How much do you know about the Merchant Marines?

2015-08-14T10:09:38-04:00

I had occasion recently to post my experiences as a Merchant Mariner, and it got me to wondering how other service members view civilian mariners, or if they give them any thought at all. Merchant sailors have served this country since it's inception, in peace and in every theater of war. Some interesting facts:

-- Merchant Marines suffered the highest rate of casualties of any of the services in WW2, 3.9%. Supply convoys were legitimate wartime targets. Next highest was the Marines @ 2.94%. (I'm NOT saying MM's are better than anyone else or any crap like that, so I hope not to offend anyone! It's just the sheer math of the thing.) Their losses are commemorated by several memorials around the country, including the Battery in NY, and the Navy-Merchant Marine Memorial in DC.

-- The Merchant Marine Academy is one of the five federal service academies along with West Point, USMA, USNA, USCGA, and USAFA. Graduates are required to commission, or join the reserves and sail as a Merchant Marine.

-- Every MMD holder (Merchant Marine Document) can be called to service in times of war, like it or not, just like military counterparts. I've not seen this happen, but I imagine it did during WW2.

--MM's today, both merchant and Military Sealift Command, continue to support our troops in every location they serve, by delivering timely supplies and materiel.

-- Crews on commercial ships are required to run weekly fire and casualty drills, just like their naval counterparts.

--Crews are highly trained (must be certified, in fact) in fire fighting, chemical spill containment, water survival, bridge resource management, cargo handling, and many other areas that you will find on their military counterparts.

-- A merchant Master's authority is as absolute as a Naval Captain's. I once saw a captain deny a process server permission to board simply because the Chief Mate didn't want to be served divorce papers, lol.

-- US flagged shipping is heavily regulated by, and answers to, the USCG. The Coast Guard provides federal authority and oversight over all US non-naval vessels. The CG also performs all port traffic control for all shipping entering and leaving US ports.

-- Crimes committed on ships are federal in nature. While rare, crews are human, and sometimes individuals make bad decisions. A miscreant can expect to be confined to quarters (shackled, even, if required) and met upon arrival by either the CG or US Marshals. Local LE authorities cannot board without permission like those agencies can. Not that a captain is likely to deny them if they had valid cause.

-- Unlike Naval crews, and with the exception of USNS vessels (which have much larger crews), even unlicensed (enlisted-analogue) crew members generally have their own stateroom.

-- A typical crew is 25-30, and on more modern ships, that number can be cut even more. And believe me, cheap-assed companies try to cut as much as they can. Fortunately, USCG steps in here -- there are minimum manning requirements.

-- Every vessel I've ever been on operates on 4-hour bridge and engineering watches, just like the Navy. So for his/her salary, a sailor owes the company an 8 hour day, and so typically (there are exceptions occasionally, called day workers) stands watch, for example, from 8-12 in the morning, and then 8-12 at night. And since you're bored, at sea, with nothing to do (and because this is where the big money comes in), you might work 4 hours of overtime from, say, 1pm-5pm.

--Since the advent of the Exxon Valdez spill, crews are limited by law to no more than 12 hours worked in a 24 hour period. Prior to that, it wasn't unusual to see guys wracking up 8 hours of OT per day.

-- Again until the Valdez spill, crews were allowed to have alcohol on board. Go figure. Some asshole drives his boat onto a reef (ask me about that, some time. There's more to that story than most people outside the industry know) and now none of us can imbibe!

Anyway, I just wondered if people were aware of MM's contributions to our country throughout history. My grandfather was a Naval gunner stationed on a merchant vessel (they did that in WW2), and since leaving the navy in '92 I've been a Mariner myself, so the subject is a dear one to me.

Response by LCDR Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 14 at 2015 10:16 AM

2015-08-14T10:16:14-04:00

I didn't really know very much about them until I had the opportunity to deploy on a USNS and talked with a lot of the crew about it. It's a great service (don't even know if that's the right word?) and merchant mariners have done a lot for the country over the course of history.

Response by SSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 14 at 2015 10:16 AM

2015-08-14T10:16:37-04:00

I had a friend who has passed was one during WWII. Dr Cavanaugh... RIP hero//////

Response by Capt Seid Waddell made Aug 14 at 2015 10:17 AM

2015-08-14T10:17:03-04:00

Interesting data. I never gave them a thought.

