named Navy good conduct medal

[scottplen]

hello

someone gave this to me any info a help seems officially engraved I believe this was a battle ship?

Was this part of great white fleet? what rank is CSC?

[Hugh]

I'll let others reply to the Great White Fleet question, but your man is a Commisryman (known in those days as a Commissary Steward, or informally as a stewburner). He's a Chief Petty Officer (E-7).

[FireMedals]

scottplen

What you have is a nice original Navy GCM, with the engraving typical of this period. As to the information on the reverse;

CSC means Continuous Service Certificate. It is not a rank (or rate, to be correct for the Navy). The number after CSC is his CSC number. The CSC was a real certificate issued to sailors who applied for Continuous Service. Every ship or station where they served was listed, all re-enlistments shown, general health data, etc. Much like a modern service records jacket.The idea started in the Royal Navy and was adopted by the US Navy about 1870 as a reward for good behavior. Being a CS sailor gave you special privileges including the right to take time off between re-enlistments and to be paid for it. A radical idea in the civilian world, but it was a method to try to keep experienced sailors in the service. It also had responsibilities, as bad conduct, desertion, and other negative behavior could cause you to lose those privileges. The CSC was NOT a serial number or service number as we know it today, and is next to useless as a research tool. However there is usually a service file on most of these guys and you should be able to get it.

The sailor?s name is obvious.

The USS Connecticut was an early US battleship and her history can be easily found on the danfs website (Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships). She was one of the ships that made up the Great White Fleet on their around-the-world cruise, if my memory serves.

The date December 9, 1910 is the date that Harry Weener completed his enlistment.

A nice gift, well worth taking the time to research.

FireMedals

[Hugh]

scottplen

What you have is a nice original Navy GCM, with the engraving typical of this period. As to the information on the reverse;

CSC means Continuous Service Certificate. It is not a rank (or rate, to be correct for the Navy). The number after CSC is his CSC number. The CSC was a real certificate issued to sailors who applied for Continuous Service. Every ship or station where they served was listed, all re-enlistments shown, general health data, etc. Much like a modern service records jacket.The idea started in the Royal Navy and was adopted by the US Navy about 1870 as a reward for good behavior. Being a CS sailor gave you special privileges including the right to take time off between re-enlistments and to be paid for it. A radical idea in the civilian world, but it was a method to try to keep experienced sailors in the service. It also had responsibilities, as bad conduct, desertion, and other negative behavior could cause you to lose those privileges. The CSC was NOT a serial number or service number as we know it today, and is next to useless as a research tool. However there is usually a service file on most of these guys and you should be able to get it.

The sailor's name is obvious.

The USS Connecticut was an early US battleship and her history can be easily found on the danfs website (Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships). She was one of the ships that made up the Great White Fleet on their around-the-world cruise, if my memory serves.

The date December 9, 1910 is the date that Harry Weener completed his enlistment.

A nice gift, well worth taking the time to research.

FireMedals

Nice input, FireMedals! While CSC is indeed the abbreviation for Chief Commissary Steward, it appears irrevalent to this inscription. Unusual not to mention the man's rate / rating, at least in later days.