Seabees in World War II

Naval Construction Battalions
The Seabee logo
Founded	28 December 1941: requested
Branch	United States Navy
Role	Militarized construction
Size	325,000 total
Motto(s)	"CAN DO"
Colors	Flag of the United States Navy (1864–1959)
Anniversaries	5 March 1942: authorized
Engagements	Guadalcanal, Bougainville, Los Negros, Tarawa, Guam, Peleliu, Saipan, Tinian, Iwo Jima, Okinawa, Normandy,
Website	https://www.public.navy.mil/seabee/Pages/default.aspx
Commanders
Notable commanders	Admiral Ben Moreell

3rd Marine Division, 2nd Raider's sign on Bougainville. (Seabee Museum).

Main article: Seabee

When World War II broke out the Seabees did not exist. The vast oceans between the United States and the enemy in both theaters made the logistics of war a prime concern. Admiral Moreell completely understood the issues at hand and decided that he knew what needed to be done, build staging bases and Naval Construction Battalions to do build them were the answer. The concept of Naval Construction Battalions had been slowly developing at BuDocks in the 1930s. The onset of war clarified to Admiral Moreell the need to be able to develop advance bases to project American power. The solution was to tap the United States vast pool of skilled labor and put it in uniform to build anything, anywhere under any conditions and get the Marine Corps to train them. "The first volunteers were not unskilled recruits at enlistment. Emphasis was placed on experience and trade skill, so all they had to do was adapt to military life and perform the trade they knew. To obtain men with these qualifications military age standards were modified. For Seabees the enlistment age range was 18–50 however, it was later found that several men past 60 had managed to enlist. Men were given advanced rank/pay based upon experience making the Seabees the highest paid group in the U.S. Military. In the first 60 battalions the average age was 37. After December 1942 voluntary enlistments were halted by orders of President Roosevelt, after which men for the CBs had to be obtained through the Selective Service System. Seabee recruits were then younger and came into the service with only rudimentary skills." To address this issue the Seabees created training programs in every trade they needed. "The first recruits were the men who had built Boulder Dam, the national highways, and New York's skyscrapers. They had worked in the mines and quarries, dug the subway tunnels, worked in shipyards and built docks and wharfs. They knew more than 60 skilled trades, not to mention the unofficial ones of souvenir making, the art of cumshaw, and "moonlight procurement". Nearly 11,400 officers joined the Civil Engineer Corps during the war, and 7,960 of them served with the Seabees. While Seabees got their name from Construction Battalions, the primary unit of the Naval Construction Force NCF, there were many Seabees that served outside the NCF. When he was done Admiral Moreell created a construction juggernaut, simultaneously constructing on multitudes of islands across vast distances, that took American forces to victory on roads and bases it had built. The Seabees were so quick that their Acorn assignments were often seen as tactical operations with them working under fire.

Pre-war Naval Construction Development

In the late 1930s the US was not yet actively involved in fighting World War II, but saw the need to prepare for such an eventuality. Rear Admiral Ben Moreell, CEC, USN, became Chief of the Bureau of Yards and Docks (BUDOCKS) in 1937. Congress therefore authorized the expansion of Naval Shore Activities, which included construction in the Caribbean and by 1939 in the Central Pacific. "Following standard peacetime patterns the Navy awarded these contracts to civilian constructions firms. These privately owned constructions firms employed native civilian populations as well as Americans. These firms were answerable to Navy officers in charge of construction. By 1941 large navy bases were being built in Guam, Midway and Wake Islands, Pearl Harbor, Iceland, Newfoundland, Bermuda, and Trinidad, in addition to many other places." Under international law, civilians were encouraged not to resist enemy military attacks. Resistance meant the workers could be summarily executed as guerrillas.

World War II

WWII recruitment poster

USN 80-G-40992 Advance training at Camp Endicott, Quonsett Point, RI

Seabee Logo Pennants early 1942. First pattern CB (drawn to be used as an identification stencil per BuDocks order not for uniforms).

WWII Seabee Battalion Organization (Seabee Museum)

NARA – 535776 "The Negro Seabees" training at Camp Allen USN Official press release of segregated African American training.

The need for a militarized Naval Construction Force to build advance bases in the war zone became evident on December 7th. On 28 December 1941, Admiral Moreell requested authority to created Naval Construction Battalions, and on 5 January 1942, he gained authority from the Bureau of Navigation to recruit skilled construction tradesmen. The average age for the men being enlisted was 37 during the first year. Naval Construction Battalions were officially authorized on 5 March 1942. The first three Battalions iuiwere formed that month by the Admiral. Enlistment was voluntary until December 1942, when the Selective Service System became responsible for recruitment. After basic training newly formed battalions were sent to either Advanced Base Depot at Davisville, Rhode Island, or ABD Port Hueneme, California, for advanced combat/technical training before shipping out. Between tours units be would returned to the Recuperation and Replacement Center at Camp Parks, California.

A pressing issue for the Bureau of Yards and Docks(BUDOCKS) was who should command the construction battalions? Navy regulations stated that command of naval personnel was limited to line officers of the fleet. Yet, it was deemed essential that Construction Battalions be commanded by Civil Engineer Corps officers trained in the skills required for the execution of construction projects which was what BUDOCKS proposed. However, the Bureau of Naval Personnel strongly objected to this violation of Naval tradition. Circumventing this opposition, Admiral Moreell took the issue to the Secretary of the Navy himself. On 19 March 1942 the Secretary gave the CEC authority to command all officers and enlisted assigned to naval construction units greatly simplifying NCF administration and operations. Equally important was the significant esteem it gave the Civil Engineer Corps by elevating the CEC to lawful command status for combat operations. With Construction Battalions authorized and the question of command settled, BuDocks then had to confront the issues of recruiting, enlisting, and training. Following that was organizing the battalions into units and logistically supporting their operations. Plans were quickly developed to do all this. Due to the exigencies of war there was a great deal of improvisation used to get it done, which came to be a synonymous with the Seabees in general.

