“December 7, 1941, a date which will live in infamy. The United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.”
You can’t do history without World War II! It continues to fascinate generation after generation, including as the subject of countless new movies and video games.
But did you know Hamilton Air Field in Novato played a role on the morning of the Pearl Harbor attack?
That fateful morning a group of twelve B-17 Flying Fortress Bombers were sent to reinforce the Philippines, with a planned refueling stop at the Pearl Harbor base.
B-17 Flying Fortress
You might think 12 airplanes arriving during the Japanese attack would be good, but these weren’t nimble fighters and carried no ammunition to save weight for the long flight.
A little after 7am Hawaii time, two young radar operators saw something bigger than they’ve ever seen about 132 miles away. They called the Aircraft Warning Information Center, where 1st Lt. Kermit A. Tyler answered:
"Don't worry about it," Tyler told them. He had heard that a flight of B-17 bombers was en route from Hamilton Field, California, that morning.
As the B-17s approached Hawaii near 8am local time, there were already bullets flying. In fact, one co-pilot thought that the U.S. Navy was giving a 21-gun salute to celebrate the arrival of the bombers…
They quickly realized what was happening and changed plans. The twelve planes scattered to four different landing fields plus a golf course.
Out of the ~100 men on the bombers from Hamilton Air Field, all but one survived. Flight surgeon 1st Lt. William Schick was wounded in the leg during the landing, got out of the aircraft, and was then killed by a strafing Japanese fighter while running for cover.
Did you know about this Marin tie to one of the most famous events in United States history?
If you want more: visit the Hamilton Field History Museum. It is open Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays from noon-4.
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Incredible view for $2.7M
I’m not usually as interested in hilltop homes. No yard, kinda remote, pass. But that’s not the case with this one.
It’s a 1.2 mile walk along the Dipsea Trail to Old Mill Park in Mill Valley. Actually, it is just about where I have parked when I don’t want to climb as many stairs…
The views are just incredible: “breathtaking 6-county views spanning Mt. Tam, Mill Valley, the Bay, three bridges, Mt. Diablo, and the city lights of San Francisco.”
The main level is a deck, but there is a small fenced-in yard down below.
I love the green kitchen cabinets too. I’d say that is usually a bold choice, but it just works in this home.
Check it out:
Dinner Club Update
Last week I asked if there is interest in a Marin dinner club, where you get matched up and 5 others with similar interests and sent to a restaurant. 73 people are interested, so we are going to do it! December is a bit hectic, so we’ll do it in January. Plenty of time to figure out the details of how it will work (and to answer a common question, yes, couples are welcome, this isn’t a singles-only type of thing).
We can move the location around and opt in to each one (it won’t be a subscription or anything). For the first one, let me know what you prefer:
Dinner Club First Location
Thanks for reading. We will be back with the regular events and activities email Wednesday morning!
