Camp Robert Smalls
Encyclopedia
Camp Robert Smalls was a United States Naval
training facility, created pursuant to an order signed April 21, 1942 by Frank Knox
, then Secretary of the Navy
, for the purpose of training Negro
seamen at a time when the USN was still segregated by race
.
The camp was located inside the Great Lakes Naval Training Center in Illinois
and named for Robert Smalls
, a black naval hero of the American Civil War
. The camp's first commander was Lt. Comdr. Daniel Armstrong, whose father had founded the Hampton Institute and had "brought him up to understand race problems." The Navy began enlisting Negro seamen on June 1, 1942, and the first class of 277 enlistees began training at Camp Robert Smalls later that month. Of that class, 222 completed the training successfully on September 3, 1942. 102 of those graduates were chosen to continue with specialized training, and the rest of the class was assigned to routine duties.
The first classes of men to be trained at the camp had "no hope of being commissioned." However, the Navy began training officer candidates at Camp Robert Smalls towards the end of 1943.
Robert Smalls's great-grandson, Edward Estes Davidson, trained at Camp Robert Smalls, as did Owen Dodson
,, Larry Doby
, and Clark Terry
.
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
training facility, created pursuant to an order signed April 21, 1942 by Frank Knox
Frank Knox
-External links:...
, then Secretary of the Navy
United States Secretary of the Navy
The Secretary of the Navy of the United States of America is the head of the Department of the Navy, a component organization of the Department of Defense...
, for the purpose of training Negro
Negro
The word Negro is used in the English-speaking world to refer to a person of black ancestry or appearance, whether of African descent or not...
seamen at a time when the USN was still segregated by race
Racial segregation in the United States
Racial segregation in the United States, as a general term, included the racial segregation or hypersegregation of facilities, services, and opportunities such as housing, medical care, education, employment, and transportation along racial lines...
.
The camp was located inside the Great Lakes Naval Training Center in Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
and named for Robert Smalls
Robert Smalls
Robert Smalls was an enslaved African American who, during and after the American Civil War, became a ship's pilot, sea captain, and politician. He freed himself and his family from slavery on May 13, 1862, by commandeering a Confederate transport ship, the Planter, to freedom in Charleston harbor...
, a black naval hero of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. The camp's first commander was Lt. Comdr. Daniel Armstrong, whose father had founded the Hampton Institute and had "brought him up to understand race problems." The Navy began enlisting Negro seamen on June 1, 1942, and the first class of 277 enlistees began training at Camp Robert Smalls later that month. Of that class, 222 completed the training successfully on September 3, 1942. 102 of those graduates were chosen to continue with specialized training, and the rest of the class was assigned to routine duties.
The first classes of men to be trained at the camp had "no hope of being commissioned." However, the Navy began training officer candidates at Camp Robert Smalls towards the end of 1943.
Robert Smalls's great-grandson, Edward Estes Davidson, trained at Camp Robert Smalls, as did Owen Dodson
Owen Dodson
Owen Vincent Dodson was an American poet, novelist, and playwright. He was one of the leading African American poets of his time, associated with the generation of black poets following the Harlem Renaissance....
,, Larry Doby
Larry Doby
Lawrence Eugene "Larry" Doby was an American professional baseball player in the Negro leagues and Major League Baseball....
, and Clark Terry
Clark Terry
Clark Terry is an American swing and bop trumpeter, a pioneer of the fluegelhorn in jazz, educator, NEA Jazz Masters inductee, and recipient of the 2010 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award...
.