Here’s a brief look back in time on this day, February 13th.
In 1861, Col. Bernard JD Irwin – accompanied with a convoy of 14 other men – forged their way to the 7th Infantry led by 2nd Lt. George Bascom, who were under siege by Native American forces. The conflict broke out several days before when Bascom falsely accused Cochise, who was the local group leader of the Chiricahui band of Chokonen tribespeople, of having been involved in stealing cattle and kidnapping the son of a local rancher. Cochise was never aware of the incident but promised to help look for the perpetrators. Instead, he was placed under arrest alongside his family. He escaped from the tent he was put in and kidnapped three white men as a bargaining chip to free the rest of his family. The exchange was refused, leading to the captives on both sides being executed: leading to the conflict. Col. Irwin and his crew later came to Bascom’s rescue during the attack and successfully saved the infantry. He is chronologically the first person to receive the Medal of Honor decades later in 1894.
In 1923, the first all-Black professional basketball team is organized by Robert L. Douglas. The team, called the New York Renaissance, would compile an all-time record of 2,588–529 between the seasons of 1923 to 1948. Difficulties stemmed from Jim Crow laws resulted on the team enduring a rough start. Eventually, they would have their own arena that attracted thousands of attendees. They would even compete against the Harlem Globetrotters during the 1939 World Professional Basketball Tournament. This was before the Globetrotters’ theatrical competitions against the Washington Generals.
In 1945, a joint mission led by the U.S. Army Air Force and the U.K. Royal Air Force begins. The mission: bombard the historic city of Dresden, Germany. According to military files, Dresden served as a major communication and transportation hub for Nazi Germany. This followed multiple failed operations for the Third Reich, as the Allies close in on Berlin. Dresden authorities estimate a death toll of over 25,000 innocent civilians. The attack was considered controversial due to high civilian casualties, with some regarding it as a crime against humanity. Dresden was rebuilt once after the war, and another time following the fall of the Berlin Wall.