Records of Boards/Records of the Board for the Examination of Midshipmen: Journals of Proceedings for the Examination of Midshipmen, 1836-1880: Finding Aid

History of the Board for the Examination of Midshipmen

The Navy Department appointed boards composed of naval officers for the examination of midshipmen entitled to promotion as early as 1836 at Baltimore. Later boards met at Philadelphia until June 1846, when the site changed to Annapolis. The board of examiners, in collaboration with the academy’s academic board, convened to determine qualified acting midshipmen’s suitability for promotion to “passed-midshipman.” Examinations gauged midshipmen’s academic proficiency, professional naval skills based on their cruise journals and answers to inquiries, and moral character and fitness for the naval profession supported by testimonials written by their former commanding officers.

Description of Contents

This entry contains journals of the proceedings of boards for the examination of midshipmen. Each volume includes names of midshipmen passing each examination according to their relative rank for each class. The board examined midshipmen in subjects including mathematics, navigation, natural philosophy and astronomy, gunnery, steam engineering, and languages. The subjects varied with the curriculum of the academy.

During the period of the earlier examinations, the midshipman was called before the board and stated his age and sea service, including names of vessels and length of service on each, and produced letters from commanding officers recommending his abilities. Frequently, a midshipman submitted journals he had kept during the cruises he made, and in such instances the journal of the board is marked "has kept a journal." The board then examined the candidates in subjects such as seamanship, mathematics, and navigation.

After the establishment of the academy, the board made final recommendation as to the order of merit of passed midshipmen and the members of each undergraduate class for each subject and overall. The reports of the board contained in these volumes include the order of merit lists, and various reports of the board relating to academic studies and courses of instruction. The volumes for the Civil War and later periods include lists of questions used during the examinations. The volume that includes the proceedings of the 1846 board also contains a report on conditions at the academy.

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically.

Access and Use

Access

Access is unrestricted.

Copyright and Permission

Generally, materials produced by Federal agencies are in the public domain and may be reproduced without permission. Any non-government publications held herein may still be subject to copyright. For further information, consult the Head, Special Collections & Archives.

Other Finding Aid(s)

National Archives Catalog entry available electronically at: https://catalog.archives.gov/id/3179960.

Acquisition and Appraisal

Custodial History

RG 405 Records of the United States Naval Academy is the property of the National Archives and Records Administration. The materials are housed at the United States Naval Academy, William W. Jeffries Memorial Archives, an affiliated archive, as per a Memorandum of Agreement between the National Archives and Records Administration and the United States Naval Academy.

Related Materials

Location of Related Materials

Other records relating to the examination of midshipmen may be found in entry 203: “Register Showing in Detail the Mode of Marking Examinations in Navigation, Languages, Seamanship, Gunnery, and Steam, 1872” (NAID: 3179972); and entry 204: “Journals of the Academic Board, 1854-1985” (NAID: 3179980).

Materials Cataloged Separately

No materials have been removed from this collection and cataloged separately.

Processing and Other Information

Preferred Citation

Records of Boards/Records of the Board for the Examination of Midshipmen: Journals of Proceedings for the Examination of Midshipmen, 1836–1880, RG 405.6.1 Entry 202

Special Collections & Archives Department

Nimitz Library

United States Naval Academy

Selected Bibliography

The following sources were consulted during preparation of the historical note:

Sweetman, Jack. The U.S. Naval Academy: An Illustrated History. Annapolis, Maryland: United States Naval Institute Press, 1979.

Processing Information

This collection was processed by Samuel Limneos in April 2023. Finding aid written by Samuel Limneos in May 2023. Historical Sketch and Scope and Content Note adapted in part from Inventory of Records Group 405 by Geraldine N. Phillips and Aloha South, 1975.

Subject Headings

Name and Subject Terms

• Naval Education -- United States
• United States Naval Academy
• United States Naval Academy -- Curricula
• United States Naval Academy -- Examinations
• United States Naval Academy -- Faculty
• United States Naval Academy -- History -- 19th century
• United States Naval Academy -- Students
• United States Naval Academy. Academic Board
• United States Naval Academy. Board of Examiners

Genre Terms

• Examinations
• Instructional materials
• Minute books