10 Military Facts You Probably Didn’t Know

1. If the entire U.S. Army force was the population of a city, it would be the 10th largest in the country, having a greater population than major metropolitan areas including San Francisco, California; Jacksonville, Florida and Austin, Texas.
2. The Department of Defense (DoD) utilizes more than 30 million acres of land worldwide, which combined would make up an area slightly larger than the State of Pennsylvania.
3. The Pentagon has three times the floor space of the Empire State Building.
4. While the Pentagon has 17.5 miles of corridors, it only takes seven minutes to walk between any two points.

   

5. On a typical day, a Pentagon tour guide walks five miles backwards, while guiding visitors through the building.
6. The Ration D was the first emergency chocolate ration bar commissioned by the United States Army. Army Quartermaster COL Paul Logan approached Hershey’s Chocolate in April 1937 for the production of the bar. He had four requirements. The bar had to: Weigh exactly 4 ounces, Be high in food energy value, Withstand high temperatures, and to keep Soldiers from snacking on the bars in non-emergency situations – taste “a little better than a boiled potato”.

   

7. At the start of the Civil War in 1861, John Lincoln Clem tried to enlist in the Union Army at the age of nine. After an initial rejection, Clem succeeded in joining the 22nd Michigan Volunteer Infantry where they sawed down his musket to make it “kid-friendly.” Clem was promoted to sergeant and became a national hero before he was discharged at the age of 12 in 1864. He rejoined the U.S. military in 1871 and went on to become a major general before his final retirement in 1915.
8. In 2010, the DoD contracted the use of 1,700 PlayStation 3 gaming consoles to build a supercomputer. The consoles were used in lieu of traditional computer pieces as they were more cost-efficient and environmentally friendly.

   

9. It is estimated that each of the 2,700 U.S. military working dogs is individually responsible for saving 150 to 1,800 lives.

   

10. While 13 presidents have served in the National Guard/State Militias, Harry S Truman and George W. Bush are the only two U.S. presidents to serve in the Guard under its modern structure. Harry S Truman is the only one to have served under the modern Army National Guard.

    

By Staff Writer Tatyana White-Jenkins