Guide To United States Naval Administrative Histories Of World War Ii

Reproduces 175 numbered histories, bound in approximately 300 volumes, which provide insight into the administration of the naval establishment and the roles it played in contributing to victory during World War II.

This is a finding aid for US Naval Administrative Histories of World War II which are located in the Navy Department Library's Rare Book Room. These unpublished histories record experiences and provide insights into policies, decisions, implementing actions, and accomplishments of the United States Navy. The collection is comprised of 175 numbered histories, bound in approximately 300 volumes. It includes narrative histories dealing with virtually every aspect of the administration of the naval establishment and the roles it played in contributing to victory during World War II. Some of the volumes also contain brief coverage of the pre-war beginnings and early histories of organizations and activities. The amount of information in these studies varies; some are extremely detailed, while others are more cursory in nature. It includes administrative histories of Office of the Secretary of the Navy, Commander in Chief, U.S. Fleet, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Office of the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations, Air, Office of the Commandant, U.S. Marine Corps, Bureau of Aeronautics, Bureau of Medicine and Surgery, Bureau of Ordnance, Bureau of Naval Personnel, Bureau of Ships, Bureau of Supplies and Accounts Bureau of Yards and Docks, Naval Districts, Chief of Naval Operations Activities, Bureau of Ordnance Activities, Bureau of Supplies and Accounts and Other Activities, Atlantic, Pacific, Sea frontiers and operating bases, Topical histories.

During the six months covered by Volume 5: The Struggle for Guadalcanal, August 1942-February 1943, the U.S. Navy fought six major engagements in waters surrounding Guadalcanal, more bitter and bloody than any naval battle in American history since 1814. From the Solomon Islands campaigns to the courageous action of Edson's Raiders at the Battle of the Bloody Ridge, from the great three-day Naval Battle of Guadalcanal to the Battle of Tassafaronga, Morison describes the events of these excruciating months in thrilling, heartbreaking detail from the shipdecks, cockpits, and exposed ridge-tops where the fate of thousands of soldiers and sailors was decided.

"This final narrative volume of Morison's history recounts the infamous campaigns for Iwo Jima and Okinawa, two of the most bitterly contested campaigns of the war.When the U.S. Marines landed on Iwo Jima, they expected to secure it within a few days. No one had anticipated Japan's determination to defend the island to the last man. Morison describes the Japanese defense system of camouflaged rifle pits and fortified gunning positions that held the Allies at bay and the heavy and continuous cover of naval gunfire that prevented even greater losses. As it was, the securing of Iwo Jima cost the United States more casualties than had been incurred in taking any other island in the Pacific. On Okinawa, the conflict stretched over six long, bloody months.As land forces struggled for every inch they took on the islands, the U.S. Navy faced the desperate fury of the kamimaze corps and its harvest of flaming terror: explosions, burning and flooded ships, searing injuries and death. Fierce weather, logistical complexities, Japanese submarines, and the unexpected death of President Roosevelt also took their toll. Morison concludes his epic account with the final skirmishes of the war, the fateful decision to drop the atomic bomb, and the delicate negotiations leading to Japanese surrender."