Navy Day was first celebrated in 1922 by the Navy League of the United States, a civilian nonprofit organization, as a day to pay tribute to the men and women we call sailors. At the time, October 27 was considered by many to be the birthday of the United States Navy, based on a document presented to the Continent Congress on this date in 1775 that supported the purchase of a fleet of merchant ships to form an American colonial navy. October 27 also happens to be the birthday of one of the Navy’s most ardent supporters, President Theodore Roosevelt, who once served as Assistant Secretary of the Navy and had supported a Navy Day.
Navy Day was traditionally celebrated with pomp and circumstance between 1922 and 1949. The U.S. Navy participated each year by dispatching ships to various U.S. ports where public celebrations were held. The 1945 celebration was particularly grand and memorable when sitting President Harry S. Truman arrived to review the fleet in New York Harbor.
Navy Day was last officially observed in 1949 when the first Secretary of Defense, Louis A. Johnson, announced that Armed Forces Day would officially replace Navy Day commencing the following year. Johnson designated the third Saturday in May as Armed Forces Day, a joint celebration recognizing all six traditional branches of the U.S. military: Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, Navy, and now the newly created Space Force. As a civilian organization, the Navy League was not affected by Johnson’s directive. They continued to organize events celebrating the original Navy Day on October 27, well attended by both civilians and Navy personnel.
Naval historians conducting research in 1970 determined the authentic birth date of the United States Navy was October 13, 1775. Consequently, the Navy’s birthday was officially changed that year from October 27 to October 13. Despite the official change, Navy Day continues to be widely celebrated on October 27, after being deeply entrenched into Navy tradition for more than a quarter–century.
According to nationaltoday.com. Source of photos: internet
