THE GREAT LOCOMOTIVE CHASE (WHICH RESULTED IN) OUR NATIONS FIRST MEDAL OF HONOR

Journey with me back to 1938 as a young couple named Mike and Leone Goulding, having invested in a trading post in Navaho Country and fallen in love with the beautiful landscape and the Navaho people who populated what we call Monument Valley Utah/Arizona today- saved their pennies and photos and took a long road trip to Hollywood to find director John Ford and convince him that their valley would be the ideal place to film his next western movie, despite there being no lodging, no restaurants, and no electricity.  Its a great story and a few quotes and movie memories are offered. I HOPE YOU ENJOY IT!

The story of Sgt. Don Dinwiddie, radioman on the B-17 GI Sheets, and his crew as they barely survived being shot down in German-held territory on Jan 29th, 1944,as told by author Terry Irwin. Today's history classes really don't teach the many ways that commen men with uncommon courage fought for our freedom in WWII- and this story is a great example. Check out our new website at www.bestof1001stories.com!  Thanks for listening!

Tom Phillips and his three young children disappeared from the isolated rural Waikato town of Marokopa on 9 December 2021. New Zealand Police believe that the children were taken by their father to a location somewhere in the western Waikato, after a dispute with their mother. Phillips is alleged to have committed a bank robbery in September 2023, but the first sighting of all three children with their father was on 3 October 2024, when they were spotted walking through Marokopa farmland. However, despite a three-day search of the area, including the use of a military helicopter, they have not yet been located. Background Marokopa seen from above Before their disappearance, Tom Phillips lived in Ōtorohanga in New Zealand's Waikato district with his three children.[ They also spent much of their time at the family farm in Marokopa. Phillips had been separated from his wife Catherine for several years and was homeschooling the children.[citation needed]  He is an experienced hunter and camper. The Phillips family has farmed in the area for generations.    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phillips_family_disappearances https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/11/world/new-zealand-tom-phillips-missing-children-intl-hnk-dst https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/532022/missing-marokopa-family-detective-spearheading-the-search-for-tom-phillips-and-his-three-children-reveals-what-he-believes-phillips-motive-is https://nypost.com/2024/10/11/world-news/new-zealand-mothers-chilling-theory-as-missing-kids-re-emerge-in-bushland-with-father-tom-phillips/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9DnIfQ_EuM (use this one for finding–middle of the story) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0lvbGxGfuY (supportive of the father) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pVjMwhYr7M (too long) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0O0xExooPio (use for starting of story) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jH4E9dM69PI (good mom info) https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/17/three-years-in-the-wild-how-a-fugitive-father-has-hidden-his-children-for-so-long-ntwnfb https://www.1news.co.nz/2024/10/08/timeline-disappearance-of-tom-phillips-and-marokopa-children/ https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/missing-marokopa-family-waikato-ute-owners-plea-for-sightings-after-theft/GBX5NWPJRBAKBIJVA4RKOUDFN4/    

Gregory "Pappy" Boyington (December 4, 1912 – January 11, 1988) was an American combat pilot who was a United States Marine Corps fighter ace during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor and the Navy Cross. A Marine aviator with the Pacific fleet in 1941, Boyington joined the "Flying Tigers" (1st American Volunteer Group) of the Republic of China Air Force and saw combat in Burma in late 1941 and 1942 during the Second Sino-Japanese War. In September 1942, Boyington rejoined the Marine Corps. In early 1943, he deployed to the South Pacific and began flying combat missions in the F4U Corsair fighter. On August 14, 1943, he took command of Marine fighter squadron VMF-214 ("Black Sheep"). In January 1944, Boyington, outnumbered by Japanese "Zero" planes, was shot down into the Pacific Ocean after downing one of the enemy planes. He was captured by a Japanese submarine crew and was held as a prisoner of war for more than a year and a half. He was released shortly after the surrender of Japan. The television series Baa Baa Black Sheep was inspired by Boyington and his men in the "Black Sheep" squadron. It ran for two seasons in the late 1970s.   Catch all 120 of our WWII stories at www.bestof1001stories.com

