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18 March 2025
Welcome back to our National Maritime Historical Society members and friends who share a love for naval history!
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Huzzah, huzzah! The International Journal of Naval History has launched a new website, and has published a new edition under the auspices of the National Maritime Historical Society. A link to the new edition can be found HERE.
Congrats to the National WWII Museum in New Orleans on its forthcoming exhibit on the war in the Aleutians. Details follow below. If you happen to be in Bermuda on 31 May, the Naval Dockyards Society has a good deal for you! (And if you are not in Bermuda that day, you can join virtually!) Invitation below!
For this week’s Naval History Book Review, we feature Master Chief David Mattingly’s review of the Hornfischer father/son biography of Ernest E. Evans of Tin Can Sailor fame. Enjoy!
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Tuesday Tidings is compiled by Dr. David F. Winkler and Jessie Henderson as a benefit for members of the National Maritime Historical Society and friends of naval history.
As always, comments and naval history news items are welcome at nmhs@seahistory.org.
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ITEMS OF IMMEDIATE INTEREST | |
Thursday, 20 March – NOUS Continental Commandery Presentation
Cuban Missile Crisis, October 1962: “One Minute to Midnight” Part II
With John Landry, Docent, USS Midway Museum
7 PM (EDT)
Wednesday, 26 March – WWII Museum Opening reception and program
On American Shores: The Aleutian Islands Campaign
5 PM (CDT)
Thursday–Sunday, 27–30 March – Society for Military History (SMH) Annual Meeting, Mobile, AL
Saturday, 29 March – National Museum of Naval Aviation Lecture and Book Signing
America’s First Aircraft Carrier: USS Langley and the Dawn of US Naval Aviation
With David F. Winkler, PhD
11 AM–Noon (CDT)
Tuesday, 1 April – World War II Discussion Forum
Nimitz’s Newsmen: Waldo Drake and the Navy’s Censored War in the Pacific
With Hamilton Bean
8 PM (EST) (Virtual)
Wednesday, 2 April – USS Constitution Museum Sailing through History Series
Strong Ship Maneuvers: How USS Constitution Worked Wind to Strategic Gain in Battle
With Carl Herzog
12:30–1 PM (EST)
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An Excerpt from the Introduction in the Current Edition of the International Journal of Naval History
As Dr. David Kohnen of the Naval War College likes to profess: “Naval Historians of the World Unite!” A very apt sentiment as we forge into the second quarter of the 21st century in a year that will witness the 250th birthday of the United States Navy.
Well over a year has passed since we last published. As noted in the introduction of our February 2023 edition, Editor-in-Chief Dr. Charles Chadbourn lamented the decommissioning of the Naval Historical Foundation, which had provided website and e-mail maintenance services for the Journal. Without such support, it has been impossible to make submissions to non-functioning e-mails and post new content on an antiquated website platform. Subsequent conversions have sought to address the question: “Now What?” With the sponsorship of the US-based National Maritime Historical Society (NMHS), a luncheon during the September 2023 USNA McMullen Naval History Symposium addressed the question and took on board suggestions from leading naval heritage organization representatives from around the world. During the ensuing months, follow-on exchanges provided content for a point paper: A Fork in the Road: Saving the International Journal of Naval History | Center for International Maritime Security, which was published last June. IJNH thanks the Center for International Maritime Security (CIMSEC) for sharing the point paper with its international following, and feedback to the posting offered us additional guidance.
During the month following the point paper, NMHS held its 60th anniversary meeting in Peekskill, New York, and welcomed aboard Cathy Green as that organization’s new president. Having recognized that maritime heritage has a significant naval component, NMHS carried on the publication of the Naval Historical Foundation’s Tuesday Tidings. Under the stewardship of NMHS, the number of clicks on Tidings has increased ten-fold, thanks to the organization’s larger membership and word of mouth. Having settled in as president, Cathy recognizes that a vibrant IJNH can play an important role in revitalizing interest in maritime heritage and has expressed interest in having NMHS take on the website hosting and e-mail support role once played by NHF.
Thus, we offer this latest edition, featuring articles on foreign navies (unless, of course, you happen to be British, Russian, or Dutch) plus six book reviews. These articles and book reviews will build on a corpus of scholarship that will migrate to the new IJNH portal within seahistory.org. As we become comfortable with our new surroundings, our objective will be to publish two editions in 2025 and resume to three editions in 2026.
