United States Naval Academy - Lucky Bag Yearbook (Annapolis, MD)

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YOUNG ACADEMY BEGINS SOCIAL LIFE fViUiam Chauvenet and Professor Henry H. Lockwood— had notable records at the Naval Asylum. Lockwood a graduate of West Pointy became instructor of natural phi- losophy. His all-round experience in previous years paid rich dividends when he was placed in charge of infantry and artillery drills. Lieutenant Ward was appointed execu- tive officer and instructor in steam and gunnery. Ward Hall owes its name to this pioneering gentleman. It took a man of great ability to keep the Academy from being tossed around the halls of Congress until it no longer resembled the plans of its origina- tors. In the matter of funds, Bancroft side-stepped Congress. He had at his disposal twenty-eight thousand dollars which had been ear-marked for instruction. By putting most of the school ' s professors on waiting orders, he was able to use the money appro- priated for the new institution. ON AUGUST 15, 1845, Fort Severn a nine acre neck of land called Windmill Pointy was transferred from the War Department to the Navy. During the morning of October 10, 1845, Commander Buchanan assembled the officers, professors, and midshipmen in one of the recitation rooms and read to them the official letter from the Secretary of the Navy authorizing the opening of the school. After a short address he declared the school open and ready to receive its first class. Midshipmen of 1845 found no spacious Bancroft Hall in which to reside; instead they occupied several small buildings that were scattered about the yard. Brandywine Cottage housed those midshipmen who had come from the frigate Brandywine. Apollo Row derived its title from the god of the same name — the personification of manly strength and beauty. Rowdy Row needs no explanation; the Gas House received its nickname from the unrestrained garrulity of its inmates. The Abbey occupied a rather secluded spot along the northwest wall of the Academy. As might be surmised from the name, the midshipmen of the Abbey led exemplary lives; no disturbances were created, lights went out at the proper time, and everything seemed regulation. One night, how- ever, the Officer of the Day entered the Abbey only to find it deserted. Instead of slum- bering midshipmen, he found an intriguing tunnel that led underneath the wall and out into the city of Annapolis. So fell the Abbey, and the next day Rowdy Row welcomed its erstwhile dwellers with open arms to cooperative wickedness. !k Com- mander Buchanan lost no time in putting the school in running order. Midshipmen were formed into two classes: the junior class, nicknamed Youngsters, included those who had been admitted but had not been to sea, and the senior class, the so called Oldsters, who had but one year to go before their final examinations. The studies were hard and not a few succumbed. Cyrus H. Oakley of New York claims the dubious honor of being the first midshipman returned to his friends, or in the vernacular, bilged. He lasted three short days, from October 10 to 13. IN JANUARY 1846, the first naval ball was held in the Lyceum above the mess- hall. Liberty was granted every evening from four o ' clock to ten, but that was too tame for the midshipmen and especially for the Spirit ' s Club, led by their Grand- Master, Edward Simpson. The members selected some spot where the punch and oysters were especially good and duly chanted their Song of the Spirits. On their return to the

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4NE hundred years ago the chances for the establishment and survival of a Naval Academy were relegated almost entirely to the realm of mere f ossibility. Many there were indeed who favored the new undertaking, but many more there seemed to be who discredited any attempt designed to produce sea-going ' officers in shore-based schools. The chief objection brought forth by this latter group was at the time a purely natural one — we didn ' t need a new school. All our officers were produced at sea; this period was the Golden Age of our naval history. With such fine examples as Decatur Perryy and Macdonough — all products of shipboard education — it is not hard to realize that the forces opposing the establish- ment of a naval school comprised a large and influential group. This bloc was known as the Old Navy. i But the pendulum was swinging. Steam began to replace sail, and instruction in steam engineering became an important consideration. The fleet provided no opportunities for the midshipmen to learn about this new imple- ment, and the necessity for shore-based schools soon became apparent, even to the die- hard captains of the Old Navy. By 1833, schools for instruction of midshipmen had been established at Navy yards in New York, Boston, and Norfolk. But these schools did not train officers; they merely prepared midshipmen for their examinations for promotions, and attendance was voluntary. The more progressive elements in the Navy won the first round in their fight for a permanent officers ' training school in 1838, when a school was established at the Naval Asylum in Philadelphia. Midshipmen on shore duty were ordered to the school for instruction in mathematics and navigation. For four years the school plodded along. Then in 1842, one Professor fVilliam Chauvenety young, energetic, and full of ideas, arranged new and more thorough courses in mathematics and attempted to give the newly founded school a truer orientation by changing it from a cram school into a realistic institution for professional naval education. Although he was a few years ahead of the times, his ideas eventually reached fruition when the Naval Academy was established at Annapolis. IF WE CAN SINGLE OUT one man who contributed the most material assistance in establishing the Naval Academy, that man is George Bancroft, Secretary of the Navy from 1845 to 1847. He conciliated the older elements of the Navy, allowed the younger board a free expression of their ideas, pulled a few strings of his own, and finally re- ceived the approval of all factions in the Navy for the establishment of the new school. He understood the position the Old Navy held regarding the training of land- lubbers, so the original plans provided that only midshipmen on shore duty would be accepted for instruction. Bancroft displayed a shrewd sense of evalua- tion in selecting as instructors those men who he knew would promote the ideas of the new undertaking. He named Commander Franklin Buchanan, an educated and efficient officer as well as a stern disciplinarian, to the post of Superintendent. To assist Buchanan, eight men were selected, three of whom— Lieutenant James Ward, Professor

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-ix- grounds they would frequently confiscate all the oil lamps on the city lamp-posts and pile them up in front of the Academy gate. They organized a theatrical group which presented its talent at one of the disused city theaters. The quality of the productions was such that the civilian populace had the playhouse demolished and erected a church on the premise. Thus was founded the Presbyterian Church on Duke of Gloucester Street. The same Edward Simpson, later Rear Admiral, concludes therefrom that the Academy was an instrumentality for the wholesome spread of religious influences in the life of the community, and shall be commended for its contribution. % ATTENDANCE OF MIDSHIPMEN at the Academy was irregular because only those on shore duty could be sent for instruction. Consequently some men came up for their final examinations with only six months of preparation. The schedule origi- nally called for a five year course, the first and last years to be spent at the Academy, while the intervening three years were to be at sea. Failure in seamanship or navigation automatically rejected a midshipman; deficiency in other subjects was often permitted; however, a failure for two successive years constituted grounds for dismissal. Any midshipman who had contracted a debt he could not pay was considered to have failed. At that time the yearly pay was $350, so debts were quite customary. The difficulties the instructors met in trying to teach the young midshipmen are j)erhaps most clearly illustrated by the following incident which occurred during the annual examinations. Professor Girault with great patience had prepared one Midshipman Nelson, so that he could speak something resembling French. Nelson, however, was well aware that he could do nothing of the kind, so he memorized a series of stock phrases out of the grammer. In due season, with a half a dozen commodores present, Girault began the conversation in French: Mr. Nelson, which is your native state? Thank you, I am very well, replied Nelson, enunciating one of his memorized phrases and not understanding a word of the query. Girault glared at him and continued. What course have you just finished? I am twenty-four years of age, replied Nelson in naive rejoinder not changing a muscle of his countenance. When the conversation had reached an impasse. Commodore Matthew C. Perry, who