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Hampton Roads Naval Museum

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Hampton Roads Naval Museum

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The Hampton Roads Naval Museum is an official U.S. Navy Museum that interprets the history of the U.S. Navy in Hampton Roads, Virginia

Welcome to the Hampton Roads Naval Museum’s official page. For the latest Navy news, please visit our official website at www.history.navy.mil/hrnm. While this is an open forum, it's also a family-friendly one, so please keep your comments and wall posts CLEAN and free from profanity. Please note: comments posted on official Navy social media accounts that violate the terms of service of the platform https://www.facebook.com/terms/ may be reported to the service provider for review and possible enforcement. For detailed information on the Navy’s social media policies and guidelines, visit www.navy.mil/Social-Media. Follows/likes/shares/links ≠ endorsement. The appearance of external links on this site does not constitute official endorsement on behalf of the U.S. Navy or the Department of War.

10/27/2026

Happy Navy Day! In 1922, the Navy League of the United States designated October 27 as “Navy Day,” as a way to honor the service of navy Sailors. Why October 27? It is the birthday of President Theodore Roosevelt, former Secretary of the Navy, whose Great White Fleet brought the navy into the modern age. In a speech at the University of Virginia, Roosevelt declared, “our Navy is the surest guarantee of peace and the cheapest insurance against war.”

Currently, there are more than 340,000 active-duty sailors in the United States Navy, serving on hundreds of ships around the world.

Unsure how to properly celebrate Navy Day? Why not check out one of the ten official naval museums - such as ours, the Hampton Roads Naval Museum? You can do some research about the navy’s history, help clean up around a naval monument, or thank a sailor for their service. There’s lots to do, see, and learn!

Photo credits: Official Navy Day poster from Navy Day, 1937 (NHHC)

10/22/2026

Do you love history? Are you looking to try something new? The Hampton Roads Naval Museum is currently recruiting new volunteers! Positions include museum greeters, docents, and special event and outreach volunteers.

Don’t know anything about naval history? That’s alright! We provide all the training you’ll need to get started. As long as you’re passionate about sharing knowledge with others, we’d love to have you aboard.

Reach out to our volunteer coordinator Jill Ravenelle if you have any questions at [email protected]

10/19/2026

Welcome back to Mascot Monday! Today’s feature is Snowball, mascot on USS Formoe ( DE 509 ). Snowball here was clearly ready for some shore leave!

According to the U.S. Naval Institute, this photo’s caption reads: ”It's liberty time for ‘Snowball’ the USS Formoe's mascot, who requests her liberty card from Ship's Servicemen, first class, L.L. Allen of Muncy, Penn. Her Liberty mate, Boatswain Mate, third class, M.W. Hutchins of Hollywood, Calif., is in charge of seeing she makes it back to the ship on time.”

USS Formoe was a John C. Butler-class destroyer es**rt, commissioned in October of 1944. In the Pacific Theater it was engaged in a number of operations, including being used as the headquarters ship for naval activities at Tarakan. The ship earned two battle stars for its WWII service. After being decommissioned (then recommissioned briefly during the Cold War), the United States loaded Formoe to Portugal in 1957. It was renamed NRP Diogo-Cão (F-333), and was in service until its final decommissioning in 1968.

Photo credit: U.S. Naval Institute

10/16/2026

What were the officers on USS Pocahontas (SP-3044) doing on October 16, 1919? According to this menu from the Hampton Roads Naval Museum archive, they were having a very nice evening!