By 1880 the ATS&F Railroad had laid tracks from Kansas City to California- and people and products were starting to move through the still untamed west. Food along the way, however, was a spotty proposition, and the railroad was faced with a dilemma. Cooks were hard to keep employed, and waiters were hard to find. Thats when Fred Harvey, who had emigrated from England to the US at age 15 and got into the restaurant, and then the train business- saw an  opportunity. He went to the offices of the Atcheson, Yopeka, & Santa Fe Railroad and offered them a plan. If the railroads would give him the dining cars and let him upgrade the stops every hundred miles or so- he (Harvey) would provide first class food services. It was a win-win. But Harvey didn't stop tghere. He placed ads in central US newspapers looking for educated, proper young ladies who were willing to head west with the railroads while working for a select group of upscale restaurants. Many young girls who saw no future in their lives outside of farm and domestic work lept at the opportunity- and the Harvey Girls were born.  This is their story.   Citations and Sources:  Citations and Sources: 1 Setting the Standard: The Harvey Girls. Exhibition, New Mexico History Museum, 2020. https://www.nmhistorymuseum.org/exhibition/details/1950/setting-the-standard-the-fred-harvey-company-and-its-legacy. 2 Ibid. 3Ibid. 4 "Winslow Harvey Girls - Oral Histories: Lucy Delgadillo Moore, Dorothy Hunt and Janice Stewart" by Robin White, Phyllis Kachinhongva, and Michael Quinn, Grand Canyon National Park. Mar 24, 2005. https://vimeo.com/193114476. 5 "Roy and Edna Lemons - Oral History Interview" by Michael Quinn, Grand Canyon National Park. September 7, 1995, https://www.nps.gov/media/video/view.htm?id=FBEC96EC-0899-4EB5-9785-A28BFE960084. 6 Lesley Polling-Kempes. The Harvey Girls: Women Who Opened the West (Philadelphia, PA: Da Capo Press, 1989), 87. 7 "Winslow Harvey Girls - Oral Histories: Lucy Delgadillo Moore, Dorothy Hunt and Janice Stewart". 8 Colleen Lucero. When I Worked for Fred Harvey: The Hopi Harvey Project. Exhibition, 2014. 9 Setting the Standard: The Harvey Girls. Exhibition.

This summer enjoy "JON'S TOP 10 WWII STORIES" every Friday morning at 12:30 am- a great choice for our night hawks! To find more like this one, check out our website www.bestof 1001stories.com then "episodes", "categories"- dropdown  "Last Stands and Long Shots". On October 25, 1944, through a series of naval movements, a small 13 ship destroyer task force found itself the only thing between a huge 23 ship Japanese battle fleet and the American landing force attempting to free the Japanese held Philippine Islands. When the choice came to run south, one destroyer commander named Ernest Evans,a Cherokee Indian who had joined to fight, charged the entire Japanese fleet alone, guns blazing and torpedoes firing, while the crew of largest battleship in the world, the Yamato, watched in stunned amazement. This incredibly brave action gave the rest of the small support force named Taffy 3 the incentive to attack, which they did, ultimately wreaking huge damage upon the surprised Japanese fleet, saving the Philippine invasion,and handing the Japanese navy a defeat from which they never recovered. SEE NEW WEBSITE FIOR MORE WWII ACTION: https://www.bestof1001stories.com/show/1001-heroes-legends-histories-mysteries-podcast/in-harms-way-the-incredible-story-of-the-uss-johnston/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On the 26th of March, 1863, the first six Medals of Honor were awarded to 6 surviving members of the Andrew's Raiders, who, one year earlier , had participating in a daring union raid into the south to commandeer a railroad engine and hobble Confederate supply lines around Chattanooga. The first of the six went to private Jacob Parrott. This is the story. Resources: •    https://www.thoughtco.com/great-locomotive-chase-2360250 •    Andrews Raiders - Warfare History Network https://warfarehistorynetwork.com •    Bravery remembered: Civil War raiders recognized for Great Locomotive Chase: https://www.army.mil •    Great Locomotive Chase - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Locomotive_Chase •    Marker Monday: Western & Atlantic Railroad Tunnel - Georgia Historical Society https://georgiahistory.com •    The Great Locomotive Chase - AMERICAN HERITAGE https://www.americanheritage.com •    The Great Locomotive Chase - Largest U.S. Army Veteran Directory + Service History Archive  https://www.togetherweserved.com •    The Great Locomotive Chase - WVTF https://www.wvtf.org •    The Great Locomotive Chase: The First Awarded Medals of Honor  https://www.cmoh.org Capturing a Locomotive: My Account of the Great Railroad Adventure by Rev. William Pittenger   R Resources: https://www.thoughtco.com/great-locomotive-chase-2360250 Andrews Raiders - Warfare History Network https://warfarehistorynetwork.com Bravery remembered: Civil War raiders recognized for Great Locomotive Chase: https://www.army.mil Great Locomotive Chase - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Locomotive_Chase Marker Monday: Western & Atlantic Railroad Tunnel - Georgia Historical Society https://georgiahistory.com The Great Locomotive Chase - AMERICAN HERITAGE https://www.americanheritage.com The Great Locomotive Chase - Largest U.S. Army Veteran Directory + Service History Archive  https://www.togetherweserved.com The Great Locomotive Chase - WVTF https://www.wvtf.org The Great Locomotive Chase: The First Awarded Medals of Honor  https://www.cmoh.org Capturing a Locomotive: My Account of the Great Railroad Adventure by Rev. William Pittenger Music and Sound Effect Credit: Sound Effect by Kammerin Hunt from Pixabay: Run Sound Effect by freesound_community from Pixabay: One Train, Men working, small steam locomotive, steam train at crossing, train horn and passing Sound Effect by Pig Bank - Mood from Pixabay: Rain Sound Effect by Sandro Lima from Pixabay: Train #3 Sound Effect by Roger Harding from Pixabay: Steam Engine Pulling Away Sound Effect by Paweł Spychała from Pixabay: Train Passing Production Assistant: Gizelle Erickson - Imagination Weaver

