This Day in Naval History - Oct. 16

1885 - Navy Capt. Alfred Thayer Mahan becomes superintendent of the Naval War College.
1891 - A brawl between American Sailors and Chilean nationals outside the True Blue Saloon in Valparaiso, Chile, resulted in two American Sailors killed, 17 wounded (five seriously) and many arrested. The incident sparked a diplomatic crisis that lasted for months, occasionally threatening war between the two countries, until a settlement was reached.
1940 - Fifth group of 10 destroyers from the Destroyers for Bases Deal are turned over to the British in Halifax, Canada.
1942 - Carrier aircraft from USS Hornet (CV 8) conduct attacks on Japanese troops on Guadalcanal.
1943 - The Navy accepts its first helicopter, a Sikorsky YR-4B (HNS-1), at Bridgeport, Conn.