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Books: The Halls of Navy
By Laura Jean Whitcomb
Photos by Paul Howe
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You don’t have to be in the military — or even be a military buff — to enjoy John C. Akin’s self-published book, The Halls of Navy: Old Tales Retold. His historical research on all 25 buildings on the yard of the United States Naval Academy is paired with stories of the adventures of its inhabitants.
 “It’s a great story never before told. There have been books on the Chapel and Bancroft Hall, but never the entire collection of buildings on the 325-acre plot of the Academy,” says Akin, Class of 1950. “I wanted to bring the halls alive through the tales of things that happened in those classrooms, gymnasiums and labs. By gosh, I think it did.”
Each chapter covers a different building and includes a locator map, picture and description of the hall and biography of the naval officer for whom the hall was named. Akin wrote to his 470 living classmates and asked them for stories of their time at the Academy. He received 70 replies, 100 tales — and many pre-subscriptions for a copy of the book.
For two years, Akin, a New London resident since 1979, would get up in the morning and write for an hour or two about the way the yard looked in 1950. In early 2005, the book was ready for publication. When the 18-wheeler pulled into Hilltop with a pallet containing 15 boxes of books, Akin was so excited that he took a picture of the driver unloading the truck. For a week in September, with the help of his wife Bobbie and daughter Diana, Akin shipped more than 200 books to his classmates.
Since then, he has received, letters, calls and e-mails of thanks for the book, with comments such as “One can open your book on any page and take a delightful stroll down memory lane” and “...am already reliving shared experiences and remembering my classmates of long ago.”
 The stories are vivid; some funny, some sad, some adrenaline pumping, but all of them are educational. For those who didn’t serve in the military — and may be swayed by the media’s portrayal of the armed forces — Akin’s book serves as a testimony to the days when serving in the military didn’t inspire commentary, or controversy. Akin, who started as an apprentice seaman in WWII, “feels good about his 36 years of service.” He shares a photo of him as a teenager in his uniform, a confident, wiseguy grin on his young face. “I was right out of high school. You don’t know where you are going, what life is going to do, but you take it as it comes. Life is wide open.”
Akin’s joy is the CD of medleys in the back of each book. Ever since he wrote his first song for his parents’ 50th wedding anniversary, he’s wanted to write a song that bonds people together, much like Kate Smith did when she sang “God Bless America” on Armistice Day in 1938. His favorite is titled — just like the book — “The Halls of Navy.” With six verses and a cheer, the song chronicles a midshipman’s four-year odyssey though the Academy. The tune was played at Akin’s 50th class reunion for his classmates, and Akin hopes that it will be sung by the Naval Academy Glee Club one day.
Near his desk, Akin has a file box with the label, “sequel.”
“I went astray from the halls with stories of ‘In the Air’ and ‘At sea,’ ” Akin says. “I don’t really need a sequel but the guys want one. I’m not able to help my class monetarily, but I can do this for them. It’s as good as any reunion.”
The Halls of Navy is available at the Morgan Hill Bookstore in New London.
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