Happy birthday, Chief Petty Officers
Several folks sent us links to Navy Live which announces that the rank of Chief Petty Officer was officially created on April 1st, 1893, so we’re a day late;
Armed with official recognition, chiefs of the past went on to lay the foundation for their modern day counterparts. As servant-leaders, they acted as the unique lynchpin between officers and enlisted personnel who executed daily operations, and also took a leading role in the career development of junior petty officers.
Additionally, chiefs were celebrated not only for their technical expertise, but their administrative abilities as well. Knowledge in the intricacies of the ship’s daily operations and ability to coordinate with various departments gave chiefs unique abilities that were unrivaled by even the most senior officers.
With this newly recognized position of authority and expertise they were bestowed with uniform devices to recognize their merit. At first, the only distinction was the advent of a rocker to their rating badge. According to Juergens, borrowing the master-at-arms rating that used three stripes, a single rocker was added and became official in 1894. The fouled anchor as a cap device was introduced in 1905; collar devices did not become an official part of the uniform until 1959.
Additionally, chiefs were given their own space on ships. Referred to as the “Chief’s Mess,” it is off-limits to anyone else (officer or enlisted) without invitation and is affectionately called the “Goat Locker.”
Not everyone can be a CPO, although we’ve seen one or two try. Many will never be a CPO, no matter how refined are their photoshop skills.
Category: Navy
Except You-Know-Who.
/all you get is a doo doo sundae. No sprinkles.
No reason he can’t have sprinkles too…. stray sprinkles as I relieve myself.
A fella could make an observation about CPOs and April Fools…..
If a fella was dumb enough.
(ducks from flying objects from resident CPOs)
Happy, Happy 😉
OC
WE all know who the REAL CPOs were and are.
Anyone else is a LSOS and a thief.
Well, gee whiz – a bunch of us never were CPO’s and aren’t LSoS’s or thieves! 😉
Then again, we only claim that which we were awarded. Normally, that means we also earned it. Mostly.
/sarc
No offense meant, OWB.
I was, of course, ONLY referring to those who CLAIM to be, but NEVER WERE, Chief Petty Officers in the Navy.
Hopefully the CA bar’s hearing earlier this week will provide a belated birthday present to all genuine Navy CPOs.
It already did!
Buy popcorn!
A belated birthday to my fellow past and present genuine CPO’s.
Is anyone else here amused that CPOs came about on April Fools day?
No I am not AMUSED!
Don’t know a MCPO that ever was amused, by anything 😀
After my first week of mess duty, the Master Chief in charge of the mess decks moved me to the CPO mess (kitchen) for the remainder of my 3 month mess duty.
We had it better than our counterparts who did theirs in the general mess decks.
Oh yeah, the encoprolited one of 2014 is not included in the group that’s being congratulated here.
To all the CPOs who have served and are serving, including our own Master Chief, MCPO NYC Ret. Thank you all for being the backbone of the Navy!
Amen Sparks. I grew up in Jacksonville Fla and our neighbor for most of my younger years was a “Chief”. That’s all I ever knew him as since my folks were railroad civilians. He was a Brown Shoe on P3’s. He was either at NAS Jax or in Maine. Chief Ronald “Dixie” Dugan always had a deal going on (in a good way). He always made things happen. Always in good spirit and, at the same time, mission focused…whatever the mission was. We also ate a lot of lobster. Not sure what his grade was…he was just “the Chief”.
My parents worshiped him and I think he instilled some military discipline and interest in this youngster. Didn’t hurt that a neighbor 2 houses up jumped in at Normandy and got a bullet in the jaw that gave him a real warrior look to this young kid. Prayers SGT Buddy Hanson, RIP.
I reunited with the Chief decades later on the outskirts of Lejeune. He hadn’t changed a bit. He was still the Chief and didn’t give a shit that I was a LTC (but he was proud that he had steered me).
BZ Chief Dixie and Anna. You and Anna made a difference for a lot of people. Hoisting a Scotch your way. GEEZE OUT.
SJ,
Just Chief is good enough. Navy, Coast Guard or other service initiated … Chief is good enough.
Rgr. Dixie was a good man that I had pushed to the back of my limited memory until this all came up. I really think that in my early days as a junior officer that Chief Dugan was watching over me and telling me to listen to the outstanding NCO’s that I served with at Bragg.
Show me a successful officer, CPO, petty officer, or Navy veteran, and virtually all of them can name the CPOs who shaped them, mentored them, and yeah, even busted their balls when necessary.
