May 19

1882 - Commodore Shufeldt (USS Swatara) lands in Korea to negotiate first treaty between Korea and Western power.

1912 - Navy establishes North Atlantic Ice Patrol following RMS Titanic disaster.

1965 - 30th Naval Construction Regiment activated at Danang, Vietnam.

May 20

1801 - Four warships sent to Mediterranean to protect American commerce.

1815 - Commodore Stephen Decatur (Frigate Guerriere) sails with 10 ships to suppress Mediterranean pirates' raids on U.S. shipping.

1844 - USS Constitution sails from New York on round the world cruise.

1943 - Establishment of Tenth Fleet in Washington, DC, under command of ADM King to coordinate U.S. antisubmarine operations in Atlantic.

May 21

1850 - Washington Navy Yard begins work on first castings for the Dahlgren guns.

1917 - USS Ericsson fires first torpedo of war.

1944 - During preparations for the invasion of Saipan an accidental ordnance blast on LST 353 sets off cataclysmic ammunition explosions at West Loch, Pearl Harbor, killing 163 and injuring 396. Six tank landing ships (LST-39, LST-43, LST-69, LST-179, LST-353, LST-480), three tank landing craft (LCT-961, LCT-963, LCT-983), and 17 track landing vehicles (LVTs) are destroyed in explosions and fires.

1964 - The initiation of the standing carrier presence at Yankee Station in the South China Sea.

May 22

1882 - Commodore Shufeldt signs commerce treaty opening Korea to U.S. trade.

1958 - Naval aircraft F4D-1 Sky Ray sets five world speed-to-climb records, 22-23 May.

1967 - New York City reaches agreement to purchase Brooklyn Navy Yard, ending 166 years of construction and repair of naval vessels.

1968 - USS Scorpion (SSN-589) lost with all hands.

May 23

1850 - Navy sends USS Advance and USS Rescue to attempt rescue of Sir John Franklin's expedition, lost in Arctic.

1939 - USS Squalus (SS-92) sinks off Postsmouth, NH, with loss of 26 lives.

1962 - Launch of Aurora 7 (Mercury 7), piloted by LCDR Malcolm Scott Carpenter, USN, who completed 3 orbits in 4 hours, 56 minutes at an altitude up to 166.8 statute miles at 17,549 mph. He was picked up by HSS-2 helicopters from USS Intrepid (CVS-11). The capsule was recovered by USS John R. Pierce (DD-753).

1962 - USS Valcour (AVP-55) provides medical care to a merchant seaman from tanker SS Manhattan in the Persian Gulf.

May 24

1917 - First U.S. convoy to cross North Atlantic during World War I leaves Hampton Roads, VA.

1918 - USS Olympia anchors at Kola Inlet, Murmansk, Russia, to protect refugees during Russian Revolution.

1939 - First and only use of VADM Allan McCann's Rescue Chamber to rescue 33 men from sunken USS Squalus (SS-192).

1941 - Authorization of construction or acquisition of 550,000 tons of auxiliary shipping for Navy.

1945 - Fast carrier task force aircraft attack airfields in southern Kyushu, Japan.

1945 - 9 US ships damaged by concentrated kamikaze attack off Okinawa.

1961 - USS Gurke notices signals from 12 men from Truk who were caught in a storm, drifted at sea for 2 months before being stranded on an island for 1 month. USS Southerland investigated, notified Truk, and provided provisions and supplies to repair their outrigger canoe. The men would be picked up on 7 June by the motor launch Kaselehlia.

May 25

1952 - USS Iowa bombards Chongjin, Korea.

1973 - Launch of Skylab 2 mission, which was first U.S. manned orbiting space station. It had an all Navy crew of CAPT Charles Conrad, Jr., USN. (commanding), CDR Joseph P. Kerwin, USN and CDR Paul J. Weitz, USN. During the 28 day mission of 404 orbits, the craft rendezvoused with Skylab to make repairs and conduct science experiments. Recovery by USS Ticonderoga (CVS-14).