LyrArc Article Gist
R.J. Barrett, Lieutenant junior grade Navy Reserve, his poem on New Year's Day 1975 on board the USS Coral Sea, Subic Bay- chosen from The National Archives by Captain Sam Tangredi. 

"Our shipmates all have gone ashore, At twelve o’clock we heard the roar. So far away and yet so near;  Moored starboard side to Alava Pier. Lines 1 and 9 are strung out tight  The head and stern wires are set just right. The standard moor doubled is what you’ll see,

As you walk along checking good ’ole 43. The commander of 7th Fleet’s carrier striking forces embarked aboard, Rear ADM D.C. Davis is the gentleman’s name.

Down in the hole the snipes are doing fine Only IC boiler is in on the line. Five fire pumps are lit off and readyD.C. reports secure; water pressure steady. Shore cables fore and aft from the pier do reach

In the harbor with us there’s quite a crowd A fleet to make any commodore proud The DESRONs and amphibs are represented well. Some of their names I’ll try to tell.Rathburne, Reasoner, Whipple, and Cook  Are all settled in and have grabbed a nook Knox and Stoddert are nestled in too,

But that’s not all; these are just a few. Also in sight from the Coral Sea Are Dubuque, Vancouver, and the Tripoli. Peoria and Thomaston are also around. Some pretty fine vessels pound for pound.

Taking one last look around the bay, There’s the Camden, Haleakala, and San Jose. Long Beach and Enterprise, make a special mark  Who could miss their shape, even in the dark?

The Gurnard, Reclaimer, and the Grayback Are all included, though good rhymes they lack.

And because soon I’ll be retiring aft. I’ll just say “and various other yard and district craft." With all this done, though before the watch’s conclusion I must record my New Year’s resolution.

If any lesson over the past year has been learned, This single one, into my mind has been burned. As I stood here thinking of things to say, Twisting verse in every which way, I vowed to myself, if ever I did, That I’ll never volunteer for the New Year’s mid

Sam J. Tangredi from the US Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island pulls out these poems from the National Archives which shows ship's logs and poems written on Navy warships in a regulated formula in standardized form. The entries are in strict official form about condition at sea, speed, mooring lines if in port.

In the first entry on January 1 tne US Navy makes an exception as it is in poetic form. In 2020 the Naval History and Heritage Command revived the poetry contest.