fredric [William] Brown sci-fi author (Martians Go Home), dies at 65
1973 Manuel Rojas Sepúlveda writer
1975 Philip Bezanson composer, dies at 59
1975 Sammy Spear orchestra leader (Dom Deluise Show), dies at 65
1975 Walter Kinsella actor (Happy-Martin Kane Private Eye), dies at 74
1979 Victor Kilian actor (Gentleman's Agreement), dies at 88
1982 Edmund Cooper British sci-fi writer (Tomorrow Came), dies at 55
1984 Nakagawa Soen Zen teacher/poet, dies in Rytutakuji monastery at 76
1987 [Wayne] Woody Hayes football coach (Ohio State), dies at 74
1988 Pham Hung premier of Vietnam, dies at about 74
1989 Johan Fleerackers Flemish linguist, dies at 57
1992 David Carroll actor (Grand Hotel), dies of pulmonary embolism at 41
1992 Heinz Kühn Prime Minister (Northrhine-Westphalia, Germany), dies at 80
1992 Manuel De Dios Unanue US anti-drug journalist, murdered at 48
1992 Richard Brooks director (Blackboard Jungle, Key Largo), dies at 79
1993 Dino Bravo wrestler (WWF), shot to death at 44
1993 Edgar Nelson Barclift dancer, dies after lengthy illness at 76
1993 Manuel da Fonseca Portuguese writer (Cerro Maior), dies at 81
1994 Jacques Doucet French painter (Mostar Sarajevo), dies at 69
1995 Carel Birnie found Utrecht Opera/Dutch Dance Theater, dies at 69
1995 Ernest Kabushemeye Burundese minister of Mijnbouw, murdered
1995 Frank Fidler artist, dies at 84
1996 Barry Appleby cartoonist, dies at 86
1996 Charles William Oatley electrical engineer, dies at 92
1996 Clifton Eugene Bancroft Robinson public servant, dies at 70
1996 John Henry Pyle Pafford librarian, dies at 96
1996 Vince Edwards actor (Ben Casey), dies of cancer at 67

