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QUARTERDECK
REVIEW
'1sf{;;~,~'.f,~~ VOL. 12
FALL 1985
1792 MARINE DRIVE, ASTORIA, OREGON 97103
NO. 4
OREGON NAVAL MILITIA MARCHING AT ASTORIA, 1898 Oregon once had its own navy? Well, not exactly, but there was a distinct state naval organization for several years. A number of states had formed their own navies during the American Revolution, and several Confederate states imitated that precedent during the Civil War. The Oregon force, however, was a "naval militia," originally organized as part of the Oregon National Guard in 1898, when war broke out with Spain. A number of other coastal states also had formed such organizations, ostensibly for coastal defense, because the U.S. Navy then had no reserve organization to provide for quick expansion in time of war.
A number of Portland citizens petitioned the governor, in April of 1898, to form a naval battalion as part of the National Guard. Under authority of existing law, two companies were organized at Portland and one in Astoria, each consisting of thirty-nine enlisted men and four officers (elected by the men!). Funds were allocated for purchase of uniforms, weapons, and equipment, but the battalion was not called into federal service during the brief Spanish-American War. This had an adverse impact on the unit's morale and, by the time it was reorganized into three divisions in May 1899, the battalion's strength had (continued on page 3}