March 10, 2016

Operation Tomodachi: Partnerships, Presence, Readiness and Heritage

On Friday, March 11, 2011 at 2:46 p.m. Japan was rocked by a magnitude 9.0 earthquake, centered 80 miles east of the coastal city of Sendai. The initial earthquake, the fourth most powerful earthquake recorded since 1900, was followed by a tsunami and a partial meltdown at a nuclear power plant, as well as multiple aftershocks in the ensuing weeks.

March 4, 2016

The U.S. Navy Seabees: Rates to Remember

 "We build, we fight." These four simple words could not describe the role of the U.S. Navy's Construction Battalion, or "Seabees," any better. Once the United States entered World War II, the Chief of the U.S. Navy's Bureau of Yards and Docks and Civil Engineer Corps Adm. Ben Moreell recognized the need for a militarized construction force of

March 1, 2016

Storm Front: The Threat of Mina al-Ahmadi - Part Four

Editor's Note: At the time Desert Storm began, NHHC Director Sam Cox was an active duty Lieutenant Commander, serving as an assistant intelligence officer on the staff of Vice Adm. Stan Arthur who commanded the U.S. Seventh Fleet and U.S. Naval Forces Central Command embarked on the command ship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19) operating in the Arabian

Feb. 29, 2016

Final Days of USS Houston, the Galloping Ghost of the Java Coast

One of the most valiant ships in over 240 years of naval history, USS Houston was lost in a battle against overwhelming odds 75 years ago. Commissioned at the beginning of the Great Depression, Houston was a design compromise due to treaty limitations. However her captain and crew never compromised their sense of duty.President Franklin D.

Feb. 28, 2016

Remembering Brethren Sailors on HMAS Perth

Editor's Note: The following is an excerpt from an eulogy given by Mike Carlton at the funeral of LEUT Gavin Campbell RAN, the last surviving officer from HMAS Perth. While many Americans, especially those with an affinity for the Navy, know the story of USS Houston, they are likely less familiar with the story of our brethren from Australia, HMAS

Feb. 26, 2016

The Making of the Medal of Honor

Like a ship's crest, the symbolism behind a physical medal associated with an award in America's Navy isn't represented by a single element, but is instead the combination of many extraordinary components. Together with the multiple actions that combine to make the recipient worthy of recognition, the symbolism of the physical award becomes an

Feb. 26, 2016

Storm Warning: The Minesweeping in Mina al-Ahmadi - Part Three

Editor's Note: At the time Desert Storm began, NHHC Director Sam Cox was an active duty Lieutenant Commander, serving as an assistant intelligence officer on the staff of Vice Adm. Stan Arthur who commanded the U.S. Seventh Fleet and U.S. Naval Forces Central Command embarked on the command ship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19) operating in the Arabian

Feb. 24, 2016

Gathering Storm: Mina al-Ahmadi in the Crosshairs - Part Two

Editor's Note: At the time Desert Storm began, NHHC Director Sam Cox was an active duty Lieutenant Commander, serving as an assistant intelligence officer on the staff of Vice Adm. Stan Arthur who commanded the U.S. Seventh Fleet and U.S. Naval Forces Central Command embarked on the command ship USS Blue Ridge(LCC 19) operating in the Arabian Gulf.

Feb. 24, 2016

Driving Storm: A Vision of Hell - Part Five

Editor's Note: At the time Desert Storm began, NHHC Director Sam Cox was an active duty Lieutenant Commander, serving as an assistant intelligence officer on the staff of Vice Adm. Stan Arthur who commanded the U.S. Seventh Fleet and U.S. Naval Forces Central Command embarked on the command ship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19)  operating in the Arabian

Feb. 18, 2016

Storm Season: War Clouds Form Over the Sands of Mina al-Ahmadi - Part One

Editor's Note: At the time Desert Storm began, NHHC Director Sam Cox was an active duty Lieutenant Commander, serving as an assistant intelligence officer on the staff of Vice Adm. Stan Arthur who commanded the U.S. Seventh Fleet and U.S. Naval Forces Central Command embarked on the command ship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19) operating in the Arabian

