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25 June 2024
Welcome back to our National Maritime Historical Society members and friends who share a love for naval history!
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Today marks the 74th anniversary of the beginning of what many have dubbed the “Forgotten War,” when North Korean forces surged south over the 38th parallel to attempt to bring the whole peninsula under communist rule. The United States would lead a UN force to drive the North Koreans back. Sea power played a key role. Amphibious landings at Inchon in September would reverse the North Korean assault and eventually force Chinese intervention to save North Korea from annihilation. After three years of bloody combat, where the US Navy and Marine Corps played critical roles, a truce again restored borders along the 38th parallel. No peace accord has ever been signed. Technically the two sides are still at war, and recent flights of balloons hauling garbage from the north in retaliation for balloons from the south carrying music CDs and other materials demonstrate the conflict is ongoing.
Congrats to Cdr. Stan Fisher of the faculty of the US Naval Academy for his book Sustaining the Carrier War (Naval Institute Press, 2023), the best North American Naval History book as judged by the North American Society of Oceanic History. Huzzah to all the recipients listed below, courtesy of the book selection committee chair Lincoln Paine.
For our feature article we respond to Scott Batson, who asked about the picture we included with the article we ran on the land-swap at the Washington Navy Yard to facilitate a new Navy Museum. Needless to say, he spotted some significant history—see below.
This week, for our Naval History Book Review, Charles Kolb offers a detailed overview of Grant Rhode’s Great Power Clashes Along the Maritime Silk Road: Lessons from History to Shape Current Strategy.
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 are welcome at nmhs@seahistory.org.
| ITEMS OF IMMEDIATE INTEREST | |
26 June 2024 – Navy Museum Panel: Military Spouse Appreciation
Join journalist Jennifer Barnhill and author Heath Hardage Lee as they provide historical insight
into an organization called League of Wives.
Noon–1 PM (Facebook stream)
27 June 2024 – Continental Commandery Maritime History Virtual Lecture
Nimitz at Ease
With CAPT Michael Lilly, USN, Ret.
7 PM (EDT) – (YouTube-Live Stream)
2 July 2024 – Navy Museum Roundtable
Then and Now: Executive Order 9981
With RADM Sam Cox, USN (Ret.); Kurt Graham, PhD; Eddie Valentin, PhD; Gilbert Elliott Jr.;
Lori E. Chestang; Charles “Chuck” Dansby; Darren Skinner
(Facebook Live Stream)
2 July 2024 – World War II Discussion Forum
Delivering Destruction: American Firepower and Amphibious Assault from Tarawa to Iwo Jima
With Chris K. Hemler
8 PM (EDT) (Zoom)
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Congratulations to the Following John R. Lyman Book Prize Recipients! | |
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At last Saturday’s annual meeting, the following books and authors were recognized by the North American Society for Oceanic History. The selection committee was chaired by Lincoln Paine, who writes about maritime history in all its guises—commercial, naval, technological, environmental; the good, the bad, and the ugly. He writes a well-subscribed Substack blog, Sea of Words. He was ably assisted by Alicia Caporaso, marine archaeologist, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management; Charlotte Carrington-Farmer, professor of history, Roger Williams University; Jason W. Smith, associate professor of American history, Southern Connecticut State University; Jennifer Hubbard, professor, history of science and technology, University of Toronto; Lynn Harris, professor, Program in Maritime Studies, East Carolina University; and Sal Mercogliano, associate professor of history, Campbell University. The committee received over 100 submissions this year.
John R. Lyman Awards in Maritime History are named for oceanographer, maritime historian, US Navy veteran, and NASOH co-founder John R. Lyman (1915–1977).
Maritime and Nautical Archaeology
Winner
Dolores Elkin and Christophe Delaere, eds. Underwater and Coastal Archaeology in Latin America. University of Florida Press, 2023.
Honorable mention
Warren Curtis Riess. Studying the Princess Carolina: Anatomy of the Ship That Held Up Wall Street. Texas A&M University Press, 2023.
Maritime and Naval Biography and Autobiography
Winner
Robert W. Cherny. Harry Bridges: Labor Radical, Labor Legend. University of Illinois Press, 2023.
Honorable mention
Margaret Willson. Woman, Captain, Rebel: The Extraordinary True Story of a Daring Icelandic Sea Captain. Sourcebooks, 2023.
