1871 The Medical Corps of the United States Navy is a staff corps consisting of military physicians in a variety of specialties. It is the senior corps among all staff corps, second in precedence only to line officers. The corps of commissioned officers was founded on March 3, 1871. Prior to the formal establishment of the corps, shipsâ surgeons served without commissions, unless given one by the commanding officer.
1895 General Matthew Bunker Ridgway was a senior officer in the United States Army, who served as Supreme Allied Commander Europe and the 19th Chief of Staff of the United States Army. He fought with distinction during World War II, where he was the Commanding General of the 82nd Airborne Division, leading it in action in Sicily, Italy and Normandy, before taking command of the newly formed XVIII Airborne Corps in August 1944. He held the latter post until the end of the war, commanding the corps in the Battle of the Bulge, Operation Varsity and the Western Allied invasion of Germany.
1899 Alfred Maximilian Gruenther was a senior United States Army officer, Red Cross president, and bridge player. At age fifty-three, he became the youngest four-star general in the U.S. Army’s history. He succeeded General Matthew Ridgway as NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander in Europe serving from 1953 to 1956.
1901 Claude Stanley Choules was an English-born military serviceman from Perth, Western Australia who at the time of his death was the oldest combat veteran of the First World War from England, having served with the Royal Navy from 1915 until 1926. After having emigrated to Australia he served with the Royal Australian Navy, from 1926 until 1956, as a Chief Petty Officer and was a naturalised Australian citizen. He was the last surviving military witness to the scuttling of the German fleet in Scapa Flow in 1919 and the last surviving veteran to have served in both world wars. At the time of his death, he was the third-oldest verified military veteran in the world and the oldest known living man in Australia. He was the seventh-oldest living man in the world. Choules became the oldest man born in the United Kingdom following the death of Stanley Lucas on 21 June 2010. Choules died at the age of 110 years and 63 days. He had been the oldest British-born man; following his death, that honour went to Reverend Reginald Dean. In December 2011, the landing ship HMAS Choules was named after him, only the second Royal Australian Navy vessel named after a sailor.
1920 Robin L. Hite graduated from high school in 1937. Completed three years of college and enlisted as an Aviation Cadet on September 9, 1940 at Lubbock, Texas. Commissioned as Second Lieutenant and rated as pilot on May 29, 1941. Was captured after Tokyo Raid and imprisoned by the Japanese for 40 months. Liberated by American troops on August 20, 1945, he remained on active duty until September 30, 1947. Returned to active duty during Korean War on March 9, 1951 and served overseas before relief from active duty again in November 1955. Decorations include the Distinguished Flying Cross, Purple Heart with 1 Oak Leaf Cluster, and Chinese Breast Order of Pao Ting.
1920 Scotty of Star Trek and D-Day Survivor James Doohan (James Montgomery Doohan) Born March 3, 1920 d. 2005 Canadian actor. Famous for his portrayal of Chief Engineer Montgomery “Scotty” Scott on Star Trek (1966-69, “I’m givin’ her all she’s got, Captain!”). During the World War II D-Day invasion, Doohan shot two snipers while fighting with the Royal Canadian Artillery. However, he was hit by six rounds of friendly fire from a Canadian sentry. A round to his chest was stopped by a cigarette case he was carrying; a gift from his brother. A round to his hand required the amputation of his right middle finger. He also took four rounds in his leg, Doohan choose the name Montgomery for his character, which is his middle name (in honor of his grandfather James Montgomery). He also helped create the Klingon and Vulcan languages for Star Trek.
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