ABOUT FALCON DIVISION
History of Our Unit and Fields Point
- 1690s: Thomas Field house, a vernacular stone-ender, was constructed (now demolished). This is the first dwelling on the land. Land was names after William Field, a British colonist who settled in Providence, RI.
- 1800s: Fields Point Farm, a 37-acre park, was on the land. This was the main recreational area in the city until Roger Williams Park was created in 1871.
- 1880s: Local visitors came to the Fields Point to visit landmarks such as: Colonel Atwell's Clam House, Edgewood Beach, The Washington Park Yacht Club and Kerwin's Beach (which a small piece of the beach still exists on the other side of the fence from our drill site).
- 1941: The U.S. Maritime Commission selected Fields Point as a location for a shipyard as part of the Emergency Shipbuilding Program.
- 1942: The Providence Emergency Shipyard was built and managed by the Rheeem Corporation, then changing to the Walsh-Kaiser Company. This shipyard occupied 144 acres and could build six ships at a time, 24/7. At it's peak, the shipyard employed 21,000 workers, 3,000 of them women. At Fields Points, 11 Liberty ships, 21 frigates, and 32 combat cargo ships (exclusive to Fields Point), 64 ships total were built at the shipyard. The fastest built ship took only 82 days!
- 1950s: One of the piers on the shipyard was used to house a U.S. Navy Reserve Center (this is the first footprint that the Navy was actively on the site).
- 1958: The USS Blandy (DD-943), reported to her first homeport at Newport, RI and was assigned to Destroyer Squadron (DesRon) 24 and began operating with Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Task Group (TG) Bravo.
- 1960: The USS Lionfish (WWII submarine) was berthed at the Navy pier #2 at Fields Point for use as a training vessel. The Lionfish is now at Battleship Cove in Fall River, Massachusetts.
- 1963: On May 19, 1963, our unit was established as the "USS Blandy Division." In January of this year, the USS Blandy received the annual Navy League Trophy, awarded to the Atlantic Fleet’s most outstanding Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) ship. We assume due to her homeport being local, and the trophy given to the ship, that we were named for that purpose.
- Our youth program was founded in 1958. Falcon Division is one of the oldest units in Sea Cadets! (uncertain on the actual number, but there are only about a dozen other units that are older).
- In 1973, Johnson & Wales University established a facility in Fields Point, but by 2001, the university leased land to Save The Bay for an educational center
- 1965: On January 27, 1965, our unit was re-named to "Falcon Division."
- Our name comes from the USS Falcon (MHC-59) that was once docked outside of our drill location. The ship was delivered to the Navy on October 14, 1996, and on October 26, 1997, the Falcon transferred to the Naval Reserve Force. She served as a training ship for naval reservists until the Taiwan Navy purchased it from the Navy in 2010. She is now named the ROCS Yung An (MHC 1311) and has been in active service since 10 August 2012!!!
- 1976: current drill facility was constructed. 68,904 sqft facility. ADA-compliant, elevators, classrooms, drill deck space.
- 1988: On May 19, 1988, Falcon Division celebrated its 25th year as a commissioned unit.
- 2009: the unit moved to Battleship Cove due to renovations to our drill facility.
- 2013: On May 19, 2013, Falcon Division celebrated its 50th year as a commissioned unit.
- Navy & Marine Corps Reserve Center Providence (NAVMARCORESCEN) Providence, RI, moved to Newport, RI in 2010.
- 1942 – Present
- Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal (Sept 2002)
- LCDR Paul Younes of Mobile Inshore Undersea Warfare Unit (MIUWU) Group Two (East) 202 at NAVMARCORESCEN Providence, R.I. Group Two (East)
- LT Kevin Danko of MIUWU 202 at
- EWCM Stephen Michaud of MIUWU 202 at NAVMARCORESCEN Providence, R.I.
- STGCS Robert Semachko of MIUWU 202 at NAVMARCORESCEN Providence, R.I.
- YNC Bonnie Roberts of MIUWU 202 at NAVMARCORESCEN Providence, R.I.