Our 12 stories: 1) Frank Finkel, survived Custer's Last Stand; 2) Vesna Voluvik, sole survivor of terrorist-caused airplane crash over Czech republic 1972; 3) Julieanne Koepcke, when her plane broke up, she fell two miles, strapped in her seat, and landed in the Amazon Rain Forest, where she survived 11 days with multiple injuries until finding help;, 4) Salvador Alvarenga, out for a day of fishing with his friend, was blown further out ton sea in a storm, and survived 438 days at sea with no supplies; 5) Aron Ralston, exploring a remote canyon in Utah, had is arm trapped by a boulder and after 6 days, realizing he could not free himself, cut off his own arm in order to survive; 6) William Bryden, a surgeon with the British Army in Afghanistan, survived an ambush that killed 4,500 of his fellow soldiers and thousands of non-combatants; 7) 13 tear old Bahia Bakari, with a broken collarbone, hung onto a piece of plane wreckage in the Indian Ocean for 9 hours in choppy water, to become the only survivor of that disaster; 8) Peter Siebold civilian astronaut on a Virgin Galactic flight, survived falling from 55,000 feet when the rocket disintegrated; 9) Lt. Col Vivian Statham, serving as a nurse in Indonesia in WWII, survived a massacre by the attacking Japanese as she and her fellow nurses were forced naked into the ocean before being shot in the back; 10) Ben S. Cauley, trumpet player for the Barkays, survived the plane wreck that took mthe lives of Otis Redding and most of the band; 11) Alexander Selkirk complained to his ships captain of the terrible working conditions aboard that ship and was marooned on a deserted island, where he survived for three years ; 12) Marcus Latrell, Navy Seal, survived an ambush by Taliban warriors in Afghanistan and went on to write his biography which became a movie. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Here is our interview with filmmaker/producer Steve Edmiston ("The Maury Island Incident", Youtube) regarding the Maury Island UFO incident which occurred in June 1947 in the Seattle/Tacoma area. For all of you who live within a day's drive of Seattle WA you really need to consider attending the 4th annual,MIBB- the Men in Black Birthday Bash-to honor the event which all began with the alleged sighting of three UFO's by Harold Dahl, son, and boat crew in 1947, just a few days before. Come dressed in black. Aliens welcome. This is one of the craziest UFO stories out there, and it doesn't get much attention because there was no early report or investigation and the initial facts were blurred by Dah's friend /partner who was possibly tyring to profit by magnifying an incident which may or may not have been a legitimate otherworldy visit.   Flaming metal shards, according to Dahl's account, were released by one the disc-shaped crafts that flew by his boat, striking the boat, landing on the deck, killing his son's dog, and burning his son, panicking the crew and causing the boat to be beached on Maury Island. It was later suggested that the power source for one of the craft had exploded, causing the shrapnel. Dahl and Crisman reported that "men in black" visited their homes and workplaces askling questions about the event, of which they were already aware, and telling they and the families to be quiet about what had happened.  Later Dahl retracted his story. Both the Air Force and the FBI labed the story a hoax.  Every year for the past three years the area celebrates the event with week long festivities and calls it 'The Men in Black Birthday Bash" and visitors can attent multiple events as well as a hike along the Southside UFO Trail.  Holy flying saucers! The Men in Black Birthday Bash (aka MIBBB Fest) is landing again starting June 13, 2025, bigger, funnier and quirkier than ever in 2025. This year’s celebration of the Washington State origins of the mythic Men in Black will boast nine days of events. The festival commemorates the historic Maury Island Incident. This 1947 UFO sighting prompted the first reported encounter with a Man in Black, right here in the Pacific Northwest.  Alien Abductee Look-Alike Contest is Friday, June 13 The festival kicks off on Friday, June 13, 2025 with an alien abductee look-alike contest inspired by the recurring SNL character Colleen Rafferty (Kate McKinnon). Alienvitation Scavenger Hunt Starts Friday, June 13 Friday the 13th also launches seven days of an Alienvitation Scavenger Hunt at the Westfield Southcenter Mall, where you can solve clues, collect prizes, experience new museum-quality Maury Island Incident and Men in Black interactive exhibits. You can even use a phone booth to invite the 1947 aliens back to see what’s new. The Maury Island Incident Film Screening June 20 Immerse yourself in our region’s UFO history and mythology at Saucers and Sass. This big-screen showing of the multiple award-winning The Maury Island Incident film will be followed by a drag queen-hosted sci-fi trivia contest and party. Men in Black Birthday Bash is Saturday, June 21 The festival’s signature cosplay event, the Men in Black Birthday Bash, happens Saturday, June 21. Guests come dressed in variations of black and white for an evening of music, entertainment and quirky traditions that celebrate the origin story of the iconic Men in Black. The Waterland Arcade hosts an afterparty with DJ’d, space-themed music. Bash attendees and cosplayers will receive a discounted entry.   