At Naval Construction Training Centers and Advanced Base Depots on both coasts, Seabees learned construction trades, military discipline as well as advanced combat training. Although technically support troops, Seabees frequently found themselves in under fire with the Marines. After completing boot training at Camp Allen VA and later Camp Peary VA, the Seabees were formed into construction battalions or other smaller CB units. The first four battalions were deployed immediately upon completion of boot training due to a pressing backlog of construction projects. Battalions that followed were sent to an Advanced Base Depot at either Davisville, Rhode Island, or Port Hueneme, California. There CBs or CB units were staged, outfitted receiving six weeks of advanced military and technical training before receiving work orders and shipping out. Basic military training was done by the Navy while the Marine Corps instructed Seabees in advanced military training at Camp Peary, Camp Lejeune or Camp Pendelton. About 175,000 Seabees were staged directly through Port Hueneme during the war. WWII rates: These indicate the construction trade in which a Seabee is skilled. During WWII, the Seabees were the highest-paid component in the U.S. Military, due to all the skilled journeymen in their ranks. CB rates

• BMB : Boatswains Mate Seabee
• CMCBB : Carpenters Mate Construction Battalion Builder
• CMCBD : Carpenters Mate Construction Battalion Draftsman
• CMCBE : Carpenters Mate Construction Battalion Excavation foreman
• CMCBS : Carpenters Mate Construction Battalion Surveyor
• EMCBC : Electricians Mate Construction Battalion Communications
• EMCBD : Electricians Mate Construction Battalion Draftsman
• EMCBG : Electricians Mate Construction Battalion General
• EMCBL : Electricians Mate Construction Battalion Line and Station
• GMCB : Gunners Mate Construction Battalion
• GMCBG : Gunners Mate Construction Battalion Armorer
• GMCBP : Gunners Mate Construction Battalion Powder-man
• MMCBE : Machinists Mate Equipment Operator
• SFCBB : Ship Fitter Construction Battalion Blacksmith
• SFCBM : Ship Fitter Construction Battalion Draftsman
• SFCBP : Ship Fitter Construction Battalion Pipe-fitter and Plumber
• SFCBR : Ship Fitter Construction Battalion Rigger
• SFCBS : Ship Fitter Construction Battalion Steelworker
• SFCBW : Ship Fitter Construction Battalion Welder

DIVER: During WWII being a Navy diver (United States Navy) was not a "rate" it was a "qualification" that had four grades: Master, 1st Class, Salvage, and 2nd Class. The Seabee diving schools could only qualify divers 2nd class. Numerous CBs had men qualified: e.g. 21st 27th, 31st, 34th (segregated) 49th, and CBMU 541 to name but a few.

"As the war wore on, long deployed Pacific theater CBs and CB units were returned to the Construction Battalion R&R Center at Camp Parks, Shoemaker, California. There units were reorganized, re-deployed or decommissioned. Men were given 30-day leaves and later, eligible men were discharged at Camp Parks. The same was done at the Advance Base Receiving Barracks at Davisville, Rhode Island, for Atlantic battalions."

The fundamental unit of the Seabee organization was the Construction Battalion comprised of a headquarters company and four construction companies. Each company could do smaller jobs independently as they had tradesmen with the necessary skills for doing any job. Headquarters was be staffed by yeoman, storekeepers, medical and dental personal, draftsmen, surveyors, cooks, laundrymen, post office, gunners-mates and shore patrol. The standard battalion complement was set at 32 officers and 1,073 enlisted.

"In 1944–45 construction projects became larger and more complex, more than one battalion frequently had to be assigned to a job. For efficient administrative control, battalions were organized into a regiment, and when necessary, two or more regiments were organized into a brigade. If needed two or more brigades would be organized into a naval construction force. An example was what happened on Okinawa. There, 55,000 Seabees were deployed with the battalions organized into regiments and brigades. All were under the command of the Commander, Construction Troops, Commodore Andrew G. Bisset (CEC). In addition to the Seabees his command also included 45,000 U. S. Army engineers, plus a few British engineers. In total the Admiral commanded 100,000 construction troops, the largest concentration of construction troops ever."

Very little time passed before the Bureau of Yards and Docks realized the need for special-purpose units. While the Construction Battalion itself was versatile enough to handle any project, it was apparent that some units could be specialized or smaller. "The first departure from the standard CB was the "Special" Construction Battalion, or as it was commonly referred to, the "Seabee Special". "Special" battalions were composed of stevedores and longshoremen who were badly needed for the unloading of cargo in combat zones. Many of the officers were recruited from the Merchant Marine (and commissioned CEC) while stevedoring companies were the source of many of the enlisted. The efficiency of their training was demonstrated by the fact that cargo handling in combat zones was on par to that in the most efficient ports in the U.S." There were also five battalions that specialized in pontoons, barges, and causeways, s 70. 81, 111, 128, 302. The 134th 139th CBs were made trucking units due to the transportation and logistic needs on Guam and Okinawa.

"Smaller, specialized units were created called Construction Battalion Maintenance Units/CBMUs, a quarter the size of a standard CB. They were Public Works units to take over the maintenance of a base after a regular battalion had completed construction. Another specialized CB unit was the Construction Battalion Detachment/CBD, ranging in size from 6 to 600 men, depending on the specialized task. These detachments did everything from running tire-repair shops to operating dredges. Many were tasked with handling, assembling, launching, and placing of pontoon causeways. Other specialized units were pontoon assembly detachments, and petroleum detachments(specialists in pipelines and petroleum facilities).""

During the War the work Seabees performed in the Atlantic and Pacific had a cost of nearly $11 billion. When it was done they would number over 325,000 and the NCF would be formed into 12 Naval Construction Brigades, 54 Naval Construction Regiments, 151 Naval Construction Battalions(numbered 1-148,301,302), 39 Special Construction Battalions(STEVEDORE), 136 CB Maintaince Unitss(numbered 500-636 PUBLIC WORKS), 118 CB Detachments (numbered 1000–1018 SPECIALIZED) and 5 Pontoon Assembly Detachments. In addition many Seabees served outside the NCF in Naval Combat Demolition Units, Underwater Demolition Teams, Cubs, Lions Acorns and United States Marine Corps.

