Annotated Guide
Operating Forces

See the Introduction for availability of these histories.

Atlantic

  1. Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, "Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet," Vol. 1 (bound in 2 vols.). 1946. 785 pp., appendices, Index.

    The first volume of the Atlantic Fleet history focuses on operations, but provides considerable insight into policy, administrative, and logistical matters. Opening with a brief discussion of naval policy in the interwar years, the narrative recounts the establishment of the Atlantic Squadron in 1938 (which evolved into the Atlantic Fleet in 1941â and provides extensive details on operations and strategy during the period of American neutrality. Both in this period and in the years following American entry into World War II, much space is devoted to the campaign against the German U-boat, including details of such countermeasures as sonar, escort carriers, and convoy tactics.

    Comprehensive accounts are included of the Allied amphibious operations in North Africa, Sicily, and Normandy. To provide background for these campaigns, the history also explores the development of amphibious tactics and landing craft, and discusses American planning for a second front in Europe.

    A number of special topics are addressed, including the U.S. South Atlantic Force, Allied and enemy activities in Greenland, operations of German surface raiders and blockade runners, and the experiences of Atlantic Fleet ships attached to the British Home Fleet in 1942.

    Appendices include detailed lists of enemy and American naval ships sunk in the theater, of Atlantic Fleet staff officers, and of the major type and task force commanders in the Atlantic.

     

  2. Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, "Commander Task Force Twenty-Four," Vol. II. 1946. 208 pp., appendices, index.

    This narrative traces the wartime history of Task Force 24, which was the Support Force, Atlantic Fleet. The Support Force was established before the United States entered World War II in order to free the British from the primary responsibility for escort and protection of convoys between Great Britain and North America. The force continued to exercise this function after December 1941.

    The well footnoted text contains a comprehensive description of war plans, convoy defense plans, combined command arrangements, and policy decision that helped determine the successful outcome of the struggle against the German U-boat. The development of new tactics, weapons, detection devices, and their integration with established convoy defense procedures is described at length. The narrative also deals with the creation of bases to support the task force in both Canada and the British Isles, including St. John's, Halifax, Argentia, Gare Loch, and Londonderry.

    The appendices consist of excerpts from pertinent task force operation plans.

     

  3. Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, "Commander Greenland Patrol," Vol. III. 1496. 169 pp., appendix, index.

    Organized in early 1941 to prevent the establishment of Axis air or naval bases in the area, the Greenland patrol force was composed initially of the Northeast Greenland Patrol and the South Greenland Patrol. The Command operated throughout World War II.

    This narrative recounts the political and military events that led to the basing of American forces on the Danish island. Other subjects treated include the conduct of coastal patrols against German submarines and landing parties; relationships with the Coast Guard in its patrol of Greenland coastal waters and the Army in its construction of air installations; the establishment of radio, weather, and radar stations; and naval support for the massive ferrying of aircraft to Britain by way of Greenland in the buildup for the Normandy Invasion. Items of particular interest are the operations against the German weather stations on Shannon Island and Koldewey Island.

    The text contains several photographs and the appendix consists of a 1942 survey of Greenland bases by Captain Robert B. Carney, USN, who then served as Chief of Staff to the Commander Support Force, Atlantic Fleet.

     

  4. Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, "An Administrative History of Destroyers, Atlantic Fleet," Vol. VI. 1946. 80 pp., chronology, appendices.

    This volume contains a short description of the wartime activities of the Atlantic Fleet type command responsible for destroyers, destroyer escorts, as well as all Coast Guard ships, as of January 1942. The text provides a chronological summary of significant worldwide political and military events and also occurrences within the destroyer force from 1939 through 1945.

    The narrative details the immediate prewar influx of ships and men into the Fleet and the changes in operations, training, and the command structure that ensued. As regards training, this history discusses the early wartime growth of Navy schools and efforts throughout the war to accommodate the program to new weapons, equipment, and tactics. Of particular interest is the destroyer command's participation in the Battle of the Atlantic prior to America's entry into the war, the bases for destroyers exchange, and the development of hunter-killer groups to combat the German Schnorkel submarines.

    The appendices consist of compilations indicating the organization of Destroyers, Atlantic Fleet, by individual ships, divisions, and squadrons, at various times throughout World War II.

     

  5. Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, "Air Force Atlantic Fleet History," Vol. VII. 1946. 208 pp., chronologies, appendices.

    Divided into three chronological parts, this volume relates the history of the Atlantic Fleet naval air arm during the last three years of World War II. Each part consists of a detailed chronology of the year's occurrences, a topical treatment of the subject matter, and appendices reflecting organizational developments within the command.

    The narrative sections treat such diverse facets of providing air support to the Fleet as the creation of new commands and subordinate units; the inception of new aircraft, weapons, and techniques to combat the Axis submarine threat; the promulgation of innovative plans and policies, the problems of aircraft maintenance, repair, and logistic support; the development of communications procedures; and the general administration of naval aviation in this particular theater of war.

    Several photographs of Commander Air Force, Atlantic Fleet and his staff are located in the Part III narrative.

    The voluminous appendices comprise tables, charts, graphs, and rosters representing the commissioning, decommissioning, reporting, designation, transfer, and detachment of air units, aircraft, and assigned support ships or craft. Aircraft strength figures, for the period covered by the history, are broken down according to type and by years, months, and days.

     

  6. Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, "Commander Fleet Operational Training Command," Vol. VII. Norfolk, Virginia, 1946. 356 pp., appendices, index.

