Marine Corps·Mission eliminated·In Memoriam
Sea-Going Marine — USS Detachments
Seagoing Bellhops
Served: 1798–1998
Permanent embarked Marine detachments (35–85 Marines) aboard battleships, cruisers, and carriers — manned secondary battery guns, guarded the captain, ran the brig, and in the Cold War secured the nuclear-weapons locker.
The Story
1stLt Grant Goodrich was the last MarDet commander; he hauled the colors down aboard USS *George Washington* on 1 May 1998, ending an unbroken 200-year tradition that predated the Constitution.
Epitaph
“Marines at sea for 200 years. Hauled the flag down with a 35-man detachment and a Sunday.”
Sources
- Wikipedia — Marine Detachmenten.wikipedia.org
- NHHC — Salty Seadogs Come Ashorewww.history.navy.mil