The "Seabee" logo in use today was created by Frank J. Iafrate, a file clerk employed at the Camp Endicott, Quonset Point, Rhode Island. Iafrate was known for his caricature drawings and a lieutenant asked Iafrate if he could draw a "Disney style" insignia for the new organization. He explained that the construction battalions were unique, independent, self contained and not tactically oriented. However, they would be trained by the Marine Corps to defend themselves, their unit and their work without hesitation. After deliberating ideas the bee became his choice. Bees are the epitome of industry, hard working, and don't trouble others unless bothered first. At which point they sting and muster the troops. He spent three hours on a Sunday afternoon sketching, adding the white sailor's cap, giving the bee petty officers rank, adding tools of the trades: machinist mate's wrench, carpenters mate hammer, gunner's mate tommy gun. On each wrist he added the CEC insignia above the glove. As a border for the design he set the image inside a letter Q from Quonset (Quonset Point). The next morning he showed it to the lieutenant, who showed it to his captain, who sent it off to Admiral Moreell in Washington. All Admiral Moreell requested was that Iafrate change the border to a hawser "rope" in keeping with Naval tradition for Naval insignia.

The Atlantic theater

A "whale" roadway leading to a Spud pier at Mulberry A off Omaha Beach 111th CB.(USN)

U.S. Army vehicles transit a floating causeway built by U.S. Navy Seabees off "Mulberry A" at Omaha Beach 16 June 1944. (USN)

In the South and mid-Atlantic, Seabee contributions in the Caribbean, Central America, and South America were the first of many milestones. When the United States found itself in a two ocean war, the Panama Canal became a strategic point. The convergence of military and maritime fleet traffic offered German U-boats a vital and tempting target. As a result, it became necessary to ring the canal's traffic approaches with protective bases. Agreements with the governments of Caribbean, Central American, and South American countries made it possible to secure sites for new bases throughout the area. The Lend Lease Agreement, signed with Great Britain in September 1940, created other possible base sites in the region. Not only were new base sites rapidly acquired, but existing U.S. bases were enlarged. Under the Greenslade Program of 1940 naval installations in Puerto Rico, Cuba, and the Panama Canal Zone were all expanded. The construction program undertaken in Puerto Rico was very ambitious. KNaval Station Roosevelt Roads, seat of the Tenth Naval District, was developed into the "Pearl Harbor of the Caribbean".

Most construction on existing bases, was carried out by civilian contractors until late 1943 in this zone. Then CBs were assigned to complete unfinished projects in this zone. Along the Atlantic coastal regions, these bases formed a chain extending from Bermuda to beyond the Brazilian bulge. On the Pacific side of the Americas, U.S bases stretched from Honduras to Ecuador. Seaplanes, patrol bombers, blimps, and surface craft operating out of the new facilities to search for enemy vessels. At Carlsen airfield on Trinidad, the 80th(colored) CB paved runways and built a giant blimp hangar. The 83rd CB cut an eight-mile (13 km), S-curved highway up Trinidad's jungled mountain slopes. Beginning at the Port of Spain and climbing to an elevation of 1,300 feet (400 m). Completion of this road required moving one million cubic yards of material. On the Galapagos Islands, CBD 1012 constructed a seaplane base with tank farm, pontoon piers, and a water system. From this assignment the detachment moved to Salinas, Ecuador. There they completed the United States' southernmost seaplane base which was a link in the Pacific sea patrol arc. In general the Seabee units that served in this zone manned bases completed pre-war. Although far from the frontline, the tours of duty were important and necessary.

North Africa found the Seabees in combat for the first time in the Atlantic. After landing with the assault on 7 November 1942, Seabees proceeded to construct facilities at Oran, Casablanca, Sifi and Fedala. Later, while the Allies moved toward Tunisia and their final showdown with the Afrika Korps, Seabees built a string of staging and training areas along the northern coast. They also constructed a huge naval air station at Port Lyautey, Morocco.

After the Allies had taken Tunisia, the Seabees began a large-scale buildup at their new base in Bizerte. There they prepared a new weapon of war, the steel pontoon. It would be used for the first time on the beaches of Sicily. The Seabees had added some "innovations and cleverly adapted them to amphibious warfare. A Seabee pontoon was standardized in size so they could be quickly assembled like Legosto form causeways, piers, or rhinos. As a result, these versatile "magic boxes" could be used to meet the exigencies of any number of situations. The beaches of Sicily had previously been considered an impossible amphibious landing site by both the Allies and Axis. Nevertheless, with the Seabees and their pontoons, the Allies were able to carry off a surprise assault on the weakly defended Sicilian beaches. The enemy was quickly outflanked and overpowered as large numbers of men and materials poured ashore over the Seabee causeways. That contribution made the Seabees instrumental in the allies successfully landing in the southern zone of the Axis.

The Seabee causeways were used again at Salerno and Anzio on the Italian mainland. Unfortunately, the Germans had learned from the Sicilian disaster, and were prepared. In the face of fierce resistance the Allies suffered heavy casualties at both Salerno and Anzio. The Seabees had their share of the casualties too. It was the Seabees' task to keep supplies and ammunition moving across their pontoon causeways to the beachhead. Only with the Seabee assistance were the Allies able to turn the tide of battle and push inland in the wake of the slowly retreating Germans. For many months Seabees remained at Anzio under continuous German bombardment. They built cargo handling facilities, unloaded LSTs, and kept supplies moving to the front. German resistance in Southern Italy finally collapsed and Rome was taken on 4 June 1944. Even so, the Seabees had one more task in the Mediterranean, the invasion of Southern France at Toulon. While this was a relatively important job, it was eclipsed by what they had to do at Normandy.

