United States Naval Institute
Formation | October 9, 1873 |
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Founded at | Annapolis, Maryland |
Type | 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization |
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Headquarters | Annapolis, Maryland |
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Membership (2016) | Over 50,000 |
Key people |
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Website | www |
The United States Naval Institute (USNI) is a private non-profit military association that offers independent, nonpartisan forums for debate of national security issues. In addition to publishing magazines and books, the Naval Institute holds several annual conferences.[1] The Naval Institute is based in Annapolis, Maryland.
Established in 1873, the Naval Institute claimed "almost 50,000 members" in 2020,[2] mostly active and retired personnel of the United States Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. The organization also has members in over 90 countries.
The organization has no official or funding ties to the United States Naval Academy or the U.S. Navy, though it is based on the grounds of the Naval Academy through permission granted by a 1936 Act of Congress.
History
The U.S. Naval Institute was formed on October 9, 1873 by fifteen naval officers gathered at the U.S. Naval Academy's Department of Physics and Chemistry building in Annapolis to discuss, among other topics, the implications of a smaller post-
In 1874, the Naval Institute began to accept papers and publish the proceedings of its discussions, which were distributed to the organization's members. In 1898, the Naval Institute Press was created to publish basic naval guides.[3] The most popular of these, The Bluejacket's Manual, is on its 25th edition, and is still issued to all enlistees of the U.S. Navy.[4] The press eventually expanded to publish more general-interest titles in history, biography, and current affairs.
In 1992, the Naval Institute Foundation, Inc., was established to stabilize the organization's funding.
In 1999, the Naval Institute transferred its former headquarters, Preble Hall, to the Naval Academy, and renovated a derelict Navy hospital to serve as its new headquarters. The new building was named Beach Hall, after Captain Edward L. Beach Jr., author and Navy Cross recipient; and his father, Captain Edward L. Beach Sr., who had served as the institute's secretary-treasurer.
Publications and products
Proceedings
The Naval Institute Press was founded in 1898 and publishes about 80 books a year. Its twice-yearly catalog includes works on history, biography, professional military education, and occasional works of popular fiction, such as Tom Clancy's first novel, The Hunt for Red October and Stephen Coonts' Flight of the Intruder. Its professional titles include The Bluejacket's Manual, Naval Shiphandling, The Naval Officer's Guide, The Marine Officer’s Guide, and The Coast Guardsman’s Manual. The Naval Institute Guide to Combat Fleets of the World and The Naval Institute Guide to Ships and Aircraft of the U.S. Fleet are popular reference books with the military, the media, and maritime enthusiasts.[citation needed]
USNI News
USNI News is the Naval Institute's news service. Founded in 2012, USNI News operates from Monday to Friday and primarily focuses on defense-related topics. USNI News heavily covered the Fat Leonard scandal as it developed.[6]
Americans at War
In 2007, USNI produced Americans At War, a series of video interviews with U.S. combat veterans of conflicts dating to World War I. Former President George H. W. Bush, Senators Bob Dole, Daniel Inouye, Bob Kerrey, and others described how combat changed their lives. The series was broadcast on PBS television stations nationwide.[citation needed]
Archives
Photographs
The U.S. Naval Institute holds more than 450,000 images of people, ships and aircraft from all branches of the armed forces. The photographs date from the American Civil War to the present.
Oral histories
The U.S. Naval Institute's oral history program preserves the reminiscences of numerous American military figures, including USAAF General Jimmy Doolittle, Admirals Arleigh Burke and Chester W. Nimitz. The Naval Institute records a series of interviews covering the life story of each participant. The interviews are then transcribed, annotated, indexed, and bound. Since the inception of the program in 1969, more than 230 bound volumes have been completed, and interviews have been recorded to produce dozens more.
Jack C. Taylor Conference Center
On 30 September 2021, the U.S. Naval Institute dedicated the Jack C. Taylor Conference Center that features a 406-seat auditorium, reception spaces, an indoor/outdoor rooftop terrace, five unique meeting rooms, and a broadcast studio. The venue was named for Jack C. Taylor, a decorated World War II U.S. Navy fighter pilot and founder of Enterprise Rent-A-Car.[7]
Notable members
The institute's notable current and former members include:
- Thomas Edison, inventor and businessman[8]
- William Halsey Jr., fleet admiral
- John Lehman, former Secretary of the Navy
- John A. Lejeune, marine lieutenant general
- Alfred Thayer Mahan, naval flag officer, geostrategist, and historian
- Chester W. Nimitz, fleet admiral[8]
- Colin Powell, statesman and a retired army general
- Theodore Roosevelt, 26th U.S. president[8]
- Tom Clancy, author
See also
- Air & Space Forces Association
- Association of the United States Army
- Coast Guard Foundation
- Marine Corps Association
- Space Force Association
- Norman Polmar
References
- ^ "Mission and Vision". U.S. Naval Institute. Retrieved 2018-09-24.
- ^ "VADM Peter, H. Daly, USN (Ret.)". U.S. Naval Institute. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
- ^ a b c "History of the U.S. Naval Institute". U.S. Naval Institute. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
- ^ "The Bluejacket's Manual, 25th Edition". U.S. Naval Institute. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
- UPI. January 19, 1962.
- ^ "Paying the Price: The Hidden Cost of the 'Fat Leonard' Investigation". USNI News. 2019-01-24. Retrieved 2022-10-23.
- ^ "The U.S. Naval Institute celebrates the grand opening of the Jack C. Taylor Conference Center". U.S. Naval Institute. Retrieved 2022-10-13.
- ^ ISBN 9780738754253.