The USS Boise arrives at a Philadelphia naval yard in November 1942 to repair damage suffered in the World War II Battle of Cape Esperance.

On this day in 1942, the United States defeated the empire of Japan in the Battle of Cape Esperance in the Pacific. According to History.com, the U.S. Navy intercepted “a Japanese fleet of ships on their way to reinforce troops at Guadalcanal. The Navy succeeded in its operation, sinking a majority of the ships.”

Thank you to all of our nation’s World War II veterans for their heroism and courage.