The Few, The Proud, The Interns
Under the History and Museums Division College Internship Program, 14 college and senior high school student interns—including Naval Academy midshipmen and Air Force Academy cadets—have been working at the Marine Corps Historical Center, Washington, D.C., and the Marine Corps Air- Ground Museum, Quantico. The Marine Corps Historical Foundation supports the program, which offers year-round internship opportunities for talented students.
The Marine Corps History and Museums Division recently published the 18th and 19th pamphlets in its World War II Commemorative Series: From Makin to Bougainville: Marine Raiders in the Pacific War, by Major Jon T. Hoffman, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, author of the acclaimed biography of Medal of Honor recipient Major General Merritt A. Edson, and Condition Red: Marine Defense Battalions in World War II, by Major Charles D. Melson, U.S. Marine Corp (Retired), a former staff member of the History and Museums Division. The Marine Corps History and Museums Division also published Angels From the Sea: Relief Operations in Bangladesh, 1991, by Mr. Charles R. Smith, the first volume in a new series on Marine Corps humanitarian operations. For further information on the internships or Marine Corps History and Museums Division publications, write to the Marine Corps Historical Center, Washington Navy Yard, Building 58, 901 M Street SE, Washington, D.C. 20374-0580.
—Ann A. Ferrante, Marine Corps Historical Center
The Final Days of the Service School Command
Medal of Honor recipients John Finn and John P. Bacca joined together for a rare appearance recently on 17 June during a dual afternoon ceremony at San Diego’s Naval Training Center in Point Loma. Together, they watched as Captain Christian R. Rondestvedt retired and was relieved by Lieutenant Commander L. S. Manuma, Jr., as the Commanding Officer of Service School Command, San Diego. Both men intrigued sailors and visitors attending the ceremony as hundreds witnessed the final change of command of Service School Command, scheduled to close this December.
Navy Lieutenant John Finn was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions on 7 December 1941 at Pearl Harbor. He manned a machine gun and shot at incoming Japanese Zeros at the Kaneohe Bay Naval Air Station. He was wounded more than 20 times before being ordered to go to sick bay. Army Specialist Fourth Class John Bacca was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions while on patrol with the First Calvary Division in South Vietnam from 1969 to 1970. In a split second of time, he jumped on a hand grenade with a helmet and shielded his fellow soldiers. He was severely wounded.
For the first and only time in the history of the Service School Command, a Navy captain transferred total responsibility to a Navy lieutenant commander. Lieutenant Commander Manuma will lead Service School Command until December 1996—as a result of downsizing and the planned closure of San Diego’s Naval Training Center in 1997. The Service School Command, San Diego, which officially was established 7 April 1944, traces its origin to classroom instruction of four courses that began 1 June 1923 when the Naval Training Center was commissioned. At that time, the school included two small buildings, 300 students, and a staff of 65. Today, the command instructs nearly 1,500 students daily.
—Robert Alan Wright
U.S. Sailors Were Not Impressed
On 11 May, the officers, crew, and Marine detachment of the USS Constitution celebrated the 200th anniversary of the bill “For the Relief and Protection of American Seamen,” which was enacted in May 1796. In that era, most Americans had roots in Great Britain but had no way to prove U.S. citizenship. When British press gangs combed U.S. ports in search of crews, they believed they had the right to impress anyone who even looked British. This practice came to a head when the Royal Navy started boarding U.S. merchant ships in the West Indies to impress U.S. crews.
The Protection Act of 1796 provided “Certificates of Protection” to all U.S. sailors. Enacted under Secretary of State Timothy Pickering, the law stated that all U.S. seamen born in the United States should be able to prove their citizenship. By presenting themselves to an appointed customs agent, notary, or U.S. council in a foreign port, U.S. sailors could acquire the certificate, which stated the person’s name and physical description, was signed by the appointed public official, and stated that the bearer was a U.S. citizen. Ideally, the sailor could produce the document when needed to avoid being impressed.
The certificates were reissued as part of the recent anniversary celebration to Sailors and Marines of the Constitution. This event is one of a series of ceremonies related to the upcoming bicentennial of the Constitution, which celebrates its birthday on 21 October 1997.
—William N. Moss, Marine Detachment 1797, USS Constitution
The Flying Tigers Meet the Memphis Belle
The roar of engines and the whir of propellers helped announce the opening of the Mid Atlantic Air Museum’s 6th Annual World War 11 Commemorative Weekend at Reading, Pennsylvania, this June. More than 12,500 attended this year’s program that featured fly overs by victory-era aircraft; displays of vintage vehicles; and more than 200 “living history” interpreters who depicted the life of the common soldier, sailor, and airman. The three elements were combined, said program coordinator Pete Malashevitz, to honor World War II veterans and to present a “total education experience” for the public.
