July 28, 1918: Marine Corps Brig. Gen. John A. Lejeune, who would later become the Corps' 13th commandant, assumes command of the U.S. Army's 2nd Division during World War I in France, according to an entry on the Marine Corps History Division's website. He remained in that capacity until August of 1919 when the unit was demobilized. He was the first Marine officer to hold command of an Army division.
July 29, 1775: The Continental Congress establishes military chaplains as an integral part of the Continental Army, formerly establishing the Chaplain Corps, according to the Corps' official website. More than 25,000 chaplains have served in the 241 years since the Corps was established and some 300 have perished in battle. Seven members of the Corps have been awarded the Medal of Honor. Currently, there are more 2,700 chaplains serving in the U.S. Army representing 140 different religious organizations.
July 30, 1945: Japanese forces attack and sink the USS Indianapolis, a cruiser, resulting in the loss of some 883 Sailors, according to an entry on Navy.mil. It was the worst single loss in the history of the U.S. Navy; only 316 of her 1,199 crewmembers survived. Her loss went unnoticed until Aug. 2, when survivors are seen by a passing aircraft. The lengthy rescue is attributed to communication errors.
July 31, 1943: During World War II, the U.S. 4th Division takes Santo Stefano in Sicily, according to the book On this Day in America.
Aug. 1, 1907: The Army's Signal Corps, which was established at Fort Myer, Virginia, establishes a new Aeronautical Division under Capt. Charles deforest Chandler, according to the online U.S. Air Force History One-hundred Ten Years of Flight. The division was charged with taking charge of "ballooning and air machines." Brig. Gen. Albert J. Myer, Fort Myer's namesake, served as the Corps' chief signal officer in late 1800s.
Aug. 2, 1909: The U.S. Army accepts its first airplane from the Wright Brothers at Fort Myer, Virginia, according to the online U.S. Air Force History One-hundred Ten Years of Flight. The acceptance nearly 11 months after U.S. Army Lt. Thomas Selfridge and pilot Orville Wright crashed at Fort Myer during a test flight, delaying the U.S. Army Signal Corps' acceptance of an airplane into its program. The Army paid the Wright Brothers $30,000 for an aircraft that could exceed a speed of 40 mph.
Aug. 3, 1950: The Marine Corps' VMF-214 "Black Sheep" squadron launch eight Corsair aircraft from the USS Sicily to conduct a raid against enemy bases near Inchon, Korea, according to an entry on the Marine Corps History Division's website. The series of bombardments and strafing runs marked the first Marine aviation mission during the Korean War. \
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