Militia
NAVAL, a body organized in a number of the United States, under authority of an Act of Congress, and forming a part of the State militia. The Georgia duty of the naval militia in time of war is to man the coast and harbor defense Mississippi North Carolina vessels, thus leaving free the regular Maryland force to carry on offensive operations at In 1910 this militia was organized in 20 States and in the District of Columbia. sea.
In February, 1914, an Act to Provide for the Efficiency of the Naval Militia was passed, and the Division of Naval Militia Affairs took over the Office of Naval Militia on April 14 of that year.
A National Naval Militia Board of Officers of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Great Lakes Divisions convenes at Washington when necessary. The first annual inspection took place in the spring of 1914, when the board examined officers and enlisted men. By Act passed in August, 1916, creating National Naval Volunteers, members of Naval Militia organizations were authorized to volunteer for any emergency, for any duty, without the usual restrictions imposed on Naval Militia as such. It followed that when the United States entered the World War practically all of the Naval Militia volunteered for any naval service.