USS Ranger. The navy's first flattop from keel to mast, 1934-46

This voyage of research and writing has not been a solitary endeavor, for, if a historian is to recount a story with any degree of confidence, he needs the vital raw material from which the account must be fashioned. This raw material, primary documents, resides in facilities for their preservation, under the care of dedicated professional archivists and curators. I would like to thank the magnificent staff of the branches of the Naval Historical Center: in the Operational Archives, Kathy Lloyd, Mike Walker, Kenneth Johnson, Wade Wyckoff, John Hodges, Regina Akers, and Ariana Jacob, and, particularly, a former member of that staff, Kathy Rohr; in addition, I would also like to thank Roy Grossnick, Mark Evans, and Todd Baker of the Aviation History Branch and Archives; Charles R. Haberlein, Jack Green (now public affairs specialist at the Center), Ed Finney, and Mark Wertheimer

CONTENTS
Acknowledgments Abbreviations and Watches Introduction
PART I—PRE-WORLD WAR II
“I Christen Thee Ranger”
“Set the Watch!”
“The Job Is a Diplomatic One”
“She Will Prove Herself a Very Valuable Ship”
“A Very Good Time Was Had by All”
“Have Reached a Marvelous Efficiency”
“When a Ship Breaks into the Movies”
“Bring Back Amelia and Fred!”
“An Everlasting Remembrance of Admiration and Friendship”
“The Officers and Men Know Their Business”
“The Probability of Air Attack on Carriers”
“Ranger Has Taken the Necessary Changes in Stride”
“Spreading the Butter a Little Thin”
“With Contagious Enthusiasm”
PART II—WORLD WAR II AND AFTER
“Our Only Striking Force against Raiders”
“There Is a Need for a Carrier in the Atlantic”
“We Could Take No Chances”
“A cRed Ripper Special’”
“Looking for Targets of Opportunity”
“Morale Drops Quickly before an Enemy Who Is Clearly Superior”
“Eucalyptus, by the Smell”
“Well Done RANGER”
“You Have All Done a Grand Job”
“We Are Too Valuable as a Striking Force”
“I Am Fed Up with This Place”
“The Old Ship Came Across in Good Style”
“Ranger Could Be Made Into an Excellent Training Ship.”
“She Didn’t Need Headlines to Be a Great Ship”
Notes
Bibliography
Index
About the Author