A Navy messman with no gunnery training defended his ship at Pearl Harbor

Grace Hopper was inspired to join the armed forces after the attack on Pearl Harbor

Despite being too old to enlist and weighing below the required minimum to serve, Hopper was granted an exemption and assigned to work on the first electromechanical computer produced in the US. She and her team spent three months using the device to solve equations needed to design the implosion mechanism for the atomic bomb.

Grace Hopper graduated first in her class of 800 officer candidates

As a volunteer in the Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service program, Hopper was able to fulfill roles beyond the nursing and clerical responsibilities normally available to women in the military. However, once World War II concluded and the emergency status was lifted, the Navy declined her request for a regular commission.

The USS Nevada was refloated within three months—and later fought at Normandy

Badly damaged at Pearl Harbor, the USS Nevada was raised by February 1942 after extensive salvage work. Repaired and modernized, it returned to action and bombarded German defenses during the D-Day landings.

Watch how engineers salvaged almost every sunken ship at Pearl Harbor

This four-part video series explains the massive effort to raise, repair, and refloat the Pacific Fleet—detailing the engineering challenges, diving operations, and months of around-the-clock work that restored all but three damaged ships to active service.

What do you know about WWI's only Black fighter pilot?

This in-depth article follows the life of Eugene Bullard, a Black American nicknamed the "Black Swallow of Death" for his work in WWI. Though much of Bullard's life is known, some pieces, like what happened to Bullard's brother who vanished in the Jim Crow South, continue to escape historical record.

Grace Hopper described serving in the US Navy as the highest award she received

Despite retiring from the US Naval Reserve in 1966 at 60, as stipulated by Navy regulations, Hopper was repeatedly recalled for her pioneering expertise in computer science. By 1983, three years before her final retirement, she would give lectures about 200 days a year to computer scientists at military bases, college campuses, and businesses on behalf of the Navy.

A single bomb on the USS Arizona killed 1,177 crew members in seconds

When a Japanese armor-piercing bomb triggered the explosion of the USS Arizona’s forward magazine during the attack, the blast killed 1,177 crew members within moments—accounting for nearly half of all American deaths at Pearl Harbor.

Eleanor Roosevelt's 1941 flight with a Black pilot helped legitimize the Tuskegee Airmen program

During a 1941 visit to the Tuskegee Institute, Roosevelt ignored protests from her Secret Service detail and flew for an hour over Alabama with chief instructor Charles Alfred Anderson. Photos of the flight were shared nationwide and helped advance the case for Black pilots in combat.

Teenager Guy Gabaldon captured the most prisoners in US military history

After the vicious battle of Saipan outside Japan in World War II, the Japanese were opting for suicide rather than surrender. Gabaldon, a Marine with a track record for skillfully convincing the enemy to surrender, managed to capture 800 Japanese single-handedly.

The commander of the Japanese force at Pearl Harbor speaks on the Merv Griffin show

Mitsuo Fuchida, who led the first wave of the Pearl Harbor attack, converted to Christianity in 1950, after reading the testimony of a former American POW. He later traveled through Japan and the United States, sharing his story and working as a Christian evangelist.

Why did four Black servicewomen go on strike during WWII?

On March 9, 1945, dozens of Black women stationed at Fort Devens went on strike to protest against their treatment and working conditions. Under pressure, many abandoned the strike, though four women pushed through despite the possibility of their strike being considered mutiny, a crime whose punishment could mean death. Read this article to learn why Privates Mary Green, Anna Morrison, Johnnie Murphy, and Alice Young pushed back.

The usual rules of fate do not apply': Race car driver-turned-ace WWI fighter pilot survives being lost at sea

Eddie Rickenbacker had an amazing career as a World War I hero, fighter pilot, and race care driver, among other accomplishments. This restored footage of an short 12-minute documentary about his early life, war stories, and survival at sea for 24 days provides amazing insight on a truly American character.

World War II's Battle of Savo Island was the worst wartime naval defeat in US history

On Aug. 9, 1942, a larger, radar-equipped Allied fleet lost four heavy cruisers off Guadalcanal in the Pacific theater without sinking a single Japanese ship. The Navy kept the humiliating rout secret from the public for years. Experts argued failure resulted from fractured command, not inferior arms or ships.

Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor caused heavy losses but failed to cripple the US navy

Japan’s air assault sank or damaged 18 warships (including eight battleships) and destroyed 188 aircraft, killing 2,403 Americans, yet all three Pacific Fleet aircraft carriers were absent and survived, and vital infrastructure like oil depots and repair yards remained intact—preserving core US naval power and enabling a rapid recovery. Watch original reporting here.

What happened to Americans who were in Japan during Pearl Harbor?

