1941 one hundred crew members of the uss reuben james perished wh 10 31
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1941 85 years ago Historical Events October 31 4 sources

World War II: The destroyer USS Reuben James is torpedoed by a German U-boat near Iceland, killing more than 100 U.S. Navy sailors. It is the first U.S. Navy vessel sunk by enemy action in WWII.

On October 31, in the year 1941, World War II: The destroyer USS Reuben James is torpedoed by a German U-boat near Iceland, killing more than 100 U.S. Navy sailors. It is the first U.S. Navy vessel sunk by enemy action in WWII. This event is recorded as a Historical Events event in the history of October 31, one of 445 recorded events on this date across all of history.

USS Reuben James (DD-245) was a four-funnel Clemson-class destroyer that was constructed after World War I. She was the first United States Navy ship to be named after Boatswain's Mate Reuben James, who had distinguished himself fighting in the First Barbary War, and was the first US navy ship to be sunk by hostile action in the European Theater of World War II. Four US flagged merchant ships were also sunk by hostile action before the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Key Facts

  • This event took place on October 31, 1941 (AD era).
  • It is categorised as a Historical Events event in recorded history.
  • Referenced in 4 Wikipedia articles.
  • The event is associated with a specific geographical location (see map below).
  • Wikipedia source last updated on 30 September 2026.

On This Date in History 445

Type Year Date Event
Notable Deaths 2023 Oct 31 Ken Mattingly, American astronaut (born 1936)
Notable Deaths 2021 Oct 31 Peter Philpott, Australian cricketer (born 1934)
Historical Events 2020 Oct 31 Berlin Brandenburg Airport opens its doors after nearly 10 years of delays due to construction issues and project…
Notable Deaths 2020 Oct 31 Sean Connery, Scottish actor (born 1930)
Notable Deaths 2020 Oct 31 MF Doom, British-American rapper and record producer (born 1971)
Notable Deaths 2018 Oct 31 Willie McCovey, American baseball player (born 1938)
Historical Events 2017 Oct 31 A truck drives into a crowd in Lower Manhattan, New York City, killing eight people.
Selected Events 2017 Oct 31 An Uzbek immigrant drove a rented truck into cyclists and runners in Lower Manhattan, New York City, killing eight…
Historical Events 2015 Oct 31 Metrojet Flight 9268 is bombed over the northern Sinai Peninsula, killing all 224 people on board.
Notable Deaths 2015 Oct 31 Gus Savage, American businessman and politician (born 1925)
Historical Events 2014 Oct 31 During a test flight, the VSS Enterprise, a Virgin Galactic experimental spaceflight test vehicle, suffers a…
Notable Deaths 2014 Oct 31 David Manker Abshire, American commander and diplomat, United States Permanent Representative to NATO (born 1926)
Notable Deaths 2014 Oct 31 Michael Alsbury, American engineer and pilot (born 1975)
Notable Deaths 2014 Oct 31 Brad Halsey, American baseball player (born 1981)
Notable Deaths 2014 Oct 31 Hitoshi Motoshima, Japanese educator and politician (born 1922)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 31 Chris Chase (aka Irene Kane), American actress and author (born 1924)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 31 Gérard de Villiers, French journalist and author (born 1929)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 31 Trevor Kletz, English chemist and author (born 1922)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 31 Johnny Kucks, American baseball player (born 1933)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 31 Andres Narvasa, Filipino lawyer and jurist, 19th Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines (born 1928)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 31 Bobby Parker, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1937)
Notable Deaths 2012 Oct 31 Gae Aulenti, Italian architect and designer (born 1927)
Notable Deaths 2012 Oct 31 John Fitch, American race car driver and engineer (born 1917)
Notable Deaths 2012 Oct 31 John H. Reed, American soldier and politician, 67th Governor of Maine (born 1921)
Historical Events 2011 Oct 31 The global population of humans reaches seven billion. This day is now recognized by the United Nations as the Day of…
Notable Deaths 2011 Oct 31 Flórián Albert, Hungarian footballer and manager (born 1941)
Notable Deaths 2011 Oct 31 Roberto Lippi, Italian race car driver (born 1926)
Notable Deaths 2010 Oct 31 Ted Sorensen, American lawyer, 8th White House Counsel (born 1928)
Notable Deaths 2009 Oct 31 Mustafa Mahmud, Egyptian physician and author (born 1921)
Notable Deaths 2009 Oct 31 Tom Wheatcroft, English businessman, founded the Donington Grand Prix Exhibition (born 1922)
Notable Deaths 2009 Oct 31 Qian Xuesen, Chinese aerodynamicist and academic (born 1911)
Notable Deaths 2008 Oct 31 Studs Terkel, American historian and author (born 1912)
Notable Deaths 2007 Oct 31 Erdal İnönü, Turkish physicist and politician, Prime Minister of Turkey (born 1926)
Notable Deaths 2006 Oct 31 P. W. Botha, South African soldier and politician, State President of South Africa (born 1916)
Notable Deaths 2006 Oct 31 Peter Fryer, English journalist and author (born 1927)
Notable Births 2005 Oct 31 Leonor, Princess of Asturias
Notable Deaths 2005 Oct 31 Hal Anger, American biophysicist and engineer (born 1920)
Notable Deaths 2005 Oct 31 Amrita Pritam, Indian author and poet (born 1919)
Selected Events 2005 Oct 31 The discovery of the Plutonian moons Nix and Hydra, based on photographs taken by the Hubble Space Telescope nearly…
Historical Events 2003 Oct 31 Mahathir Mohamad resigns as Prime Minister of Malaysia and is replaced by Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi,…
Notable Deaths 2003 Oct 31 Richard Neustadt, American political scientist and historian (born 1919)
Selected Events 2003 Oct 31 After 22 years in power, Mahathir Mohamad retired as Prime Minister of Malaysia.
Historical Events 2002 Oct 31 A federal grand jury in Houston, Texas indicts former Enron chief financial officer Andrew Fastow on 78 counts of wire…
Notable Births 2002 Oct 31 Ansu Fati, Spanish footballer
Notable Deaths 2002 Oct 31 Lionel Poilâne, French banker and businessman (born 1945)
Notable Deaths 2002 Oct 31 Michail Stasinopoulos, Greek jurist and politician, President of Greece (born 1903)
Notable Deaths 2002 Oct 31 Raf Vallone, Italian footballer and actor (born 1916)
Notable Deaths 2001 Oct 31 Régine Cavagnoud, French skier (born 1970)
Historical Events 2000 Oct 31 Soyuz TM-31 launches, carrying the first resident crew to the International Space Station. The ISS has been crewed…
Historical Events 2000 Oct 31 Singapore Airlines Flight 006 crashes on takeoff from Taipei, killing 83.

This article draws on content from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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