Guide to Federal Records

General Records of the Department of the Navy, 1947-


(Record Group 428)
1941-89 (bulk 1941-51)

Overview of Records Locations

Table of Contents

  • 428.1 ADMINISTRATIVE HISTORY
  • 428.2 GENERAL RECORDS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY 1941-65 434 lin. ft.
  • 428.2.1 Records of the Office of the Secretary
  • 428.2.2 Records of the Naval Photographic Center
  • 428.3 MOTION PICTURES (GENERAL)
  • 428.4 STILL PICTURES (GENERAL)
  • 428.5 MACHINE-READABLE RECORDS (GENERAL) 1941-89

428.1 ADMINISTRATIVE HISTORY

Established: As a military department under the Secretary of Defense in the unified National Military Establishment (NME), by the National Security Act of 1947 (61 Stat. 495), July 26, 1947.

Predecessor Agencies:

  • War Department (1789-98)
  • Department of the Navy (1798-1947)

Transfers: To the Department of Defense (formerly NME) by the National Security Act Amendments of 1949 (63 Stat. 578), August 10, 1949.

Functions: Administers the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Marine Corps.

Security-Classified Records: This record group may include material that is security-classified.

Related Records: Record copies of publications of the Department of the Navy in RG 287, Publications of the U.S. Government. General records of the Navy Department predating 1885, in RG 45, Naval Records Collection of the Office of Naval Records and Library. General records of the Navy Department, principally 1885-1947, in RG 80, General Records of the Department of the Navy, 1798-1947.

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428.2 GENERAL RECORDS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY
1941-65

History: Responsibility for naval affairs vested in War Department by act of August 7, 1789 (1 Stat. 49). Separate Department of the Navy established by an act of April 30, 1798 (1 Stat. 553). Became a military department of the unified National Military Establishment, 1947. SEE 428.1.

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428.2.1 Records of the Office of the Secretary

Textual Records: Formerly security-classified correspondence of Secretaries John L. Sullivan, 1947-49, and Francis P. Mathews, 1949-50. Formerly security-classified combined general correspondence of the Secretary of the Navy and the Chief of Naval Operations, 1948-51 (420 ft.).

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428.2.2 Records of the Naval Photographic Center

Motion Pictures (13,339 reels): Unedited silent documentary motion picture footage covering all aspects of naval operations in World War II and Korea; aspects of naval aviation, ships, and ship operations, crash landings, and rescues; and including acquired newsreels and captured film, 1941-65, with master card index. Photographs (379,010 images): Navy officers and enlisted men; aircraft, ships, and boats; ordnance and other equipment; training activities and facilities; bases; geographical areas; navy operations during the Vietnam War; and other subjects relating to U.S. Navy history, 1955-81 (GX, K, KN, N; 379,000 images). Navy nurses in Vietnam, 1966-68 (NV, 10 images). SEE ALSO 428.4.

Periscope Photographs (51 images): Taken by the U.S.S. Irex off the coast of Rhode Island, 1956 (IR). SEE ALSO 428.4.

Related Records: Photographic series GX, K, KN, and N, described above, are a continuation of photographic series G, GK, and CF, described UNDER 80.11.

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428.3 MOTION PICTURES (GENERAL)

SEE UNDER 428.2.2.

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428.4 STILL PICTURES (GENERAL)

SEE Photographs UNDER 428.2.2. SEE Periscope Photographs UNDER 428.2.2.

 428.5 MACHINE-READABLE RECORDS (GENERAL)
1941-89


Awards Information Management System history files, 1941-89 (2 data sets).


Bibliographic note: Web version based on Guide to Federal Records in the National Archives of the United States. Compiled by Robert B. Matchette et al. Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1995.
3 volumes, 2428 pages.

Ordering information

This Web version is updated from time to time to include records processed since 1995.


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