Naval Air Station Bermuda

Came across this years ago and it was very educational. A friend of mine once spotted a sign indicating a long gone base we once had in the Caribbean. I can't recall which one (maybe St Thomas) but it definitely stopped her in her tracks because while some of the locals remember the war bases, not many Americans have a clue. This addresses a long list of bases and how they came about. Bermuda starts on page 30.

https://www.history.navy.mil/research/library/online-reading-room/title-list-alphabetically/b/building-the-navys-bases/building-the-navys-bases-vol-2.html

There is a long history of patrol squadrons hunting submarines.
https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.109306/

PictionID:44465379 - Title:Lockheed P-3A Orion 10-17-63 over Bermuda, US Navy Photo - Catalog:16_005757 - Filename:16_005757.TIF - - - - - - Image from the Ray Wagner Collection. Ray Wagner was Archivist at the San Diego Air and Space Museum for several years and is an author of several books on aviation --- ---Please Tag these images so that the information can be permanently stored with the digital file.---Repository: San Diego Air and Space Museum

Came across an interesting YT channel and of course I zeroed in on the Soviet Subs and the SOSUS network video. I wasn't NAVFAC so I can't swear to what this video conveys but some of the incidents I do remember. The only part that is hard to watch is the revelation that had the Navy's own Walker family sailors not gone to the dark side, the SOSUS would have remained a fabulous secret and burr under the Soviet saddles. They were becoming convinced we were using some kind of sorcery. Sadly the Walker brothers (Chief Warrant Officer John and Leutenant Commander Arthur) got some seriously money for explaining SOSUS to Moscow. They both died in prison.

SOSUS Operator Spotted Soviet Sub Just Moments Before Escape For decades, Soviet submarine captains believed they were invisible hunters in the deep Atlantic. But in 1978, a series of "impossible" intercepts revealed a...

This page was created for the memory of the Bermuda bases. It seemed a good way to kind of consolidate the special interests of the NAS, NAVFAC, Annex, and the CFS. Then there are the Seabees, VP squadrons, and anyone else who remembers life on base in Bermuda. For the most part, our presence was from WWII to the end of the Cold War but we actually had a US Navy logistics spot during WWI. Anyway, it is a long a proud history. The problem is that these "page" options were designed for businesses to pay for advertising and I got no interest in supporting a billionaire's lifestyle. So, if this page up and vanishes, we'll still have some groups. There are several but some were created for specific interests like the Navy folks who worked at Kindley before the chair force bugged out. Anyway, just keeping it real. Happy Veteran's Day week.

The geography of Bermuda was very different before WWII and the bases of Bermuda construction. Found this in the Naval History and Heritage Command. This I clipped from an image containing maps of South Carolina and New York City. French engraving by Desbrusting after the map of America by Mr. Popple, published in Paris about 1740.

These Bees spent a lot of time in Bermuda during the war. Some great photos of the guys at work building the base. Always a little bittersweet finding these because we know it's all gone. Anyway, was wondering if any Annex people might have the low-down on this quarters that was once the "Crane House"?

https://www.history.navy.mil/content/dam/museums/Seabee/Cruisebooks/wwiicruisebooks/cbmu-cruisebooks/540%20CBMU%201947.pdf

Our bases in Bermuda came with FDR's boats for bases negotiations at a time when congress was vehemently campaigning for isolationist policies and zero involvement in the wars raging in Europe and the Pacific. FDR knew it was only a matter of time. Of course, Bermuda played a part in the first war to end all wars.

Title: Submarine Chasers USS SC-143 hauled out for cleaning and repairs at the Bermuda Dockyard in March, 1918.
Caption: "All Hands over the side." Submarine Chasers USS SC-143 hauled out for cleaning and repairs at the Bermuda Dockyard in March, 1918.
Description: Original photograph from the collection of Mr. Peter K. Connelly. Loaned by Mr. William H. Davis, in 1967.
Catalog #: NH 64974
Copyright Owner: Naval History and Heritage Command

Don't know if the Annex folks caught this one but I just came across it. Made me smile.

Returning 50 years on, a visitor serves up a treat A pristine 50-year-old menu that made its way back to its home establishment has put Bermuda’s recent price hikes into some broader context. The escargot in parsley at the Henry VIII Restaurant in Sou...

In this one Mobile Construction Battalion 6 does training in Bermuda before heading for Cuba. (1951)

https://www.history.navy.mil/content/dam/museums/Seabee/Cruisebooks/postwwiicruisebooks/NMCB/nmcb6-cruisebooks/NMCB%206_1951.pdf

Now this is a rare find. A specific cruise book is very hard to find unless you are at the Seabee museum or on ebay. I previously posted NMCB 71's deployment summary and I know only 150 of these cruise books were printed and here is it.

https://www.history.navy.mil/content/dam/museums/Seabee/Cruisebooks/postwwiicruisebooks/NMCB/nmcb71-cruisebooks/NMCB%2071_1974-75.pdf

Loved reading this one from the Seabees 1957 arrival to Naval Station Bermuda. You gotta' read through the Eluethra part first but it is fun to read.

https://www.history.navy.mil/content/dam/museums/Seabee/Cruisebooks/postwwiicruisebooks/NMCB/nmcb4-cruisebooks/NMCB%204_1957.pdf