    Part I of this history is a topical discussion of the decision to establish the training command, which became operational in early 1943; measures taken to handle personnel for the rapidly expanded Fleet; the development of numerous East Coast bases as training sites; working relationships among the interdependent operational and type commands; and the organizational evolution of the Operation Training Command during the last three years of the war.

    In Part II the various subordinate and geographically separate training installations are treated individually. The particular functions and responsibilities of each unit are dealt with at length. The schools provided instruction in such naval skills as antiaircraft and surface gunnery, net laying, minesweeping, and the many facets of antisubmarine warfare.

    The appendices include organizational charts, a list of subordinate unit commanders, and a basic operation plan of the command for 1945.

     

  7. Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, "Administrative History of Commander Service Force, US Atlantic Fleet, during World War II," Vol. IX. Norfolk, Virginia, 1946. 303 pp., appendices.

    This administrative history is a comprehensive description of the role played by the Atlantic Fleet Service Force in the war. Comprising two narrative and two appendix sections, the volume details many aspects of providing naval logistic support.

    Part I includes a thorough discussion of the organizational changes in the rapidly expanding Service Force form 1940 to the end of the war. The text recounts the effects on the command structure resulting from the early wartime burgeoning of the Fleet, the expansion of the area of responsibility, and the increase in operational requirements. To aid in tracing the organizational evolution of the force, flow charts are interspersed with the narrative.

    The second part treats the various functions and duties of the command and its subordinate units. Responsibilities included maintaining ordnance; supervising Fleet communications; providing the operating forces with personnel and equipment; extending medical, recreational, financial, training, transportation, and administrative support; and supplying the operating forces with the materials needed to sustain them in combat.

    The appendices contain pertinent letters, memoranda, messages, and organizational tables.

    The author of htis work was Lieutenant Kenneth J. Ekdahl, (SC), USNR.

     

  8. Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, "A History of the Amphibious Training Command, United States Atlantic Fleet and Its Antecedent the Amphibious Force, United States Atlantic Fleet," Vol. X (bound in 3 vols.). Norfolk, Virginia, n.d. 872 pp., chronology.

    In addition to relating the wartime activities of the Amphibious Training Command, and the Amphibious Force, from which the command evolved, this history discusses the evolution of amphibious doctrine during the prewar years. This detailed treatment focuses on the early efforts to adapt civilian-designed craft to amphibious warfare and to developing joint Army-Navy-Marine doctrine for landing troops on hostile shores. The conduct of landing exercises, as well as the planing for the North African Invasion, are described at length.

    The account also deals with the training of naval personnel in the basic skills of amphibious warfare at East Coast schools. The text treats each amphibious training base individually and in detail while discussing such facets of the program as small boat handling, maintenance, and repair; loading, formation, and landing procedures; beach obstacle clearance actions; and small-caliber weapons operation.

    The two narrative parts contain various relevant documents and the third section, a pictorial supplement, comprises approximately 400 photographs of key personnel, t raining facilities, landing exercises, and numerous types of amphibious ships and craft.

    The authors of this work were Lieutenants Hamilton S. Putnam, USNR, and Craig A. Livingston, USNR.

     

  9. Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, "Commander South Atlantic Force," Vol. XI. n.d. 245 pp., chronology.

    Covering the period 1940 to 1945, this history details the wartime activities of the South Atlantic Force, which originally was designated Task Force 3 and later Task Force 23. Its successor organizations, Fourth Fleet and Task Force 27, also are discussed. The volume concentrates on the conduct of operations but also describes the command's administration.

    Established to counter the Axis submarine threat to Allied convoy traffic and to protect that part of South America closest to Africa, the South Atlantic Force operated from bases in Brazil and uruguay, The text discusses at length such aspects of the war at sea as the Neutrality Patrol, the air and surface campaign against German U-boats, and the support provided merchant ship convoys. The construction or development of bases in Brazil for attack and patrol aircraft, lighter-than-air craft, and surface ships is accorded emphasis. In this regard, political and military relations among U.S. Government, Navy, and Allied representatives and host country leaders are treated.

    Numerous photographs are included of key personnel, as well as the facilities at Natal, Recife, Bahia, Belem, Fortaleza, and Amapa, Brazil, among others. Also included is a table indicating U-boats sunk by the Fourth Fleet during 1943 and 1944 indicating date, position, hull number, and attacking unit.

     

  10. Commander U.S. Naval Forces, Europe, "Administrative History, United States Naval Forces in Europe 1940-1946," Vols. I-VII (bound in 8 vols.). London, n.d. 2,856 pp., chronologies.

    This voluminous study of U.S. Naval Forces, Europe consists of seven narrative volumes. A supplementary volume of documents is referred to but has not been located.

    Volumes I and II treat the administrative activities of the command headquarters in London and its relationship with subordinate units. Separate parts in the volumes focus on topics of particular importance, such as the establishment of liaison between U.S. Navy and British authorities in Great Britain during 1940; the organizational development of the headquarters staff; the control of task forces in European waters; planning and preparation for the Normandy Invasion (Operation OVERLORD); the creation of naval bases and facilities in the British Isles, France, and Germany; and naval administration in occupied Germany and Austria during 1945 and early 1946.

    Volume III describes the work of the hydrographic, navigation, medical, chaplain, technical intelligence, postal, and communications functions associated with the command, as well as the activities of the Naval Attaché, London.

    The supply and logistic support of American and Allied naval forces in Europe, including the lend-lease program and the supply of cross-channel operations from bases in the United Kingdom, is dealt with in Volume IV.