Feb. 12, 2016

81 Years under the Sea: Remembering USS Macon through the Recovery and Conservation of an Artifact

Editor's Note: Lickliter-Mundon is a graduate student attending Texas A&M University's Nautical Archeology Program. As part of her program studies, she initiated the coordinated efforts between the Naval History and Heritage Command (NHHC) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the Macon survey, acting as the co-principle

Jan. 29, 2016

Flag Friday: 6 Weeks of Sassy Songs and Flippant Flags

For our first installment of Flag Friday in the year 2016, we will harken back to a time when navy skippers could get pretty heated over implied insults to each other's crew and ship. With no radio, their means of communication often relied on flags to get the message across to friends and enemy. Few documented fighting by fabric better than U.S.

Jan. 15, 2016

Storm Break: Curator of the Navy Recalls War's First Night 25 Years Later - Part II

Editors Note: At the time Desert Storm began, NHHC Director Sam Cox was an active duty Lieutenant Commander, serving as an assistant intelligence officer on the staff of Vice Adm. Stan Arthur who commanded the U.S. Seventh Fleet and U.S. Naval Forces Central Command embarked on the command ship USS Blue Ridge operating in the Arabian Gulf. This is

Jan. 15, 2016

Storm Break: Curator of the Navy Recalls War's First Night 25 Years Later - Part I

Editor's Note: At the time Desert Storm began, NHHC Director Sam Cox was an active duty Lieutenant Commander, serving as an assistant intelligence officer on the staff of Vice Adm. Stan Arthur who commanded the U.S. Seventh Fleet and U.S. Naval Forces Central Command embarked on the command ship USS Blue Ridge operating in the Arabian Gulf. This is

Jan. 14, 2016

A Look at the Evolution of the U.S. Navy Destroyer

Greyhounds of the Sea.From the first U.S. destroyer commissioned in 1902 to the famous ships of World War II to the Arleigh Burke-class, the U.S. Navy's destroyers have evolved from small, fast, close-in surface combatants to multi-mission offensive and defensive warships that can operate independently or as part of strike groups. These warships

Jan. 12, 2016

A Look at the Evolution of the U.S. Navy Cruiser

Cruisers, like destroyers and frigates, are often called the "support vessels" of a battle group, but they are certainly capable of operating on their own. This multi-mission warships can not only protect fleets against aircraft, but with their sophisticated guided-missile and gunnery systems, they can take out virtually any target in the air, on

Jan. 8, 2016

Twenty Years of Navy Shipwrecks: 1996-2016

In 1996, underwater archaeology was officially incorporated into the U.S. Navy with the creation of a dedicated branch at the Naval Historical Center, which in 2008 became the Naval History and Heritage Command (NHHC). The development of NHHC's Underwater Archaeology Branch (UAB) was influenced by a long list of prominent archaeological projects

Dec. 23, 2015

Reconstructing Naval History: The 3D Scanning of Royal Savage

When NHHC's Underwater Archaeology Branch (UAB) received the artifacts and timbers of Royal Savage this summer from the city of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, a plan began to reconstruct the schooner based on the remaining timbers. In addition to over a thousand artifacts ranging from lead shot, rope, belt buckles, and pieces of a leather shoe, the

Dec. 22, 2015

Navy Legends: Rear Adm. Eugene Fluckey

For the continuing series on Navy Legends, we've asked you - the Sailor, veteran and reader - to offer up your favorite legends, with a reason or two as to what makes your figure a Navy legend. Is it action or attributes? Or something else? Cmdr. Eugene B. Fluckey, commanding officer of USS Barb (SS 220), wears the Navy Cross after receiving the

Dec. 21, 2015

NHHC Participates in Archaeological Survey of Suspected USS Revenge Site

Naval History and Heritage Command's Underwater Archaeology Branch participated in a follow-up survey on a suspected War of 1812 vessel off the coast of Watch Hill, R.I. Dec. 7-8, 2015. Below are photos and information about the expedition. NHHC archaeologists Blair Atcheson, Heather Brown, and George Schwarz, Ph.D., joined local divers Charlie