This memorial depicts Rhode Island's other Big Bug...A true Travel
Bug, The SeaBee.
In December 1941,
immediately after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Rear Admiral
Ben Moreell, recommended establishing Naval
Construction Battalions, known as CBs. Later,
they came to be known as the SeaBees. They are best known by
the image depicted here which was created by Frank
Iafrate.
The earliest Seabees were recruited from the civilian
construction trades and made their home in Davisville, Rhode
Island. Because of the emphasis on experience and skill rather than
physical standards, the average age of Seabees during the early
days of World War II was 37.
More than 325,000 men served with the Seabees in World War II,
fighting and building on six continents and more than 300 islands.
In the Pacific, where most of the construction work was needed, the
Seabees landed soon after the Marines and built major airstrips,
bridges, roads, gasoline storage tanks, and quonset huts for
warehouses, hospitals, and housing.
The Seabees have since played a vital role in every major
conflict the US was engaged in. This site is a small memorial
dedicated to the Seabees and to the creator of their iconic
image.