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1940
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Site selected in Placentia Bay. Originally called Little Placentia,
it was renamed Argentia
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Oct 13
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USS Bowditch arrived with US Corps of Engineers and civilian
hydrographic and surveyor personnel
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1941
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Jan 19
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USS Richard Peck arrived with 1,500 US construction workers and
engineers
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Jan 25
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First all-military troops arrived when 120 US Marines came ashore
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Feb 13
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US Marines offically raised first US flag
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May 15
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The seaplane tender Albemarle arrived at Argentia, Newfoundland,
to establish a base for Patrol Wing, Support Force operations and to prepare
for the imminent arrival of VP-52, the first squadron to fly patrols over
the North Atlantic convoy routes
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July 15
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Naval Operating Base Argentia offically commissioned. First Commanding
Officer was Captain J.A. Morgan
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July 30
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Vice Admiral A.L. Bristol, Commander Task Force 24, arrived on USS
Prarie
to take command
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Aug 10
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Site of rendezvous between US President Roosevelt and British Prime
Minister Churchill
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Aug 28
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Naval Air Station Argentia offically commissioned
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Sept 17
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Five US destroyers from Argentia met a fifty ship merchant marine convoy
and escorted it across the Atlantic
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1942
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March 01
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Ensign William Tepuni, USNR, piloting a Lockheed Hudson, PBO, of VP-82
based at Argentia, attacked and sank the U-656 southwest of Newfoundland.
It was the first German submarine sunk by U.S. forces in World War II
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Sept
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US Navy Wing 7 and US Army Corps unit were stationed at Argentia
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Sept 06
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The first Naval Air Transport Service flight to Argentia, Newfoundland,
marked the beginning of air transport expansion along the eastern seaboard
that during the month extended briefly to Iceland and reached southward
to the Canal Zone and Rio de Janeiro
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Oct
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The 17th Naval Construction Battalion (Seabees) arrived. The Battalion
was part of the 10th Construction Regiment, consisting of 1,049 personnel.
They assumed construction responsibilities and base maintenance from the
US civilian construction companies
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Nov
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British Navy established a shop maintenance base for their escort destroyers
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1943
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March 05
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Bogue, with VC-9 on board, joined Task Group 24.4 at Argentia and began
the escort of convoys to mid-ocean and return. Although the Santee had
previously operated on Hunter-Killer duty, Bogue was the center of the
first of the Hunter-Killer groups assigned to convoy escort
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Oct 05
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Coast Guard Patrol Squadron 6 was established at Argentia, Newfoundland,
Commander D. B. MacDiarmid, USCG, commanding, to take over the rescue duties
being performed by naval aircraft in Greenland and Labrador
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1943
1945 |
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Over 10,000 US Naval, Marine, Seabee and Army troops at Argentia. Thousands
of ships and war planes passed through Argentia en route to European Theatre
of War
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1944
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June 01
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Airships of ZP-14, assigned to antisubmarine operations around Gibraltar,
completed the first crossing of the Atlantic by non-rigid airships. The
flight began 29 May from South Weymouth, Mass., and ended at Port Lyautey,
French Morocco, covering a distance of 3,145 nautical miles in 58 hours.
Including time for stopovers at Argentia and the Azores, the airships moved
their area of operations across the Atlantic in 80 hours
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1945
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May
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European war over. Japanese war continued until August 1945
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Nov
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Most of US Army troops and artillery moved out of Argentia
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1947
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Argentia Naval activity increased; personnel and equipment increased
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1948
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Approximately 7,000 naval and Marine troops at Argentia
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1950
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Korean War alert. Military personnel increased
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1953
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Argentia assigned support to Northeast Air Command
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Approximately 8,500 Naval, Marine and Air Force troops in Argentia
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1955
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Adjacent McAndrew Air Force Base closed. Navy took over some facilities
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1956
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Use of airstrip at Argentia curtailed
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Korean War over; Naval and Marine personnel reduced
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1958
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Argentia assigned support to 64th Air Division and NORAD
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1959
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Sept 01
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VW-13 Established
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1962
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Feb 08
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A detachment of Patrol Squadron 11 at Argentia began ice reconnaissance
flights over the Gulf of St. Lawrence to aid in evaluating satellite readings
of ice formations transmitted by Tiros 4 which was put into orbit the same
day
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1965
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July 30
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VW-13 Disestablished
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Oct 07
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VW-11 Disestablished
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1968
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Oct 01
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VW-13 Redesignated VAQ-130
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1969
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US Naval and Marine troops reduced to 3,000
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1971
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US Naval and Marine troops reduced to 1,000
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1972
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Deactivated buildings and facilities on north side turned over to Government
of Canada
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1973
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US Air Force at Argentia relinquished all command to US Navy. Argentia
Airfield closed.
US marine troops vacated Argentia. Only Navy personnel remained |
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1975
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On north side, federal government occupied 20% of all buildings and
facilities, provincial government 40% and private enterprise 40%
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1989
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US Navy still occupies south side of base
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1990
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Argentia one of the most modern US facilities in Navy
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1994
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US Navy activities at Argentia cease
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2000
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Some buildings still remain and are privately owned. Argentia Management
Authority plans to build industrial park
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