In addition to their dinner - which included potatoes, prime rib, and cake - they also had an evening of entertainment. Six musical pieces performed by the 2nd Pioneer Inf. Orchestra, and two movies - a short comedy and a feature-length drama. While both films are considered to be lost, the Library of Congress has a 1919 recording of the song “Till we meet again” by Richard Whiting, which was played that evening. You can find it here: https://www.loc.gov/item/jukebox-30634/

So if you’re looking to spend a night like an officer aboard a 1919 transport ship, you’ve got a menu to follow, some music to listen to, and you can find yourself a silent film to watch for free, courtesy of the Library of Congress! https://www.loc.gov/collections/edison-company-motion-pictures-and-sound-recordings/

Photo credits: front and back of USS Pocahontas menu (HRNM photos)

10/13/2026

Happy Birthday, Navy! On October 13, 1775, the Continental Congress formally established the Continental Navy to combat the British fleet. From the first two ships - Andrew Doria and Cabot - to today’s fleet of over 300 vessels, the US Navy has sought to fulfill its mission of protecting America at sea.

Join us at the museum today for some fun, hands on history, as we celebrate 251 years of naval history!

Photo credits: Painting of the Continental brig Andrew Doria receiving a salute from the Dutch fort at St. Eustatius, November 16, 1776, by Philips Melville. (NHHC)

USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) arriving in Norfolk Naval Shipyard. (official US Navy photograph)

10/08/2026

It’s time for another Notable Naval Aviator! Cecil E. Harris was the second highest scoring U.S. Navy ace of World War Two with 24 aerial victories. Born in Faulkton, South Dakota in 1916, Harris joined the U.S. Naval Reserve in March of 1941. He completed flight training in March of 1942 at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas, and reported for duty aboard the es**rt carrier USS Suwannee (CVE 27).

Flying with VGF-27, Harris and the Suwannee departed Hampton Roads in November of 1942 to support Operation Torch, the invasion of North Africa.
After Operation Torch, Harris made his way to the Pacific Theater and scored his first aerial victory while flying an F4F Wildcat during the Solomon Islands Campaign in 1943. Flying from Guadalcanal, Harris transferred to VF-18 (The Fighting 18) which was assigned to the USS Intrepid (CV 11). It was during this time that Harris transitioned from the F4F Wildcat to the more powerful and agile F6F Hellcat and went on to score 23 aerial victories over the course of eleven weeks.

Harris received the Navy Cross for his actions on October 29, 1944 during heavy fighting against the Japanese on Luzon, in the Philippine Islands. Leading his flight of Hellcats against two separate flights of Japanese planes, Harris’ leadership helped break up the attack and in the process Harris personally shot down four Japanese planes. Harris returned to the United States in January of 1945. He began training with a new squadron, Air Group 18 which focused on night operations. Equipped with the Navy’s newest plane the F8F Bearcat, Air Group 18 never made it to the Pacific Theater due to Japan surrendering in August of 1945.

Harris was recalled to active duty during the Korean War, and received refresher flight training at Naval Air Station Pensacola. This was followed by Harris being assigned to the Pentagon with the Air Warfare Division under the Chief of Naval Operations. Harris eventually retired from the Navy in 1967 with the rank of Captain.

Photo credits: Lieutenant Cecil E. Harris wearing the Navy Cross, Silver Star, and Distinguished Flying Cross in January of 1945. (National Archives)

Harris receives awards from Admiral Mitscher (cropped, National Archives)

Cecil Harris climbs into the cockpit of an F6F Hellcat (U.S. Naval Institute)

10/04/2026

OTD, October 4, 1943, Operation Leader took place in Bodo, Norway during World War Two. Operation Leader was a joint endeavor between the British and the United States which included USS Ranger ( CV 4 ) which was attached to the Royal Navy’s Home Fleet. The objective of Operation Leader was to conduct air strikes against German shipping in Norway. Ranger launched 28 aircraft (20 Dauntless SBD-5 dive bombers and 8 F4F-4 Wildcat fighters) which carried out attacks on German ships operating in the region.

Ranger’s aircraft sank five ships and badly damaged four others. This action had a significant impact on German supply lines which provided much needed iron ore. The operation was a success and was the only U.S. Navy aircraft carrier combat operation conducted in Northern European waters. This was also the last combat operation for Ranger. Afterwards, Ranger was used to transport aircraft and teach naval aviators how to land and take off from an aircraft carrier.