When Japan bombed Pearl Harbor in December 1941, roughly 10,000 American civilians were stranded in Japanese-occupied territory. Tense diplomatic negotiations eventually secured two prisoner exchanges conducted via ship across 20,000 nautical miles to return nearly 3,000 Allied civilians, while Japanese Americans in North and South America were sent in the opposite direction, many to a country they had never called home.

For her contributions, Grace Hopper received more than 40 honorary degrees

Beyond the scholarships, professorships, and awards named in her honor, President George Bush awarded Hopper the National Medal of Technology in 1991 for her work in developing computer programming languages that enhanced accessibility. In 1996, Hopper became only the second woman to have a US Navy warship named after her.

A downed Japanese pilot sparked a violent three-day standoff on the island of Niʻihau

After a Japanese pilot crash-landed on the Hawaiian island of Niʻihau, residents first sheltered him. Once news of the Pearl Harbor attack arrived, two locals tried to help him escape, leading to a violent struggle in which Native Hawaiians ultimately stopped and killed him.

Recovering the USS Oklahoma was the largest naval salvage operation ever attempted

In 1943, engineers spent three months using 21 giant winches and an intricate cable system to right the capsized USS Oklahoma. It was the largest naval salvage effort ever attempted at the time and remains one of the most complex in history.

The attack at Pearl Harbor required nearly a year of planning and preparation

In early 1941, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto ordered detailed planning for a surprise carrier strike on Pearl Harbor. Japanese teams spent months refining torpedo modifications, training pilots, and rehearsing the complex attack.

2 months after Pearl Harbor, American libraries launched a drive to collect 10 million books for soldiers

The 1942 Victory Book Campaign—sponsored by the American Library Association, the Red Cross, and the USO—asked the public to donate books to both train and entertain troops. The national campaign exceeded its goal, collecting more than 10.2 million books.

Watch Grace Hopper's appearance on the 'Late Show with David Letterman'

During this comedic interview, Hopper describes her 43.5 years in the Navy, an anecdote about when President Reagan promoted her, and provides a visual aid to explain the transmission of information at the nanosecond scale via electricity.

Before Pearl Harbor, the US was a nonbelligerent ally to the Allied powers

Between September 1940 and December 7, 1941, the United States remained officially neutral—yet President Roosevelt incrementally shifted policy from “cash‑and‑carry” to Lend‑Lease, funneling critical military aid to Britain and other allies without entering the war.

The story behind the iconic flag-raising photo on Iwo Jima (1945)

The iconic image captured by AP photographer Joe Rosenthal went viral, as far as it could in the 1940s, showing six marines raising a flag atop Iwo Jima's Mount Suribachi. The shot was used for public relations by the military, but it would later be shrouded by controversy when it was revealed it was the second flag raising that day, inviting accusations it was staged.

Advanced forensic science has helped identify killed sailors decades later

When the USS Oklahoma capsized amid the attacks, hundreds of sailors were buried within the ship's hull. Officials have used advances in forensic science to analyze DNA and dental evidence to help identify nearly 400 sailors decades after the fact.

Robert Smalls escaped slavery by piloting a stolen Confederate ship to freedom, then became an influential Black political leader during Reconstruction.

The attack at Pearl Harbor led to the world's first around-the-world commercial flight.

The first combat-deployed submarine vessel debuted during the American Revolution.

One of the earliest Memorial Day ceremonies was held by newly freed Black Americans in South Carolina

On May 1, 1865, roughly 10,000 people, mostly freed slaves, paraded around a Charleston racetrack where Union prisoners had been buried, predating the first national commemoration at Arlington National Cemetery by three years.

The Pearl Harbor attack led to the mass internment of Japanese Americans

In the months after Pearl Harbor, the US forcibly removed and incarcerated about 120,000 Japanese Americans—two-thirds of them citizens. Driven by fear and racism, the policy is now recognized as a grave violation of civil rights.

Hitler declared war on the United States four days after Pearl Harbor

Despite having no treaty obligation to join Japan’s fight, Hitler declared war on the US on Dec. 11, 1941. The move pulled America into the European theater and is widely seen as one of Hitler’s most strategic blunders.

Ellison Onizuka was the first Asian American in space

A member of the 1986 Challenger mission crew, Onizuka was also the first Hawaiian in space, having been one of 35 people selected from a pool of 8,000 applicants for astronaut training in 1978.

Hear the story of the daring Doolittle Raid, America's first strike back at Japan

This podcast recounts the 1942 Doolittle Raid, when US airmen launched a risky bombing mission over Japan just months after Pearl Harbor. The episode also highlights Jimmy Doolittle's leadership, piloting skills, and his lifelong impact on aviation.

FDR stayed composed as he absorbed the news of Pearl Harbor

This video reconstructs Roosevelt’s steady, methodical response on Dec. 7, 1941, from his first briefing to drafting his speech to Congress. It demonstrates how FDR maintained composure and moved rapidly to prepare the nation for war.