"Although Seabee accomplishments in the North Atlantic eventually culminated in the Normandy invasion, CB operations in that area had begun as early as March 1942."" The Seabees were first used on construction projects in Iceland, Newfoundland, and Greenland at bases previously acquired by treaty from Great Britain. Seabees in Newfoundland helped construct a huge naval air station and naval base at Argentia. From these installations, aircraft and surface ships set forth to protect the many Allied convoys sailing the western sector of the North Atlantic. To complete the huge arc of bases stretching across the North Atlantic, even more Seabees were sent to the British Isles. At Londonderry, Northern Ireland, they constructed a huge, deep water facility for naval craft and a naval air station that was capable of handling the largest aircraft. Lough Erne, Loch Ryan, and Rosneath in Scotland were transformed into huge storage depots, tank farms, industrial areas, and seaplane bases. Only with the firm establishment of the Navy's control of the seas, and the logistic battle of the North Atlantic under control, did the Seabees move to the southwest coast of England to prepare for the great invasion. From Milford Haven on the west coast of Wales down to Plymouth and over to Exeter, the Seabees built invasion bases which teemed with activity. There they prepared for their most critical and multifaceted role in the Atlantic Theater of Operations.

"During D-Day Normandy Seabees were among the first ashore as members of Naval Combat Demolition Units along with U.S. Army Engineers. Their task was to remove obstructions built in the water and on the beaches to impeade amphibious landings."

NCDUs came under very heavy German fire. Iqnoreing the danger, NCDUs continued to work until all their charges were placed and detonated. As a result of their actions gaps were created in the enemy's defenses that allowed the landing to move inland. Naval Combat Demolition Units were only the beginning of the Seabees' work on Normandy's beaches. After the invasion fleet had arrived off the coast, The approximately 10,000 Seabees of Naval Construction Regiment 25 began manhandling their pontoon causeways onto the beach. It was over these causeways that the infantry charged ashore. Under constant German fire, Seabees succeeded in placing of their pontoon causeways. Allied troops and tanks subsequently went ashore in ever greater numbers and pushed the German defenders back.

The Seabee contribution to the success of the invasion was not limited to pontoon causeways. They also manned their large pontoon assembled ferries, known as Rhinos, that carried men and materials to the beaches. Those Rhinos were CEC creations that Seabees assembled from modular pontoon units which they motorized. Vast amounts of equipment was hauled ashore on them. They also built offshore cargo and docking facilities, piers, and breakwaters. Some were simply repurposed cargo ships. Some were special prefabricated concrete structures floated across from England, while others were made from the Seabee's ubiquitous steel pontoons. The huge port formed out of this odd combination of materials was known as Mulberry A. Even after the artificial harbor was partially destroyed in a severe storm, the Seabees landed hundreds of thousands of tons of war material daily. In addition to these massive amounts of supplies, by July 4, only 28 days after D-day, they had helped land more than a million Allied fighting men.

The liberation of Cherbourg and Le Havre led to the next big Seabee project. The harbors of these two cities were very much needed by the Allies. Knowing of this need, the Germans left them in ruins before retreating. It fell to the Seabees to put these harbors back into service not combat engineers. At Cherbourg the first cargoes were landed within 11 days and within a month the harbor was capable of handling 14 ships simultaneously. Seabees made the same thing happen at Le Havre. At Brest, Lorient, and St. Nazaire, the Seabees rapidly cleared and rebuilt making those ports operational also.

The last Seabee job in the European Theater took place with the crossing of the Rhine in March 1945. The U.S. Army, concerned about the Rhine River's swift and tricky currents, called upon the Seabees to do the job. The Seabees' first successful crossing was at Bad Neuenahr near Remagen. Further crossings followed in rapid succession as the Seabees made their task appear easy. On 22 March 1945, General George S. Patton, with Seabee assistance, put his armor across the Rhine at Oppenheim. Seabees built pontoon ferries similar to the Rhinos of D-day to transport his armor across the river. In all, the Seabees operated more than 300 craft shuttling thousands of troops to the German homeland. One Seabee crew even had the distinction of ferrying Prime Minister Winston Churchill across the Rhine.

The 69th Naval Construction Battalion was the only CB to serve in Germany. They also were the first CB to be deployed by air when they were flown from England to Bremen in April 1945. The battalion set up camp just outside the city. Their tasks were to re-roof/repair damaged buildings for U.S. occupation forces, installing plumbing, lighting, repairing shops, offices, and power lines. A detachment was sent to the nearby port of Bremerhaven to repair facilities for the Allies and U.S Navy. Another detachment was sent to Frankfurt-am-Main to refurbish buildings designated as the headquarters of the U.S. Navy in Germany. By August 1945 the battalion had completed the assignments and was returned to England marking the end of the Seabees work in the Atlantic.

The Pacific theater

B-29s Landing on Tinian 1944

Type A Kō-hyōteki-class submarine 2 man sub salvaged by 8 Seabees from the 6th CB off Tassafaronga Point. (USMC)

"34th CB's trading with natives from Malaita, B.S.I. - NARA – 520630

Seabees in the Pacific Theater of Operations earned the gratitude of all who served with them or followed in their wake. Their deeds were unparalleled in the history of wartime construction. With 80 percent of the Naval Construction Force concentrated in the Pacific, they literally built the road to victory over Japan: 111 major airstrips, 441 piers, 2,558 ammunition magazines, 700 square blocks of warehouses, hospitals to serve 70,000 patients, fuel tanks for 100 million gallons, and housing for 1.5 million men. In construction and fighting operations, the Seabees served on over 300 islands and four continents.

Of the three Pacific roads to victory the least significant in the end was the one which wound through the North Pacific. At the outset of hostilities, however, this region, which included Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, had been a Japanese target. The Japanese campaign of 1942 that succeeded in seizing the Aleutian islands of Attu and Kiska was partly a feint, partly a serious probe of American defenses, and partly a move to prevent the United States from invading the Japanese homeland through the Aleutian and Kurile Islands. Many of the first Seabees were sent to the North Pacific to help forestall what appeared at the time to be a major Japanese offensive. By late June 1942 Seabees had landed in Alaska and had begun building advanced bases on Adak, Amchitka, in the Aleutian chain. In 1943 these new bases were used to stage the joint Army-Navy task force that recaptured Attu and Kiska. While subsequent activity in the North Pacific was minimal, the Seabee-built bases served as a deterrent for the remainder of the war.