    Volume V provides a comprehensive and detailed account of the naval preparations for the Normandy landing and the conduct of this operation. A separate index is attached to this volume.

    Naval planning for the post-hostilities occupation of Germany and Austria and for naval representation in the liberated areas of Scandinavia, the Low Countries, and France is the subject of Volume VI. Specific parts deal with the organization of U.S. Naval Forces, Germany (Task Force 124), and U.S. Ports and Bases, Germany (Task Force 126), the preparation of naval personnel for occupation duty, and naval representation on the Control Council, Germany.

    In Volume VII, the narrative covers the actions of subordinate commands such as Task Force 124; Task Force 126; the naval contingents in the Control Council, Germany; the Allied Commission, Austria; the Allied Missions to Scandinavia and the Low Countries; U.S. naval Forces, Azores; and U.S. Naval Forces, Mediterranean.

    Accompanying the text are tables, plans, correspondence, maps, and photographs.

     

  11. Commander, U.S. Naval Forces, Northwest Africa Waters, "Naval Forces, Northwest African Waters and the Eighth Fleet," 5 vols. 1945. 176 pp., appendices, bibliographical note.

    This organization participated in the major Mediterranean naval campaigns during the last years of World War II. The command was organized in March 1943 s the Eighth Fleet and initially was responsible to the Commander in Chief, U.S. Fleet for naval administration and to the Naval Deputy of the Commander in Chief, Allied Forces, for naval operations.

    The history comprises two narrative volumes and three volumes of appendices. The latter comprise detailed action reports for the Sicily, Salerno, and Southern France landings.

    The first volume is arranged topically and concentrates on the administration of American naval forces in the Mediterranean. The first of three parts in this volume provides a chronological treatment of the command's activities, as well as a discussion of problems encountered and conclusions drawn. The second part deals with planning, personnel administration, communications, and intelligence. The final section consists of appended letters, directives, and messages of importance.

    The establishment of naval bases in North Africa, Sicily, Corsica, Sardinia, and on the Italian mainland to support the command's Mediterranean operations is dealt with in the second volume. Also discussed are the workings of the Eighth Fleet logistic system in the provision of such items as construction materials, expendable supplies, equipment, weapons, ammunition, vehicles, and spare parts to the operating forces.

    Commander Julian M. Boit, USNR, and Lieutenant Commander Carl Bridenbaugh, USNR, authored the first volume. The second volume was completed by Commander Melvin F. Talbot, (SC), USN, and Lieutenant Commander James C. Risk, USNR.

     

    Pacific

     

  12. Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet,, "Commander in Chief, United States Pacific Fleet and Pacific Ocean Areas, Command History," (3 vols.) 1946. 419 pp., appendices.

    Composed of one narrative volume and two volumes of appendices, this work details the administrative conduct of the war in the Pacific at both the joint and fleet command level.

    Following a discussion of inter-service and intra-service command relationships and the wartime organizational development of the staff for this command, the text describes the functions of separate divisions and sections within the headquarters. The activity of the Operations Division in coordinating air and surface actions, troop movements, and in insuring the combat readiness of units is recounted. Combat, strategic, radio, and photographic intelligence collection techniques, as well as psychological warfare methods, are related. Other major topics include the provision of logistic support to the operating forces; strategic planning and the formulation of war plans; and the utilization of the various modes of military communication. Also discussed are the diverse functions of the Administration Division, which had cognizance over awards, postal matters, military government, public information, censorship, welfare and recreation, and voting.

    The first appendix volume consists of organizational charts, graphs, tables, and photographs of naval leaders and headquarters facilities in Guam and Hawaii.

    The second appendix volume contains flow charts, staff instructions, personnel rosters, telephone directories, sample forms, studies, letters, and memoranda.

     

  13. Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet, "History of the Amphibious Forces, US Pacific Fleet," 4 vols. 1945. 1,892 pp., glossaries.

    This narrative history provides a comprehensive account of the command that conducted a number of major amphibious operations in the Pacific.

    The first volume focuses on the development of amphibious forces from the prewar years of experimentation with new concepts and training through the wartime years of operational application. The headquarters staff sections, among them operations, gunnery, force control, supply and logistics, pontoons, aerology, and maintenance, are treated individually. The final section of text provides a discussion of problems encountered and suggested solutions. Appended documents include an organizational description of the Amphibious Forces as of August 1945.

    The second volume contains separate historical accounts of subordinate amphibious groups and transport squadrons.

    In volume three the text details the wartime work of the Administrative Command, Amphibious Forces with emphasis on the structural evolution of the organization. Also individually treated are the Administrative Command, Amphibious Forces, U.S. Pacific Fleet, Marianas and the training facilities located in the Hawaiian Islands.

    The fourth volume relates the activities of the Training Command, Amphibious Forces in providing the Fleet with personnel instructed in the techniques of amphibious warfare. The narrative is divided into three parts which consist of a brief chronological summary of the command's history, a discussion of each staff section's functions, and appended material on the training bases at Coronado and Port Hueneme, California.

    Volume four also contains the historical submissions of Commander Air Support Control Units and Commander Underwater Demolition Teams, both of which were components of Amphibious Forces, U.S. Pacific Fleet.

    Photographs of commanders, amphibious craft, combat actions, and training facilities, as well as charts, tables, maps, correspondence, sample forms, manuals, and blueprints of training facilities, are included in the text. A glossary of abbreviations and a listing of Pacific place names follow the fourth volume.

