Help Complete the Golden Thirteen Project
When Frank E. Sublett Jr., of Glencoe, Illinois, died in September 2006, the last surviving member of the Golden Thirteen had passed. This remarkable group of men broke the color barrier when they were commissioned as the first black naval officers in March 1944.
In the mid-1980s, historian and author Paul Stillwell interviewed all the living members of this group and several of the officers who trained and worked with them for the Naval Institute's oral history program. The moving reminiscences of these trailblazers are treasures that underscore the value of oral history in capturing for posterity accounts often unavailable anywhere else.
The Naval Institute seeks assistance to complete editorial work on the final two histories in the Golden Thirteen series: the life stories of Jesse W. Arbor (1914-2000) and James E. Hair (1915-1992). Arbor enlisted in the Navy in 1942 to avoid being drafted into the Army. (He had three brothers in the Army; none of them recommended it.) Two years later, he was among the group of 16 candidates chosen by the Navy and screened by the FBI to undergo officer training at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center. Twelve were eventually commissioned as ensigns and one as a warrant officer. Arbor later served as a battalion commander in Hawaii and at Great Lakes. Hair, the grandson of slaves, was the first black officer in the crew of the USS Mason (DE
529), a landing ship with an all-black crew.Tax-deductible contributions to underwrite completion of the Arbor and Hair projects, or any of the dozens of oral histories currently under way, may be mailed to the Naval Institute Foundation; 291 Wood Road; Annapolis, MD 21402, or made online at www.usni.org (click on "Donate"). For more information, please contact Sue Sweeney at (410) 295-1054 or at [email protected].
Institute Photos Help Honor Fallen Submariners
In March 2010, a new memorial honoring Sailors who lost their lives on submarines in World War II was dedicated in San Diego. The 52 Boats Memorial pays tribute to the 3,500 Navy submariners who died on board 52 submarines during the war.
Fifty-two black granite monuments shape the memorial, each bearing an image of the submarine honored. The photos used to create the images were donated to the memorial by the Naval Institute from its photo archive, the largest private collection of its kind in the world.
The Naval Institute maintains its massive photographic archive through photo sales and gift income. By contributing to the Institute, you allow us to support other worthy organizations that share the Institute's goals. Your donation counts!