Midshipmen of the six state maritime academies must be far more familiar with navigation than their Naval Academy counterparts. These Massachusetts Maritime Academy deck midshipmen study the subject for two years in class and obtain practical experience during three summer cruises. But, even without all that expertise, they would still be able to look ahead and see the storm clouds brewing for their own and the other predominantly state-supported academies.
This country has a tremendous asset in its six state maritime academies. These schools are a very small part of the nation’s higher education picture, and are little known and less understood. They are, however, a vital source of trained officers for the U. S. merchant marine, and an important secondary source of officers for the naval reserve.
Indeed, it was a naval officer who provided the stimulus for the founding of a nautical college which would improve the quality of the U. S. merchant marine officer. Admiral Stephen B. Luce founded the Naval War College, but perhaps more important was his service to his country in lobbying to assist in the passage of the “Maritime Schools Act,” which became law in 1874. This Act encouraged the establishment of maritime schools and authorized the U. S. Navy to assign officers and training ships to them.
The Nautical School of New York City was established in 1875, and Admiral Luce personally sailed the old sloop, USS St. Marys, to her new assignment as schoolship for New York City. In the years since then, the New York school has grown and developed. With the exception of those individuals assigned to the small Naval Science Departments, the original practice of assigning naval officers to the New York Nautical School and all the maritime academies has ceased. In 1913, the New York school was taken over by the state, In 1948, it became the Maritime College of the State University of New York. Located at Fort Schuyler, across Long Island Sound from John F. Kennedy Airport, the college is fully accredited, grants a bachelor’s degree, and in addition to preparing its students for l the merchant marine licensing examinations, provides an opportunity to obtain minors in meteorology, electrical engineering, marine nuclear science, and several other specialties. It has recently added a small graduate school. The course of instruction is four years. Approximately 750 midshipmen are currently enrolled. The College’s present schoolship, the SS Empire State IV, was originally a transport, the usns Henry Gibbins (T-AP-183).
The second of the maritime academies, from the standpoint of size, is the Maine Maritime Academy located in the quaint town of Castine, whose population of 700 is almost doubled by the presence of 550 midshipmen. Maine’s academy was founded in 1941 on the campus of a state normal school. Ten years ago the Maine Academy lengthened its course from three to four years, and has steadily been strengthening its curriculum. Supported by the seafaring tradition of its parent state, the school is now formally accredited by the New England Association of Colleges and Schools. The ss State of Maine, formerly the ss Ancon of the Panama Railroad Company, serves as the Academy training ship.
Also located on the East Coast is the Massachusetts Maritime Academy which boasts of being the oldest continuously operating maritime academy in the country—a Massachusetts historian unearthed evidence that New York has not been in continuous operation. The Massachusetts institution was founded in 1891 as the Massachusetts Nautical School and was located in Boston until it was moved to Hyannis in 1942. In 1948, the school outgrew its Hyannis home and moved to Buzzards Bay at the southwestern end of the Cape Cod Canal where, after long delays, permanent facilities are only now being completed. The Massachusetts Academy became a part of the state college system in 1964 and is now in the process of lengthening its course from three to four years. The students, called cadets, number about 245. The Academy schoolship is the ss Bay State (ex-uss Doyen, (apa-1).
The Texas Maritime Academy is on the Gulf Coast. A relative newcomer, the school was established in 1962 as a branch of Texas A&M University. Located in Galveston, the school’s course of instruction is four years, of which the first year is spent on the main campus at College Station, and the last three on board the training ship ss Texas Clipper (ex-ss Excambion, ex-uss Queens (apa-103) at Galveston. Current enrollment is about 135. Texas hopes to have permanent facilities completed in 1980.