     

  14. Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet, "Administrative Study of Commander Destroyers/Cruisers Pacific Fleet during World War II," 1946. 289 pp., appendices, bibliographical note, index.

    This narrative systematically relates the wartime functions of the cruiser-destroyer type command. The first chapter recounts the organizational development of the headquarters staff. Succeeding chapters treat aspects of the command's mission.

    The subjects covered include training in antisubmarine warfare, communication procedures, gunnery, and torpedo warfare. The text also discusses the workings of the Combat Information Center, established to provide tactical and technical information to the ships of the command; and the Forward Area Representatives, who dealt directly with the operating forces for the type commander. Logistics, intelligence, personnel matters, and training are discussed separately.

    Photographs depicting ships and facilities of the command are interspersed within the text, and appendix documents, consisting of staff instructions, flow charts, graphs, memoranda, site plans, training curricula, and publications follow several chapters.

    The authors of the history were Lieutenant Commander Robert M. Lunny, USNR, Lieutenant Thomas N. Newell, USNR, and Lieutenant (junior grade) Howard J. Thompson, USNR.

     

  15. Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet, "History of the Fleet Operational Training Command, Pacific," 2 vols. 1946. 870 pp., appendices.

    Organized according to command structure, these volumes include an overall history of the Fleet Operational Training Command and separate narratives submitted by subordinate functions.

    The description of the parent organization, which was charged with the responsibility for training crews of ships to be commissioned and those already in service, covers relationships with operating forces and shore establishment commands; the composition and development of the headquarters staff; logistic support of the scattered training facilities; and the conduct of precommissioning, shakedown, and refresher training programs, as well as training in gunnery, ship defense, and antisubmarine warfare.

    The remainder of the first volume and all of the second comprise histories of subordinate training activities located on the West Coast. These commands included the Escort Carrier Pre-Commissioning School at Puget Sound Navy Yard, Washington; the Anti-Aircraft and Small Craft schools at Pacific Beach and San Pedro, California; and the Shakedown, Sound, and Combat Information Center Indoctrination schools at San Diego, California.

    Photographs of training operations and facilities, organizational charts, correspondence, maps, and site plans are interspersed in the text.

    The appendices, which follow many of the separate parts, are composed of training instructions, operation plans, tables, sample forms, site plans, flow charts, and publications.

     

  16. Command in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet, "Administrative History of Minecraft Pacific Fleet." 1946. 215 pp., appendices.

    This one-volume narrative treats the administrative activities of the senior minecraft commands in the Pacific. During the prewar years, mine warfare responsibilities were handled by Minecraft, Battle Force and Train Squadron Six. In the early war years, these commands were combined to form Service Squadron Six. From October 1944 to the end of World War II, Commander Minecraft, U.S. Pacific Fleet functioned as the type command.

    The text describes the missions, force composition, doctrine, staff organization, and defensive employment of the minecraft commands prior to the Pearl Harbor Attack and in the early phase of the Pacific campaign. The growth and development of minecraft forces and mine warfare techniques are given considerable attention, with particular emphasis on such aspects as minesweeping and minelaying procedures, degaussing, mine disarming, mine modification and experimentation, conversion of destroyers to minelayers, net and boom laying, the acquisition and integration into the Fleet of new types of minecraft, and aerial mining. The two major subordinate components of the Commander Minecraft, U.S. Pacific Fleet headquarters--the Operating Staff and the Administrative Command--are dealt with separately and in detail. Topics discussed include amphibious assault planning, joint operations, ship readiness, and logistic support.

    Combined with the narrative are flowcharts, correspondence, and tables. Footnotes indicate documentation for much of the work.

    The appendices contain staff instructions and several organizational diagrams.

     

  17. Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet, "Motor Torpedo Boat Squadrons," 2 vols. n.d. 265 pp., appendix, index.

    Comprising one narrative volume and one volume of appendices, this history thoroughly details the wartime administration of Motor Torpedo Boat Squadrons, U.S. Pacific Fleet, and of similar units assigned to the Commander, Southwest Pacific Area.

    The text is divided in five parts, the first of which describes the activities of motor torpedo boat forces prior to the establishment of the type command in February 1944. Parts II and III discuss the early development of the organization and its relationships with Commander Motor Torpedo Boat Squadrons, South Pacific Area and Commander Naval Forces, Northern Solomons. The latter commands for the most part exercised the type command function during 1944 and the first quarter of 1945. The section contains information on the organization and functioning of the headquarters staff, operational procedures, the training program, and aspects of logistic support concerned with spare parts, fuel, bases, and shipping. In Part IV the narrative treats the development of the type command during 1945 when Commander Motor Torpedo Boat Squadrons, U.S. Pacific Fleet became responsible for all boat activities in the Pacific theater. The final part contains an analysis of command problems encountered in the war and a brief conclusion.

    The appendix volume includes war diaries, staff instructions, tables, operation plans, maps, and correspondence relating to the administration of the motor torpedo boat forces.

     

  18. Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet, "History of Service Force," 1946. 389 pp.

    The history of Service Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet is arranged according to the organizational structure of the command.

    The opening chapter traces the functional development of the type command (initially designated Base Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet) from early 1941 through August 1945. Responses to the growth of the Fleet and the demands of wartime operations are described. The workings of headquarters sections which administered such diverse Fleet functions as photographic, chaplain, maintenance, personnel, postal, printing, and shore patrol support, are detailed. Other important subdivisions were the Advanced Base Section, the Area Petroleum Office, and the Fleet Training Center, Oahu, Hawaii.