The Civil War introduced many technological advances to both society and warfare.

Explore a collection of media depicting major milestones from the life of Grace Hopper

The gallery features Hopper's meeting with President Ronald Reagan, her attendance at the groundbreaking of the Grace Murray Hopper Service Center—a Naval data processing facility—and her Presidential Medal of Freedom ceremony.

Approximately 180,000 African Americans served in Union forces

About 180,000 Black soldiers—roughly 10% of the Union army—served in the United States Colored Troops after 1863. Despite lower pay and discrimination, they were crucial to the Union victory.

The Japanese Navy used radio silence and deception to mask its approach

In late November 1941, Japan’s carrier strike force maintained total radio silence while operators back home broadcast normal traffic—creating ambiguity about the location of the fleet. The deception obscured US intelligence and helped create a surprise attack.

President Barack Obama compared Grace Hopper to the Wright Brothers

When posthumously awarding Hopper with the Presidential Medal of Freedom—the nation's highest civilian honor—on Nov. 22, 2016, the former president remarked, "If Wright is flight, and Edison is light, then Hopper is code. [...] From cell phones to [US] Cyber Command, we can thank Grace Hopper for opening programming to millions more people."

Hughes reported on Black Americans volunteering in the Spanish Civil War

In 1937, the Baltimore Afro-American newspaper sent him to cover the Black soldiers who’d left the US to fight in the International Brigades cooperating with the Republicans in the Spanish Civil War. Hughes’ dispatches mainly focused on the racially integrated military companies, something that was prohibited in the US.

See a visualization of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

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Hear Pearl Harbor survivors reflect on the attack 80 years later

This anniversary video features some of the last living witnesses to the Pearl Harbor attack. Their firsthand memories—shared eight decades later—offer a rare perspective on the day that changed their lives and the world.

How one Texas Western team changed college hoops

Texas Western, featuring college basketball's first all-Black starting five, stunned No. 1 Kentucky in 1966. Coach Don Haskins shrugged off the issue of race, but he received 40,000 pieces of hate mail after the game. This in-depth history relives the Miners' speed-driven triumph, their snub from Ed Sullivan, and a quiet revolution that sparked integration across the South's courts.

A Marine’s-eye view of the Battle of Iwo Jima

February 19, 2023, marked the 78th anniversary of the beginning of the battle of Iwo Jima. A decisive battle in World War II's Pacific Theater, most American's associated the iconic "raising of the flag" photo with the fight. This five-minute video provides a glimpse of what the six-week fight was like from the vantage of an individual US Marine.

Inside one of the largest US military bribery schemes

Glenn Defense Marine Asia Ltd. sprinkled US Navy officers with gifts, hosted events attended by Navy officers that were staffed by sex workers, and won millions of dollars worth of inflated military contracts to provide food, fuel, and security to Navy aircraft carriers. Leonard "Fat Leonard" Glenn Francis helmed the company. This 35-minute podcast episode is the beginning of a multi-part series sharing Francis' story from his perspective.

Japan attacked Pearl Harbor largely because it was running out of oil

This video traces how US-led sanctions and Japan’s near-total dependence on imported oil pushed Japanese leaders toward a high-risk plan: seize Southeast Asian oil fields and neutralize the American Pacific Fleet, hoping Washington would negotiate rather than fight.

Civilian 'little ships' saved Dunkirk: over 700 civilian boats joined the evacuation

Between May  26 and June 4, 1940, Operation Dynamo evacuated roughly 338,000 Allied soldiers from Dunkirk, France. Crucially, over 700 civilian “little ships”—yachts, fishing boats, pleasure craft—ferried troops from the shallow beaches to larger vessels, embodying a national rescue effort and preserving the core of Britain’s army for the war ahead.

In the 1910s, sailors on a US Navy ship started using the term 'happy hour' in reference to their leisure hours

The leisure activities sailors were treated to during the ship's long voyages included boxing tournaments and dancing—but unlike the happy hours we know today, they likely didn’t involve alcohol. This article includes more information about happy hour’s origin story.

See images of shipwrecks from WWII's Battle of Midway

Deep-sea explorers have captured detailed images of three iconic shipwrecks from World War II's Battle of Midway, including the first up-close photos of the Japanese aircraft carrier Akagi since its sinking in 1942.

Mel Brooks served in World War II, including a stint clearing landmines at the Battle of the Bulge.

Grace Hopper won the Data Processing Management Association's 'Man of the Year' award

The inaugural recipient of the award—symbolic of the male-dominated nature of computer science—was honored in 1969 for her contributions to the development of COBOL and the first compiler. Hopper would also become the first woman from any country and the first American to be recognized as a Distinguished Fellow of the British Computer Society.