JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, S.C. –
April 17, 1778 - The U.S. sloop-in-war Ranger captured a British brig.
April 18, 1988 - The Navy destroyed two Iranian surveillance platforms, sank one frigate and one patrol ship and severely damaged a second frigate in retaliation for the attack on USS Samuel B. Roberts.
April 19, 1861 - President Lincoln ordered a blockade of southern ports from South Carolina to Texas.
April 20, 1964 - USS Henry Clay (SSBN-625) launched a Polaris A-2 missile from the surface proving that Polaris submarines could launch missiles from the surface as well as from beneath the ocean. Thirty minutes later the submarine launched another Polaris missile while submerged.
April 21, 1972 - Navy Capt. John Young became the ninth man to walk on the moon during the Apollo 16 mission.
April 22, 1987 - The U.S. Navy was ordered to provide assistance to neutral vessels under Iranian attack.
April 23, 1918 - USS Stewart destroyed a German submarine off the coast of France.