Navy Origins
On what exact date was the United States Navy founded?
October 13, 1775
Which 1942 battle is widely considered a turning point in the Pacific War?
The Battle of Midway
How many bells traditionally signal the end of a four-hour watch?
8 Bells
What was the name of the U.S. Navy's first aircraft carrier, commissioned as a carrier in 1922?
USS Langley (CV-1)
Nicknamed "Old Ironsides," this wooden frigate remains the world's oldest commissioned warship afloat.
USS Constitution
What governing body authorized the establishment of the Continental Navy?
The Continental Congress
The famous message "We have met the enemy and they are ours" followed which 1813 naval battle?
The Battle of Lake Erie
A Sailor becomes a shellback after crossing what imaginary line?
The Equator
What was the name of the world's first nuclear-powered submarine, commissioned in 1954?
USS Nautilus (SSN-571)
This battleship sank during the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, and a memorial now stands above her wreck.
USS Arizona (BB-39)
What was the original mission of the Navy's first two authorized armed vessels?
Intercept British ships carrying military supplies and ammunition.
In 1898, Commodore George Dewey defeated the Spanish fleet in which Philippine bay?
Manila Bay
What Navy slang term for gossip originally referred to a ship's drinking water cask?
Scuttlebutt
Who became the first woman to enlist in the U.S. Navy in 1917?
Loretta Perfectus Walsh
This Union ironclad fought CSS Virginia in the historic 1862 Battle of Hampton Roads.
USS Monitor
In what year did the Navy officially designate October 13 as its birthday?
1972
During the Battle of Leyte Gulf in 1944, Taffy 3 fought a much larger Japanese force in which engagement?
The Battle off Samar
What is the naval term for a traditional celebration following an officer's promotion or commissioning?
Wetting down
Who became the U.S. Navy's first designated naval aviator, earning the designation Naval Aviator No. 1?
Lt. Theodore Gordon Ellyson
Nicknamed the "Big E," this World War II aircraft carrier, hull number CV-6, earned 20 battle stars.
USS Enterprise (CV-6)
Who was appointed the first Commander in Chief of the Continental Navy in 1775?
Esek Hopkins
Which 1942 battle was the first naval engagement in history where opposing fleets fought without their ships ever sighting each other?
The Battle of the Coral Sea
What Navy tradition, often observed on Wednesdays despite its name, was a half-day off that was historically used by Sailors to sew, mend clothing, and attend to personal tasks?
Ropeyarn Sunday
Commissioned in 1961, what U.S. Navy guided-missile cruiser became the world's first nuclear-powered surface warship?
USS Long Beach (CGN-9)
Which World War II destroyer escort earned the nickname "the destroyer that fought like a battleship" during the Battle off Samar?
USS Samuel B. Roberts (DE-413)