    The activities of the units which directly supplied the Fleet--Service Squadrons Two, Three, Four, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Twelve, and Fourteen--are recounted. The text also describes operations involving salvage, repair, hydrographic surveying, towing service, and the installation of underwater harbor defenses.

    The narrative history is well footnoted and several photographs of Service Force commanders and headquarters facilities are appended.

     

  19. Command in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet, "Administrative History of the North Pacific Area," 1945. 302 pp.

    This history recounts the growth of the naval establishment in Alaska from the period between the wars to the end of World War II. The narrative treats the evolution of the command structure, including the creation, administration, staff functioning, and operational activities of the Alaskan Sector, 13th Naval District; the Northwest Sea Frontier; the North Pacific Force and Area; the 17th Naval District; and the Alaskan Sea Frontier. Other topics include the development of war plans for the defense of Alaska, the attacks on Attu and Kiska, and for a proposed invasion of the Kurile Islands; the relationships between Army and Navy commands in Alaska; the construction, logistic support, and operation of naval air stations, surface patrol bases, and aerological stations at such locations as Sitka, Kodiak, Dutch Harbor, Adak, Juneau, Seward, Amchitka, and Port Armstrong; the joint operation against the Japanese occupation forces on Attu and Kiska; and the Japanese air attack on Dutch Harbor.

    The text is well footnoted and contains photographs of installations, flow charts, and tables showing the composition of forces.

     

  20. Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet, "Administrative History of the ComMarGils Area," 6 vols. 1946. 1,835 pp., chronology, appendix.

    Comprising five narrative parts and one appendix section, this voluminous work thoroughly details the wartime administrative history of naval forces in the Marshall and Gilbert islands. The Marshalls-Gilberts Area command was established in October 1944.

    Part I contains a description of the geography and early history of the area. It also provides an operational summary of the Gilberts Campaign of 1943, focusing on the landings and naval air actions, and the Marshall Campaign in early 1944, including individual treatment of the attacks on Majuro, Roi-Namur, Kwajalein, and Eniwetok. The following sections deal in depth with the organizational evolution of Commander Marshalls-Gilberts Area (Commander Task Force 96) and the Navy's management of civil affairs. ,p. The second part explores the varied activities and functions of four major subordinate organizations within Task Force 96--the Shore Based Air Force, the Defense and Service Force, the Patrol and Escort Group, and the Utility Group.

    Part III concentrates on the role of the headquarters staff, including the responsibilities and procedures of each subdivision. The administration, personnel, operations, logistics, communications, construction, medical, military government, and aviation material sections are covered.

    Part IV of the text discusses the separate island and atoll commands, summarizing their activities in base development, headquarters organization, port operation, air and shore defense, military government, personnel administration, training, joint operations, logistics, and postwar planning. The physical characteristics of each of the atolls treated, as well as the makeup of their populations, are described briefly.

    The final part details the workings of each of the subordinate entities within the island and atoll commands, including their personnel, medical, communications, intelligence, chaplain, supply, ordnance, aerological, maintenance, and legal sections. The functioning of attached Army engineer, communication, port and service, weather station, and air transport command units, as well as Coast Guard and Marine organizations, is explored.

    The appendix volume contains numerous letters, instructions, directives, studies, unit composition tables, operation orders and plans, maps, site plans, and photographs relating to all facets of Commander Marshalls-Gilberts Area activities.

    Flow charts, maps, rosters, hydrographic charts, a chronology, and photographs of facilities, personnel, and enemy fortifications also accompany the text.

    Lieutenant Hollice E. Stevenson, USNR, and Lieutenant (junior grade) Ralph D. Spencer, USNR, are identified as two of the authors of the history.

     

  21. Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet, "Administrative History of the Forward Area, Central Pacific and the Marianas Area," 1946. 194 pp., appendices, index.

    Established in February 1944, Commander Forward Area, Central Pacific became Commander Marianas Area in June 1945 and retained that title for the remainder of the war. This narrative discusses the command's activities in administering the Gilbert, Marshall, and Mariana Island groups, as well as the Iwo Jima and the Ellice Island areas.

    The text is divided both topically and according to command structure. Subjects covered include the area's geographical and climatological character, the development of the headquarters staff, measures taken to defend the islands, the conduct of offensive operations, and the utilization of aircraft for air-sea rescue, transportation, and logistic support. In the organizational section, the narrative treats the sections within the command which dealt with base development, military government, shipping control, gunnery, supply, postal affairs, surface operations, air operations, and public information, as well as the individual atoll and island commands.

    The appendices comprise biographies of commanding officers, general descriptions of several major islands, extensive correspondence, charts, operation plans and orders, rosters, maps, flow charts, and photographs of personnel and naval facilities.

     

  22. Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet, "Commander US Naval Forces, Southwest Pacific," n.d. 210 pp., appendix.

    This history of the wartime administration of U.S. Naval Forces in the Southwest Pacific is arranged topically.

    American naval forces in the area initially were assigned to the American, British, Dutch, Australian Area (ABDA) command, and then to the Australia-New Zealand Area (ANZAC) command. In April 1942, they came under General Douglas MacArthur, who served as Commander in Chief, Southwest Pacific Area. In February 1943, naval forces in the area were designated the Seventh Fleet.