The California Maritime Academy was founded in 1929, and is the only school on the West Coast. Originally located at an old naval coaling station at Tiburon, North San Francisco Bay, it was evicted during World War II and, in 1943, took up permanent residence in Vallejo by the Carquinez Bridge. The course is for three years. The degree, although it lacks academic accreditation, is approved by the California State Department of Education, and recognized by the U. S. Navy. Corps strength is approximately 225 midshipmen. An act now before the State Legislature provides for the Academy to become part of the State College System. The Academy’s training ship, ss Golden Bear, is a former Navy Artemis-class attack cargo ship.
Within the last several years a Great Lakes Maritime Academy has been formed as a Department of Northwestern Michigan College in Traverse City. Its mission is specialized, however, and is pointed only toward qualifying graduates of the program for Coast Guard licenses for ships operating upon the Great Lakes. Unlike the deep-water academies, the students lead a normal college life except for their shipboard time. Graduates receive an associate degree.
Pennsylvania had a State Nautical School which was founded in 1889 and disestablished in 1947. During its lifetime, the Pennsylvania schoolship graduated more than 2,000 cadets, many of whom still follow the sea or are in maritime-related industries. The loss of the Pennsylvania school serves as a reminder to the other academies that their existence is very tenuous unless the citizens and the elected officials of the states who furnish the bulk of the support remain convinced that the schools deserve their support.
Most naval officers are likely to confuse the state maritime academies with the U. S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, New York. Founded in 1942 and enthusiastically supported by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Kings Point is a federal academy and enjoys the same status as the four Service academies. Unlike the state academies, Kings Point is totally dependent upon the federal government for funds, and unlike the state academies, the students pay no tuition.
Why, then, are there several small schools scattered around the country duplicating the function which Kings Point was founded to perform?
The most important rationale for the continuance of the state maritime academy retaining its role in the education of merchant marine officers stems from one of Alfred Thayer Mahan’s reasons for a nation becoming a seapower. The national character of a people, he felt, was one factor upon which seapower is built. So, also, he argued, must the people have an instinct for commerce and an aptitude for the sea. Maine is the best example of a state which has a seagoing heritage, and the presence of Maine Academy midshipmen at home on visits becomes a source of regional pride and serves to stimulate an interest in the sea which might otherwise diminish. In addition, it appears that the state academy graduate generally maintains his home ties and ultimately returns home to live. Consequently, the paycheck of the state academy graduate probably will find its way to his parent state for a long time to come. At the present time, about 55% of all academy-trained officers sailing from California ports are graduates of the California Maritime Academy—adding considerably to the enrichment of the state of California’s treasury.
Moreover, it is just as impossible for all future merchant marine officers to attend Kings Point as it is for all future Army, Navy and Air Force officers to attend the appropriate federal service academy. This is why the Armed Services have a number of officer procurement sources to supplement the Service academies. rotc units, officer candidate schools, and commissioning programs for promising enlisted personnel all help fill the Armed Services officer personnel requirements. And, considering the difficulty in recruiting officers these days, the time, effort, and money consumed in establishing these secondary sources have not been mis-spent.
The California Maritime Academy budget, for example, is about $1.2 million, of which the state will pay about $800,000. The remainder is made up about equally by the Maritime Administration (marad) subsidy and student fees. The marad subsidy pays for the maintenance of the training ship and helps defray the students’ tuition costs. This sharing of costs of the education of a midshipman at a state academy is good business for the federal government. The federally-financed cost of the education of a state academy graduate is approximately $5,000, as opposed to $19,000 for his Kings Point counterpart. From the viewpoint of the individual student, the federal subsidy is something of a bonanza because it enables him to receive a first class education at a cost considerably less than that obtainable in other college level institutions, even those supported by public funds.
The character of the academies and the atmosphere existing on their campuses have more in common with the Naval Academy than with a civilian college. However, a naval officer deceives himself if he considers that wearing the state academy uniform is an indication of attending a small naval academy which differs from Annapolis only in that its mission is to train merchant marine officers. Acceptance of the federal subsidy requires that the school be conducted generally along military lines, and that the students be in residence on the campus. And, although the current thrust of the Women’s liberation movement has made itself felt, the requirement still obtains that all students must be unmarried males.