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WWII Museum to Open Aleutian Exhibit on 26 March
Join the National WWII Museum as it opens its latest special exhibition, On American Shores: The Aleutian Islands Campaign. This new exhibit examines the often-overlooked Japanese invasion of the Aleutian Islands in Alaska and the subsequent efforts to repulse the only seizure of North American lands that occurred during World War II.
On American Shores: The Aleutian Islands Campaign will be on display from 26 March 2025 through 11 January 2026, in the Joe W. and Dorothy D. Brown Foundation Special Exhibit Gallery.
The exhibition, located on the second floor of Louisiana Memorial Pavilion, will be open for viewing before and after the presentation. Registration is encouraged, but not required. If you cannot make it to the Museum for this event, you can watch live through Vimeo.
For more information, contact Maggie Hartley, EdD, Director of Public Engagement, at maggie.hartley@nationalww2museum.org.
REGISTER
Location: Louisiana Memorial Pavilion and Vimeo, Online Event
945 Magazine St, New Orleans, LA 70130
5:00 PM Reception | 6:00 PM Program
This event is free and open to the public. Register today to join us in person or to view the event online.
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The Naval Dockyards Society Special Conference in partnership with the National Museum of Bermuda
The 75th Anniversary Commemoration of the Closure of the Royal Naval Dockyard, Bermuda
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Venue: National Museum of Bermuda, Royal Naval Dockyard, Bermuda, and Online
Conference date: Saturday 31st May 2025
Registration
Registration for the conference is now open, please click here to register. The venue has limited capacity so it is advisable to book early. Registration closes on 30 April. The conference is available for in-person or online participation.
Bermuda residents and visitors are invited to this special conference at the National Museum of Bermuda. Bermuda residents can expect to learn more about the unique history of their island home, and visitors will be able to enjoy both the conference and local tours on the days before and after the conference.
History
The Royal Naval Dockyard, Bermuda, was a symbol of British military power for more than 150 years. The closure of the Dockyard in 1950 was a cataclysmic event for Bermuda “The livelihood of 1,000 civilians mostly living in Somerset, depended entirely on their employment in the Dockyard”* The 500 British Dockyard workers and families living on Ireland Island were repatriated to the UK, delivering a major impact on the communities that had supported them.
Today, the Dockyard is one of Bermuda’s most popular spots for visitors, home to the island’s biggest cruise ship pier and many restaurants, shops, and attractions.
On 31 May 2025, the Naval Dockyards Society and the National Museum of Bermuda will hold a conference in Bermuda commemorating the 75th anniversary of the closure of the Royal Naval Dockyard.
Read more here>>
| | NAVAL HISTORY BOOK REVIEWS | | |
Destroyer Captain: The Life of Ernest E. Evans by James D. Hornfischer and David J. Hornfischer, New York, Dutton Caliber, (2024).
Reviewed by Intelligence Specialist Master Chief (AW) David A. Mattingly, US Navy (Retired)
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When reading the naval history of the World War II Pacific Theater of Operations, the story often is centered around aircraft carriers like Enterprise and Hornet. Historians have written less about the surface fleet of cruisers and destroyers, who often escorted aircraft carriers and convoys or provided naval gunfire support to Marines and soldiers landing on the beaches. The author of Destroyer Captain, James D. Hornfischer, won the 2004 Samuel Eliot Morison Award for Naval Literature from the New York Commandery of the Naval Order of the United States for his book The Last of the Tin Can Sailors. He was also awarded the Navy Distinguished Public Service Award, was a lecturer at the US Naval Academy, and his books are listed on the Chief of Naval Operations Professional Reading List. James died in 2021, and his son David, his research assistant, carried Destroyer Captain through to publication.
Cdr. Ernest Edwin "Chief" Evans was a Native American born in Oklahoma who joined the Navy as the Great Depression spread throughout the United States. After enlisting, he realized his opportunity to earn a commission as an officer. He outscored sixty applicants on the Naval Academy Preparatory School (NAPS) entrance exam and attended the school in San Diego before joining the Naval Academy class of 1931. Commissioned as an ensign, he washed out of naval flight school and returned to the fleet. He would get a second chance to earn his naval aviator wings. Still, his contribution to the United States Navy (USN) defeating the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) would be on surface ships.