JON'S TOP TEN WWII FAVORITES:  #1 OF 10  BEST "The Commando Raid on St. Nazaire: the Most Daring Raid of WWII": The St. Nazaire Raid, also known as Operation Chariot, was a British Amphibious attack on the heavily defended Normandie drydock at St. Nazaire on March 26th, 1942. The objective of the raid was to destroy the drydock in German-held St. Nazaire, thus denying an Atlantic repair port to the new and powerful German battleship Tirpitz, which by itself was capable of winning the battle for the North Atlantic and cutting off England from much needed supplies. A joint operation involving over 200 British Commandos supported by Naval forces and RAF, the raid, costly in human lives, was the most decorated single action in British WWII naval history. #WWII #Commandos #TheGreatestRaidofAll #StNazaire #Podcast #HistoryPodcast  . Music: mattia cupelli and machinamasound.com Bradham, Randolph (2003). Hitler's U-boat fortresses. Santa Barbara: Greenwood Publishing Group. Dorrian, James (1998). Storming St. Nazaire: the Gripping Story of the Dock-Busting Raid, March, 1942. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. Ford, Ken (2001). St. Nazaire 1942: The Great Commando Raid; Osprey Campaign series #92. Oxford: Osprey Publishing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices CHECK OUT OUR NEW 2025 WEBSITE AT WWW.BESTOF1001STORIES.COM The obsolete destroyer HMS Campbeltown, accompanied by 18 smaller craft, crossed the English Channel to the Atlantic coast of France and rammed into the Normandie dry dock south gate. The ship had been packed with delayed-action explosives, well hidden within a steel and concrete case, that detonated later that day, putting the dock out of service until 1948.[4] A force of commandos landed to destroy machinery and other structures. German gunfire sank, set ablaze, or immobilized virtually all the small craft intended to transport the commandos back to England. The commandos fought their way through the town to escape overland but many surrendered when they ran out of ammunition or were surrounded by the Wehrmacht defending Saint-Nazaire. Of the 612 men who undertook the raid, 228 returned to Britain, 169 were killed and 215 became prisoners of war. German casualties included over 360 dead, some of whom were killed after the raid when Campbeltown exploded. To recognise their bravery, 89 members of the raiding party were awarded decorations, including five Victoria Crosses. After the war, St Nazaire was one of 38 battle honours awarded to the commandos. The operation has been called "the greatest raid of all" in British military circles.