    Much of the text is devoted to a discussion of Navy interaction with Allied and Army commanders and forces in these various organizations. Particular treatment is given to combined and joint activity in amphibious, air, and logistic matters. The narrative also details the history of naval commands in the theater, the organizational evolution of the headquarters staff, and the development of such subordinate administrative commands as the Southwest Pacific Sea Frontier and the Philippine Sea Frontier.

    Other topics separately dealt with include the testing and standardization of amphibious landing techniques, the conduct of amphibious warfare, the use of submarines to support guerrilla actions in the Philippines, and the functioning of the naval intelligence center.

    The appendix consists of selected messages and correspondence.

     

    Sea Frontiers and Operating Bases

     

  23. Commander Caribbean Sea Frontier, "Administrative History of the Caribbean Sea Frontier to VE-Day/VJ-Day," 1945. 44 pp., appendices, bibliography.

    This history traces the development of the Caribbean Sea Frontier which evolved form the Tenth Naval District and the Caribbean naval Coastal Frontier commands. The narrative is divided chronologically, but each section contains topical subheadings.

    The subjects treated include the organizational development of the command and its subordinate sectors--Puerto Rico, Trinidad, Guantanamo, and Aruba-Curaçao; relationships with the British, Dutch, and French Allies in regard to the disposition of their Caribbean possessions; measures taken to improve operations with Army and Coast Guard forces; the establishment of air and surface bases in Cuba, the French Antilles, the British West Indies, and the Netherlands West Indies; and the conduct of the command's major function, the war against German U-boats.

    The narrative contains maps indicating boundaries with other American and Allied commands and tables depicting merchant ship losses.

    Appended to the text are a bibliography, a chronicle of Tenth Naval District activities, descriptions of wartime activities on Antigua, British West Indies, and a table showing the number and type of ships and craft assigned to the Caribbean Sea command from December 1941 to July 1945.

     

  24. Commander Eastern Sea Frontier, "History of the Eastern Sea Frontier (Organizational and Operational)," New york, New York. 67 pp.

    This brief account summarizes the activities of the primary naval command responsible for the defense of the East Coast of the United States and for the protection of shipping in the area's coastal waters. The Commandant of the Third Naval District served as the Sea Frontier's commander.

    The history traces the evolution of this command from 1940, at which time it was known as the North Atlantic Naval Coastal Frontier, through the end of the war. Details on the frontier's relationships with naval districts and with Army commands in the area are included. The balance of the account concentrates on the organization, employment, and doctrine of the naval surface and air forces assigned to the command.

     

  25. Commander Gulf Sea Frontier, "History of the Gulf Sea Frontier, 6 February 1942 - 14 August 1945," Miami, Florida, 1946. 337 pp., chronology, appendices.

    Established in early 1942, the command's primary role was antisubmarine warfare. This history provides a chronological account of the fight against the German U-boats in the Gulf of Mexico, including a detailed rendition of events and significant operational decisions.

    The text also treats separately several topics of importance, among them the organizational development of the sea frontier and its two major subordinate commands, the Seventh and Eight Naval Districts; the functioning and structure of the sea frontier staff; the control and routing of shipping; the construction of advanced bases in Cuba and the British West Indies; the establishment of a tactical Radio Direction Finder net; development of the subordinate Coast Guard Anti-Submarine Flotilla; naval relations with Cuba; communications; personnel matters; and planning for the postwar defense of the Gulf.

    The Appendices consist of a list of Allied ships sunk, with date, place, and time of loss indicated; a narrative description of facilities consolidation and reduction measures taken in the latter part of the war; a list of successful attacks on German submarines, also with date, time, and place indicated; a table showing the composition of Gulf Sea Frontier task forces; and a summary of achievements by the Operations Resarech Group, a body of civilian technical and scientific advisors. Both the text and the appendix section contain flow charts, maps, hydrographic charts, tables, graphs, and pertinent directives.

    The author of this history was Lieutenant Jack A. Reynolds, USNR.

     

  26. Commander Western Sea Frontier, "Administrative History of Western Sea Frontier during World War II," 7 vols. San Francisco, California, 1946. 898 pp., appendices, list of abbreviations.

    Responsible for the sea defense of the Pacific coast of the United States and Mexico, the Western Sea Frontier was comprised of many forces and commands, including the Eleventh, Twelfth, and Thirteenth Naval Districts. The text of this history is divided into two general categories: operations against the enemy in coastal waters and direction of the West Coast logistic effort in support of the Pacific operating forces. In each major part the narrative treats the functions of the staff sections within the Commander Western Sea Frontier headquarters.

    Part I contains an introductory description of the origins and establishment of the command. It then turns to discussions of the composition of surface and air units, the organization of coastal sectors, and the work of the Operations, Planning, Intelligence, Communications, Air Office, and Shipping Control sections of the operational staff.

    Part II traces the wartime evolution of the administrative command structure developed for the control of logistic activities. Such aspects as the procurement and disposition of resources, industrial relations, ship maintenance, Fleet base and advanced base development, air and surface transportation and supply, personnel distribution, public relations, aerology, and convoy routing and defense are covered.

    The text of the two narrative volumes contains maps, organization charts, and diagrams.

    The five appendix volumes consist of pertinent letters, memoranda, manuals, orders, operation plans, rosters, reports, instructions, conference minutes, unit histories, and statistical analyses.

    The author of the work was Lieutenant Commander Philip S. Klein, USNR.

     

  27. Commander Caribbean Sea Frontier, "Aruba-Curaçao Command Headquarters, Commander All Forces (Caribbean Sea Frontier)," Willemstad, Netherlands West Indies, 1945. 57 pp., bibliography, appendices.