Beyond this point, however, similarities to the Naval Academy are hard to find. The elaborate military organization headed by the Commandant of Midshipmen simply does not exist. At the California Maritime Academy, the Commandant of Midshipmen, who is also, and primarily, Commanding Officer of the Training Ship, has a staff made up of one assistant of the rank of commander. That’s it. The midshipman corps commander has responsibilities paralleling those of the Brigade Commander at Annapolis—plus those of the battalion and company officer organization all rolled together.
In a legal sense, State maritime academy midshipmen legally are cadets in the U. S. Maritime Service. They are civilians who have given up much, if not all, of the freedom which they would have enjoyed had they elected to live the life of an undergraduate at a nearby liberal arts or engineering college. The discipline under which they live is not military discipline in the sense in which it is inculcated at the Naval Academy or West Point. Rather, it is only that which is considered necessary to prepare them to live as licensed officers on board a well-ordered U. S.-flag merchant vessel. The purpose of this system of what might be termed “enlightened discipline” is to prevent instances of a breakdown in authority under stress, or incompetency in time of emergency where a maritime academy graduate is involved. The departure of many crew members of the Andrea Doria before all her passengers could be disembarked, and the ineptness displayed on board the Mono Castle when she burned off the New Jersey coast in 1934, are examples of shortcomings in discipline and training which the maritime academies are committed to prevent.
The methods by which the various state academies achieve their aim of producing a well-disciplined seagoing officer vary from one academy to the next, and reflect the traditions of the school as well as on what might be termed the philosophical climate of the state. Except for the Great Lakes school, which, as has been noted, differs from the other schools, the midshipmen wear uniforms on the campus and on board ship. Some academies have infantry drill; some do not. Although California does not drill with rifles, it has a volunteer honor guard firing squad whose appearance highlights the annual San Francisco Maritime Day ceremonies. By military standards, the general appearance of uniforms on campus is quite relaxed. In California, the courtesy of saluting is reserved for the superintendent alone. Although the unpleasantries which have become common with respect to rotcs at college campuses have not reached the maritime academies, it may be a shock to some Proceedings readers to learn that neither the Navy nor the Naval Science Department would win any popularity prizes. And, while some of this attitude may be traced to the current wave of anti-military sentiment, some of it may be traced to apathy that characterizes relations between the Navy and the merchant marine.
So much variation exists among the respective curricula of the state maritime academies, that it is necessary to generalize somewhat. All academies, however, strive to produce a highly qualified third mate or third assistant engineer who will be useful the day he reports on board his first ship and who also has the capability of growing into higher responsibilities both afloat and in the shore-side industry. State academies have been remarkably successful, and their graduates are prominent among the masters of American flag ships and as executives of shipping companies. The state schools are broadening their curricula, shifting away from the old nautical schoolship concept, but this costs money, and many state legislators who must foot the added bill are grumbling at the additional expense. Nor is there universal acceptance of the expanded course by a basically conservative shipping industry, some quarters of which are reluctant to depart from the traditions and practices of the past.
The maritime academy does not try to teach every midshipman to do everything. Unlike the Naval Academy, and in keeping with Coast Guard licensing requirements, the midshipmen are split into those studying for deck licenses and those aspiring to be engineers. Kings Point does have a pilot program enabling outstanding midshipmen to receive a dual qualification, but it will be some time before a significant number of officers are legally licensed to stand both a deck and an engineroom watch.
