JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, S.C. –
Oct. 17, 1922 - Lt. Cmdr. Virgil C. Griffin, in a Vought VE-7SF makes the first takeoff from a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier, USS Langley (CV 1) anchored in York River, Va.
Oct 18, 1859 - U.S. Marines reach Harper's Ferry, Va., and assault the arsenal seized by John Brown and his followers.
Oct. 19, 1944 - Secretary of the Navy orders African-American women accepted into the Naval Reserve.
Oct. 20, 1944 - The 7th Fleet lands more than 60,000 Army troops on Leyte, Philippines, while Japanese aircraft attack.
Oct. 21, 1797 - USS Constitution is launched at the Charlestown Navy Yard, Boston, Mass. The ship is now the oldest commissioned ship in the U.S. Navy.
Oct. 22, 1962 - President John F. Kennedy orders a surface blockade (quarantine) of Cuba to prevent Soviet offensive weapons from reaching Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Oct. 23, 1983 - Terrorist bombing of Marine barracks at Beirut airport in Lebanon kills 241 members of the 24th Marine Amphibious Unit.