MISSION

• To preserve, promote, celebrate and enjoy our Nation’s Sea Service history and heritage. To accomplish this we will:  
• Commemorate American Sea Service Heroes and important historical events,
• Support the study of Naval History through writing, speaking and educational events,
• Preserve Sea Service historical artifacts, documents and monuments, and
• Promote Camaraderie among our Companions and members of similar organizations

NEW YORK COMMANDERY OFFICERS FOR 2010/2011

Commander	Hon.William H. Schmidt. Esq.	williamhschmidt@verizon.net
First Vice Commander	Franklin W. Montgomery, Esq.	fmontgomery@montlaw.com
Second Vice Commander	Hank Warnke	hcwarnke@aol.com
Third Vice Commander	CDR John F. V. Cupschalk	johncupschalk@yahoo.com
Flag Lieutenant	LT Jonathan C. Jones	jjones@jonessearchgroup.com
Treasurer	Roy DeFranco	rdefranco@yahoo.com
Recorder	RD3 Donald W. Schuld, USNR	dschuld@juno.com
Historians	CAPT Joseph R. Carmichael, Jr.
	CAPT Austin Volk, USN
Judge Advocate	HM2 WIlliam H. Schmidt	williamhschmidt@verizon.net
Parliamentarian	CAPT John H. Engel
Chaplain	CAPT Howard Freiberger

 

Companions of the Council RADM Joseph Callo LT William Adelaar LT Jonathan Jones CDR John F. V. Cupschalk Hon. William H. Schmidt, Esq.

Trustees LT William Adelaar LT Frank Montgomery LT Jonathan Jones CDR John F. V. Cupschalk Hon. William H. Schmidt, Esq.

 

EVENTS FOR 2011

All events are held at the Racquet & Tennis Club, 370 Park Avenue, New York City.

Luncheon receptions (shown herebelow) commence at 1130, and lunch 1200. The Morison Award is a black-tie dinner.

• 7 February
• 7 March
• 4 April
• 2 May
• 6 June
• (Summer Break – No Meetings July & August)
• 12 September
• 3 October
• 7 November (Morison Award Dinner - Night)
• 5 December

OBSERVANCES

Mindful of the historic lesson of the need for eternal vigilance, and in gratitude for gallant service, the Naval Order sponsors the following annual observances through its local commanderies (others being added):

Pearl Harbor Day
Victory at Manila Bay and tribute to Admiral Dewey
Victory at Midway
USS Maine Day
USS Houston Day
Admiral Farragut Day

SAMUEL ELIOIT MORISON AWARD FOR NAVAL LITERATURE

The Samuel Eliot Morison Award for Naval Literature dinner is an annual black-tie event held by the New York Commandery, and recognizes an author "who by his published writings has made a substantial contribution to the preservation of the history and traditions of the United States Navy."

2010 Samuel Eliot Morison Award

James Scott

Attack on the USS Liberty

 

James Scott is an award-winning writer and former reporter and investigative journalist with the Charleston, S.C., Post and Courier. Scott has reported from Afghanistan, Iraq and tsunami-devastated Indonesia as well as worked in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He is a recipient of the McClatchy Company President’s Award and was named the 2003 Journalist of the Year by the South Carolina Press Association. Wofford College honored Scott as its 2005 Young Alumnus of the Year. From 2006-2007 he was a Nieman Fellow for Journalism at Harvard University. Scott currently is at work on a book on the perils of submarine warfare in the Pacific during World War II, also for Simon & Schuster. He lives with his wife and two children in Charleston, S.C.

 

In 1967 the spy ship U.S.S. Liberty was attacked by Israeli fighter jets and torpedo boats in international waters during the Six-Day War. Thirty four sailors were killed and 171 wounded, many critically. Israel claimed mistaken identity, which a U.S. naval court of inquiry confirmed, but that explanation is contradicted by the facts of the case.

 

James Scott has conducted hundreds of interviews with Liberty survivors, senior administration and intelligence officials and examined newly declassified documents in Israel and the United States to write this comprehensive, dramatic account. Some of his sources have never spoken publicly about the Liberty until now. Scott reveals the outrage felt by many inside the Pentagon, State Department, NSA and Navy and shows that some officers inside Israel’s chain of command were aware of the Liberty’s real identity. He also documents through interviews how events in Vietnam prompted the American government to de-emphasize the attack despite widespread disbelief of Israel’s story.

 

Journalist and son of an attack survivor: Scott’s father, John, was an officer and damage control engineer aboard the Liberty who was awarded the Silver Star for helping to save the ship from sinking.

 

NEW YORK AWARDS

• United States Merchant Marine Academy, awarded to the top Midshipmen for each semester

• State University of New York, awarded to the top one of the top Midshipmen for the year