Status - John Skinner - USS St. Croix
The St. Croix left San Diego at the end of the month, deploying to the South Pacific, first destination Guadalcanal.
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Fighting continues in the Philippines as the Navy finishes plans for the invasion of Iwo Jima. The island was needed as an emergency haven for the heavy bombers making the round trip from the Marianas to Japan. Navy task forces roamed the western Pacific sinking Japanese shipping, mostly cargo and support vessels.
The Allies had reversed the German advance in the Battle of the Bulge by January 25th, and went over to the offensive again. Hitler made his last visit to the Western Front, and returned to Berlin where he would remain for the rest of the war. Hitler gave his last public speech on the 30th.
In the east, the German command center (Wolf's Lair) had been abandoned, and the Auschwitz camp evacuated. Most of Poland was in Soviet hands by this time.
President Roosevelt began his fourth term on the 20th, with new Vice President Harry Truman. He soon left on a trip to Europe that would end with the Big 3 conference at Yalta.
More Information:
- Official Navy Chronology, pp. 611-617.
- The Liberation of the Philippines, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 136 194
- Victory in the Pacific, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 1 19
- USS_Saint_Croix
- Events of January, 1945
NEXT POST: FEBRUARY 15TH
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