Response by CW4 Guy Butler made Aug 14 at 2015 10:20 AM

2015-08-14T10:20:38-04:00

The Army has a long history with the Merchant Marine, and I know a number of watercraft Soldiers have gone to the Merchant Marine Academy for certifications.

http://www.uscg.mil/nmc/announcements/archive/proceedings/training_education_pdfs/66_ARMY.pdf

Response by COL Mikel J. Burroughs made Aug 14 at 2015 10:25 AM

2015-08-14T10:25:53-04:00

SN Greg Wright I had heard of the merchant marines when I was visiting Fort Eustis, VA and the 7th Transportation Brigade (they use watercraft) and there is training conducted there on the Army side of the house. I really didn't know as much as I do now. Very interesting and thanks for sharing the information.

Response by SSgt Alex Robinson made Aug 14 at 2015 10:36 AM

2015-08-14T10:36:53-04:00

They provide a valuable service and I have age waterway of for them

Response by PO3 Steven Sherrill made Aug 14 at 2015 10:42 AM

2015-08-14T10:42:36-04:00

SN Greg Wright Thanks for sharing that. I knew that the merchant ships ferrying cargo from the US to Europe were prime targets for the Nazi U-Boat "Wolf Packs." I didn't know that the MM had the highest casualty rate. I had presumed that most of the ships carried minimal crew, and the ones that were hit with a large number of people would have been troop carriers, making the military casualties outweigh the MM casualties.

Response by CPO Jon Campbell made Aug 14 at 2015 10:43 AM

2015-08-14T10:43:43-04:00

I came very close to going to Maine Maritime Academy. I did safety boardings for many years for the Captain of the Port of Charleston Marine Safety Office - now known as Prevention under the Sector system. I have several friends who are in the Merchant Marine. It is amazing how the job and the ships have changed in the last 30 years. There really is nothing like standing on the bridge of a massive container ship while it is underway. I have only ridden back and forth to the sea buoy either as an armed escort or as an inspection team member, so I haven't had the opportunity to sail over the horizon or spend weeks at sea. The food was always good though and the accommodations have certainly improved since WWII. It is amazing that such massive ships can have such a tiny crew now.

Response by Capt Mark Strobl made Aug 14 at 2015 11:08 AM

2015-08-14T11:08:39-04:00

Worked extensively with the Merchant Marines while loading/unloading the MPF (Maritime Pre-Positioning Force) ships. They were a huge ingredient in delivering combat power ashore. To a man, they were the hardest working people I knew. And they got to go everywhere the Marines went!

Response by SPC David S. made Aug 14 at 2015 11:12 AM

2015-08-14T11:12:09-04:00

A friend of mine went to Kings Point - only service academy to have a battle standard. I have a lot of respect for these guys as they have lost many in times of war.

Response by SSgt Terry P. made Aug 14 at 2015 11:17 AM

2015-08-14T11:17:21-04:00

Another good post SN Greg Wright keep them coming i find out new and interesting things everyday on RP.

Response by MSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 14 at 2015 11:21 AM

2015-08-14T11:21:50-04:00

Thank you for the post. I for one did not know much about the Merchant Marines. Think I will do some reading in the near future.

Response by CDR Terry Boles made Aug 14 at 2015 12:44 PM

2015-08-14T12:44:45-04:00

I have a buddy whose son is at the MM academy now, seems like pretty rigorous studies, and an interesting side note is they have USNR commissions and can go active duty if they wish with any militarily service upon graduation. I served along side a MM academy grad in the Navy during my first hitch.

I came across the MM when supplied by USNS ships, seemed like a sweet deal until I discovered they spend a lot of time at sea, that's where they make their money transporting goods so port time is costly. Glad we have them around!! Thanks for the interesting info on the MM.

Response by SFC Mark Merino made Aug 14 at 2015 1:54 PM

2015-08-14T13:54:52-04:00

Great post. My dad graduated from the merchant Marine Academy and still refers to his voyages at sea as the best times in his life. Their losses during WWII were astronomical and downplayed during the war to the American public. If you served in the Merchant Marines before 1943, your chances of not coming home were really up there. Unfortunately, the Navy was slow listening to the advice of the Brits and their experiences using destroyer heavy convoys.

https://www.rallypoint.com/schools/united-states-merchant-marine-academy-usmma

United States Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA) | RallyPoint

United States Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA)

Response by LTC Mo Vanderslice made Aug 14 at 2015 1:59 PM

2015-08-14T13:59:31-04:00

My grandfather served in the MM during WWII, torpedoed and went swimming twice.

