U.S.S. OKLAHOMA SCRAPBOOK "THE DITTY BOOK OF A SHELLBACK" 1937-1940

LISHING, John [Georges Duplaix]

Published by The Educational Press, New York, 1940

About this Item

8 1?2" X 11 1?4", Original khaki cloth; full cover-sized illustrated metallic gold and navy paper label. Leaves are heavy paper in a grey/green tone. 434 original photographs and 17 commercially produced photographic postcards. Photographs in a range of sizes from 6 1?2"x 5" to 2"x 2". The album contains several blank pages and empty photo-corners. This unique personal scrapbook chronicles the crew and ports-of-call for the U.S.S. OKLAHOMA (1937-1940) during the time that John Lishing served on the ship (prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor). The album includes many different views of the ship itself as well as candid photos of fellow crewmen and life aboard a naval battleship. Many of the photographs are notated with place names and dates. Also included in this scrapbook are two of Lishing s naval training certificates awarding him the rank of Fireman Second Class (signed by commander Hartigan) and Fireman First Class (signed by commander Lofquist). The USS Oklahoma was based at Pearl Harbor, Honolulu, Hawaii. Ports of call include: England, France, Spain, Sweden, Hong Kong, China, the Philippines, Panama and the Panama Canal; as well as U.S. ports of Pasadena, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. This unique scrapbook is titled: "The Ditty Book of a Shellback; The Log, Diary, Snap- shots and Chart of Adventures on the Seven Seas," published in 1935 by The Educational Press, NYC; it was a commercially available scrapbook marketed to U.S. sailors. It was illustrated by Georges Duplaix, the well-known children s book illustrator. The "shellback certificate" has a long tradition in maritime culture. Sailors who have already crossed the Equator are nicknamed "Shellbacks" or "Sons of Neptune;" those who have not crossed are nicknamed "Pollywogs." The U.S. Navy has well-established "line-crossing" rituals. Being a Shellback is a point of pride and honor among sailors. This scrapbook would have been presented to Fireman Third Class, John Lishing in honor of his line-crossing. The title page is illustrated in full color with a place for the owner s name as a "by-line." The name "John Lishing" is hand-written. The front endpapers are richly colored and illustrated in the tradition of shellback certificates showing a map of the world with extravagantly detailed and fanciful nautical scenes of the happy sailor encountering mermaids and other sea creatures; with the four winds and the signs of the zodiac on the boarder. John Lishing attained the rank of Fireman First Class during his service on the OKLAHOMA and was transferred off the ship in October of 1940. He served on multiple submarines as a Chief Motor Machinist's Mate for the remainder of WW2. Lishing served in the United States Navy until his military retirement in 1958. John Lishing died May 30, 1990. On the morning of December 7, 1941, the Oklahoma received the brunt of the initial Japanese attacks. Except for the USS Arizona, the Oklahoma suffered the most casualties that day, having lost 429 crewman.

Seller Inventory # 35791

Bibliographic Details

• Title: U.S.S. OKLAHOMA SCRAPBOOK "THE DITTY BOOK OF A SHELLBACK" 1937-1940
• Publisher: The Educational Press, New York
• Publication Date: 1940
• Binding: Hardcover
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)