1943 Gulfport soiree a dance to remember
When the 117th Battalion of the Naval Advance Base (the Seabee Base) in Gulfport gave a formal dance at the Community House on Dec. 9, 1943, the 108th Battalion band, pictured here in 1943, provided the music.
The dance honored the members’ wives, the Military Maids (women who worked in defense of the U.S.) and hostesses.
Little is known about the band, but according to the Seabee Historical Foundation, the 108th Battalion was formed in August 1943 at Camp Peary, a Seabee training camp in Virginia.
The battalion was then sent to Gulfport on Aug. 30, 1943. The 108th remained on duty in Gulfport until just four days after the dance.
The 108th returned to Camp Peary for a brief period of inactivation.
When back on duty, the 108th split into two divisions and both were sent to Scotland, where they operated in different areas until March 1944.
In April 1944, the two divisions reunited as the 108th. The battalion took part in the invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944, after which it moved to England. The 108th sailed home on Oct. 18, 1944, and was inactivated on Dec. 1, 1944.
Murella H. Powell, a local historian, writes the weekly Flashback column.
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This story was originally published June 27, 2016 at 7:32 PM with the headline "1943 Gulfport soiree a dance to remember."