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On this day...
0417 Zosimus becomes bishop of Rome
0537 Goths lay siege to Rome
0843 Icon worship officially re-instated in Aya Sofia Constantinople
1302 Romeo & Juliet's wedding day, according to Shakespeare
1502 Tebriz shah Ismail I of Persia crowned
1513 Giovanni de' Medici chosen Pope Leo X
1563 League of High Nobles routes 2nd protest against King Philip II
1567 Geuzen army leaves Walcheren to return to Oosterweel
1597 Land guardian Albrecht occupies Amiens on France
1598 Countess Charlotte of Nassau marries duke Claude de la Tremoille
1649 Treaty of Rueil destroys 1st Fronde-uprising
1665 New York approves new code guaranteeing Protestants religious rights
1669 Volcano Etna in Italy erupts killing 15,000
1702 1st English daily newspaper, "Daily Courant", is published
1779 US army Corps of Engineers established (1st time)
1789 Benjamin Banneker with L'Enfant begin to lay out Washington DC
1791 Samuel Mulliken, Philadelphia PA, is 1st to obtain more than 1 US patent
1794 Royal Theatre in London's Dury Lane opens
1795 Battle at Kurdla India: Mahratten beat Mogols
1810 Emperor Napoleon married by proxy to Archduchess Marie Louise
1812 Citizenship granted to Prussian Jews
1823 1st normal school in US opens, Concord Academy, Concord VT
1824 US War Department creates the Bureau of Indian Affairs
1835 HMS Beagle anchors off Valparaiso, Chile
1850 Women's Medical College of Pennsylvania (1st female medical school)
1851 Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Rigoletto" premieres in Venice
1861 Confederate convention in Montgomery, adopts constitution
1862 General Stonewall Jackson evacuates Winchester Virginia
1862 Lincoln removes McClellen as general-in-chief & makes him head of Army of the Potomac. Gen Henry Halleck is named general-in-chief
1864 Skirmish at Calfkiller Creek (Sparta), Tennessee
1865 General Sherman's Union forces occupy Fayetteville NC
1867 Giuseppe Verdi's opera "Don Carlos" premieres in Paris France
1867 Great Mauna Loa eruption (Hawaiian volcano)
1882 Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association organized in Princeton NJ
1888 Great blizzard of '88 strikes northeast US
1892 1st public basketball game (Springfield MA)
1895 Spanish cruiser Reina Regenta sinks at Gibraltar, 400 killed
1901 Cincinnati Enquirer reports Baltimore manager John McGraw signed Cherokee Indian Tokohoma, who is really black 2nd baseman Charlie Grant
1904 Stanley Cup: Ottawa Silver 7 sweep Brandon Wheat Kings in 2 games
1905 Stanley Cup: Ottawa Silver 7 beat Rat Portage Thisles, 2 games to 1
1910 Jack Hobbs 1st Test ton (187 vs SAfr), his only Test hit wicket
1912 1st Stanley Cup game to be played in 3 20-minute periods, formerly played in 30-minute halfs, Québec beats Moncton 9-3 on way to sweep
1917 1st NHL championship game ever played, Toronto Arenas beats Montréal Canadiens 7-3 in 1st of 2 game set (second game on March 13)
1917 British troops occupy Baghdad
1918 Moscow becomes capitol of revolutionary Russia
1918 Save the Redwoods League founded
1919 General strike in Germany, crushed
1922 Western Hockey Championship: Vancouver Millionaires (PCHA) sweep Regina Capitals, in 2 games
1924 3rd term of Belgium Theunis government begins
1924 Eden Phillpotts' "Farmer's Wife" premieres in London
1924 NHL Championship: Montréal Canadiens sweeps Ottawa Senators in 2 games
1926 Eamon da Valera ends leadership of Sinn Fein
1927 1st armored commercial car hold-up in US, Pittsburgh
1927 1st golden gloves tournament
1927 Samuel Roxy Rothafel opens famous Roxy Theater (New York NY)
1928 Netherlands & Belgium tie 1-1 (soccer match in Amsterdam)
1930 President & Chief Justice William Taft buried in Arlington
1934 Netherlands beats Belgium 9-3, in soccer
1935 Bank of Canada opens
1935 Hermann Goering officially creates German Air Force, the Luftwaffe
1938 Artur Seyss-Inquart replaces Kurt von Schuschnigg as Chancellor of Austria
1938 German troops enter Austria
1941 Bronko Nagurski beats Ray Steele in Minnesota, to become wrestling champion
1941 FDR signs Lend-Lease Bill (lend money to Britain)
1942 1st deportation train leaves Paris France for Auschewitz Concentration Camp
1942 General MacArthur leaves Corregidor (Bataan) for Australia
1942 Japanese troop land on North-Sumatra
1943 Nazi Militia forms in Netherlands
1944 Dutch resistance fighter Joop Westerweel arrested
1945 1,000 allied bombers harass Essen, 4,662 ton bombs
1945 Flemish Nazi collaborator Maria Huygens sentenced to death
1948 Jewish Agency of Jerusalem bombed
1948 Reginald Weir became the 1st black to play in the US Tennis Open
