The U.S. Navy in World War I: Combat at Sea and in the Air

When the United States entered World War I in April 1917, the clamoring in the press for a strong army largely overshadowed the need for considerable naval contributions to the war effort. Although it was small at the time, the U.S. Navy transported thousands of doughboys to France, all the while battling the predatory German U-Boats. Henry Ford tried to put his mass-production techniques to work to produce hundreds of submarine chasers to patrol American coastlines. The fledgling Naval Air Service was assigned the daunting task of dealing with enemy aircraft over France and in the Adriatic Sea. This is the personal account of men who served on the sea and in the air, as well as the captains of industry who made victory possible. Industrial innovations contributed greatly to the Allied cause. George Eastman's Kodak Company developed ship and aircraft camouflage, and the General Electric Company perfected the hydrophone, a precursor to modern sonar. While many are aware of the exploits of Eddie Rickenbacker, the U.S. Army's ace, few know that the Navy also had an ace. After more than 80 years, these forgotten naval heroes receive the recognition that they well deserve in an account that attempts to give the war a human face through personal diaries, letters, and photographs.

Table of Contents:
Foreword by Dwight R. Messimer Foreword by Daniel P. Davison Introduction Ships, Ships, and More Ships Battleships to Scapa Flow and the North Sea Barrage Destroyers at War: Death in the Atlantic They Came to Fight: The U.S. Navy's Converted Yachts Sound Detectors, Y-Guns, and Subchasers The Luck of the U.S.S. Von Steuben: Frederick Lemly's Story The Death of the U.S.S. President Lincoln The Loss of the U.S.S. Covington Saving the U.S.S. Mount Vernon: Roland H. Baker's Story The Tragedy of the U.S.S. Ticonderoga Convoy Duty Aboard the U.S.S. Huntington: Howard W. Winn's Story The U.S.S. San Diego Story The Otranto Barrage War in the Pacific: The Yangtze Patrol The U.S. Navy Air Service: Squadrons to Europe The Homing Pigeon Goes to War Cleland Davis and His Amazing Invention Aerial Photo Reconnaissance and Balloons The Wings of Yale The Adventures of Artemus Gates The U.S. Navy's First Flying Ace The Sopwith Camel: Deadly Avenger The Northern Bombing Group Air War Over the Adriatic Epilogue Selected Bibliography Index

About the Author :
A. B. FEUER is a military historian and freelance newspaper and magazine journalist. He served in the U.S. Navy from 1943-1946 and is a member of the American Society of Journalists and Authors, the Society of Professional Journalists, and the Society for Military History. His previous works include Commando: The M/Z Unit's Secret War Against Japan (Praeger, 1996), The Spanish-American War at Sea (Praeger, 1995), and The Santiago Campaign of 1898 (Praeger, 1993).