Humanitarian· Civil Aid and Humanitarian Operations
USS Grampus fire response at St. Thomas
One of the earliest recorded instances of Marines turning out for a civil emergency abroad.
While the schooner USS Grampus lay at the Danish port of St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands, a major fire broke out in the town, and Marines and seamen from the ship went ashore to help fight it and protect property from the flames. The episode had nothing to do with combat; it was a humanitarian and disaster-relief effort, the kind of duty that a disciplined ship's company close at hand could readily perform for a friendly port in distress. Actions like this, a Marine guard landing to fight a fire or keep order in a civil crisis, became a recurring thread in the Corps' history alongside its combat role, and the Grampus's effort at St. Thomas stands as an early documented example of the tradition of Marine civil aid ashore.
Record no. 297