Written by Todd DePastino (Library of Congress) There is no federal holiday called Presidents’ Day. Officially, the Third Monday in February is known as “Washington’s Birthday,” but almost no one calls it that. To make matters more confusing, individual states have given the holiday at least fifteen different names. California, for example,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QNLU731IKw Ira Martin interviews U.S. Army veteran Ronald Kraszewski for VBC's Veteran History Project. Ronald served in 5th Infantry Division during the Korean War.
Written by Beth Reuschel Beth Reuschel is a professional military records researcher who helps families discover their legacies of service. The VBC is partnering with Beth to guide family history seekers through their own research journeys. She’ll offer tips and tricks for those who want to plunge into the archives and retrace the footsteps
In 1942, the island of New Guinea served as a hinge between the Allies to the south in Australia and the Japanese Imperial Army to the north in the Philippines. For the Allies, holding Australia and regaining the Philippines required battling Japanese forces for control of New Guinea. The campaign lasted virtually the entire
What Went Wrong in Afghanistan? Tonight’s VBC Happy Hour guests argue that we lost the war in Afghanistan not on the battlefield, but in the more complex realm of culture, society, politics, economics, and religion–Civil Affairs. Now, as we confront a new global environment of strategic competition with China, Russia, Iran, and other regional powers,
Written by Todd DePastino The Inter-American Geodetic Survey (IAGS) was the most important Cold War project you’ve never heard of. Its mission was to map the vast uncharted regions of Latin American . . . and collect on-the-ground intelligence in the process. Bad maps lose wars. Napoleon might have triumphed at Waterloo if he'd