Vintage warbirds present included two Goodyear FG-1D Corsairs, a Grumman TBF-3 Avenger, a North American P-5 ID Mustang, and the Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress “Yankee Lady.” Also present were several guests of honor including three former members of the Flying Tigers, Dick Rossi, Charlie Mott, and Ed Rector; Lieutenant Colonel Fred Olivi (Retired), copilot of the B-29 Superfortress “Bock’s Car”; and Colonel Bobby Morgan (Retired), who piloted the famed “Memphis Belle,” the First U.S. Army Air Force B-17 to complete 25 missions over Europe during World War II. For information about the museum or future events, call 610-372-7333.
—Kirk Ross
Mariners’ Museum Showcases the Unusual
A button from the uniform of British Admiral Horatio Nelson, relics from HMS Bounty, and a brass telescope inscribed with the name “Oliver Hazard Perry” are on exhibit at the Mariners’ Museum’s newest gallery. The Collections Gallery showcases about 100 unusual and rarely seen artifacts from the museum’s international collection of more than 35,000 maritime items. The exhibition includes rare books, decorative boxes, buttons, cannon, china, drawings, engravings, guns, hats, navigational instruments, paintings, ship’s logs, ship models, scrimshaw, swords, a steam engine, tattooing equipment, and water- colors from the museum’s collections.
For information about this and other Mariners’ Museum collections, call 800- 581-7245 or visit the Mariners’ Museum home page at http://www.mariner.org.
—Teresa Fremaux, Mariners' Museum
Remember Farragut
The Naval Order of the United States wants to introduce the thousands of tourists who stroll across Farragut Square in Washington, D.C., to the man behind the name. Working in conjunction with the National Park Service, the organization is raising funds to erect a statue of David Glasgow Farragut in the square.
Farragut was the U.S. Navy’s first vice admiral, its first four-star admiral, and its first Hispanic flag officer. His fame came from Civil War actions, the most famous of which was a Union victory in August 1864 at Mobile Bay. There, in his flagship the USS Hartford, Farragut climbed the rigging to see above the smoke of battle and direct the action. When a lead ship faltered, he issued his famous order, “Damn the torpedoes, full steam ahead!” He then commanded his fleet to sail ahead and fought past two Confederate forts, which shortly fell to Union forces.
The $6,000 needed for the project must be raised by donations. The Naval Order hopes to complete the fund-raising phase by the end of this year. For more information about the project or to make a donation, contact the Naval Order of the United States, 3313 Sleepy Lane, Falls Church, Virginia 22044.
—Captain Kent R. Siegel, Naval Order of the United States
U.S. Navy Completes Western Expansion
On 7 July 1846, U.S. Navy and Marine Forces of the Pacific Squadron under command of Commodore John Drake Sloat landed at Monterey, California, and raised the U.S. flag over the Customs House. Commodore Sloat read in English and Spanish a proclamation declaring the American claim to all of the California Territory due to the state of war that existed between the United States and Mexico. The landing was accomplished peacefully, under strict orders from Commodore Sloat, to respect the persons and property of the residents. Mexican resistance had given way to the vastly superior forces of the United States, and not a musket shot was fired.
On 7 July 1996—150 years after Commodore Sloat’s landing—the California State Park Commission and the Monterey History and Art Association celebrated “The First Step to Statehood” for California, the first in a series of commemorative events that will continue until the year 2000, the anniversary of statehood. The most recent series included living history reenactments, ceremonies, tours, and museum presentations to hail the events of 1846.
The California Territory, more than 500,000 square miles, included the present states of California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and parts of Colorado, Wyoming, and New Mexico. Commodore Sloat’s claim completed U.S. dominion from the Atlantic to the Pacific. As tensions between the United States and Mexico increased over Texas in the early 1840s, Washington was prepared to claim the California Territory in the event of open hostilities. In June 1845, Secretary of be Navy Bancroft sent orders to Commodore Sloat, Commander in Chief of the Pacific Squadron, to land and raise the American flag “in the event of a declaration of war.” In October, the Secretary amended the orders to take effect “in the event of actual hostilities”—which placed the responsibility on Commodore Sloat to determine the status of hostilities and then act quickly.
For several days, with the port under U.S. control, Commodore Sloat assessed the situation and prepared a General Order governing the operation, and with the assistance of the local U.S. Consul, Thomas O. Larkin, a proclamation claiming the territory. On 6 July 1846, Commodore Sloat sent dispatches to his ships at San Francisco declaring his intent to land at Monterey the following day and to raise the American flag, ordering the same action for the other commanders. Commodore Sloat’s order concerning the occupation prohibited all plundering and forbade any “indignity offered to a single female.”
On 7 July 1846, Commodore Sloat sent Captain Mervine ashore to demand the surrender of the Mexican Commandant. Since that gentleman had no such instructions from Mexico, he refused. At 1020, a second expedition went ashore, read the proclamations, and hoisted the American flag, while the ships fired a 21-gun salute. There was no resistance from the Mexicans, and the Americans in the area welcomed the action.
Commodore Sloat’s maritime career spanned 55 years, and he is credited with 17 years, 5 months of sea duty. At the time of the California conquest, he was 65 years old, and he continued in Navy duty for another nine years.
—Frank W. Sloat