A good Chief is worth his/her weight in gold.
That’s true in all the services, Silentium. The good troops – officer or enlisted – listened to and learned from their NCOs when they were young.
If they didn’t, they generally didn’t end up hanging around very long. Or end up being very successful.
Good senior NCOs of any service are indeed priceless – both for keeping things running, and for training the next generation of leaders.
When comparing myself to Bernath with respect to the issue above … I have NOTHING to say.
Wait …. There are two things:
1. Bernath is not, never was nor will he ever be a Genuine or Honorary CPO. PERIOD!
2. He can KMRIA!
That is all.
OUT!
PS: Happy B-day Brother and Sister CPO’s and E-7,8 and 9’s from other branches who were properly initiated … Dead or Alive!
Three of the most influential men in my life as a young sailor were:
MMC (SS) Henriksen, my Company Commander at RTC San Diego.
AMCS Martin, my Line Division CPO at VA-105
AMCS Gibson, a Maintenance Control Senior Chief at VA-105.
Yes … See below, we always remeber our first Chief.
My dad confessed when he was very ill, before he passed … “Terry I spoke with that Artie fellow, he is a good man”.
I replied, “when did you speak to my Chief?”
Dad said, “the Chief said, “what is said here, stays here””.
I suspect it was 1981 when we returned from NATO cruise where we almost had it out with the Soviet’s over Poland.
Senior Chiefs Nelson and Benware, RTC Great Lakes.
Chief Keene. Senior Chief Evans. Chief Plasse.
All of you and more, thanks.
BTW: when I retired from the Navy after 32 years, I had 2 very special guests.
1. My first LPO who retired as a BTC.
2. And my first LCPO. He retired as BTCM.
My guest speaker at my retirement was the 2 Star, DEP Naval Special Warfare Command.
When the DEP NSW retired, I was in attendance at One Trident Way. At the retirement he was promoted to Honorary CPO … signed off by the one and only MCPON.
Stuff that in your overboard discharge pipe and smoke it!
But what do I know?
But what do I know?
A helluva lot more than you let on, that’s for certain!
Happy Birthday, Master Chief!
(And to all other GENUINE CPOs.)
In NSW I was a “shoe”.
A damn good “shoe”, well most of the time.
I had my moments!
A “shoe” is a non-operator!
MC, understand you were a BT. Did you ever serve with a BT named Carl Baxley? We were very good friends in Hawaii when he was at NIMA.
Back during the Nixon administration, I was a cadet in the Civil Air Patrol. One weekend we were invited to tour a destroyer. The CPO ensured we followed all of the correct protocols of cover on this deck, uncover on this deck, and watch the knee knockers which is as good a lesson as ever was. While I cannot remember his name, I still wish him a happy birthday wherever he is.
‘And a happy birthday to all Chiefs.
You know, Chiefs are an OK guy as an E-7, a fricken A-Hole as a Senior, and laid back as a Master chief. I don’t think anyone can argue with that. I’ve personally known too many chiefs who became a fricken a-hole when they hit E-8. Happy Birthday? Yeah ok, but good lick is all I can say. To all the future Chiefs, when you make senior, just remember where you came from.
SJ,
Just Chief is good enough. Navy, Coast Guard or other service initiated … Chief is good enough.
One of the few things I missed out on in my career was I never got a chance to do a float after I was a Gunny and eat in the Chief’s mess.
Shipmate, without a doubt being a Chief on a ship is the best gig in the entire Navy. And that includes the “O-gangers.”
God was good to me in my career. I made it to LCDR.
But God was REALLY good to me when he influenced the board to select me to be an E-7.
Of all the ranks I was chosen for from E-2 to O-4, being “THE CHIEF” is the one I am most proud of. I was humbled to be selected to be a member of that “august” gathering.
And I don’t care what anyone says, “once a Chief, ALWAYS a Chief.”
Bob Maguire
CTIC(NAC)
As I wrote a couple of days ago, a coupla Chiefs damn near got me in the Navy and heavily influenced me to get off my dead ass and make something of myself. I would up in the Army, so my active-duty NCO leaders were also (I’ll never forget a CSM who could verbally blister paint at 20 yards, whisper at 150Db, but got down on his knees to sing ‘K-K-K-Katie’ to my then 2 year old daughter!) but I owe a huge debt of gratitude to those two retired Chiefs who started me down a better path.