Pearl Harbor – The narrative Nearly one year after the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, the Navy Department released a comprehensive report detailing the losses and destruction at Pearl Harbor. Fighting in the Solomon Islands at Guadalcanal was ongoing but after the epic sea battles in the preceding months, the battle was turning in favor […]

Every Moment Mattered – The Life and Death of Cassin Young, Captain, USN MOH Recipient – Chapter Sixteen: “When the World is at Peace, a gentleman keeps his Sword by his side.” – Wu Tsu

Chapter Sixteen (1929-1933) “When the World is at Peace, a gentleman keeps his Sword by his side.” – Wu Tsu The Young’s would once more find themselves facing another cross-country transfer when Cassin was assigned to the Naval Academy for duty as an instructor. From August of 1928 until May of 1931, the family would […]

Every Moment Mattered – The Life and Death of Cassin Young, Captain, USN MOH Recipient – Chapter Seventeen: Sometimes course changes have unintended consequences

Chapter Seventeen: Sometimes course changes have unintended consequences On January 31, 1938, Admiral Leahy would report to the Congress on the preparedness of the Navy in anticipation of increased funding requests. HEARINGS ON H. R. 9218 TO ESTABLISH THE COMPOSITION OF THE UNITED STATES NAVY, TO AUTHORIZE THE CONSTRUC TION OF CERTAIN NAVAL VESSELS, AND FOR […]

Every Moment Mattered – The Life and Death of Cassin Young, Captain, USN MOH Recipient – Chapter Thirteen: While one Navy shrinks an enemy secretly grows

Chapter Thirteen: While one Navy shrinks an enemy secretly grows Between the years of 1920-1921, the United States was shedding the weight of the forces it had mustered to answer the call to action in the Great War. After the Wilsonian years and massive growth and investment, the Republican leadership clung to the new idea that […]

Every Moment Mattered – The Life and Death of Cassin Young, Captain, USN MOH Recipient – Chapter Nine: “A cowardly, underhanded weapon”

Chapter Nine: “A cowardly, underhanded weapon” As Cassin Young and his classmates were being trained in the art and science of submarine warfare in the summer of 1919, forces across the Atlantic Ocean were gaining strength to try and cut short his and many other’s careers on submarines. The British had been particularly hard hit […]

Every Moment Mattered – The Life and Death of Cassin Young, Captain, USN MOH Recipient – Chapter Eight: Peace and prosperity equal equally poor prospects for promotion

Chapter Eight (1918 – 1919): Peace and prosperity equal equally poor prospects for promotion Lieutenant Cassin Young faced a dismal future in the cold winter month of December 1918. He had been in the navy since his academy days and had spent most of his days learning the art of warfare on a navy ship. The […]

“Information from other sources sheds rather a different light on the matter.” Underestimating any enemy can be dangerous

“Information from other sources sheds rather a different light on the matter.” Underestimating any enemy can be dangerous. Recently, I was browsing through the national archives and found some declassified documents dating back to the 1920’s about submarine development abroad. During that time frame, there was a great desire on all parts of the world […]

July – August 1925 the US Navy Spends Time Down Under

I was visiting my favorite Library of Congress website today that features newspapers from the history of the US. One of the featured stories on the front page of the Washington Times for August 1, 1925, was about how many American sailors married Australian women after a recent port visit. The story brought a smile to […]

Category: Naval Arms Limitation Treaty

The Illusion of Peace is Seemingly Eternal

Even in times of peace, the Navy still needed sailors

Naval Communique No. 214 – December 6, 1942: THE JAPANESE ATTACK ON PEARL HARBOR, DECEMBER 7, 1941