This Day in History

February 6, 1917
Just off the coast of Ireland a German submarine torpedoed and sank a U.S. steamer, The California; it was carrying 205 passengers. The damage was such that the ship sank within nine minutes; a total of 43 people died. This occurred three days after President Woodrow Wilson warned Germany that American interests at sea should not be assaulted. On April 6, 1917 the U.S. entered the war.

February 8, 1918
The U.S. resumed publication of “Stars and Stripes,” a military newsletter for Union soldiers started during the Civil War. It was published weekly from February 8, 1918 to June 13, 1919 and was distributed to American soldiers dispersed across the Western Front to keep them unified and informed about the war effort as well as to provide them with news from home. Publication was resumed again during World War II.