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Still Pictures Aerial Photography in Record Group 71: Records of the Bureau of Yards and Docks

 

Aerial Oblique Photographs of Naval Facilities, 1942 - 1944 (71-NS)

Shown in this series are aerial oblique photographic prints of United States naval facilities, such as airfields, hospitals, barracks and naval shipyards, in the United States, it's territories and in Cuba. Most of the facilities shown are located in Naval Districts 1 through 16, including facilities at Anacostia in Washington, D.C., Quantico, Virginia, Boston, Massachusetts, Melville, Rhode Island, New London, Connecticut, Mare Island, California, and Seattle, Washington, and Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. Photographs of facilities located in Cuba are also included. The prints in albums 1, 2, and 3 have been removed from the albums and are loose in folders.

 

Construction and Aerial Views of Naval Public Works, Facilities, and Utilities, 1941 - 1953 (71-CP)

The black and white photographs in this series were taken by the Bureau of Yards and Docks and maintained by the Engineering Aids Section, Planning and Design Division. The series is divided into four sections. The first part illustrates the Bureaus functions and programs as they relate to construction, repairs, and maintenance of U.S. Naval facilities. This part covers a wide range of subjects such as construction and completed views of quarters, administration buildings, hangars, roads, storage facilities, runways, pumping stations, quarries, cranes, heating plants, and other building types at naval bases, air stations, and other naval facilities. The second section consists of oblique vertical aerial photos of naval bases, air stations, and other types of naval facilities throughout the U.S. and its' territories. These two sections are arranged alphabetically by location. The third section consists of photographs of materials manufactured or construction done by certain companies and is arranged alphabetically by the company name. The last section is views of construction work at naval facilities, done by various construction battalion crews (Seabees) and is arranged alphabetically by "CB" unit designator. There are no negatives for this series, but a few of the prints do have a negative number on the back of the print which corresponds to negatives in 80-G. The finding aid for the series is available in the Still Pictures Research Room.

 

Photographs of the 79th Construction Battalion, Company A in Alaska, Saipan, and Okinawa, 1941 - 1947 (71-SN)

This series consists of photographs of the 79th Construction Battalion (CB) while stationed in Alaska, Saipan, and Okinawa. Photographs in Alaska include: group and individual shots of members of the battalion, including the only person identified by name, Royal L. Silva; street scenes of Kodiak; exterior and interior views of a Russian Orthodox Church in Kodiak; and scenes of the dock area in Kodiak, including an image dated 1890; a photograph of the front page of the newspaper, the Kodiak Mirror, announcing the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, and the declaration of War with Japan; views of an unidentified volcano; an image of a stuffed bear noting it was a World’s Record Kodiak bear; and views of Cape Chiniak and Mill Bay, Kodiak, Alaska.

Photographs in Saipan include: the CB camp site in Saipan; the camp chapel, church services, and a camp softball game; the remains of a sugar mill and other buildings destroyed by the war; loading of a tank landing ship (LST), the LST flotilla to Okinawa, and storage on deck aboard the LST 736 on route to Okinawa in April 1945. 

The largest group of images were made in Okinawa and include: unloading the LSTs; aerial and aerial oblique views of the CB camp at Okinawa; camp buildings and views of damage to facilities from a typhoon; construction projects; surrounding villages, shorelines; skilled and unskilled workers, and shots of individual Okinawans; ruins form the war including views of destruction in Naha, capital of Okinawa prefecture; and views of Shuri, damage to Buckner Bay from the typhoon, as well as damage to civilian and naval facilities from the typhoon.

 

Photographs of Construction of Buildings at the James River Shipyard, VA, ca. 1937 - ca. 1942 (71-JRS)

These photographs depict the construction of various buildings at the James River Shipyard at Richmond, VA. Shown are views of the fabricating shop, administration building, and assembly area. The majority of the photographs date from 1942, but the first two date from around 1937. These earliest views are aerial views of the fabricating area, on the site of the old Richmond Car Works. Each photograph contains a caption and the date the photo was taken.

 

Photographs of Construction Progress and Completion at U.S. Naval Shore Installations, 1940 - 1943 (71-CB)

This series consists of photographs showing the progress and completion of various naval shore installations in the United States and abroad. Photographs include the commissioning of the USS Iowa (BB-61) at the New York Navy Yard; strength tests for vehicle windshields at Gulfport, Mississippi; Secretary of State Edward Stettinius' visit to Liberia; Victory Houses at Oak Harbor, Washington; and the fitting out of the USS New Orleans (CA-32) at Puget Sound, Washington. Shore installations found in this series include the PT Boat Training Center at Melville, Rhode Island; the New York Naval Air Station; the Advanced Training Base at Willoughby Bay, Newport News, Virginia; and the Washington, DC Navy Yard. The finding aid for the series is available on the Catalog series description and in the Still Pictures Research Room. This series is partially digitized.

 

Photographs of Contractor Facilities, 1936 - 1944 (71-CCF)

This series primarily consists of aerial oblique and ground level photographs of contractor plants, warehouses, manufacturing buildings and other facilities, as well as photographs of equipment used by contractors engaged in work for the Bureau of Yards and Docks. Also shown, but to a lesser extent, are photographs of facilities and equipment built by various contractors for the Bureau. Some of the contracting firms whose facilities and equipment were photographed by the Bureau include, the Allis-Chalmers Company, Bethlehem Steel Company, International Harvester Company, Leonard Shaffer Company, Marine Basin Company, Thomas Shipyards, Inc., the Wellman Engineering Company, and the New York Shipbuilding Company. Captions were provided for each print. There are no original negatives.

 

Photographs of Contractor Facilities Submitted to the Bureau of Yards and Docks, 1940 - 1944 (71-CC)

The photographs in this series appears to be primarily views of the companies contracted to perform work for the Bureau. The photographs show interior and exterior views of buildings, aerial views of ships in dock, shipbuilding, coaling stations, navy yards, barges, dry docks, activities of construction workers, cranes, and other views. Some of the prints have corresponding negatives, which are filed in the back of box 15. All of the prints have a full or partial caption. The finding aid for the series is available in the Still Pictures Research Room.

 

Photographs of Facilities, Equipment, and Activities at Yards and Docks, 1881 - 1944 (71-CD)

This series of photographs consists of a small, miscellaneous accumulation of photographs covering nearly 50 years of Bureau of Yards and Docks activities. Shown are aerial and ground level views of facilities, buildings, floating drydocks, a model of a floating drydock, barges, cranes, bridges, piers, docks, breakwaters, machinery, training camps, railroads, ships, personnel, civilian workers, the activities of the 63rd Construction Battalion, and several folders of miscellaneous unidentified photographs. There are no original negatives. The finding aid for the series is available in the Still Pictures Research Room.

 

Photographs of Naval Base and Naval Air Station Construction Sites, Methods And Equipment, 1940 - 1942 (71-TDM)

Most photographs in this series show Bureau activities just prior to World War II. Hangars and quarters are shown under construction and completed. Tools, equipment and models of intended structures are pictured, as well as structural failures in buildings. A number of photographs, including views of automobiles of the period, were taken of private and commercial buildings at Hunter's Point, California in 1942. Photographs of passive defensive measures such as smoke screen generators and protective dikes and walls; photographs from a report regarding tests of floating amphibious fuel tanks; photographs of a dredge; and a report with a map and photographs of dredging operations are also shown. Finally, there are several aerial views of prospective airport sites in Oregon and of other unidentified locations. The finding aid for the series is available in the Still Pictures Research Room.

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