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The Christy Collection

Military Stories and Articles

Sgt Henry Johnson, U.S. Army (1918-1919) – America’s First World War Hero

Sgt Henry Johnson, U.S. Army (1918-1919) – America’s First World War Hero

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Henry Johnson was a World War I soldier who singlehandedly beat back a German assault while critically wounded. He was a great American hero and received the highest military honor of two different countries. One of those countries, however, his very own, didn't bestow that medal until nearly 100 years after his service in WWI. The honor this man deserved was not awarded by the U.S. government upon his return home, because he was black. But that racism was eventually overcome, if only by the...

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Historic Japanese Internment Camps At Risk!

Historic Japanese Internment Camps At Risk!

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Because of proposed cuts in the United States budget for 2019, the National Park Services would be severely reduced. This may have a negative impact on many NPS sites, including those where Japanese Americans were confined following America's entry into WWII in 1941. Japanese Internment Camps Began With Fear and Prejudice In 2006, the government set up the Japanese American Confinement Sites Grants Program via the National Parks and set aside thirty-eight million dollars to educate the public...

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VADM John D. Bulkeley, U.S. Navy (1933-1975)

VADM John D. Bulkeley, U.S. Navy (1933-1975)

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John D. Bulkeley was a Vice Admiral in the United States Navy and one of its most decorated naval officers. Bulkeley received the Medal of Honor for actions in the Pacific Theater during World War II. He was also the PT boat skipper who evacuated General Douglas MacArthur from Corregidor in the Philippines.  VADM John D. Bulkeley Led Daring WWII Missions John D. Bulkeley was born in New York City and grew up on a farm in Hackettstown, New Jersey, where he graduated from Hackettstown High...

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PFC Sixto Escobar, US Army (1941-1945)

PFC Sixto Escobar, US Army (1941-1945)

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Sixto Escobar, of the United States Army between 1941 and 1945, was Puerto Rico’s first world boxing champion, and International Boxing Hall of Fame member. Remembered today with the Estadio Sixto Escobar, the San Juan home of River Plate Puerto Rico, as well as many buildings, roads, and statues, he is a favored son of the island territory. Not as many people know, though, that he served in the military during the Second World War as an Army PFC.

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SGT Robert D. Pryor, U.S. Army (1967-1969)

SGT Robert D. Pryor, U.S. Army (1967-1969)

What Advice Would You Give A New Recruit Just Starting Out Their Military Career?:

Those entering the military should pay attention to every word in training. Learn from those with superior training, experience, and higher ranks. If stationed abroad, learn the language and customs. You never know what seemingly trivial lesson may be the one that saves your life or that of a buddy. Learn to be the “gray man.” I learned that lesson the hard way when I couldn’t stay in step in Basic Training. Consequently, I spent a lot of time with grease traps. While cleaning one, someone entered the Mess Hall, asking who signed up to be a paratrooper. That wasn’t me. I was a wimp and the last one chosen when picking teams as a kid. They added that everyone going Airborne needed to take the Airborne Physical Training test. I took that test to get out of the grease trap and barely passed.

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SSG Victoria Ryan, U.S. Army (1973-1988)

SSG Victoria Ryan, U.S. Army (1973-1988)

What Advice Would You Give A New Recruit Just Starting Out Their Military Career?:

There Is A Right Way . . . There Is A Wrong Way . . . And There Is The Army Way! These were words spoken loudly and forcefully from the time I, as a recruit, exited the bus at Fort McClellan, Alabama, my basic training station, on numerous occasions until my graduation to Advanced Individual Training (AIT) several months later. Other applicable words included This Is Not The Army . . . This is Basic Training. And, all I could think was, “thank goodness.”

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SK2 Carolyn Pivarnik, U.S. Navy (2000-2005)

SK2 Carolyn Pivarnik, U.S. Navy (2000-2005)

What Advice Would You Give A New Recruit Just Starting Out Their Military Career?:

Two pieces of advice: 1) Keep all your request chits, and 2) Explore! For the first, I was able to renegotiate an evaluation because of this. I was marked down for not trying to pursue higher education, even though I had repeatedly sent chits up the chain of command to do so. They would either be denied or my work schedule would be changed, making it impossible for me to follow through with classes. When my evaluation came back to me to sign, I refused to until they changed that category to a better score, and I was able to prove my case because I had heeded the early advice given to me and saved all my request chits. When my chiefs saw their own signatures, they changed the score to a Promote.

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Largest Amphibious Invasions In Modern History

Largest Amphibious Invasions In Modern History

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The Battle of Inchon was an amphibious invasion and battle of the Korean War that resulted in a decisive victory and strategic reversal in favor of the United Nations. The operation involved some 75,000 troops and 261 naval vessels and led to the recapture of the South Korean capital of Seoul two weeks later. The code name for the operation was Operation Chromite. Amphibious Invasions Turn the Tide at Inchon The battle began on September 15, 1950, and ended on September 19th. Through a...

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The Mailman Went UA (A Vietnam Memoir) by David W. Mulldune

The Mailman Went UA (A Vietnam Memoir) by David W. Mulldune

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The year 2025 will see a lot of retrospective looks at the Vietnam War, as the United States’ involvement began in 1965 (or 1955, depending on who you ask) and officially ended with the 1975 Fall of Saigon. The best retrospectives anyone could possibly read are the no-holds-barred accounts of the war from those who were there, on the ground, doing the job. And few Vietnam memoirs are as poignant and honest as David Mulldune’s “The Mailman Went UA.”

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Korean War – Sacrifice And Survival at Chosin Reservoir

Korean War – Sacrifice And Survival at Chosin Reservoir

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For 19-year-old Pat Finn, a Minnesota Marine with Item Co, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines, the night seemed colder and darker than any of the others he'd experienced since landing in Korea. His Battalion had just arrived at a desolate, frozen lake he would remember for the rest of his life: the Chosin Reservoir. Chosin Reservoir Hit by a Devastating Surprise Attack As the sun went down on November 27, 1950, and temperatures sank to 20 degrees below zero, Marines at Yudam-ni, a small village on the...

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WW2 – Midway and Guadalcanal

WW2 – Midway and Guadalcanal

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There is some debate on the turning point of the war in the Pacific Theatre. Some historians believe the Allied victory at the Battle of Midway was the defining moment, followed by aggressive island-hopping all the way to the Japanese homeland. Others view Midway as the tipping point in the war where the initiative hung in the balance only to swing toward the Allies following its major victory in the Guadalcanal campaign. According to many other historians, however, the turning point of...

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Summary of The Vietnam War (1959-1975)

Summary of The Vietnam War (1959-1975)

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Vietnam was a country torn by war long before Americans became involved in the fighting. French domination was interrupted by the Japanese occupation in World War II, during which Communist leader Ho Chi Minh formed his Viet Minh organization and began guerrilla operations against both occupying powers. The Viet Minh came to power when Japan fell, and the French Indochina War began in 1946 as France attempted to regain control over its colony. The war ended in May 1954 when the Viet Minh...

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