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Naval Station Newport is a military facility that spreads over two different cities of Rhode Island – Middletown and Newport, hence its official name. The facility is operated by the United States Navy and is more popular around the country for the two important schools it hosts – the Naval Justice School and the Naval War College. The installation is commanded by Douglas W. Mikatarian.
Mission
NS Newport aims to maintain the quality at the highest possible standards in an attempt to support all the operations conducted by the United States Navy and especially by the units hosted on site. The highest standards are incorporated into each action it is involved in. The facility aims to become the finest learning center in the world and in order to fulfill this complicated mission, it holds a huge responsibility on its shoulders and provides all the required support and infrastructure to its commands.
At the same time, the officials aim to maintain a high quality of life for the inhabitants, while providing the highest and most common facilities to make everyone feel like home. All of these objectives can only be achieved through teamwork and dedication. The base is continuously pushing its limits and improving in an attempt to deal with today’s demands and foresee tomorrow’s expectations.
History
The history of NS Newport dates back to the 17-th century, although no one could guess what this military base might turn into over the centuries. The place was often used for a military spot, but never a complete installation. The official base was commissioned in 1883 with the idea to train some of the finest warfighters for the United States Navy. Back then, none of the schools today was hosted on site. The training sessions were hosted on some of the ships in the dock. Stephen Bleecker Luce is the one responsible for setting up the first training school. He is also the founder of the popular Naval War College. The college was established one year after the base was opened, in 1884.
The first major expansion occurred at the end of the 19-th century, when multiple facilities and techniques were replaced with the latest technologies on the market. The steam power implementation is one of the major changes. When World War I began, NS Newport saw a huge increase in activity. Thousands of men kept joining it. At some point, it was unable to deal with this whole influx, so some of the aspirants were directed to a nearby station. The human communities nearby were also encouraged to host the students. During the war, more than 75,000 aspirants went through the schools on site.
World War II saw a similar activity, but the officials knew what to expect this time. Over the history, NS Newport was always part of the most important wars. It was also “eyed” by the 2005 BRAC commission, but only to host more and more commands. These days, it is the largest single employer in the county and a prestigious learning center for all the aspirants.