Photo credits: USS Ranger and Tuscaloosa ( CA-37 ) off the coast of Norway, 1943 (Imperial War Museum)
SBD-3 Dauntless plane seen from USS Ranger (Official U.S. Navy photograph)

10/01/2026

In 2026, the United States celebrates 250 years of nationhood and France celebrates the 400th anniversary of its navy, Marine nationale. The coincidence of these two anniversaries is fitting, as the French Navy secured America’s independence during the Revolutionary War with a crucial victory over the British Royal Navy at the Battle of the Capes in 1781.

To commemorate this anniversary, Hampton Roads Naval Museum is hosting a temporary exhibit, “A Year to Remember," which has pertinent artifacts on display, such as this Sextant – which was presented as a gift to Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Jonathan Greenert in 2013 by French Chief of Naval Staff Bernard Rogel.

If you're in , stop in for a visit - it's free!
Location: Hampton Roads Naval Museum, 1 Waterside Drive, Suite 248, Norfolk, VA 23510 (2nd floor of Nauticus)
Museum Hours: Tues to Sat, 10am to 5pm; This exhibit is open through December 31.

Situated in the world’s largest fleet concentration area, the Hampton Roads Naval Museum connects today's warfighters with over 200 years of naval history in Hampton Roads, from the Revolutionary War to the present day.

09/29/2026

Meet the director of the Hampton Roads Naval Museum! John Pentangelo has twenty-four years of experience in museum collections management, exhibitions, education, development, and administration. John received an M.A. in History Museum Studies from the State University of New York’s Cooperstown Graduate Program.

As curator at USS Constellation Museum in Baltimore, Maryland, he completed the exhibition Damn the Torpedoes: Leadership at Sea in the Civil War (2006) to interpret the restored wardroom and officers’ quarters. Throughout 2008, he organized several initiatives to commemorate USS Constellation’s role in fighting the transatlantic slave trade. His efforts resulted in the passage of House Resolution 1159 and Senate Resolution 540 that year. He later curated the exhibit, Sailors and Slaves: USS Constellation and the Transatlantic Slave Trade. His research was published in Navies and Soft Power: Historical Case Studies of Naval Power and the Nonuse of Military Force (Naval War College Press, 2015).

John joined the Naval History and Heritage Command in 2008 as a curator at the Naval War College Museum in Newport, Rhode Island. Promoted to managing director in 2012, he managed operations and oversaw construction of a new collections storage facility and HVAC system.

As the director of the Hampton Roads Naval Museum (since 2016), he supervised a major exhibit interpreting the Navy’s role in Vietnam by educating the public about the U.S. Navy’s dynamic mission capabilities. He later coordinated the museum’s reaccreditation by the American Alliance of Museums in 2022-2023 and oversaw the addition of history curricula to U.S. Navy senior enlisted training modules. His strategic vision to transform the museum into a cultural nexus that brings the American people closer to their Navy and makes history a core component of Sailor education is currently in development with Naval History and Heritage Command and other stakeholders.

📸: Director John Pentangelo in front a gun from the CSS Teaser, on display in the museum (from John Pentangelo)

09/25/2026

One week until our next book club meeting! Join us next Thursday to discuss Reflections on Captivity by Porter Alexander Halyburton.

On October 17, 1965, Navy LTJG Porter Halyburton was shot down over North Vietnam and listed as killed in action. One-and-a-half years later, he was found to be alive and a prisoner of war. Halyburton was held captive for more than seven years. Reflections on Captivity is a collection of fifty short stories about this naval officer's experiences as a POW in North Vietnam.

The meeting is Thursday, October 1 at 10:00 am. You'll find us on the fifth floor of The Slover branch of the Norfolk Public Library.

We hope to see you there!

Address

1 Waterside Drive, Ste 248
Norfolk, VA
23510

Opening Hours

Tuesday	10am - 5pm
Wednesday	10am - 5pm
Thursday	10am - 5pm
Friday	10am - 5pm
Saturday	10am - 5pm

Website

http://www.history.navy.mil/hrnm

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