Friday, December 20, 2013, 11:08 AM
Admiral Ernest J. King (Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives.)
Today in U.S. Naval History – December 20
1822 – Congress authorizes the 14-ship West Indies Squadron to suppress piracy in the Caribbean.
1941 – Admiral Ernest J. King designated Commander-in-Chief, United States Fleet in charge of all operating naval fleets and coastal frontier forces, reporting directly to the President.
1964 – USS Richard E. Kraus (DD-849) completes a successful emergency mission in aiding the disabled American Merchant Ship, SS Oceanic Spray in the Red Sea.
1974 – Clearance of Suez Canal for mines and unexploded ordnance completed by Joint Task Force.
1989 – Operation Just Cause begins in Panama.
1998 – Operation Desert Fox in Iraq ends.
For more information about naval history, visit the Naval History and Heritage Command website at history.navy.mil.
has been published on Naval and Marine News
(Today in U.S