A military library or base library, is a special library used by military personnel, their dependents, and civilian contractors located within or associated with a military base or defense organization. The primary duty of many military libraries is to assist with professional development, personal education, and leisure. [1]
Some of the earliest military libraries were originally funded by military personnel. It has been noted that in 1780, West Point had utilized officers pay, one day's salary every month, to fund and purchase books to establish a library on base. [2] Fifteen years later in 1795, the First Secretary of War, Henry Knox, laid the foundation for the War Department Library in Philadelphia. [3]
In early 1800, President John Adams directed the Secretary of the Navy, Benjamin Stoddert to construct a naval library with materials that subject consisted of naval architecture, hydraulics, and various branches of mathematics that were used at sea. [4] Navy libraries were not just limited to land as in the early 1820s a naval library was started on the USS Franklin, which was started with $800 and many donations from sailors. [5] With this success, around a decade after the installation of the library on the USS Franklin, the Navy then required all ships to have libraries for technical books and materials, one library for the officers of the ship and one for the enlisted. [5] [3] Naval libraries continued to expand and at the end of World War I, with the assistance of the American Library Association, built an organized system of libraries. [5] In 1919, the Library Services Branch was established by the Department of the Navy in order to manage a comprehensive library program, which is known today as the Naval General Library Program. [3] By World War II, for both ashore and at sea there were over 1,500 various Navy libraries. [5]
A Library for the U.S. Marine Corps Headquarters was established in 1843. This library was created by Commandant Archibald Henderson and was authorized by the Secretary of Navy, David Henshaw. [3] In 1919, The War Department had created Library Service Branch for not only the Navy but also the Marine Corps, which provided a professionally directed program. [3] [6] The Marine Corps University Library was later established as a part of the Marine Corps Research Center in 1993 as a way to support the Marine Corps University. [3]
The history of Military Libraries for the Army can be seen as early as 1821 in the General Regulations for the Army. In the regulations, money generated by post sutlers were able to be used to purchase books for a library. However, in 1857, Secretary of War Jefferson Davis had halted the use of sutlers funds for the support of these post libraries. This was short lived as a revision of the regulations allowed for the sutler funds to support the on-site libraries. [7]
In the United States, military libraries often offer similar services to public libraries. They are often associated with a particular base, and their services are available only to the users of that base. Things like book borrowing, providing meeting spaces, computer access, and digital resources are all common services. Additionally, specialty material required of military members is often accessible in case the member does not have other access outside of their workplace. .MIL computers and computers with Common Access Card (CAC) card readers are some of these common services. [8] Professional development and personal education are important features of military library services, with many libraries offering test preparation materials. [9] The library and other education centers for the base may be combined. [10]
Many base libraries provide leisure programming for all ages. Storytime, homework help, and group activities are all common programs. [11]
Online services may be provided by the individual library or a larger organization. Military OneSource is a large provider of online resources that are available to many military-affiliated people. [12] King's Bay Military Library is a joint venture of the Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay and Valdosta State University. [13]
Overseas bases of the United States also have libraries. For Europe, United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) Libraries manages a network of libraries for Air Force bases. Those assigned to a USAFE base, or a Geographically Separated Unit (GSU) are allowed access to this network. USAFE Libraries also offers InterLibrary Loan (ILL) between their locations.
Depending on the responsibilities of the library, it may be staffed by civilian librarians, military personnel with library or organizational training, or both.
The Special Libraries Association (SLA) has a Military Libraries Community, that brings together librarians and paraprofessionals working at Military Libraries all over the world. [14] The Military Libraries Community holds a biennial workshop and virtual tours of military libraries. [15]
The American Library Association (ALA) has a Federal and Armed Forces Libraries Interest Group, which is a common forum and professional network for military library workers as well as librarians and paraprofessionals at civilian federal agencies. [16] It is based within the ALA's Reference and User Services Association (RUSA). [17]
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consist of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. All six armed services are among the eight uniformed services of the United States, along with the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps.
In the United States Navy, officers have various ranks. Equivalency between services is by pay grade. United States Navy commissioned officer ranks have two distinct sets of rank insignia: On dress uniform a series of stripes similar to Commonwealth naval ranks are worn; on service khaki, working uniforms, and special uniform situations, the rank insignia are identical to the equivalent rank in the US Marine Corps.