In the South and Southwest Pacific the Seabees' first stop was in the Society Islands. The 1st CB departed CONUS in January 1942 arriving one month later at Bora Bora in the Society Islands. The men called themselves "Bobcats" after the Operation's code name BOBCAT for Bora Bora(they had departed the States so quickly that the "Seabee" name had not been created). The Bobcats' task was to construct a fuel depot to service the ships and planes necessary to keep the sea lanes to Australia open. The Bobcats discovered that the island had many climatic and hygienic disadvantages: continual rainfall, 50 varieties of dysentery, skin diseases, and the dreaded elephantiasis. All combined to make life miserable for the construction men and were harbingers of what was awaiting their mates in the tropics. From the start heir task was difficult as the island no piers from which to unload ships. Despite this and many almost overwhelming problems, the Bobcats set about accomplishing their objective. After devising a method of bringing supplies ashore aboard pontoon barges, they swiftly constructed the necessary fueling facilities. Their fruits of their labors came when the island's tank farms supplied the ships and planes that fought in the Battle of the Coral Sea.

While the Bobcats labored on Bora Bora, the next groups were organized into the 2nd and 3rd CB Detachments. Four months later the 2nd Detachment was sent to Tongatapu in the Tonga Islands while the 3rd CB Detachment went to Efate in the New Hebrides. Both islands also lay on the Australia supply route and would be used to stage Allied operations. The projects included more tank farms, airfields, and supply depots, that would support actions in both the Coral Sea and in the Solomon Islands. Espiritu Santo in the New Hebrides was closest island in proximity to Japanese-held Guadalcanal making it strategically important. Guadalcanal was the very tip of the Japanese Southern thrust in the Solomons. It became imperative to destroy the Japanese airfields nearing completion there. Seabees of the 3rd CB Detachment were rushed from Efate to Espiritu Santo to build a countermanding airfield asap. Within 20 days the detachment had carved an 6,000-foot (1,800 m) airstrip from the jungle. As a result of this feat, the U.S. was able to mount large-scale air attacks that heavily damaged the runways under construction on Guadalcanal. When the Marines made their assault on Guadalcanal the 6th CB was with them and became the first CB to work in combat conditions. Their immediate task was repairing Henderson Field, which became a never-ending job. As fast as they repaired the strip and Marston matting, the Japanese would be back to bomb it. The Captain of the 6th CB came up with a system by which the Seabees were able to repair bomb damage nearly as quick as the Japanese could make it. The Marines needed Henderson Field operational and the Seabees kept it that way. In doing so, Seaman 2nd Class Lawrence C. "Bucky" Meyer became the first Seabee to be decorated. In his off-time, he had salvaged and repaired an inoperable machine gun which he used to down a strafing Zero. For this he was awarded the Silver Star posthumously as he was killed in action before receiving it. The same day as the Guadalcanal landing more Marines were hitting nearby Tulagi Island. Again Seabees were with, but that time to construct a PT base. It would play a strategic role during the famous sea battles in the "slot", the narrows between the islands of Tulagi, Savo, and Guadalcanal. A small group of Seabees in a Higgens boat inadvertently ran into the periscope of a scuttled Japanese 2-man sub 300 yards off Tassafaronga Point, Guadalcanal. The eight men were determined to salvage the sub that was resting in 20 feet of water. With improvised diving gear they determined the sub was still armed. They stretched 1" steel cable out to the boat and hooked bulldozers up to pull it ashore. It would not move so they planted 8 sticks of dynamite under it. With bulldozers straining on the cable the dynamite blast broke the sub free and it was pulled onto the beach. It became a tourist "must see" for U.S service personnel on Guadalcanal.

As the Allies island-hopped the Solomon chain, the Russells, Rendova, New Georgia, and Bougainville all became centers of a focused construction effort by CBs. At the same time, Seabees in the Southwest Pacific were building advance bases along the drive from Australia and New Guinea to the Philippines. During the landing of Treasury Island in the Solomons, Petty officer 1st Class Aurelio Tassone, (87th CB) became legendary for being the Seabee astride a bulldozer taking on enemy positions. Tassone was operating his machine when an officer told him a Japanese machine-gun emplacement was holding up the advance. Tassone took his dozer to the emplacement, using the blade as a shield and with Lt. Turnbull(CEC) providing cover fire. Tassone destroyed the bunker killing all 12 occupants for which he was awarded the Silver Star. By wars end Seabees in the NCF would be awarded 33 Silver Stars, 5 Navy Crosses and over 2000 Purple Hearts. They would lose 272 enlisted and 18 officers killed in action with an additional 500 plus lost to construction accidents. Seabees serving outside the NCF received numerous awards in addition.

In the Southwest CBs were tasked with enlarging and constructing numerous new depots in Australia. By mid-1943Merauke, on New Guinea's southern coast became a hive of Seabee activity. After building an air strip that helped fend off air attacks, they constructed a communications station at Port Moresby. In December 1943 Seabees redesignated to the Marine Corps landed with the First Marine Division landed in the assault on Cape Gloucester. During the battle, Seabees of the 3rd Battalion 19th Marines bulldozed paths to the Japanese lines so that American tanks could attack the hostile positions. The Seabees had to be told to hold up because they were working beyond the front lines. By New Year's Day, the enemy airfields and the Cape was in U.S. possession.

Taking the Admiralty Islands, became key to isolating enemy held Rabaul and the neutralization of Japanese forces on New Britain. When the Allies seized Manus Island and Los Negros Island, enemy lines from all points north and east were cut. By 1944 Seabees transformed those islands into the largest U.S. naval and air base in the Southwest Pacific making it the main supply and repair depot of the Seventh Fleet. The capture of Emirau Island completed the encirclement of Rabaul that same month. A strategic, two-field air base, with storage and fuel depots, dry dock, road system, and PT base were constructed there.