Maritime and Naval Reference Works and Published Primary Sources
Co-Winners
Ryan Tucker Jones & Matt K. Matsuda, eds. The Cambridge History of the Pacific Ocean, Volume 1, The Pacific Ocean to 1800. Cambridge University Press, 2023.
Anne Perez Hattori & Jane Samson, eds. The Cambridge History of the Pacific Ocean, Volume 2, The Pacific Ocean since 1800. Cambridge University Press, 2023.
Honorable Mention
Christine F. Hughes & Charles E. Brodine, Jr., eds. The Naval War of 1812: A Documentary History. Volume IV, 1814–1815 (Atlantic, Gulf Coast). Naval History and Heritage Command, 2023.
Maritime and Naval Science, Technology, and Environment
Winner
Fynn Holm, The Gods of the Sea: Whales and Coastal Communities in Northeast Japan, c. 1600–2019. Cambridge University Press, 2023.
Honorable Mention
Laura Trethewey, The Deepest Map: The High-Stakes Race to Chart the World’s Oceans. Harper Wave/Goose Lane Editions, 2023.
North American Maritime History
Winner
Thomas Blake Earle. The Liberty to Take Fish: Atlantic Fisheries and Federal Power in Nineteenth-Century America. Cornell University Press, 2023.
Honorable Mention
Sean M. Kelley, American Slavers: Merchants, Mariners, and the Transatlantic Commerce in Captives, 1644–1865. Yale University Press, 2023.
North American Naval History
Winner
Stan Fisher. Sustaining the Carrier War: The Deployment of U.S. Naval Air Power to the Pacific. Naval Institute Press, 2023.
Honorable Mention
Philip Reid. A Boston Schooner in the Royal Navy, 1768–1772: Commerce and Conflict in Maritime British America. Boydell & Brewer, 2023.
World Maritime History
Winner
Lucia Carminati. Seeking Bread and Fortune in Port Said: Labor Migration and the Making of the Suez Canal, 1859–1906. University of California Press, 2023.
World Naval History
Winner
Jon Wise. The Royal Navy and Fishery Protection: From the Fourteenth Century to the Present. Seaforth, 2023.
Honorable Mention
Sara Caputo. Foreign Jack Tars: The British Navy and Transnational Seafarers during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Cambridge University Press, 2023.
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Tell Us About Those Two Ships | |
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Thank you Scott Batson for asking the question: “Can you identify those two ships?” You bet! On the left is the presidential yacht USS Potomac, and on the lower right is USS Hartford, of Civil War fame.
Two weeks ago, Tuesday Tidings used a Naval History and Heritage Command image depicting a flooded Washington Navy Yard in 1942 to illustrate the land swap that had transpired to acquire land from a developer along M St. SE in exchange for waterfront property on the Southeast quadrant of the yard. Within this image it appears that two vessels are “underway.” Of course, they are moored, and why they are located there has much to do with who is residing in the White House.
The vessel on the left was built by the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company of Manitowoc, Wisconsin, and was commissioned on 25 October 1934 US Coast Guard Cutter Electra.
Per the US Coast Guard Historian’s Office:
She was transferred to the US Navy on 12 November 1935 for use as President Franklin Roosevelt’s yacht. She was modified for his use, including the installation of a hand-operated elevator in her dummy rear stack, renamed USS Potomac (AG-25), and commissioned on 2 March 1936 at Norfolk Navy Yard under the command of LT W. R. Jones, USN. Serving as the official yacht for President Roosevelt, AG–25 operated primarily in the Chesapeake Bay area, but made occasional cruises to Florida and the Bahamas with the president and first lady on board. She transported the president to Cape Cod where he boarded the cruiser Augusta for the conference with Prime Minister Churchill formulating the Atlantic Charter. In 1941, due to increased equipment added to the superstructure, the ship became top heavy and was condemned as unseaworthy. The Navy recommended that another ship be substituted, but the approach of war prevented such action; however, the president ordered the ship not to operate in open waters.