Response by PO1 John Miller made Aug 15 at 2015 2:59 AM

2015-08-15T02:59:23-04:00

Thanks for sharing. We've talked before so I know a bit of your experiences as a MM.

I was actually MILDEPT on the USNS Pecos (TAO 197) for 2 years so I'm very familiar with the MM in general and MSC specifically. In fact I've got a friend who's a retired OSCS (met him on the Pecos when he was an OS1) and is now with MSC, currently working as an AB until he has enough sea time to be appointed to a Third Mate position (he's already got his Mate's license). He loves the money.

I thought about going MSC myself after I retired from the Navy, either as an AB or Radio Officer/ET, but my wife wasn't too keen on me going back to sea for another 20 years, LOL.

I did also know that graduates of the USMMA were commissioned, as I've met a few who decided to go active and I saw the strangest warfare insignia on their chest. First the Navy Reserve Merchant Marine insignia until it was replaced a few years ago with the Strategic Sealift Officer Warfare device.

Response by PO1 John Miller made Aug 15 at 2015 3:03 AM

2015-08-15T03:03:28-04:00

Navy Reserve Merchant Marine Officer breast device:

Response by SFC Joseph Weber made Aug 15 at 2015 6:21 AM

2015-08-15T06:21:42-04:00

They performed some stellar service diring WWII. Oh, and they ride around iin boats.

Response by SN Alex Tufail made Sep 26 at 2015 10:48 PM

2015-09-26T22:48:29-04:00

I was a Deck Seamen on board USS Nimitz. We did underway replenishment (UNREP) every 45 or so days at sea. We would do UNREPs as part of qualifications. Whenever there was an MM ship on the docks traffic to work picked up just a bit. Our department did a team effort so that we could see how the rigging works from their perspective. The guys we talked to were very knowledgeable and just cool personalities. The ship I am most familiar with is the USNS Enterprise, and yeah they were cool.

Response by SSgt Alex Robinson made Sep 26 at 2015 11:19 PM

2015-09-26T23:19:10-04:00

I know they are vastly under appreciated

Response by LTJG Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 27 at 2015 12:46 AM

2015-09-27T00:46:36-04:00

Great read! I learned a lot! Thank you.

Response by CSM Charles Hayden made Sep 27 at 2015 1:06 AM

2015-09-27T01:06:03-04:00

SN Greg Wright, Many Merchant Mariners were lost during the WW II. The number of ships lost and the difficulties are described in many books. Murmansk immediately come to my mind.

Response by LTC Gavin Heater made Sep 27 at 2015 1:18 AM

2015-09-27T01:18:31-04:00

My employer, Eversource Energy, has a tradition of hiring alumni of Maritime Acadamies to fill its engineering ranks. Many of these engineers were rated resulting from years underway with Merchant Marine employers. I worked with many loading out barges from Oahu to Hawaii and from loading out Ro-Ro's and Container Ships from Beaumont, TX to Shuaba, Kuwait (spelling). No supertankers.

Response by LCDR Rabbah Rona Matlow made Sep 27 at 2015 11:14 AM

2015-09-27T11:14:14-04:00

I unrepped from a lot of USNS ships - staffed by merchant marines. I have a friend who works at Kingspoint. Other than that, I haven't been exposed to them too much...

Response by PO1 William "Chip" Nagel made Sep 28 at 2015 5:08 AM

2015-09-28T05:08:45-04:00

They were fun to get drunk with on Diego Garcia.

Response by CDR Michael Goldschmidt made Sep 29 at 2015 4:58 PM

2015-09-29T16:58:41-04:00

That's Merchant Marine. Merchant Marine sailors are referred to as such or simply as Merchant Sailors.