    Established in early 1942 to defend the oil refineries and storage facilities of the Netherlands West Indies and to expedite the flow of petroleum products to Allied forces, Commander All Forces, Aruba-Curaçao, continued to function in this capacity for the remainder of the war. The history recounts this unique naval command's activities in directing the efforts of American, British, and Dutch naval, air, and land units. Because of the international and joint service composition of the command, much emphasis is given to relationships with these entities. Dealings with civilian authorities on the islands also are discussed. Among other topics treated are the development of the organization's structure, the strategic value of Aruba and Curaçao, and the construction of naval facilities. Also described is naval supervision and control of fuel supply, including the loading, discharging, repair, and armed guard support of tankers, as well as the formation, routing, escort protection, and harbor security of convoys.

    The text contains aerial photographs of facilities, fuel distribution charts, and maps.

    The appendix documents consist of orders, letters, statistical charts, memoranda, regulations, maps, and ocean charts.

    The authors of this work were Lieutenant Commanders Robert H. Connery, USNR, and Marion V. Brewington, USNR.

     

  28. Commander Caribbean Sea Frontier, "The Guantanamo Sector, Caribbean Sea Frontier and the US Naval Operating Base, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba," 2 vols. 1945. 458 pp., appendices, bibliography, list of abbreviations.

    The narrative volume provides a detailed description of the Navy's wartime activities in Cuba, Jamaica, Haiti, and contiguous waters. Charged with directing the operations of all undersea, surface, and air forces assigned to the command and with formuatling operational policy, Commander Guantanamo Sector additionally served as Commander Naval Operating Base in administering the shore establishment. The latter consisted of the Naval Station, Naval Air Station, Net Depot, and Marine Corps Base at Guantanamo.

    Arranged according to organizational structure, the text treats separately the subordinate entities within the dual command, which handled such varied functions as shipping control, intelligence collection and analysis, liaison with other services and foreign governments, communications, base defense, port security, base and facilities construction, training, ship repair, medical support, surplus materials disposition, and the many facets of logistic support. Particular attention is devoted to the administration of naval air, inshore patrol, and convoy escort forces.

    The appendix volume contains ocean charts, maps, flow charts, statistical tables, graphs, memoranda, letters, reports, and photographs representing installations, training operations, harbor defenses, and naval personnel.

     

  29. Commander Caribbean Sea Frontier, "An Administrative History of the US Naval Operating Base Trinidad, BWI and the Trinidad Sector of the Caribbean Sea Frontier, 7 December 1941 to August 1945," 195 pp., chronology, appendices.

    The text of this history details the wartime administration of the dual command, based in Trinidad, British West Indies, whose primary responsibility was antisubmarine warfare. The narrative is divided into four distinct parts.

    Part I relates the establishment of the Trinidad Sector, its assigned duties, organization, and position in the command structure with respect to the Caribbean Sea Frontier and the Tenth Naval District. Also discussed are relationships with the Army and with British air, ground, and naval forces in planning for defense of the operational area.

    Part II comprises a chronology of significant events occurring between February 1941 and August 1945.

    The Naval Base at Trinidad is the subject of Part III. THis part includes a description of the island's topography and people, the development of the naval installation, and the functioning of subordinate departments concerned with personnel, harbor defense, shakedown training, communications, intelligence, supply, and medical matters.

    The final section covers the Navy's joint use of Army air bases and the activities of outlying installations, including those in Trinidad Island, British Guiana, Saint Lucia Island (also a British possession), and Surinam (Dutch).

    Both the text and the appendix section contain hydrographic charts, maps, site plans, reports, letters, minutes of meetings, orders, plans, tables, and photographs of key naval personnel, base and port facilities, harbor defenses, living quarters, and airfields.

    The authors of this work were Lieutenant Commanders Robert F. Millett, USNR, and Kenneth S. Wales, USNR.

     

  30. Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, "Commandant NOB Bermuda," Vol. V. Bermuda, 1946. 84 pp., chronology, appendices.

    The American military presence in Bermuda, beginning in 1941 and continuing through the war, ex examined in this history. The narrative deals at length with such subjects as the extensive diplomatic activity between American and British forces on the island; the construction of air, land, and sea facilities and the dredging of a deep-draft channel; the relationships among the various naval commands in Bermuda and other Allied armed forces; the organizational development and composition of the Naval Operating Base, Bermuda; the training and other logistic-type services provided the atlantic Fleet; and dealings with the civilian labor force on Bermuda.

    The text contains many aerial photographs of naval installations, key personnel, and training operations, as well as several maps and charts of the island.

    The appendices consist of a listing by project number of facilities constructed, with their completion dates; the base agreement authorizing the stationing of U.S. forces in Bermuda; a compilation of submarine sightings and antisubmarine measures taken; a list of key Allied military and civilian personnel; and a short chronology representing major wartime events concerning the island.

     

  31. Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, "Naval Operating Base, Iceland," Vol. IV. Reykjavik, Iceland. 1946. 107 pp.

    The wartime history of Naval Operating Base, Iceland is described in detail in this narrative summary. Particular emphasis is given to the military and political circumstances surrounding the establishment of American bases on the island and the occupation by U.S. armed forces. The influence of Iceland on United States' war plans also is discussed.

    The construction or enlargement of facilities, such as the air base, tank farm, salvage depot, ammunition depot, billets, warehouses, and defensive works, needed to support the operating forces, is accorded attention. The text thoroughly treats the subject of Army-Navy, inter-Allied, and Allied-Iceland cooperation in the functioning of the naval operating base. Further, the development of command relationships and organizational procedures within this naval command are detailed.