Replaced by Williamsburg, and decommissioned on 15 November 1945, Potomac was returned to the Coast Guard 23 November, and struck from the Navy List 25 February 1946. She was transferred to the State of Maryland later in 1946, and served with the Tidewaters Fisheries Commission until sold to Warren G. Toone in April 1960 and placed in service as a ferry boat between San Juan, Puerto Rico, and St. Thomas, Virgin Islands. She was subsequently purchased by the Hydro Capital Company, refurbished, and used as a traveling historical museum of the Franklin D. Roosevelt era. In January 1964, she was purchased by Elvis Presley and given to St. Jude’s Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee.
She eventually ended up in San Francisco where she was seized in 1980 by the US Customs for her role as a front for drug smugglers. Towed to Treasure Island, she sank at her berth. The Navy refloated her two weeks later, she was sold to the Port of Oakland for just $15,000. The Port of Oakland spearheaded a cooperative effort with organized labor, maritime corporations and dedicated volunteers to complete a $5 million restoration. She has, since 1995, been open to the public. She is under the care and operation of the Association for the Preservation of the Presidential Yacht Potomac, which now operates this National Historic Landmark as an active memorial to Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the momentous times through which he led our nation.
For more on Potomac visit: History | USS Potomac
In contrast to Potomac, a less happy fate awaited USS Hartford. Commissioned on 27 May 1859 at the Boston Navy Yard, the sloop of war deployed for the Far East to serve as the flagship for the East India Squadron. With the outbreak of the Civil War, she was ordered home to become the flagship of the West Gulf Blockading Squadron under Flag Officer David G. Farragut. The subsequent detailed overview of Hartford’s consequential Civil War service is documented in Hartford’s Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS) entry located at Hartford I (navy.mil).
Regarding her post-Civil War service, DANFS states:
Returning to New York 13 December 1864, Hartford decommissioned for repairs a week later. Back in shape in July 1865, she served as flagship of a newly-organized Asiatic Station Squadron until August 1868 when she returned to New York and decommissioned. Recommissioned 9 October 1872, she resumed Asiatic Station patrol until returning home 19 October 1875. In 1882, as Captain Stephen B. Luce's flagship of the North Atlantic Station, Hartford visited the Caroline Islands, Hawaii, and Valparaiso, Chile, before arriving in San Francisco 17 March 1884. She then cruised in the Pacific until decommissioning 14 January 1887 at Mare Island, Calif., for apprentice sea-training use.
From 1890 to 1899 Hartford was laid up at Mare Island, the last 5 years of which she was being rebuilt. On 2 October 1899, she recommissioned, then transferred to the Atlantic coast to be used for a training and cruise ship for midshipmen until 24 October 1912 when she was transferred to Charleston, S.C., for use as a station ship.
Again placed out of commission 20 August 1926, Hartford remained at Charleston until moved to Washington, D.C., 18 October 1938. On 19 October 1945, she was towed to the Norfolk Navy Yard and classified as a relic. Hartford sank at her berth 20 November 1956. She was subsequently dismantled. Major relics from her are at the National Navy Memorial Museum, Washington (D.C.) Navy Yard, and elsewhere.
What DANFS does not explain is why Hartford was moved to Washington. The answer to that question can be found in President Roosevelt’s papers located at Hyde Park, NY, and the correspondence files of the Naval Historical Foundation now maintained by the US Naval Institute in Annapolis, MD, that discuss President Roosevelt’s vision for a National Naval Museum centered around a collection of historic ships that were to be placed in a second tidal basin that would be installed where the present Kennedy Center is located. Working with retired Captain Dudley Knox, Roosevelt arranged for the Navy to transfer Hartford to the Washington Navy Yard for maintenance work with the aim that Hartford would serve as one of the display ships. FDR envisioned the sloop of war joining with armored cruiser Olympia, a World War I vintage destroyer, and the “frigate” Constellation. (At the time, Constellation’s lineage was traced to the 1790s. Subsequently, the Baltimore-ported ship has been identified as a sloop of war built in Norfolk in 1854.) Adjacent to the historic naval ship tidal basin there would be 90,000-square-foot US Navy Museum.
