On this day in ...... 1918 (90 years ago today), Private Orpha Mae Johnson became the 1st woman Marine; specifically, she enlisted in a program "named 'The Marines of Reserve (F).'" During 1918 "some 300 women first entered the Marine Corps to take over stateside clerical duties from battle-ready Marines who were needed overseas" World War I. After the war, the program was disbanded, and all women were discharged. (image: Women Marines Association logo)
... 1961, residents of Berlin awoke to find the city divided.
Overnight, East German troops had "sealed the border between East and West Berlin, shutting off the escape route for thousands of refugees from the East." The troops then "stood guard at the Brandenburg Gate, main crossing point between the Eastern and Western sectors." (credit for photo of Gate on this 1961 day that construction of the Berlin Wall began)
