The Golden Thirteen: Recollections of the First Black Naval Officers (Bluejacket Paperback Series) (Bluejacket Books) - Softcover

Stillwell, Paul; Powell, Colin L.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1591148405 ISBN 13: 9781591148401

Publisher: Naval Institute Press, 2003

Synopsis

In January 1944 sixteen black enlisted men gathered at the Great Lakes Naval Training Station in Illinois to begin a cram course that would turn them into the U.S. Navy's first African-American officers on active duty. The men believed they could set back the course of racial justice if they failed and banded together so all would succeed. Despite the demanding pace, all sixteen passed the course. Twelve were commissioned as ensigns and a thirteenth was made a warrant officer. Years later these pioneers came to be known as the Golden Thirteen, but at the outset they were treated more as pariahs than pioneers. Often denied the privileges and respect routinely accorded white naval officers, they were given menial assignments unworthy of their abilities and training. Yet despite this discrimination, these inspirational young men broke new ground and opened the door for generations to come.

In 1986, oral historian Paul Stillwell began recording the memories of the eight surviving members of the Golden Thirteen. Later he interviewed three white officers who served with and supported the efforts of the men during World War II. This book collects the stories of those eleven men. Introduced by Colin L. Powell, they tell in dramatic fashion what it was like to be a black American.

About this title

About the Author:

Paul Stillwell is an independent historian and retired naval officer. He worked for thirty years at the U.S. Naval Institute as an oral historian and editor of Naval History magazine. He is the author or editor of a dozen books, including four on battleships and an award-winning volume on the Navy's first African American officers, The Golden Thirteen.

From Publishers Weekly:

In 1944, responding to pressure from Eleanor Roosevelt and Adlai Stevenson (the latter then serving as assistant to the Navy secretary), the Navy reluctantly turned 13 black enlisted men into officers--the first African American officers in the branch. Not knowing where to assign them, the Bureau of Personnel put them to work on harbor craft and supervising stevedores. Though their naval service was not in itself particularly interesting, their commissioning represented an important breakthrough, for it led to an increase in opportunities for African Americans in the armed forces. As Gen. Colin Powell remarks in the foreword, this collection of interviews with eight surviving members of the group (plus three white officers who served with them) is not so much about their years in the Navy as it is about "what it was to grow up, to make a living, to be American, to be black" in the middle years of this century. Only one of the 13 made a career of the Navy; the others, after serving honorably, returned to civilian life and became, variously, a football coach, a teacher, a dealership service-manager, a city planner, an NCAA official, a judge, a social worker, an Urban League official. Stillwell directs the oral history program at the Naval Institute. Photos.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Naval Institute Press
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 1591148405
• ISBN 13: 9781591148401
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 336