Sadly, Roosevelt’s vision for the US Navy Museum died with him on 12 April 1945. For an example of how Roosevelt’s vision could have played out, travel to Portsmouth, England, to tour the National Museum of the Royal Navy, featuring Victory, Warrior, M.13, Albacore, and its partner Mary Rose museum. See: Visit Us | National Museum of the Royal Navy (nmrn.org.uk) Fortunately, in the United States we do have ample historic ships on display accessible to much of the population on any given day. See: Home (hnsa.org) Thus it will be a mission of the new Navy Museum in Washington to place the significance of all of these historic ships in context. For more on the Navy Museum Development Foundation visit: NMDF | National Navy Museum Dev Fdtn
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NAVAL HISTORY BOOK REVIEWS | |
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Great Power Clashes Along the Maritime Silk Road: Lessons from History to Shape Current Strategy By Grant F. Rhode, Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, (2024).
Reviewed by Charles C. Kolb, Ph.D.
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...In the “Conclusion” he applies the propositions and historical background to three selected contemporary (or likely) geopolitical conflicts: 1 China Seas, 2 Indian Ocean, and 3 Eastern Mediterranean Sea. Each is assessed in terms of historical and current knowledge, military technology, continental vs. maritime identities national identities, military leadership, relative power relations, alliance relations, maritime economies, and military successes. In addition, he assesses the relevance of the theoretical explanations documented in the initial chapter. Spykman and Mahan are rated highest, the middle four are relevant in particular cases, and two, Alexander IV and Mackinder, are not relevant. Lastly, he reminds the reader that “Eurasian maritime history cases are fascinating on their own terms. Crucially, they offer much to inform frameworks for thinking about the present and future of regional and global affairs” (p. 290).
This volume is certainly indicative of Rhode’s deep interest in contemporary Eurasian continental and maritime history and reflects his academic background in anthropology and international studies. Your reviewer selected this book because of his own training in anthropological archaeology and international studies with research on commerce, states, and empires in Latin America and Eurasia, including fieldwork on the maritime and terrestrial Silk Roads. What is past, is prologue, and the information and analytical “tools” Grant Rode provides, helps us view the past, present and future from new, enlightened perspectives. This volume is a fine textbook for advanced coursework.
Read review>>
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NAVAL HISTORY BOOKS AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW | |
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USNI Proceedings Podcast Podcast
Host Bill Hamblet interviews former CENTCOM Commander General Frank McKenzie Jr., US Marine Corps (Retired), about his latest book from the Naval Institute Press.
Listen here>>
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The Society for Military History announces a call for papers for its 90th Annual Meeting in Mobile, Alabama, 27–30 March 2025, at the Battle House Renaissance Mobile Hotel and the
Renaissance Mobile Riverview Plaza Hotel.
The Program Committee’s objective is to create a slate of panels that represent the breadth of expertise and interests as well as the overall diversity of the Society’s wide-ranging membership. Individual paper and panel proposals on all facets of military history broadly defined will be considered for inclusion. Members in the academic community, the armed forces and governmental agencies, museums and archives, and independent scholars, as well as international members, are encouraged to participate.
Priority will be given to individual paper and panel submissions that highlight the presentation of original research, new interpretations, topics of immediate interest to our membership, and cutting-edge trends and subject matter. Submission of roundtables is encouraged, but preference will be given to panels that present new, original research.
All submissions will be judged on their merit using the above criteria.
Submission Instructions:
Individual paper proposals must include a 250-word abstract of the paper, and a one-page vita with contact information and email address. If selected, individual papers will be assigned by the program committee to an appropriate panel with a chair/commentator.
Panel proposals must include a panel title and 250-word abstract summarizing the theme of the panel; paper titles and a 250-word abstract for each paper proposed; and a one-page curriculum vitae for each panelist (including the chair and commentator) that includes institutional affiliation, email address, and other contact information.
Roundtable proposals must include a roundtable title, the full name and institutional affiliation of each participant, a 250-word abstract summarizing the roundtable’s themes and significance, and a one-page curriculum vitae for each participant.
Members who wish to volunteer to serve as chairs and commentators should send a one-page curriculum vitae.
Send all materials to the Program Committee Chair before October 18, 2024 at smhconferences@gmail.com.