Leapfrogging with Gen. MacArthur's forces, the Seabees reached Hollandia turning it into a major base. It would be instrumental in liberating the Philippines. The Third Naval Construction Brigade was with MacArthur for the assault the island of Leyte. CBs operated pontoon barges and causeway units that brought the MacArthur's Forces ashore and fulfilled his famous promise to one day return. Those Seabees were soon joined by those of the Second and Seventh Naval Construction Brigades, which had been staged in the Hawaiian Territory. This Construction Force numbered 37,000 men and spread out into the Philippine archipelago to build the facilities that would turn the entire Philippines into a forward base for the assault on the Japanese homeland. The Seventh Fleet headquarters was moved to the Philippines and Seabees built the facilities that this enormous fleet required: fleet anchorages, submarine bases, ships repair facilities, fast torpedo boat bases. By the summer of 1945, U.S. military forces were prepared and poised for that last step on the South Pacific road to victory.

While the Seabees in the South and Southwest Pacific were working their ways towards the Philippines, others were working across the Central Pacific. The Seabees in this zone made some of the greatest contributions toward winning the war. They continually played a major role in the fighting. One after the other, the Gilberts, Marshalls, Carolines, and Marianas were seized. After landing in the initial Marine assaults, Seabee battalions built advanced bases from which the U.S. Pacific Fleet, Marines, and U.S. Army moved inexorably toward the Japanese homeland. Tarawa Atoll in the Gilberts was one of the toughest. Only after savage fighting were the Japanese defenders overwhelmed. On Tarawa, in a mere fifteen hours Seabees had the airfield back into operation. On the atolls of Kwajalein, Eniwetok, and Majuro in the Marshalls, the Seabees contributed to the dismantling of Japan's eastern defense perimeter. Seabees converted Majuro Atoll into one of the fleet's major anchorages, and similarly transformed Kwajalein Atoll into a major aviation facility. The Carolines were the third stepping-stone on the Central Pacific road to Tokyo. Combat and construction in this island chain served yet another purpose. When the Seabees made these fleet and air facilities operable by the islands were used to support the liberation of the Philippines.

The seizure of the Marianas spelled the beginning of the end for the Japanese. The loss of these islands cut the Japanese line of defense and, even more important, gave the United States an airbases from which bombers could strike the Japanese homeland. During Operation "Forager," Seabees made one of their most significant contributions in the Pacific Theater. They landed together Marines at Saipan, Guam, and Tinian. The same day the Marines captured Aslito, the main Japanese airfield on Saipan, Seabees were repairing it's damaged runways. Despite harassment by enemy counterattacks, Seabees had the airstrip operational in four days. During the three-week battle for Guam, Seabee stevedores unloaded ships while others did combat engineering for the Marine Corps. Eventually, CBs turned Guam into an advanced HQ for the U.S. Fleet, an airbase for B-29s, and a huge supply depot. The invasion of Tinian was an exhibition of Seabee ingenuity and engineering. The beaches were narrow and bordered with low coral cliffs. The Marines asked for Seabee input and the CEC devised special ramps mounted on LVT-2s. They made landings possible where the Japanese thought they were impossible. Once ashore, and even before the island was secured, Seabee bulldozers attacked the damaged unfinished Japanese airfield.

After the Marianas campaign B-29s needed an emergency field for landing crippled aircraft returning from raids and a base for shorter-ranged fighters to accompany them. The island chosen was Iwo Jima which V Amphibious Corps assaulted on 19 February 1945. For the assault CB 133 and the 31st CB were attached to the 4th and 5th Marine Divisions. The Marines were short Pioneer Battalions for the Shore Party assignments and the Marines had tasked Seabees in this manner numerous times prior. While both Battalions landed, in their entirety, with their respective combat echelons they were deployed differently. The 133rd suffered more casualties than any Battalion in Seabee History tasked to the 23rd Marines. The 5th Marine Div. had just C Co. and the Demolitions men of the 31st CB on the beach D-day and added C Co heavy weapons section the next. Only basic road construction was accomplished during the first days. Work on the first airfield did not begin until D-plus 5.

Seabees had an important task in the Battle of Okinawa. The 24th Army Corps and Third Marine Amphibious Corps landed off amphibious landing craft and over pontoons placed by the 130th CB. Also there were the 58th, 71st, and 145th CBs. The 44th and 130th CBs arrived soon after. After the island had been taken other battalions arrived like the 79th. The fighting was heavy, prolonged, and organized resistance did not cease until mid-June. On Okinawa the Seabees' task was immense. They built a road system, bomber, fighter, and seaplane bases, quonset encampments, tank farms, supply/storage depots, hospitals, ports and harbor facilities. Nearly 55,000 Seabees, in four brigades, participated in construction projects. By August 1945, sufficient facilities, supplies, and manpower were on hand to mount an invasion of the Japanese home islands.

It was at that time, the USS Indianapolis (CA-35) arrived at Tinian from the Naval Weapons Center at Port Chicago, California. Seabees of the Sixth Construction Brigade unloaded the components of the Atomic bomb. They then stored the components in a Seabee built shed, and posted guards for the contents were classified "Secret". Scientists assembled the weapon in the shed with several Seabees assisting when requested. On 6 August the bomb was loaded into a B-29 named the Enola Gay. With the weapon on board the Enola Gay took off from North Field the largest airfield of the WWII and headed for Japan. The mission was dropping of the first atomic bomb. That event caused Japan to realize the war was lost. It prompted the Japanese to negotiate a ceasefire on 16 August. On September 2, 1945, Japan formally surrendered. Allied forces then occupied the Japanese home islands in a peaceful manner and most Seabees were sent home. In all 258,872 officers and enlisted served in the Seabees during the war. The authorized number of 321,056 had not been reached.. 2sb. By the end of WWII over 300 Seabee had been killed in action while over 500 were killed on the construction site.

