A Golden Rivet refers to the claim in naval folklore that the final rivet hammered into a ship is a commemorative made of gold. The idea seemingly derived from the commemorative golden spike that was temporarily driven at the completion of the U.S. transcontinental railroad in 1869.
The rivet's location is allegedly different for each ship and undisclosed, known only to the crew. No such rivet can exist, as gold is too malleable a material. If a golden rivet was made, it would be impossible to hammer it in without destroying it in the process.
Most often the myth is used as a practical joke or fool's errand played on junior sailors, exploiting their naivete and natural curiosity about their new surroundings.
The prank consists of informing a new sailor of the existence of the "golden rivet" and encouraging him to look for it. After scouring the entire ship without success, it eventually dawns on the junior that he has been the butt of a joke. The prank was also commonly employed as a means of homosexual seduction: the recruit accompanied to the bowels of the ship, and invited to bend over to see the mythical rivet better in the dark. [1]
Like many other hazing rituals, the "golden rivet" myth is perpetuated for the amusement of senior crewmembers at the expense of their naive and gullible junior crewmates. [2] [3]
A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It includes anything conducted by surface ships, amphibious ships, submarines, and seaborne aviation, as well as ancillary support, communications, training, and other fields.
The Royal Canadian Navy is the naval force of Canada. The navy is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of February 2024, the RCN operates 12 Halifax-class frigates, 12 Kingston-class coastal defence vessels, 4 Victoria-class submarines, 4 Harry DeWolf-class offshore patrol vessels, 8 Orca-class patrol vessels, and several auxiliary vessels. The RCN consists of 8,400 Regular Force and 4,100 Primary Reserve sailors, supported by 3,800 civilians. Vice-Admiral Angus Topshee is the commander of the Royal Canadian Navy and chief of the Naval Staff.
The master chief petty officer of the Navy is a unique non-commissioned rank and position of office of the United States Navy, which is designated as a special paygrade above E-9. The holder of this position is the most senior enlisted member of the U.S. Navy, equivalent to the sergeant Major of the Army, chief master sergeant of the Air Force, sergeant major of the Marine Corps, master chief petty officer of the Coast Guard, and chief master sergeant of the Space Force. The holder of this rank and position is the most senior enlisted sailor in the Navy, unless an enlisted sailor is serving as the senior enlisted advisor to the chairman. The current MCPON is James Honea.
A Petty officer third class is a non-commissioned officer in some navies and coast guards.
USS Mahan (DDG-72) is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer currently in service with the United States Navy. This ship is the 22nd destroyer of her class. USS Mahan was the 12th ship of this class to be built at Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine, and construction began on 17 August 1995. She was launched and christened on 29 June 1996. On 14 February 1998 she was commissioned in Tampa, Florida. Mahan is homeported in Norfolk, Virginia, and as of 2012 was attached to Destroyer Squadron 2. By 2016, the ship was part of Destroyer Squadron 22.
USS Howard (DDG-83) is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer in the United States Navy. She is named for Medal of Honor recipient First Sergeant Jimmie E. Howard, USMC. This ship is the 33rd destroyer of her class. Howard was the 19th ship of her class to be built by Bath Iron Works at Bath, Maine, and construction began on 8 December 1998. She was launched and christened on 20 November 1999. She was commissioned into the Navy on 20 October 2001.
The Submarine Warfare Insignia are worn by qualified submariners.
The surface warfare insignia is a military badge of the United States Navy which is issued to U.S. Navy personnel who are trained and qualified to perform duties aboard United States surface warships. There are presently four classes of the surface warfare pin, being that of line, staff, special operations, and enlisted. The line and enlisted surface warfare badges may be earned by United States Coast Guard personnel assigned to Navy commands. The various badge types are as follows:
The line-crossing ceremony is an initiation rite that commemorates a person's first crossing of the Equator. The tradition may have originated with ceremonies when passing headlands, and become a "folly" sanctioned as a boost to morale, or have been created as a test for seasoned sailors to ensure their new shipmates were capable of handling long, rough voyages. Equator-crossing ceremonies, typically featuring King Neptune, are common in the Navy and are also sometimes carried out for passengers' entertainment on civilian ocean liners and cruise ships. They are also performed in the merchant navy and aboard sail training ships.
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The uniforms of the United States Navy include dress uniforms, daily service uniforms, working uniforms, and uniforms for special situations, which have varied throughout the history of the navy. For simplicity in this article, officers refers to both commissioned officers and warrant officers.
The Golden Age of Piracy is a common designation for the period between the 1650s and the 1730s, when maritime piracy was a significant factor in the histories of the North Atlantic and Indian Oceans.
The United States Navy Memorial is a memorial in Washington, D.C. honoring those who have served or are currently serving in the Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and the Merchant Marine.
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The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the world's most powerful navy and the largest by tonnage, at 4.5 million tons in 2021 and in 2009 an estimated battle fleet tonnage that exceeded the next 13 navies combined. It has the world's largest aircraft carrier fleet, with 11 in service, 1 undergoing trials, two new carriers under construction, and six other carriers planned as of 2024. With 336,978 personnel on active duty and 101,583 in the Ready Reserve, the U.S. Navy is the third largest of the United States military service branches in terms of personnel. It has 299 deployable combat vessels and about 4,012 operational aircraft as of July 18, 2023.
The Esther Williams Trophy is one of two trophies that have circulated among ships of various navies, after originating in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Initially, in 1943, the trophy was a joke between two friends, Lieutenants Lindsay Brand and David Stevenson, serving in HMAS Nepal, an N-class destroyer attached to the British Eastern Fleet. Stevenson wrote on a photograph of Esther Williams, "To my own Georgie, with all my love and a passionate kiss, Esther"; Brand put the screen idol over his bed. The photo was taken to another ship by a fellow officer, and the "trophy" was then circulated by officers among some 200 other ships including in United States Navy, Royal Navy, and Royal Canadian Navy ships in Asian waters.
Aluf Ram Rothberg is an admiral in the Israel Defense Forces who was the head of the Israel Navy.
A fool's errand prank is a type of practical joke where a newcomer to a group, typically in a workplace context, is given an impossible or nonsensical task by older or more experienced members of the group. More generally, a fool's errand is a task almost certain to fail.