    The text is fully footnoted and contains several relevant documentary extracts as well as numerous aerial photographs depicting facilities at coastal and inland naval installations.

     

  32. Commandant Eleventh Naval District, "Administrative History of the Naval Operating Base, Terminal Island (San Pedro), California," San Pedro, California, 1946. 635 pp.

    Divided into seven chapters, the history of the naval operating base at Terminal Island comprehensively treats the command's wartime administrative activities.

    Chapter I relates the origins and organizational development of the base command and the headquarters staff from June 1940 to the end of the war. The text deals with such matters as staff reorganizations, position title changes, and relationships with subordinate offices.

    In Chapter II, the narrative discusses separately the staff branches responsible for operations, liaison with the forces afloat, ship commissioning, legal affairs, fire protection, training and education, historical matters, public relations, and damage control.

    The third section describes the work of subordinate activities, including the Small Craft Training Center, the Naval Personnel Center, the Naval Drydocks, the Naval Receiving Station and Disciplinary Barracks, the Naval Fuel Annex, the Target Repair Base, the Naval Net Depot, the Naval Firefighters School, and the Wartime Merchant Ship Communications School, all of which were located at San Pedro, California; naval activities at Port Hueneme, California; the naval Fuel Annex at Elk Hills, California; the aviation facilities at Litchfield Park, Arizona, and Terminal Island and Los Alamitos, California; and the medical activities at Long Beach, San Pedro, and Corona, California.

    Chapters IV through VII cover the subjects of security and local defense, transportation, housing, and civilian personnel, respectively.

    Listing of sources used in writing this history follow each chapter.

    The author of htis account was Lieutenant Commander Hubert B. rouse, USNR.

     

    Topical Histories

     

  33. Commander Submarine Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, "Submarine Commands," Vols. I-II. 1946. 672 pp.

    Due to the interdependence of the three major submarine commands of World War II, the authors of this account combined their administrative histories into a single narrative. The project was under the overall direction of Captain Richard G. Voge, USN, who also prepared sections relating to the Submarine Force, Pacific Fleet. Lieutenant Commander Donald S. Graham, USN and Commander William H. Hazzard, USN, respectively, prepared the materials relating to Submarines, Atlantic Fleet and Submarines, Southwest Pacific.

    Volume I begins with separate discussions of the administration of Submarines, Atlantic Fleet; Submarine Force, Pacific Fleet; and Submarines, Southwest Pacific. Separate topical chapters then relate the experiences of all these commands in the areas of selecting and training submarine personnel; medical, health, and morale programs; awards and citations; and submarine publicity.

    Volume II continues to provide topical coverage. These subjects include discussions of the development of submarine types and equipment, research and development and operations research, communications, submarine construction at specific naval and private yards, transfers of submarines to Great Britain, maintenance, and logistics. The narrative concludes with sections describing twenty-two separate bases used by American submarines throughout the world. These facilities ranged from major activities such as New London, Connecticut and Pearl Harbor, to more minor bases such as Dutch Harbor, Alaska and Surabaya, Java.

    Reference is made to a volume containing documentary annexes to the history. However, an appendix volume has not been located.

     

  34. Office of Naval History, "An Administrative History of PT's in World War II," Washington, 1946. 222 pp., appendices.

    In addition to describing the Navy's motor torpedo boat program, the authors of this history evaluate the difficulties confronted and offer "alternate suggestions which would be helpful in the event that it was again necessary to set up a special program."

    The history initially discusses the development and testing of motor torpedo boats in the United States during the prewar and early World War II years. It then turns to a discussion of the Motor Torpedo Boat Squadrons Training Center at Melville, Rhode Island, which was responsible for instructing PT officers and men; the PT Shakedown Detail in Miami, Florida; and the PT Commissioning Details in the New York and New Orleans areas. A chapter follows describing the acitivites of the U.S. Naval Station, Taboga, Panama, which overhauled PT boats and provided operational training for their crews. The history concludes with an account of the development and use of MTB tender ships.

    Appendices include details on the PT building program, personnel distribution, and operational losses.

    The authors of htis history were Frank A. Tredinnick, Jr., and Harrison L. Bennett.

     

  35. Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, "Arming of Merchant Ships and Naval Armed Guard Service." Washington, 1946. 282 pp., appendices.

    This study focuses on the Armed Guard Program, through which guns and gun crews were placed on board merchant ships as protection against enemy attack. The narrative begins with a brief description of the administrative machinery and the problems involved in the operation of the program. The following two chapters discuss in detail the selection, training, and assignment of officer and enlisted personnel, and the effort to arm and equip merchant ships for defense against air, surface, and submarine attack. In a short epilogue, the process of disarming merchant ships is reviewed. A series of eleven appendices includes statistical tables, charts, and graphs.

     

  36. Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, "History of the Naval Armed Guard Afloat, World War II." Washington. 1946. 253 pp.

    Originally written to accompany the preceding volume as an operational history of the Armed Guard Service, this manuscript covers all theaters of war from North Russia to the Indian ocean. Representative engagements in which the Armed Guard participated are detailed. According to the author, Lieutenant (junior grade) William C. Askew, USNR, the study utilized the complete files of the Armed Guard Service. Included with the manuscript is an extensive commentary by Lieutenant Francis L. Berkeley, Jr., USNR, who reviewed the work in 1949.


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