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Show Admiral Nimitz Commissions Navy Service School Built by Henry Ford r : TF7 I , CU WVrff 0 Auto Manufacturer Makes One o His Kare Appearances Before Microphone Dearborn, Mich. When its huge building program got under way, the Navy faced another hue problem, the training of men in the highly technical duties which crews are called upon to perform. The existing naval training sta-I sta-I tions were already full. Turning to industry, Navy officials found that the Henry Ford ' Trade School, situated in the heart of the Rouge plant, was perfectly suited to such training. Henry Ford not only offered the facilities of both school and plant to the Navy for this pur-! pur-! pose, but also said he would build barracks for 1200 students, mess hall for 2000, administration building, provision storage, recreation recre-ation room, athletic field, a steam generating plant. The offer was accepted, and on December 6, 1940, the first shovel of earth was turned on the bank of the Rouge River. Forty days later the first contingent took ;up quarters in the newly erected buildings. The inauguration ceremonies cere-monies were described by Commander Com-mander C. P. Cecil as "unique in the history of the United States Navy for we are dedicating the first Navy Service School ever to be operated in connection with civilian industry." With naval officers on the outdoor out-door platform beside him, and 200 enlisted men drawn up in front of the school's administration administra-tion building, Henry Ford said that: "During the present crisis our organization wants to do , everything possible to help j America and the President. The Navy being our first line of defense, de-fense, I feel that the training of these young men will vitally benefit our nation. And, when this crisis is over, we can then reclaim re-claim these mechanically trained young men in our industries." In turning the facilities of school and plant over to the Navy for training personnel, ' Edsel Ford explained that his father had established the Henry I , Ford Trade School 24 years ago ' "because he believed in using the facilities of the Ford Motor Company Com-pany for something more than the building of motor vehicles.1 He believed that these facilities could also be used for the building build-ing of youth." Rear Admiral C. W. Nimitz, who came from Washington to represent repre-sent Secretary Knox, accepted the facilities of school and plant. "I can think of no better place for this extension of the Navy training train-ing program," he declared. "I wish, Mr. Ford, to express to you the appreciation of the Navy Department Depart-ment for this fine, demonstration of patriotism on your part." The new Navy Service School will be under the administration of Rear Admiral John Downes, Commandant of the Ninth Navti District, which includes 13 states and has headquarters at Great Lakes, Illinois. After explaining that the men to be trained here come from both, the Pacific and the Atlantic, as well as the Great Lakes, he added: "We know that Mr. Ford has here established the finest school in the world for training men in the mechanical trades. This will be the most important training center that the Navy has for schooling its newly enlisted men in the mechanical duties which they will be called upon to perform immediately upon joining join-ing the fleet" |