January 15, 2026

The Eye of the World, the first book in Robert Jordan’s The Wheel of Time series, was published on January 15, 1990; Jordan, born James Oliver Rigney, Jr., was a veteran student and graduated in 1974.

January 14, 2026

Frederick Wesner was born on January 14, 1788. "Prominent Charleston architect Frederick Wesner designed the building that was to become known as the Citadel, but it was not until 1829 that the structure was erected on the square. Wesner’s design, a two story Romanesque structure, incorporated an interior courtyard with Doric columns and Roman arches. It is speculated that Wesner’s design was inspired by the Jacques-Louis David painting, The Oath of the Horatii." citadel.edu/citadel-history/brief-history

January 13, 2026

Today we remember Arland Williams, '57, who was a passenger aboard Air Florida Flight 90, which crashed on take-off in Washington, D.C., on January 13, 1982, killing 74 people. Williams helped the five other survivors escape before he drowned in the icy waters of the Potomac. From Time Magazine, by Roger Rosenblatt, January 25, 1982, before The Man in the Water was identified: "But the person most responsible for the emotional impact of the disaster is the one known at first simply as “the man in the water.” (balding, probably in his 50s, an extravagant mustache.) He was seen clinging with five other survivors to the tail section of the airplane. This man was described by Usher and Windsor as appearing alert and in control. Every time they lowered a lifeline and flotation ring to him, he passed it on to another of the passengers. “In a mass casualty, you’ll find people like him,” said Windsor. “But I’ve never seen one with that commitment.” When the helicopter came back for him, the man had gone under. His selflessness was one reason the story held national attention; his anonymity another. … For at some moment in the water he must have realized that he would not live if he continued to hand over the rope and ring to others. He had to know it, no matter how gradual the effect of the cold. In his judgment he had no choice." Remarks from then-President Ronald Reagan: https://www.c-span.org/clip/commencement-speeches/user-clip-arland-d-williams-rememberance/4706813 LTC George G. Mattar, USA, '63, was also on board Flight 90 and was killed when the plane crashed

Welcome Back, S.C. Corps of Cadets! We're ready for a great spring semester!

January 9, 2026

On January 9, 1861, Citadel Cadets manning an artillery battery on Morris Island fired the first hostile shots of the Civil War, repulsing the federal steamship, Star of the West, carrying supplies and two hundred federal troops dispatched by President Buchanan to reinforce Union Forces garrisoned at Fort Sumter.