Two soldiers taking the amphibious training course at Fort Pierce, Florida paddle a rubber landing boat in January 1944

U.S. Navy Official photograph, Gift of Charles Ives, from the Collection of The National World War II Museum
Description: 

383.Photograph. 'File No. AA-T-42-44510 January 30, 1944 Soldiers Get Sea-Legs Preparing our Army men for what is to many of them a novel experience, directors of troop-training, in cooperation with officers in charge of Navy Amphibious Training Bases, have put into effect a system of land-sea maneuvers to give the soldiers their 'sea-legs'. Centering around small-boat operations, the regimen emphasizes work in heavy seas, hardening the men to be able to land on 'enemy beaches' in shape to fight, or at least know what they are up against. This set of official U. S. Navy Photographs was taken during 'sea-legs maneuvers' at Fort Pierce, Florida. Paddling their own canoe isn't just a phrase to these two soldiers taking the amphibious training course at Fort Pierce. Only their canoe is a rubber landing boat (LCR) and is much more difficult to propel! It's used on scouting and raiding missions, mostly nocturnal.' 30 January 1944

Image Information

Donor: 
Charles Ives
Accession Number: 
2011.102.383
Date: 
Location: 
Hometown: 
Branch: 
US Army
Theater of Service: 
Home Front
Unit: 
Campaign / Event: 
POW / KIA: 
Topical Subjects: 
Soldiers--American--Florida
Boats--American--Florida
Collection Level: 
The Charles Ives Collection consists of 719 photographs from the Pacific Theater of WWII. Many of the photographs were taken between 1944 and 1945. Mr. Ives inherited the photographs from a friend from Marblehead, Massachusetts who served as an aviator in the Army Air Corps and discharged as a Major in 1945.
Geography: 
Fort Pierce
Latitude: 
27.433
Longitude: 
-80.317
Thesaurus for Graphic Materials: 
Soldiers--American--Florida
Boats--American--Florida