- GMC Gary Schacher of MIUWU 202 a
- EOC Dennis Seely of MIUWU 202 at N
- MS1 David Coleman o
- BM1 Darrell Friedman
- EN1 Michael Geary
- CM1 James Gould
- QM1 Regina Gunter
- ET1 Choyce LaRue
- CM1 Raymond Peavey Jr
- MS1 Wendi Underwood o
- IT1 Dori Wojcik
- HT2 Jonathan Edge
- SK2 Shannon McLaughlin
- BM2 Joseph Neuman
- GM2 Lorianne Niles
- HM2 Debra Quenga
- CM2 David Rogers
- QM2 Stephen Santos
- U.S. Marine Corps Units at our drill facility:
- COMBAT LOGISTICS BATTALION 25, 4th Marine Logistics Group
- U.S. Army Reserve Units at our drill facility:
- 249 ENGINEER PRIME POWER BATTALION
- 301 TRANSPORTATION DETACHMENT EXPEDITIONARY TERMINAL OPERATIONS ELEMENT (ETOE)
- 3D BATTALION, 80TH REGIMENT DETACHMENT 1 (SIGNAL)
- 888 TRANSPORTATION DETACHMENT MOVEMENT CONTROL TEAM
- 912 MEDICAL DETACHMENT TEAM, FORWARD RESUSCITATIVE AND SURGICAL
Old logo of our drill site. This is also when the facility was located in Providence before city lines were re-drawn.
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Photo of our drill center from the early 2000s.
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History of Commanding Officer's at Falcon Division:
- LTJG Conrad, NSCC: July 2002 to ?
- ENS Jarrad Seely, NSCC: ~August 2002 to ?
- ENS J.R. Dafiotis, NSCC: ~March 2003 to ?
- CW2 Fran Kirby, USCG: April 2009 to 2010
- LT Matthew Roias, NSCC: April 2013 to April 2018
- LT Ashleigh Covey, USNR: April 2018 to March 2023
- LTJG Brittany DiPippo, NSCC: April 2023 to Present
Highlights from the USS Blandy's History:
- Returned the remains of the Unknown Soldier of the European Theater of World War II to the United States.
- Battle Efficiency “E” award, July 1960.
- Part of the astronaut capsule recovery group during the Mercury-Atlas 6 (MA-6) space mission.
- During the Cuban Missile Crisis, in October 1962, was part of John F. Kennedy's "quarantine" of Cuba. During the operations there, she gained the distinction of forcing a Soviet submarine to the surface.
- Investigated the wreckage of the USS Thresher (SSN-593) submarine lost off the coast of New England.
- Deployed to Vietnam (first deployment) from March 1968 to October 1968. Served in the region as a part of the Seventh Fleet. Provided fire support to the Third Marine Division. Fired 27,428 rounds of ammunition of all types on board, killed an estimated 148 Việt Cộng soldiers, and silenced numerous hostile gun emplacements. In total, she operated on the gun line for 19 straight days and while participating in Operation Sea Dragon off the coast of North Vietnam she sank 22 waterborne logistics craft. Steamed over 60,000 miles during her deployment.
- Battle Efficiency “E” (second award) in July 1968.
- Arleigh Burke Fleet Trophy, August 1968.
- Awarded the Meritorious Unit Commendation. January 1969.
- Deployed to Vietnam (second Deployment) from October 1972 to April 1973. Engaged enemy forces on a daily basis firing a total of 10,000 rounds of her main and secondary batteries from the gun line and destroying numerous bunkers, mortars and other military targets. While providing this crucial fire support, she also had several near misses from enemy guns.
- Awarded the Combat Action Ribbon, January 1973.
- Deployed to the Persian Gulf during Iranian civil unrest from December 1978 to April 1979. Performed surveillance operations.
- Deployed to the Suez Canal, in November 1981 to provide a U.S. naval presence in the region following the Soviet Union’s invasion of Afghanistan.
- Decommissioned 1982. Sold for scrap in 1990.
- Made port in the following locations:
- North America: Fleet Sonar School, Key West, Florida; New York City/San Diego, USA; Québec, Canada
- Europe: Athens, Greece; Barcelona, Spain; Cannes, France; Copenhagen, Denmark; Gibraltar; Goteborg, Sweden; Marmaris, Turkey; Marseille, France, Naples, Italy; Palma de Mallorca, Spain; Portsmouth, England; Rotterdam, Holland; San Remo, Italy; Valencia, Spain; Valetta, Malta
- Africa: Casablanca, Morocco; Massawa, Ethiopia
- Caribbean: Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Middle East: Karachi, Pakistan; Sanaa, Yemen
- Asia: Hong Kong; Kaohsiung, Taiwan; Sasebo, Japan; Subic Bay, Philippines
- Pacific: Guam; Oahu, Hawaii; Midway
- Suez and Panama Canal