Response by SCPO Charles Thomas "Tom" Canterbury made Dec 26 at 2015 3:29 PM

2015-12-26T15:29:52-05:00

I have several friends who are Merchant Mariners. I had considered it as a retired IDC. Currently they have a hiring freeze on Ship's Medical Officer positions. Most who get into it who can handle the underway time (because they are always underway) stay in it until they can retire from it or get too old to do it. Part of me still wants to do it but aside from being Medical I am unsure which of my experiences I could use to get another career there without going into something that pays a lot less. I had almost gotten as far as getting my CIVMAR card and physical exam. I'm not too far from Baltimore if I change my mind...

Response by CPO David Sharp made Dec 26 at 2015 4:11 PM

2015-12-26T16:11:22-05:00

I know a few Shipmates who were Merchant Mariners. My thoughts are they perform a very difficult and important job, have many similarities with the U.S. Navy and are deployed probably as much. One thing, I have to give great credit to their History during the Battle of the Atlantic. I have a personal friend who was in the Merchant Marine during WW II, he is 87. He is also a retired CPO from the Coast Guard. He is involved in Branch #115 of the Fleet Reserve Association in the Lehigh Valley, PA. About 25 of us recently visited the monuments in Washington, D.C. 2 months prior he had a kidney removed and he walked the entire Memorial areas. I am not easily impressed but this Gentleman is about one of the finest Shipmates I can recall.

Response by SFC Robert Striblen made Dec 26 at 2015 7:18 PM

2015-12-26T19:18:28-05:00

I worked with them in the Port of New Orleans. Their service is similar to the military, they are under the same retirement system. They are international much like the US Navy.

Response by PO1 John Juarez made Dec 29 at 2015 8:35 AM

2015-12-29T08:35:13-05:00

Worked on some USNS ships back in 1985 that were Prepositioned at Diego Garcia. Those were some hardworking, good living, long deployment fellas!

Response by PVT William Bresch made Dec 29 at 2015 9:09 AM

2015-12-29T09:09:15-05:00

Great People, wife and kids said no, said I spent enough time away from home, ughhhhh, lol

Response by Capt Daniel Goodman made May 3 at 2016 1:08 AM

2016-05-03T01:08:25-04:00

I actually just sent in some stuff about usmma for an entry on here about the battle of the North Atlantic you might care to glance at. My brother was usmma I commissioned him when he finished also look up their quasi boot camp through the seafarers Intl Union or SIU called the Paul Hall CTR now that used to be called the Harry lundeberg school of seamanship in piney point MD if you haven't seen it before. I worked with one guy who was SUNY maritime have another friend who went there, and yrs ago when dinos strode the earth I nearly taught there for a yr I nearly applied there also and freq kick myself also for not having done so obviously.

Response by Capt Daniel Goodman made May 3 at 2016 1:10 AM

2016-05-03T01:10:12-04:00

You might also care to look up the naval armed guard which was part of it during ww2 just another aspect I just figured I'd mention.

Response by Alan K. made May 3 at 2016 5:15 AM

2016-05-03T05:15:50-04:00

Not enough, great read. Thank you for the education.

Response by SPC Christopher Perrien made May 3 at 2016 4:24 PM

2016-05-03T16:24:28-04:00

Actually the Submarine service and the Army Air Corps, had the highest fatality/casualty rates in WWII, far higher than any others. 25% and 30% respectively IIRC. And a huge percentage(80-90% IIRC) of the Sub Service casualties were deaths , given the nature of subs sinking , rarely did anyone survive a sub sinking, it was usually all-hands dead/MIA. The air war over Germany was little better, but many were frag wounds and some could parachute out of aircraft before they crashed.

One of my Grandfather was in the MM,Naval Reserve, served as assistant boilerman/mate?(IIRC) on freighters and then destroyer escort in the North Atlantic during the War for the Atlantic.

I did a year out in the Pacific on MPS ships and got to know a lot of Mariners. I am from the Coast and by default I know many Mariners as friends and also family. Indirectly I could say i was one too out in the Pacific as we did sign some articles IIRC, however I was not an A.B.S.

Response by SSG Laurie Mullen made Mar 2 at 2017 5:57 AM

2017-03-02T05:57:54-05:00

I know this post is over a year old, but I'm just now reading it. I was on the MV Lyra as a super cargo transporting some of the 3rd AD's equipment from Saudi Arabia back to Germany after Desert Storm. The ship's master was Cpt Deborah Dempsey, the first woman to graduate from the Maine Maritime Academy.

