A Rocky Mountain Sailor in Teddy Roosevelt's Navy The Letters of Petty Officer Charles Fowler from the Asiatic Station 1905-1910

An avid reader of naval history since my father's service in World War II, I had been struck by the marked contrast between the touching personal depictions of WW II photo-journalism and the dearth of portrayals of sailors as persons, not just undefined elements of crews. Frederick Harrod would observe, "Enlisted personnel are the forgotten men of naval history." 1 As a youngster I witnessed the first two years of World War II by hanging around recruits at the Naval Training Station, San Diego, California. While commissioned a line officer, my father proved too old for front line duty, so he was assigned to the legal staff as station deputy Provost Marshall, a position suited to his civilian profession of lawyer and US commissioner for Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties, California.

Preface -- Introduction -- Appears the Missing Sailor -- The Recruit -- Asiatic Squadron - China: USS Oregon and Monadnock -- The Philippines: Manila Bay -- Subic Bay: Seaman to Petty Officer -- Fruits of Labors: Petty Officer to Warrant Officer -- Back to Sea: USS Chattanooga -- Settling Accounts at Olongapo: USS Mohican -- Homeward Bound: USS Denver -- Epilogue

Rodney G. Tomlinson