The United States Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) is the primary investigative law enforcement agency of the U.S. Department of the Navy. Its primary function is to investigate major criminal activities involving the Navy and Marine Corps, though its broad mandate includes national security, counterintelligence, counterterrorism, cyberwarfare, and the protection of U.S. naval assets worldwide. NCIS is the successor organization to the former Naval Investigative Service (NIS), which was established by the Office of Naval Intelligence after the Second World War.
The United States Navy Chaplain Corps is the body of military chaplains of the United States Navy who are commissioned naval officers. Their principal purpose is "to promote the spiritual, religious, moral, and personal well-being of the members of the Department of the Navy," which includes the Navy and the United States Marine Corps. Additionally, the Chaplain Corps provides chaplains to the United States Coast Guard.
Insignias and badges of the United States Navy are military badges issued by the United States Department of the Navy to naval service members who achieve certain qualifications and accomplishments while serving on both active and reserve duty in the United States Navy. Most naval aviation insignia are also permitted for wear on uniforms of the United States Marine Corps.
The United States European Command (EUCOM) is one of the eleven unified combatant commands of the United States military, headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany. Its area of focus covers 21,000,000 square miles (54,000,000 km2) and 51 countries and territories, including Europe, The Caucasus, Russia and Greenland. The Commander of the United States EUCOM simultaneously serves as the Supreme Allied Commander, Europe (SACEUR) within NATO, a military alliance. During the Gulf War and Operation Northern Watch, EUCOM controlled the forces flying from Incirlik Air Base.
The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2005, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called Reservists, are categorized as being in either the Selected Reserve (SELRES), the Training and Administration of the Reserve (TAR), the Individual Ready Reserve (IRR), or the Retired Reserve.
The Headquarters Marine Corps (HQMC) is a headquarters staff within the Department of the Navy which includes the offices of the Commandant of the Marine Corps, the Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps and various staff functions. The function, composition, and general duties of HQMC are defined in Title 10 of the United States Code, Subtitle C, Part I, Chapter 506.
In the United States Armed Forces, the ranks of warrant officer are rated as officers above all non-commissioned officers, candidates, cadets, and midshipmen, but subordinate to the lowest officer grade of O‑1. This application differs from the Commonwealth of Nations and other militaries, where warrant officers are the most senior of the other ranks, equivalent to the U.S. Armed Forces grades of E‑8 and E‑9.
The Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) is the United States Navy's engineering systems command, providing the Navy and United States Marine Corps with facilities and expeditionary expertise. NAVFAC is headquartered at the Washington Navy Yard and is under the command of the Chief of Civil Engineers RADM Dean VanderLey
Public affairs is a term for the formal offices of the branches of the United States Department of Defense whose purpose is to deal with the media and community issues. The term is also used for numerous media relations offices that are created by the U.S. military for more specific limited purposes. Public affairs offices are staffed by a combination of officers, enlisted personnel, civilian officials and contract professionals.
Morale, Welfare and Recreation, abbreviated MWR, is a network of support and leisure services designed for use by U.S. servicemembers, their families, military retirees, veterans with 100 percent service-connected disability, current and retired DoD civilian employees, and other eligible participants.
United States Naval Districts is a system created by the United States Navy to organize military facilities, numbered sequentially by geographic region, for the operational and administrative control of naval bases and shore commands in the United States and around the world. Established in 1903, naval districts became the foundational system for organizing U.S. naval forces ashore during the 20th century. The term "Naval" forces includes United States Marine Corps and current United States Coast Guard units.
Many women have served in the United States Navy for over a century. As of 2020, there were 69,629 total women on active duty in the US Navy, with 11,076 serving as officers, and 58,553 enlisted. Of all the branches in the US military, the Navy has the second highest percentage of female active duty service members with women making up 20% of the US Navy in 2020.
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combined arms, implementing its own infantry, artillery, aerial, and special operations forces. The U.S. Marine Corps is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States.
The Naval Supply Systems Command (NAVSUP) serves as the supply command for the United States Navy for providing supplies, services, and support to both the Navy and the United States Marine Corps.
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 Chaplain of the United States Marine Corps (CHMC) is a position always filled by the officers serving as Deputy Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy as a "dual hatted" billet since 2000. The CHMC oversees religious ministry in the Marine Corps which one Commandant of the Marine Corps defined as "a vital function which enhances the personal, family, and community readiness of our Marines, sailors, and their families. Chaplaincy supports the foundational principle of free exercise of religion and helps to enrich the spiritual, moral and ethical fabric of the military."
An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service.