WWII Naval Construction Battalion Logos

Lions, Cubs, Oaks, Acorns advance base units

Seabees blasting near shore during construction for airfield on Eniwetok Atoll 23 June 1944.(Seabee Museum)

Seabees blasting near shore during construction for airfield on Eniwetok Atol 23 June 1944.Seabees blasting near shore during construction for airfield on Eniwetok Atol 23 June 1944. The Navy wanted to enable open communications concerning advance base construction and development without having to be concerned about the enemy intercepting transmissionsand the Office of Naval Operations created a solution. These base construction operations were given a code name as a numbered metaphor for the size/type of base the Seabees were to construct and assigned to it the "unit" charged with development and administration of that advanced base. These were Lion, Cub, Oak and Acorn with a LION being a large Fleet Base numbered 1–6. CUBs were Secondary Fleet Bases 1/4 the size of a Lion(numbered 1–12 and most often for PT boats) OAK and ACORN were the names given airfields, new or captured enemy fields(primary and secondary in size).Cubs were quickly adopted as the primary type airfield and Oaks were not organized. Of the three base types Lions, Cubs and Acorns- Acorns received priority due to their tactical importance and the speed at which the Seabees could construct and make one operational. Camp Bedilion, shared a common fence-line with Camp Rousseau at Port Hueneme. It was home to the Acorn Assembly and Training Detachment responsible for training and organizing Acorn units. A Lion, Cub, or Acorn was composed of three components: Base Operation units, Fleet repair/maintenance, and Aviation repair/maintenance with Construction Battalion personnel filling the ranks of the Base Units. CBs constructed, repaired or upgraded 111 major airfields with the number of acorn fields not published.When the code was first created the Navy thought it would require two CBs to construct a Lion. By 1944 entire Construction Regiments were being used to build Lions.

• Lion 1 Espirtu Santo (40th CB)
• Lion 6 Guam
• Cub 1 Guadalcanal
• Acorn 1 Guadalcanal
• Acorn 3 Banika/south
• Acorn 5 Woodlark
• Acorn 7 Emirau
• Acorn 7 Guadalcanal
• Acorn 8 Munda
• Acorn 11 Nouméa
• Acorn 12 Banika/Sterling Island
• Acorn 13 Espirtu Santo (bomber field 1)
• Acorn 15 Green Island 93rd CB attached
• Acorn 17 – Tarawa,
• Acorn 18 Espirto Santo (bomber field 2)
• Acorn 22 Eniwetok
• Acorn 21 Roi-Namur
• Acorn 23 Kwajalein(Ebeye)
• Acorn 29 Yonabara
• Acorn 30 Jinamoc Tacloban, Leyte
• Acorn 33 Samar
• Acorn 38 Saipan
• Acorn 41 Marpi point, Saipan
• Acorn 44 Okinawa
• Acorn 45 Sangley Point, Cavite
• Acorn 47 Puerto Princesa
• Acorn 50 Kobler, Saipan
• Acorn 51 Cebu/Mactan Island
• Acorn 55 commissioned at the Argus Assembly and Training Unit, Port Hueneme

Lions, Cubs, Oaks, Acorns USN Administration in WWII:

Post-war legacy

The Fighting Seabee Statue at Quonset Point, where the Seabee Museum and Memorial Park commemorates Camp Endicott which is on the National Register of Historic Places (U.S. Navy)

Fighting Seabee Statue designed by Seabee Architect L.J. Atkison in 1965. Originally designed for a Mardi Gras parade, it was retired to a statue in 1966 at Gulfport, Mississippi, (U.S. Navy)

During the war many of the bases the Seabees built were disassembled for the materials to be reused in new bases closer to the front. However, the airfields were not something that could be moved and remained at the end of the war. The Seabees built or repaired dozens of them across the Pacific. Today, after upgrades and modernization, many are still in use or usable.

