Fair Winds and Following Seas: Peacetime Naval Operations to 1939

Fair Winds and Following Seas: Peacetime Naval Operations to 1939

On view at The Library Company of Philadelphia from October 2025 – April 2026

During their 250-year existence, the United States Navy (USN) and Marine Corps (USMC) have participated in vital operations outside the scope of war. Maritime actions that supported the development and success of the United States was, and is, within the scope of these two conjoined branches of the military. This exhibition will highlight some of those actions of the USN and USMC, up to 1939. These actions include exploration, rescues, humanitarian missions, diplomacy, slave trade interdiction, and protection of commerce. While at times requiring combat, the primary goal of these operations was not the defeat of an identified foe in a declared war. Rather, they represent the historical understanding that a nation’s strength lies not only in its ability to defeat its enemies through military action, but also through its ability to protect its interests, grow and understand its dominion, and build strategic partnerships. Fair Winds and Following Seas will feature books, graphics, and ephemera that describe this peacetime, but not always peaceful, life on the high seas.