AIC 53rd Annual Meeting

The US Navy Submarine Force Museum (SFM) and Historic Ship Nautilus (SSN 571) is the only museum in the United States where nuclear-trained US Navy Submarine Sailors and museum professionals have the opportunity to work together to care for a museum collection. Collections staff gain daily access to the foremost subject matter experts and cultural stakeholders of the collection, as well as exclusive insight into Sailors’ lives onboard submarines. Meanwhile our Sailors discover unique skills and a knowledge base they would otherwise not encounter in their Navy careers. Over time, this relationship has proven mutually beneficial, but it wasn’t always that way.  

Our presentation charts the evolution of this collaborative relationship via the trials and triumphs of our ongoing 100% collection inventory. Previously, civilian and military staff operated in isolation from each other. This changed in 2021 when Sailors volunteered to serve as liaisons between the civilian staff and the military command to ensure programming and collections work continued in the event of civilian furloughs. As our Sailors’ interest in museum work grew, we trained them on basic collections care and incorporated them into our inventory teams. Their extensive knowledge and “Sailor power” were welcome additions to the moving and processing of both large quantities of artifacts and just plain large artifacts. It is now a full-fledged collaboration that includes Sailors in artifact handling, conservation, exhibit planning, and programming. As the Sailors work with collections staff, their investment and pride in caring for the museum has grown, using their positions to streamline collections care and facilities management. Having a crew of thirty highly-trained and physically-fit Sailors as first responders to a collections’ emergency (e.g. fire, leaks, or loss of electrical power) takes a significant burden off the collections team. The Sailors are also the primary force behind maintaining and preserving SFM's most priceless artifact – Historic Ship Nautilus herself, the world’s first nuclear submarine and the only US Navy nuclear submarine available for public touring.  

The tangible benefits of collaboration have been invaluable to improving SFM in predictable ways, but what we never anticipated was our Sailors truly investing in learning how to better preserve their own heritage. We all have continued to grow and learn about the traditions, missions, and occasionally embellished history – “sea stories” – that make the US Navy Submarine Force a one-of-a-kind community. This is only a temporary duty in these Sailors’ careers, but they take this unique knowledge and skillset with them, applying it to other facets of their lives, whether at follow-on duties assisting with other heritage assets within the US Navy or in a volunteer capacity as civilians. This inventory has fostered skills and relationships that extend beyond the walls of SFM. This presentation is our chance to share our experiences, pass on our lessons, and spin our very own sea story. Or two.