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For The Trafalgar Chronicle
Publication Date: FALL 2025
Theme: Naval Leadership in the Georgian Era
For the 2025 edition of The Trafalgar Chronicle, the editors seek carefully researched, scholarly articles on “Naval Leadership in the Georgian Era.” We invite essays that provide examples of exemplary and questionable leadership in the predominant navies of the Georgian maritime era (1714–1837). We are interested to know about unique and far-reaching ways in which naval officers and administrators made crucial decisions and took significant actions affecting their futures, men, fleets, enemies, combat tactics and strategies, ships, policies and regulations, and naval doctrine itself. Additional topics: We also seek general-interest articles with unique perspectives on the maritime and naval history of the Georgian era. We invite biographical portraits, articles about battles at sea, maritime economics, exploration of foreign shores, foreign relations, politics, etc. We also welcome well-documented reports on preservation efforts regarding the artifacts, graves, memorials, and monuments of the Nelson era. Proposal Submission Guidelines: Please submit a proposal/abstract of no more than 500 words and a paragraph about your background (a biographical sketch). Proposals are due by 1 September 2024. Applicants will be notified of acceptance status by 1 October 2024. Submit all proposals and inquiries to tc.editor@1805Club.org.
Detailed author guidelines are available upon request. Article Guidelines: Articles should be 3,000 to 5,000 words long in MSWORD (unprotected) following the New Oxford Style Manual. Please include three to six high-resolution illustrations, each in a separate file (jpeg, pdf, or tiff). Articles are due 1 February 2025, at which point they will be edited and, in some cases, submitted to peer review. Articles will be returned to authors for revisions by 1 April 2025.
Revisions are due by 1 May 2025. Publication will be Fall/Autumn 2025. While we do not pay our contributors, each author will receive a copy of The Trafalgar Chronicle upon publication. Non-members of the 1805 Club will receive a free one-year membership. All authors will also receive a PDF of their published article for their portfolio. Authors retain copyright of their articles. Our Contributors: We welcome articles from 1805 Club members and anyone with an interest in the history of the Georgian Navy and other navies of the period. Our articles have come from writers of varied backgrounds: historians, journalists, university students, military personnel, preservationists, and novelists. Contact tc.editor@1805Club.org for additional information. The Trafalgar Chronicle is the scholarly flagship publication of the 1805 Club, a charity registered in England and Wales (number1202272) with an international membership of scholars and enthusiasts of the Georgian maritime era. The 1805 Club takes its name from the iconic Battle of Trafalgar that gave Nelson his place in history and confirmed the role of the Royal Navy in asserting Britain’s sea power. Seaforth Publishing is our publisher.
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UPCOMING NAVAL & MARITIME HISTORY GATHERINGS | |
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19–21 July 2024: National Maritime Historical Society Annual Meeting, Peekskill, New York
16–19 September 2024: Historic Naval Ship Association (HNSA) Symposium, USS Midway, San Diego
9 November 2024: Steamship Society of America, Queen Mary, Long Beach, CA
27–30 March 2025: Society for Military History (SMH) Annual Meeting, Mobile, AL
9–11 April 2025: Council of American Maritime Museums Annual Meeting, Pensacola, FL
24–28 September 2025: 12th Maritime Heritage Conference, Buffalo, NY
| PREBLE HALL NAVAL HISTORY PODCAST | |
A naval history podcast from Preble Hall – the United States Naval Academy Museum in Annapolis, Maryland. Preble Hall will interview historians, practitioners, military personnel, and other experts on a variety of naval history topics from ancient history to more current events.
Click here for the latest episode: 233: David Patraeus on CONFLICT>>
Click here for all Preble Hall Podcasts >>
| DRACHINIFEL YOUTUBE CHANNEL | |
Welcome to Navy History Matters, Naval History and Heritage Command’s biweekly compilation of articles, commentaries, and blogs related to history and heritage. Every other week, they gather the top-interest items from a variety of media and social media sources that link to related content at NHHC’s website, your authoritative source for Navy history.
Click here for most recent article>>
| INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF NAVAL HISTORY | |
The International Journal of Naval History (IJNH) provides a preeminent forum for works of naval history, researched and written to demonstrable academic standards, with the goal of stimulating and promoting research into naval history and fostering communication among naval historians at an international level. IJNH welcomes any scholarly historical analysis, focused on any period or geographic region, that explores naval power in its national or cultural context. The journal is independent of any institution and operates under the direction of an international editorial board that represents various genres of naval history.
Click here to read the February 2023 edition and archived issues on the IJNH website >>
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With the 250th anniversary of the US Navy on the horizon, NMHS seeks your support as we plan to honor those who have provided for our maritime security.
Click here to donate today >>
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