Just hours away from reinforcing Ft. Sumter and hours away from saving Gosport Navy Yard, USS Pawnee eventually became a valuable blockader. This steam screw gunboat was involved in several major operations with the Atlantic Blockading Squadron, North Atlantic Blockading Squadron, and South Atlantic Blockading Squadron until the war’s end.

Katharine Cornell was a leading lady in American theater; eventually she led the charge for New York’s American Theatre Wing to perform Broadway shows for troops stationed in Italy during World War II.

Who was Marcus Garvey? Learn more about his significance not only to Black history and the world, but specifically to Newport News.

November is Native American Heritage Month! Today we’d like to celebrate that by honoring two Navajo sisters who served at the Hampton Roads Port of Embarkation (HRPE) during WWII.

There was no formal naval intelligence system established during the American Civil War. While a few examples exist of Northern sympathizers, free Blacks, like Mary Louvestre of Portsmouth, sent messages to various Union commanders about the Confederate ironclad construction effort.

A few weeks ago, on a late summer boat ride on the James River, I noticed the outlines of looming grey ships in the distance that I hadn’t seen before. “What are those?” I wondered aloud.

“Hidden Histories” is a Museum project designed to give names, agency, and interpretation of unidentified African Americans in our Collections through genealogical research and community engagement.

USS Cumberland, flagship of the US Navy’s Home Squadron, was dispatched to Gosport Navy Yard, Portsmouth, Virginia, upon the sloop’s return from a brief cruise to Veracruz, Mexico.