Today is the 250th anniversary of the founding of our United States Navy. Anchors aweigh!
On this date, Oct. 13, in 1775, over eight months before the United States of America officially declared independence, the Navy came into being, and it has been sailing into battle and defending our coastlines ever since.
During the American Revolution, the British Empire had the most powerful navy in the world. The Americans understood that if they were going to win the war, they would have to form a maritime fighting force that could protect their trade and defend their shores. So the Second Continental Congress passed a resolution establishing the Continental Navy, which later became the U.S. Navy.HAPPY BIRTHDAY NAVY! pic.twitter.com/4jemujazK2
— Department of War 🇺🇸 (@DeptofWar) October 13, 2025
As a matter of fact, Gen. George Washington — ever a step ahead of the politicians — had already been trying to outfit a secret Navy. Washington’s efforts began months before the Congress officially established a Navy, and he had the help of John Glover and Stephen Moylan, the Irish immigrant credited with naming the United States of America. When the Congress finally found out about Washington’s ships, they saw this as their signal to stop dithering and do what John Adams urged — namely, authorize an official Navy.
The resolution stated:
Resolved, That a swift sailing vessel, to carry ten carriage guns, and proportionate number of swivels, with eighty men, be fitted with all possible dispatch, for a cruise of three months . . . That a[nother] Committee of three be appointed to prepare an estimate for expence, and lay the same before Congress, and to contract with proper persons to fit out the vessel . . . That another vessel be fitted out for the same purposes [and] a committee [be] appointed to bring in regulations for [a] navy.
Washington was a visionary in many matters, and certainly when he wrote, “It follows then as certain as that night succeeds the day, that without a decisive naval force we can do nothing definitive, and with it, everything honorable and glorious.” With the congressional approval on his actions, he could openly launch his small Navy.
There were many heroes who built the Navy from scratch and daringly took on the bigger British ships with their more experienced crews, including John Paul Jones. And our Navy has played a key role in all our conflicts ever since.
President Donald Trump issued a proclamation in which he declared, “Today, we honor the Navy’s epic role in safeguarding our sovereignty and projecting our power beyond our coasts. We salute the Navy’s indispensable role throughout every chapter of our national story. Above all, we pay tribute to the generations of gallant Sailors who have fearlessly lived by those timeless words: Non sibi sed patriae — Not for self, but for country.”
My great-uncle Dave Corley, my mother’s cousins, and my great-grandfather Carl Panzer all served in the Navy. Today we honor all the sailors from 1775 to the present day who have fought, bled, and died in the uniform of the U.S. Navy. Here’s to another 250 years of courage and daring!
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