Jan. 31, 2015

Tet Offensive Battle of Hue City Gives Cruiser its Name

]The guided-missile cruiser USS Hue City (CG 66) returns to Naval Station Mayport in 2013 after two back-to-back deployments to the Arabian Gulf. The ship and crew returned with the Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communications Specialist Second Class Adam Henderson/Released)It was 47 years ago today when the

Jan. 28, 2015

Capt. Michael Smith's Journey to the Final Frontier and Beyond

Children wonder at the marvel of airplanes in flight, many dream of becoming pilots and soaring the wide expanses of sky.One young North Carolina farm boy, though, saw beyond the wild, blue yonder and sought the stars themselves. Michael Smith was among those who dared to cut ties with Planet Earth. He grew up in bucolic Beaufort, N.C., during the

Jan. 6, 2015

Honoring the Legacy of Navy Nurses Worldwide

Navy Nurse Corps POWs posing with Vice Adm. Thomas C. Kincaid, Commander of the 7th Fleet and Southwest Pacific Force, after their rescue from Los Banos, Feb. 23, 1945. They were imprisoned Jan. 6, 1942 where they were stationed in the Philippines.Rear Adm. Rebecca J. McCormick-Boyle Commander, Navy Medicine Education and Training CommandOn January

Jan. 3, 2015

Great White Fleet Assists Following Messina Earthquake

A street in Messina, Sicily, showing damage caused by the earthquake that hit Dec. 28, 1908. Photographed in January 1909. U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command Photograph from the Collection of Lt. Cmdr. Richard Wainwright (who was assigned to USS Connecticut during the relief mission to Messina).When President Theodore Roosevelt's Great White

Jan. 2, 2015

Adm. Zumwalt's Legacy, Spirit Carries Through Today's Navy

On January 2, 2000, Adm. Elmo R. Zumwalt Jr., the 19th Chief of Naval Operations, died at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C.On this date 15 years ago, we lost a great man whose legacy and spirit still serve as the backbone of today's Navy. Adm. Zumwalt was born in San Francisco, Calif. on Nov. 29, 1920 and raised in nearby Tulare by his

Dec. 24, 2014

Stalemate: Treaty of Ghent Ends War of 1812 in a Draw

When warring countries Great Britain and the United States finally sat down to hammer out a peace treaty, it took nearly as long as the War of 1812. After less than a year's fighting, where Great Britain was fighting on two fronts: France and the United States, the first suggestion of a peace agreement came from, of all places, Russia, a country

Dec. 18, 2014

Swift Boats Were Workhorses of Brown Water Navy in Vietnam

Not since the end of the Civil War did the U.S. Navy have a need for a riverine force, or Brown Water Navy. But that all changed as the United States got deeper and deeper into conflict between North and South Vietnam.Due to the nature of the fighting and supply lines in Vietnam, the Navy needed fast, strong, reliable boats that could patrol the

Dec. 14, 2014

Fleet Admirals are Elite Band of Naval Brothers

But back to Dec. 1944 when four-star admirals William Leahy, Ernest King and Chester Nimitz were promoted. A year later, Adm. William F. Halsey Jr. joined their ranks.It was quite the departure from when America's forefathers chose to eschew the title of admiral. Back in 1775, still under the rule of imperialistic Great Britain, those in charge of

Dec. 13, 2014

Frigates, Brigs, Sloops, Schooners, and the Early Continental Navy's Struggle for Success

In 1775, Americans were no strangers to the ways of the sea, either in peace or in war. In the years immediately before the outbreak of the rebellion, Americans demonstrated their growing disenchantment with British rule by taking action against ships collecting revenue or delivering tea in Boston Harbor. Once the revolution began, Americans

Dec. 9, 2014

Grace Hopper: Navy to the Core, a Pirate at Heart

The typical career arc of a naval officer may run from 25-30 years. Most, however, don't start at age 35.Yet when it comes to Rear Adm. Grace Hopper, well, the word "typical" just doesn't apply. Feisty. Eccentric. Maverick. Brilliant. Precise. Grace Hopper embodied all of those descriptions and more, but perhaps what defined her as much as anything