By Andrew Scutro - Staff writer
Posted : Monday Dec 17, 2007 6:43:19 EST
NORFOLK, Va. — One hundred years ago on Dec. 16, an armada of 16 American battleships pushed away from Hampton Roads on a 14-month circumnavigation of the globe to show the world what the U.S. Navy could do.
The Great White Fleet, as it was known because of its bright paintjob, was dispatched by President Theodore Roosevelt, a larger than life American leader who had been in his career, among other things, Navy secretary.
To mark the anniversary, current Secretary of the Navy Donald Winter hosted some 500 guests aboard the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt — "America’s Big Stick" — pierside in its Norfolk homeport.
In a speech held in a hangar bay decorated with images and quotes of Roosevelt, Winter told the audience that "a maritime nation with maritime interests" needs a potent naval force always able to span the globe.
http://www.navytimes.com/news/2007/12/navy_greatwhitefleet_071216/
