The birth of a blue water baby

On October 13, 1775, the Second Continental Congress voted to arm two ships to raid British supply lines. That modest act sparked the Continental Navy, a seed that grew into a fleet that has circled the globe for two and a half centuries.

Within months, Congress named Esek Hopkins commander in chief. His sailors and Continental Marines sailed south and hit Nassau in March 1776, seizing badly needed powder and supplies. The raid stands among the first fleet operations of the American Revolution and produced the first amphibious landing by Marines. If you are hunting for origin stories, that one comes with salt spray and stolen gunpowder (and probably a bit of rum in there as well).

The nation later built a Navy built to last, both in steel and in

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