1948 WBAL TV channel 11 in Baltimore MD (CBS) begins broadcasting
1953 1st woman army doctor commissioned (FM Adams)
1953 An American B-47 accidentally drops a nuclear bomb on South Carolina, the bomb doesn't go off due to 6 safety catches
1954 US Army charges Senator Joseph McCarthy used undue pressure tactics
1956 Louise Suggs wins LPGA Titleholders Golf Championship
1958 Charles Van Doren finally loses on TV game show "21"
1958 Starting this season, American League batters are required to wear batting helmets
1959 "Raisin in the Sun", 1st Broadway play by a black woman, opens
1959 Teddy Scholten wins Eurovision Song festival with "A Little Bit"
1960 Pioneer 5 launched into solar orbit between Earth & Venus
1961 Then NHL record 40 penalties, Black Hawks & Maple Leafs (20 each)
1963 Somalia drops diplomatic relations with Great Britain
1965 Indonesia President Sukarno accepts qualifications of Suharto
1966 Military coup led by Indonesian General Suharto breaks out
1967 Pink Floyd releases their 1st song (Arnold Layne)
1968 Anti-Zionist Clandestine Radio Voice of El Assifa starts transmitting
1968 Dmitri Shostakovich completes his 12nd string quartet
1968 Otis Redding posthumously receives gold record for "(Sittin' On) the Dock of the Bay"
1970 12th Grammy Awards: Aquarius, Crosby Stills & Nash, Peggy Lee win
1970 Iraq Ba'th Party recognizes Kurd nation
1972 "Inner City" closes at Barrymore Theater NYC after 97 performances
1973 Kathy Whitworth wins LPGA S&H Green Stamp Golf Classic
1974 Mount Etna in Sicily erupts
1974 Rhino Store gives people 5¢ to take home Danny Bonaduce's Album
1975 Portugal military coup under General Spinola fails
1975 USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakhstan/Semipalitinsk USSR
1977 34 Israelis killed by Palestinians on the Tel Aviv-Haifa highway
1977 Moslems hold 130 hostages in Washington DC
1978 Terrorists attack mail truck at Tel Aviv, 45 killed
1978 University of San Francisco-led Bill Cartwright scores 23 points as the Dons oust North Carolina
1979 Nancy Lopez wins LPGA Sunstar Golf Classic
1979 Randy Hold receives 67 minutes in penalties in a 60 minute NHL hockey game
1980 Rod Marsh bowls 10 overs for 51 runs in dull Australia vs Pakistan cricket draw
1981 Chile constitution takes effect, Augusto Pinochet 2nd term begins
1981 Johnny Mize & Rube Foster elected to baseball Hall of Fame
1982 Failed military coup under Rambocus/Hawker in Suriname
1982 Harrison Williams (Senator-Democrat-NJ) resigned rather than face expulsion
1982 Menachem Begin & Anwar Sadat sign peace treaty in Washington DC
1983 World Ice Dance Championship in Helsinki Finland won by Jayne Torvill & Christopher Dean (Great Britain)
1983 World Ice Pairs Figure Skating Championship in Helsinki won by Elena Valova & Oleg Vasiliev (USSR)
1983 World Ladies Figure Skating Championship in Helsinki won by Rosalynn Sumners (USA)
1983 World Men's Figure Skating Championship in Helsinki won by Scott Hamilton (USA)
1984 Chris Johnson wins LPGA Samaritan Turquoise Golf Classic
1985 Mikhail S Gorbachev replaces Konstantin Chernenko as Soviet leader
1986 1 million days since traditional foundation of Rome, 4/21/753 BC
1986 12th People's Choice Awards
1986 187.27 million shares traded in New York Stock Exchange
1986 Islander Mike Bossy, 1st NHLer to score 50 goals in 9 straight seasons
1986 Japanese probe Sakigake flies by Halley's Comet at 6.8 millionkm
1986 NFL adopts instant replay rule
1987 Wayne Gretzky scores 1,500th NHL point
1988 £ note ceases to be legal tender, replaced by £ coin
1988 Utrecht conservatory destroyed by fire
1990 16th People's Choice Awards
1990 Lithuania declares it's Independence
1990 Maggie Will wins Desert Inn LPGA Golf International
1991 Janet Jackson signs $40M three album deal with Virgin records
1991 John Smith, amateur wrestler, wins James E Sullivan Award
1991 Monica Seles ends Steffi Graf's streak of 186 weeks ranked as #1
1994 Eduardo Frei succeeds Patricio Aylwin as President of Chile
1995 -36.8ºF (-38.2ºC) in Chosedachar, Komi-district, on 67ºN
1995 President Nazarbajev disbands Kazakhstan parliament
1995 Sinn Fein party leader, Gerry Adams, arrives in US
1995 Yolanda Chen hop-skip-jumps world indoor record 15.03 meter
1996 Chris Harris scores 130 in losing New Zealand side vs Australia, World Cup
1996 Mark Waugh scores 110 vs New Zealand for his third century of the World Cup
1997 3rd Blockbuster Entertainment Awards
1997 Ashes of Star Trek creator, Gene Roddenberry are launched into space
1997 Beatle Paul McCartney knighted Sir Paul by Queen Elizabeth II
1997 San Francisco Giant J T Snow suffers a fractured eye socket when hit by a pitch