Stationed onboard USS Colorado (BB 45), Evans sailed from California to participate in the Fleet Exercises in waters off the Territory of Hawaii. As a junior officer, he learned about his new profession and how to be a leader. He had the opportunity to prove himself as the captain of the USS Cahokia (AT 61), a harbor tug in the San Francisco Bay area. In 1940, he returned to the Asiatic Fleet on USS Black Hawk (AD 9), a destroyer tender. Onboard, he “wanted to learn all the intimacies of the guns and their operation in short order.” Evans had proven himself “a reliable sailor and a strong-willed junior officer.” He soon found himself assigned to USS Alden (DD 211) as the executive officer. On Alden, he would see the opening of World War II sailing into Singapore days before the Japanese attacked the British colony. Hornfischer points out that when Evans participated in the Fleet Exercises, it was assumed that the United States fleet would be centered on its battleships; however, after December 7, 1941, the battleships were recovering from the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
Read full review>>
| | NAVAL HISTORY BOOKS AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW | | |
Proceedings Podcast
EP 433: Ghost Ship of the Pacific
03 March 2025
In this Naval History edition of the Proceedings Podcast, Eric Mills talks with Dr. James P. Delgado—Senior Vice President and Exploration Sector Leader for SEARCH, maritime archaeologist, historian, and author—about the discovery of the wreck of USS Stewart.
Listen here>>
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Maritime Communities Celebrating Milestones
SAVE THE DATES!
24–27 September 2025 • Buffalo, NY
We are delighted to be holding the 12th Maritime Heritage Conference in Buffalo in September 2025.
The conference brings together organizations and participants that engage in all aspects of maritime heritage. This includes maritime museums, historic lighthouses, tall ships for sail training and youth, small craft, marine art, sailing, naval and maritime scholars, advocacy, and more. It is also a gathering of the leadership of the maritime heritage community. Buffalo will host the first Maritime Heritage Conference to be held in the Great Lakes region.
The 12th Maritime Heritage Conference (MHC) will bring together nautical heritage organizations and individuals for an information-packed conference encompassing a broad array of topics on the banks of Lake Erie at historic Buffalo, New York. Following in the wake of the World Canal Conference, which concludes with a bicentennial celebration of the opening of the Erie Canal, the 12th MHC will use that historic milestone to open a three-day program that invites attendees to consider other historic nautical milestones worthy of broader public attention.
The MHC has earned a reputation for its high take-away value, networking opportunities, and camaraderie. The conference steering committee invites you to become involved as a presenter; both session and individual proposals are encouraged. Don’t miss this opportunity to gather with individuals from all segments of the maritime community.
Call for Papers & Session Proposals
Papers and session topics include, but are not limited to:
• Inland Water Commerce and Seaport Operations (Erie Canal bicentennial!)
• Maritime and Naval History (2025 marks USN/USMC 250th Birthday)
• Maritime Art, Literature, and Music
• Education and Preservation
• Underwater Archaeology
• Trade and Communications
• Maritime Libraries, Archives, and Museums
• Marine Science and Ocean Conservation
• Historic Vessel Restoration
• Maritime Heritage Grant Program
• Maritime Landscapes
• National Marine Sanctuaries
• Small Craft
• Shipbuilding
• Marine Protected Areas
Focus sessions include, but are not limited to:
• Non-Profit administration
• Event Management
• Fundraising
• Media and Publications
• Media and Social Media
Submissions
Individual paper and session proposals should include a 250–400 word abstract and a one-paragraph biography about each presenter.
Please e-mail proposals and other queries to Dr. David Winkler at: MHC@seahistory.org
Deadline for proposals for papers and sessions is 31 May 2025.
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Society for Nautical Research Winter Lecture Series 2024–25
The Society for Nautical Research is delighted to announce the schedule for the forthcoming winter lecture series. These online talks will highlight new and ongoing research being undertaken by members of the society and its affiliations. The series aims to promote research into economic, social, political, military and environmental aspects of nautical history, drawing on British, European and international experience.
The 12-part lecture series will be held fortnightly on Wednesday evenings at 6:30PM (UK) between October 2024 to March 2025. Lectures will only be available online (via Zoom) and will be FREE to paying members of the SNR.
Not yet a member?
Sign up now from as little as £22.50 a year. Get access to exclusive events and talks, quarterly editions of the Mariner’s Mirror, and discounts at affiliated museums and gift shops! https://snr.org.uk/become-a-member/
Dates for your calendar:
19th March 2025: Dr. Cathryn Pearce (University of Portsmouth), “‘Bandied about for a place of refuge’: Extreme Weather, Coastal Shipping, and the Loss of Lord Nelson, 1840”
How to attend the lectures?
Zoom details will be circulated prior to each of the lectures but details can also be found in the “events” section of the members area of the SNR website (Click Here).
For any questions or queries please contact the convener (daisy.turnbull@myport.ac.uk).
| | UPCOMING NAVAL & MARITIME HISTORY GATHERINGS | | | | |