Just as some naval subjects, such as missile control and electronic warfare, are of no interest at the state academy, so would subjects of intense interest to a merchant marine officer—e.g., cargo handling and maritime labor relations—receive no more than minimal attention from a naval officer. Although it is no longer enough to be able to “splice, reef, and steer,” the maritime academy graduate must have these practical skills or their modern counterpart. He must also have a broad background which will assist him as he goes up the maritime ladder, either ashore or afloat. For this reason, and unlike the Naval Academy, the state academy cannot satisfy its requirements simply by providing a drill or demonstration in machine shop practices or diesel operation. Maritime academy midshipmen must receive sufficient time in a diesel laboratory so that they learn how to operate a diesel, to diagnose its ills, and to repair it, possibly by machining a new part. Later in the same day, the same group of midshipmen may sit in a class in thermodynamics or electricity on an academic level in every way comparable to the Naval Academy. Deck midshipmen must receive similar training. Since the merchant navy boasts no quartermasters or bosun’s mates, it follows that midshipmen must be thoroughly proficient in deck seamanship. And they must be far more familiar with the theory and practice of navigation than their Naval Academy counterparts, who can expect the able assistance of a chief quartermaster in keeping out of harm’s way. During their first class cruise, California midshipmen must use the Marcq Saint Hilaire method to work out their sights. They will probably never have to use it again, but if they master this, nothing will ever throw them. Finally, by maritime academy standards, the Rules of the Road as covered at Annapolis is scanty and would not provide the average maritime academy student with sufficient knowledge to pass the licensing exam which the Coast Guard throws at the aspiring merchant marine officer. At California, the Rules course covers seven semester hours. Over-emphasis? Perhaps; but the bridge watch of a merchant vessel is a one-man show. The new third mate will be his own junior officer of the deck, quartermaster, signalman, phone talker, and cic team. If he is not to become an accident hazard later, he must be equipped with as much professional knowledge as he can hoist aboard while still a midshipman.
A maritime academy midshipman must spend six months at sea in order to qualify to “sit” for his license. A unique source of strength of the State Academy is the training ships owned by marad but permanently on loan to the various academies. Once a year practically all the faculty—who are licensed officers—and the midshipmen embark on a cruise of two to three months duration. Kings Point, which prefers not to have a training ship, assigns its midshipmen to U. S. flag ships for an equivalent period. Although there is something to be said for the Kings Point system, the state academies feel strongly that the academy schoolship is the best solution for afloat training, and the academies are currently engaged in another round of a perennial struggle with marad to retain their own training ships. marad’s motives, as one might suspect, are economic.
A naval officer will think of a midshipmen’s cruise as one in which midshipmen are embarked as supernumeraries for training. This is true with regard to a Naval Academy midshipman’s cruise, but not true for a state maritime academy midshipman’s cruise. California, for example, hires only ten non-faculty crewmen. Their talents range from those found in a Navy or Coast Guard warrant officer to that of a lading seaman. The rest of the muscle and skills necessary to run the ship come from the midshipmen, assisted and instructed by the licensed faculty. Coast Guard regulations require a licensed officer on the bridge and another in the engineroom. The rest of the watch at sea is made up of midshipmen in training, and the major portion of the maintenance is performed by them. In short, without midshipmen, the Golden Bear cannot get underway and stand out to sea. The midshipmen, under the eye of the faculty, run the entire ship. They navigate, stand bridge and engineering watches, and maintain the ship. The faculty officer will step in only in extremis. The strength of the schoolship system is that, upon graduation, the new third mate or third assistant engineer is fully qualified to do any job which he may be called upon to perform. If a midshipman is embarked as a cadet on an American-flag merchant ship on a normal voyage, the quality of instruction he receives from the ship’s officers will vary from ship to ship. Some ship’s officers will take an interest in him. Some can’t be bothered. In any case, the midshipman cannot do jobs or perform maintenance which would take work away from an unlicensed member of the crew. The state academies feel, with considerable justice, that their graduate emerges with more practical operational knowledge than does his Kings Point counterpart, although they do begrudge some of the time which their midshipmen must spend maintaining the training ship during the academic year.
As a condition for receiving their marad subsidy, the state academy midshipmen must agree to accept a Naval Reserve commission if it is offered. To support this program, the academies all have small Naval Science Departments manned by the only active duty personnel on the campus. All midshipmen take a Naval Science course each academic semester, which course is designed to provide a rudimentary naval indoctrination as well as fill the gaps in the education which he receives as a part of his normal classroom work. Naval Science helps fill in the chasm dividing the education of a third mate and a third assistant engineer. The engineer midshipmen learn their navigation from the Navy, and the deck men learn about naval machinery the same way.