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Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Mauritius : Maha Shivaratree
US : Johnny Appleseed Day (anniversary of his death-1845)
World : World Culture Day (leap years)
Memphis TN : Cotton Carnival (held for 5 days) - - - - - ( Tuesday )
New Mexico : Arbor Day - - - - - ( Friday )

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Religious Observances
Roman Catholic : Commemoration of St Teresa Margaret Redi, Italian Carmelite

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Religious History
1665 New York's English Deputies approved a new legal code, which guaranteed all Protestants the right to practice their religious observances unhindered. (There were currently a host of Protestant groups thriving within this now_English colony, acquired only seven months earlier from the Dutch.)
1738 English revivalist George Whitefield wrote in his journal: 'Suffering times are a Christian's best improving times; for they break the will, wean us from the creature, prove the heart.'
1845 Wittenberg College was chartered in Springfield, Ohio, under Lutheran auspices.
1860 Birth of H. Frances Davidson, pioneer missionary. In 1892 she became the first woman from the Brethren in Christ Church to earn an M.A. degree, and in 1897 became one of her denomination's first missionaries to travel to the African continent.
1923 Death of Mary Ann Thomson, 89, American hymnwriter. Among her most enduring contributions to the Church were the lyrics to "O Zion, Haste, Thy Mission High Fulfilling," which she wrote at age 34.

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Thought for the day :
"The orator speaks, with his flood of words and his drop of reason."

[Soaring Feather]

[SAMWolf]

Great song!

[SAMWolf]

1968 Otis Redding posthumously receives gold record for "(Sittin' On) the Dock of the Bay"

Oops! Great song

[SAMWolf]

Thanks Feather, love the photo!

[Valin]

FYI
File under don't let this happen to you.

Man released from jail, but his ride home is busted
Associated Press

Published March 11, 2003

DETROIT LAKES, Minn. -- If you're going to pick up someone who has just been released from jail, you probably should not have an outstanding warrant and you probably should leave the drugs at home.

When a 46-year-old Menahga woman drove up to the Wadena County Jail on Sunday to pick up an inmate, Trooper Jeff Pinoniemi was waiting.

The woman had been wanted on an outstanding warrant - plus, she was driving with a revoked license, revoked license plates and no insurance.

And it didn't end there. Pinoniemi said when the woman was being booked, they also found marijuana and methamphtamine on her.


Stupidity....a policemans best friend.

[SAMWolf]

Crooks is stupid! Some people are just born losers.

[Valin]

And now some good news
WWII veteran returns certificate to France
Mpls (red)Star Tribune / AP ^ | 3/11/03
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/862087/posts


NEW PORT RICHEY, FLA. -- A World War II veteran in Florida is saying ``no thanks'' to France.

Eighty-year-old Angelo Pizzuti is returning a certificate of thanks he got from France two years ago. France gave the certificate to American veterans who fought in Europe during the war.

Pizzuti has sent his ``Thank You America'' certificate to the French consulate in Miami, saying he's angry the country he helped liberate isn't supporting the United States' efforts to disarm Iraq.

Pizzuti accuses France's president of ``stabbing us in the back.''

© Copyright 2003 Star Tribune. All rights reserved.

[SAMWolf]

Thanks Cote.

I don't think there's a subject I can post about that for which you can't find a poem.

[SAMWolf]

Good for Angelo Pizzuti! Bravo!