We’re Patryk and Mike: Marines, lifelong nerds, and part of this community. Geek Heros is how we put those skills to work for the people who keep serving. We help your organization spend less time chasing admin and more time bringing veterans together, supporting families, and carrying the mission forward.
A new generation takes the watch.
The wisdom comes with them.
The members who built your chapter, post, or detachment have more to give. New members have more to bring. We help create a place where they can learn from each other—and keep serving together.
We built this small online museum for you—an ode to the ones who served before us. A place to learn our shared history, remember the people behind it, and carry their stories forward.
Behind every date are people, families, and experiences worth remembering. Explore the history. Start a conversation. Make room for someone else's story.
Wars, interventions, humanitarian operations, and the years between them. Every generation of service has a place here.
Origins: November 10, 1775
From the Continental Marines to today's expeditionary force. Our own service is one part of a much bigger story.
36 entries · earliest first
The Continental services emerged during the struggle for independence. Soldiers, sailors, and Marines served in a war fought on land and at sea.
John Trumbull's Declaration of Independence (1819), via VA. A later painting of the historical scene. Image collection
An undeclared maritime conflict with France helped shape the reestablished Navy and Marine Corps.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Early nineteenth-century sailing frigate. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
Mediterranean operations included naval actions and the expedition to Derna, later remembered in the Marines' Hymn.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Early nineteenth-century sailing frigate. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
Fighting with Britain spanned land, lakes, and oceans. Revenue cutters served alongside the military services.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Early nineteenth-century sailing frigate. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
A U.S. naval expedition confronted Algiers after renewed attacks on American shipping.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Early nineteenth-century sailing frigate. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
Three conflicts in Florida accompanied U.S. expansion and the forced removal of Native peoples. Land and water operations involved several services.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Nineteenth-century military encampment. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
U.S. forces fought Mexico in a conflict that ended with major territorial changes. Campaigns included land operations and the landing at Veracruz.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Nineteenth-century military encampment. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
A divided nation fought over Union, secession, and slavery. Union victory preserved the United States and was followed by slavery's constitutional abolition.
Civil War-era military hospital photograph, via VA's America's Wars collection. Image collection
An American naval expedition to Korea resulted in armed clashes, including a landing by sailors and Marines.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Early nineteenth-century sailing frigate. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
Fighting against Spain included campaigns in the Caribbean and Pacific. The war reshaped U.S. overseas commitments.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Turn-of-the-century tropical harbor. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
Repeated U.S. interventions included Nicaragua, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Turn-of-the-century tropical harbor. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
Filipino forces resisted American rule after the Spanish-American War. The principal war period ended in 1902, with later fighting continuing.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Turn-of-the-century tropical harbor. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
American forces joined an international expedition during the Boxer uprising in China.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Turn-of-the-century tropical harbor. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
U.S. sailors and Marines landed at Veracruz; Army forces later took over the occupation.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Turn-of-the-century tropical harbor. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
The United States entered a war already underway in Europe. Service extended from trenches and airfields to convoy routes.
Air Force filter: Army aviation predecessors. The independent Air Force was established in 1947.
World War I soldiers with gas masks, historical photograph via VA. Image collection
The United States and its Allies fought the Axis across multiple theaters. Military service and work at home connected an entire generation.
Air Force filter: U.S. Army Air Forces, before the independent Air Force's creation in 1947.
Landing craft and shipping at Omaha Beach, 1944. Historical photograph via VA. Image collection
Deterrence, overseas duty, patrols, and readiness shaped decades of service. Many veterans stood the watch without serving in a named war.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Cold War-era helicopter and landscape. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
U.S. forces served within the United Nations effort in Korea. The 1953 armistice halted the fighting without a peace treaty.
Artillery on a ridge in Korea. Historical photograph via VA. Image collection
Advisory duty, major combat deployments, withdrawal, and homecoming shaped different experiences. American combat forces withdrew in 1973; the war ended in 1975.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Cold War-era helicopter and landscape. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
American forces deployed to Lebanon during a political crisis under Operation Blue Bat.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Cold War-era helicopter and landscape. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
Marines and Army forces deployed during the Dominican civil war under Operation Power Pack.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Cold War-era helicopter and landscape. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
A joint rescue attempt ended after mechanical difficulties and a collision at Desert One, with eight service members killed.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Contemporary airfield and communications station. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
U.S. personnel served with a multinational force. The 1983 Beirut barracks bombing remains a defining loss for the Marine community.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Contemporary airfield and communications station. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
A joint U.S. intervention on Grenada included airborne, amphibious, and naval operations.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Contemporary airfield and communications station. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
U.S. forces escorted shipping and confronted threats in the Persian Gulf during the Iran–Iraq War.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Contemporary airfield and communications station. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
U.S. forces conducted a joint intervention in Panama under Operation Just Cause.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Contemporary airfield and communications station. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
A U.S.-led coalition deployed after Iraq invaded Kuwait. Desert Storm's air and ground campaigns expelled Iraqi forces from Kuwait.
U.S. aircraft over burning oil fields during Desert Storm. Historical photograph via VA. Image collection
A humanitarian mission became entangled in armed conflict. U.S. forces also supported the final withdrawal of UN forces in 1995.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Contemporary airfield and communications station. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
U.S. personnel supported sanctions, relief, air campaigns, and peacekeeping in Bosnia and Kosovo, in the former Yugoslavia. Some peacekeeping commitments continued beyond this period.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Contemporary airfield and communications station. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
U.S. forces deployed during the effort to restore Haiti's elected government.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Contemporary airfield and communications station. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
Two decades of operations in Afghanistan spanned multiple missions and generations of deployments, ending with the U.S. withdrawal in August 2021.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Contemporary airfield and communications station. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
The invasion, occupation, insurgency, and subsequent withdrawal brought repeated deployments. Later anti-ISIS operations are a separate entry below.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Contemporary airfield and communications station. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
U.S. and NATO operations included enforcing a no-fly zone during Libya's civil war.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Contemporary airfield and communications station. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
Coalition operations against ISIS included air strikes and support to partner forces in Iraq and Syria. Missions and arrangements changed over time.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Contemporary airfield and communications station. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
U.S. and partner forces protected shipping and conducted operations against Houthi threats in the Red Sea region.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Contemporary airfield and communications station. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
U.S. forces began Operation Epic Fury in February 2026. This entry records the operation's start; its developing history belongs with current official records.
Original AI-assisted era illustration: Contemporary airfield and communications station. An interpretive scene, not a photograph of this operation.
This growing guide brings together major wars, selected interventions, and eras of service. Dates identify the period described; some operations and service commitments overlap. It is not an exhaustive deployment register or an award or membership eligibility guide. Guard, Reserve, noncombat, and peacetime service belong in the conversation, too.
Historical text reviewed October 16, 2026. Read further in the Congressional Research Service deployment chronology and National Archives military collections. Current operations are recorded as dated snapshots.
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