The Reserve program offered at the academies is not a primary source of Reserve officers, and the graduate is not ordered to active duty unless he so requests. The object of the program is to provide the midshipman with sufficient familiarity with the Navy so that he would be at home on the bridge of a merchant ship should he ever operate with naval units or to assist him in his transition to the Navy should he ever be called to active duty. The graduate’s military obligation is considered completed if he sails on his license for at least six months a year for three years, or for an equivalent amount of sea time for a longer number of years. The interest in a Navy career varies with the economic climate and, probably, from one academy to the next. The current economic slump may be one of the reasons that the 1971 California class contributed six officers to active duty in the Navy and two to the Coast Guard, as opposed to none and two, respectively, for the Class of 1970. Obviously the small size of the officer input from the state academies does not make much of a dent on the entire officer corps of the Navy, and ashore or afloat, the graduate is a rarity. The author met few during his active Navy service. But those who remain appear in surprising places and achieve success comparable to their civilian counterparts in the maritime industry. They benefit from a thorough grounding in the fundamentals enjoyed by none of their contemporaries from any other source.
State maritime academies are under fire from several quarters these days. A July 1970 Proceedings article, “Manpower and the Merchant Marine,” by a graduate of the New York Maritime College summarized the difficulties a graduate faces, for example, when sailing on his license in the face of opposition posed by the Marine Engineers Beneficial Association (meba). meba, incidently, has founded its own school in Baltimore and would probably not mourn too long at the demise of all the state academies.
One would hope that the passage of the Merchant Marine Act of 1970, and the trend toward larger, more sophisticated and automated vessels would make it most evident to the public that a solid maritime education would be necessary for the merchant marine officer of tomorrow. The current economic slump has hit marad along with other federal and state agencies. Funds for state academies are in short supply. Even in normal times, marad is by no means a front runner in the race to the Treasury. Federal financial assistance has remained constant in dollar value although the states have had to dip increasingly into their own pockets to pick up the deficit. In California, the percentage of the operating budget provided by marad has dipped from 27% to 17% in 1971. The state and federal governments have each tried to convince the other to throw more money into the pot. The arguments used by each side are identical: the program is really of primary benefit to the other. Should this financial shuffling continue to the ultimate limit—that a state academy should go under—both the state and the nation will suffer. The California Maritime Academy has been on the verge of being closed during most of the fiscal year 1970–71.
Although the State Maritime Academy is now and should remain only a secondary source of Naval Reserve officers, a careful reassessment by the Chief of Naval Personnel might well disclose ways to improve the Navy’s contribution, increasing the dividends which the Navy enjoys from the program while at the same time decreasing the budgetary outlay. As the Navy is forced to close some of the long-established rotc units throughout the country, this effort could be channeled to the state academies to the mutual advantage of all.
State academies have been in the business of turning out broadly educated merchant mariners for almost a hundred years. Their graduates are among the most successful leaders of the maritime industry both ashore and afloat. By any standard, the financial requirements of the academies are small, but if they are not met, the schools will founder. If this happens, the nation, the maritime industry, and the Navy will have ample reason to regret their inaction.
Captain Hayler graduated from the U. S. Naval Academy in 1944 and saw World War II service on board the carrier Franklin. He later commanded LST-859, LSMR-403, the Balduck (APD-132), the Buck (DD-761), and the Cadmus (AR-14). Ashore he was an instructor of Seamanship and Navigation at the Naval Academy, on the staff of the Naval War College, in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, and in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (International Security Affairs). He received his M.A. from George Washington University in 1964. He retired from the Navy in 1969, and subsequently received his license as Master of Steam or Motor Vessels, Any Gross Tons, Oceans. He is now on the Faculty of the California Maritime Academy, Vallejo. A writer by avocation, this is his ninth article in the Proceedings.