Pacific

• Abemama Atoll Airport (95th CB)
• Alexai Point Army Airfield and Casco Cove Coast Guard Station (114th & 138th CBs)
• Andersen Air Force Base (5th Construction Brigade)
• Awase Airfield (36th CB)
• Bauerfield International Airport ( 1st CB)
• Barakoma Airfield ( 58th CB abandoned)
• Bonriki International Airport (3rd Bn 18th Marines)
• Bucholz Army Airfield (109th CB with CBs 74, 107, & 3rd Bn 20th Marines)
• Carney Airfield (CB 14 abandoned post-war)
• Central Field (Iwo Jima) (CBs 31,62, 133)
• Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport (88th CB)
• Dulag Airfield (61st CB)
• East Field (Saipan) (51st CB) The airfield is on the National Register of Historic Places as the "Isley Field Historic District", and is part of the National Historic Landmark District on Saipan.
• Emirau Airport (out of service but remains usable)
• Enewetak Auxiliary Airfield (110th CB)
• Falalop Airfield (51st CB)
• Finschhafen Airport (60th CB and U.S. Army)
• French Frigate Shoals Airport (B Co. CB 5)
• Freeflight International Airport (3rd Bn 20th Marines & 109th CB)
• Funafuti International Airport (2nd CB detachment)
• Fuaʻamotu International Airport (1st CB)
• Guasopa Airport/Woodlark Airfield (60th CB)
• Guam International Airport/NAS Agana (103rd CB, 5th Construction Brigade)
• Guiuan Airport (61st & 93RD CBs)
• Hawkins Field (3rd Bn 18th Marines, CBs 74 & 98)
• Haleiwa Fighter Strip (14th CB)
• Henderson Field (Midway Atoll)
• Honiara International Airport/ Henderson Field (Guadalcanal) (CBs 6, 14, 18)
• Honolulu International Airport [ NAS Honolulu – John Rodgers Field] (5th CB with CBs 13, 64, & 133)
• Johnston Island Air Force Base (CBs 5, 10, & 99)
• Kornasoren Airport (Yeburro Airfield) 95th CB
• Kukum Field used until 1969 (CBs 6, 26, 46, 61)
• Leo Wattimena Airport
• Lombrum Naval Base (CBs 11, 58, 71)
• Losuia Airport/Kiriwina Airfield (60th CB)
• Luganville Airfield (40th CB)
• Mactan-Benito Ebuen Air Base (54th CB, Cub 51)
• Majuro Airfield (100th CB used 20 years postwar)
• Marpi Point Field (51st CB & CBMU 614) The airfield is on the National Register of Historic Places as the "Isley Field Historic District", and is part of the National Historic Landmark District on Saipan.
• Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay (CBs 56, 112, 74)
• Momote Airport (40th CB)
• Mono Airport (87th CB)
• Mopah International Airport (55th CB)
• Munda Airport (CBs 47 & 63)
• Nanumea Airfield (16th CB)
• Naval Base Guam (5th Naval Construction Brigade)
• Naval Air Base Tanapag (39th CB), site of NTTU Saipan (Naval Technical Training Unit – CIA, used postwar until 1962)
• Naval Air Station Kaneohe (CBs 56, 74, 112)
• Naval Station Sangley Point is now Danilo Atienza Air Base(PAF) and Naval Base Cavite(PN) (77th CB,12th Construction Regiment)
• Nissan Island Airport (93rd CB)
• North Field (Tinian) The airfield is an element of the Tinian National Historic Landmark District. (6th Construction Brigade) (NMCB 28)
• Northwest Field (Guam) (53rd CB semi-abandoned)
• Nouméa Magenta Airport (11th CB)
• Nukufetau Airfield (Motolalo Airfield) 16th CB
• Ondonga Airfield (CBs 37 & 82)
• Orote Field (5th Naval Construction Brigade)
• Palmyra (Cooper) Airport (Seabees)
• Palikulo Bay Airfield ( 7th & 15th CBs)
• Penrhyn atoll has the Tongareva Airport (Seabees)
• Pityilu Island airstrip status not found (71st CB)
• Piva Airfield ( CBs 25, 53, 71, & 74)
• Point Barrow Naval Arctic Research Laboratory Airfield (CBD 1058) Runway and two hangars intact 2014
• Ponam Island airstrip status not found (78th CB)
• Puerto Princesa International Airport (CB 84)
• Rota International Airport (48th CB)
• Santo-Pekoa International Airport ( CBs 3, 7)
• Saipan International Airport (3rd Bn 20th Marines/CB 121) The airfield is on the National Register of Historic Places as the "Isley Field Historic District", and is part of the National Historic Landmark District on Saipan.
• South Field (Iwo Jima) (CBs 31, 64, & 133 abandoned post-war)
• Segi Point Airfield (47th CB)
• Seghe Airport (47th CB)9
• Tontouta Air Base (53rd CB)
• Torokina Airfield (CBs 25, 53, 71, & 75)
• Turtle Bay Airfield (3rd Construction Battalion detachment, abandoned post-war)
• Umiat Airport (CBD 1058)
• Wake Island (85th CB)
• West Field (Tinian) Today is Tinian International Airport. (6th Construction Brigade)
• Yandina Airport (CBs 33 & 35)
• Yomitan Auxiliary Airfield (87th CB)
• Yonabaru Airfield ( 145th CB)

Atlantic

• Naval Air Station Port Lyautey/Kenitra Air Base (120th CB)
• Naval Communication Station Sidi Yahya (120th CB)

Military installations WWII

• Casco Cove Coast Guard Station (22nd CB)
• Subic Bay Naval Station now Subic Bay Freeport Zone
• Naval Base Guam (5th Naval Brigade)

Military installations built post-war

• Naval Air Station Cubi Point now Subic Bay International Airport (MCBs 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, 11) 1951–56
• TACAN Naval Station Adak 1959 (MCB 10)
• LORAN Station Grand Turk, 1957–59 (MCB 7)
• LORAN Station San Salvador Island, 1957–59 (MCB 7)
• Marine Corps Air Station Futenma 1957 (MCB 3 plus detachment MCB 2)
• Naval Communications Station Nea-Makri, 1962
• Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Navy Base (MCB 3) 1962
• Royal Thai Air Base Nam Phong (NMCB 5)
• Minami Torishima Airport (MCB 9) 1964
• Camp Hansen (MCBs 3, 9, 11) 1965
• Chu Lai Air Base now is Chu Lai International Airport (MCB 10) 1965
• Quảng Trị Combat Base (Seabees) 1967
• Naval Support Facility Diego Garcia (NMCBs 1, 40, 62, 71, 133 & ACB 2) 1971–82

See also

• Admiral Ben Moreell
• Amphibious Construction Battalion One (104th CB)
• Amphibious Construction Battalion TWO (105th CB)
• Camp Allen
• Camp Endicott
• Camp Peary
• Civil Engineer Corps United States Navy
• Leapfrogging (strategy)
• Military engineering of the United States
• Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek
• Naval Amphibious Base Coronado
• Naval Construction Battalion Center (Gulfport, Mississippi)
• Naval Construction Battalion Center Port Hueneme
• Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 1
• Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 3
• Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 4
• Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 11
• Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 25
• Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 133
• Underwater Demolition Team
• United States Navy Argus Units with Acorn Units
• 16th Marine Regiment (Engineer)
• 17th Marine Regiment (Engineer) 19th NCB
• 18th Marine Regiment (Engineer) 18th NCB
• 19th Marine Regiment (Engineer) 25th NCB
• 20th Marine Regiment (Engineer) 121st NCB

Notes

• On Johnson atoll the 1st Marine Defense Battalion detachment named each of its batteries. One them was made up of four 3" AA guns and called the "Seabee battery".
• List of all WWII Seabee units.

Further reading

• Lions, Cubs, Oaks, Acorns; United States Naval Administration in WWII:
• Building the Navy's Bases in World War II: History of the Bureau of Yards and Docks and the Civil Engineer Corps 1940–1946 (Volumes I and II). Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office. 1947.
• List of all WWII Seabee units.

External links

• Official website
• U.S. Navy Seabee Museum Online Reading Room
• Seabee Unit Histories and Cruisebooks at the Seabee Museum
• Seabee History, Naval History & Heritage Command
• Seabee & CEC Historical Foundation
• Seabee Online: official online magazine of the Seabees
• Seabees. Department of the Navy. Bureau of Yards and Docks (c. 1944)
• Seabees Report: European Operations (1945)
• The Marston Mat and Seabee
• The Pacific War Online Encyclopedia