Response by CPT Jack Durish made Jun 18 at 2017 2:24 PM

2017-06-18T14:24:12-04:00

America has made many really stupid mistakes in recent decades and it would be hard to rank one as the dumbest. However, allowing the American merchant marine to devolve into a mere shadow of its glorious past would certainly be a contender. Think of how easy it would have been to protect it. The world peddles its wares on these shores. Imagine if we had simply required other nations to ship their goods here in American bottoms. Or, if American ports had merely required foreign flagged ships to meet American standards, thus eliminating their economic advantage over American-flagged ships that spend fortunes meeting stringent safety standards...

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 18 at 2017 5:22 PM

2017-06-18T17:22:53-04:00

You just got super sexy right now SN Greg Wright .... hahahahaha just messin with ya! But for real, that's awesome! I won't lie I had no idea! I try not to look into every type of military specialty. It seems to get me in trouble on accession! Lol... NTK...
but thanks for sharing, I bet yo have some wild stories. Definitely worth sitting and having a pint over. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience.

Response by SCPO Morris Ramsey made Jun 19 at 2017 5:59 AM

2017-06-19T05:59:29-04:00

SN Greg Wright Great article and many great comments. A friends dad survived three sinking during WWII. He was a navy gunner.

Response by CPO Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 19 at 2017 7:52 AM

2017-06-19T07:52:06-04:00

Thank you for the post I am highly aware of Merchant Marines , as my Grand father was one at the end of WW II.
Being a Seabee I am also aware as we have loaded and off loaded many MPF ships, in Saudi Arabia,Kuwait, and also helped Cargo Hinderer Battalion 11,at Blount Isand load the new OPTAR on MPF's back in 2009, when we refitted the Seabee War Fighter TOA. Those guys work their Ass's off, we respect them and they respect us because we are right there working with them loading gear.

Response by SGT Dave Tracy made Jun 19 at 2017 9:31 AM

2017-06-19T09:31:12-04:00

Kind of an older post, but I'll bite. I personally don't know much of anything about the Merchant Marine. What I do know, is my grandfather was enlisted in the Navy in WWI, but was attached to the MM for most if not all of the war. Not sure what he did exactly. Manned guns perhaps.

He died when I was 16, and never asked about his time in uniform, and he didn't discuss much about the Great War than to tell folks how sailors slept on those ships, and as I have seen similar stories, I bet it was a common theme across the MM.

If I remember right:
If hauling heavy materials such as vehicles and armor, field guns, etc. one slept in their bunk but with their clothes on. If hauling ammunition, one slept on the deck (weather permitting I'd guess) clothed and in full gear. And lastly, if hauling fuel, one can sleep buck-ass naked in their bunks if they wanted.

The theory behind this being if hit by the enemy, you only a limited amount of time to get to your station or abandon ship if hauling those first two classes of material; if hauling fuel however, it simply didn't matter where or how a sailor slept, because if they got hit, they were dead anyway.

Response by LTC Stephen C. made Jun 19 at 2017 9:57 AM

2017-06-19T09:57:09-04:00

Great information and stories, SN Greg Wright. Although I did know a little, most of what you articulated here was brand new to me. Thanks!

Response by Lt Col Scott Shuttleworth made Jun 19 at 2017 10:32 AM

2017-06-19T10:32:29-04:00

I almost applied to the Merchant Marine Academy because it didn't require Legislative nominations. It would have been fun but my career kinda worked out for me the other way.

Response by PO3 Sandra Gomke made Jun 19 at 2017 11:55 AM

2017-06-19T11:55:20-04:00

I believe the love of my mother's life was a Merchant Marine. I never met him but she keeps every postcard and letter he ever sent her.
Thanks for the lesson!!

Response by PO2 Bronwen Taylor Shaffner made Feb 13 at 2018 1:42 PM

2018-02-13T13:42:48-05:00

My father was a Captain in the Merchant Marines and went to their Academy at Fort Trumbull in New London CT. My grandfather and brother also served in the Merchant Marines as well.

Response by SPC Michael Terrell made Aug 8 at 2022 9:42 AM

2022-08-08T09:42:50-04:00

A late friend of mine was a radio operator in the Merchant Marines during WWII. After the war ended he worked on many cargo ships as a radio operator, until he retired. I met him in the late '80s. He's been gone about 20 years now.