On this date in 1944, the Port Chicago Naval Magazine in California exploded. The explosion was a significant event during World War II. It occurred when a massive explosion destroyed the ammunition depot, killing 320 people, most of them African American sailors who were working in the munitions depot at the time. The explosion was so powerful that it could be heard from over 100 miles away.

The incident had far-reaching consequences. It led to the forced integration of African American sailors into other naval positions, as many of the workers at the depot were segregated, and a subsequent mutiny trial of African American sailors who refused to return to work under the dangerous conditions. This event is considered a key moment in the civil rights movement and the desegregation of the U.S. military.