Overview

As a youth, Reagan demonstrated his abilities as a top-flight athlete in football, wrestling, and track. His education at Montana State University was interrupted by World War II. After an attempt to become a pilot in the Army Air Forces, he enlisted in the Navy in 1942 and began training as an electrician's mate. In early 1944 he was one of 16 men who underwent officer training at Great Lakes, Illinois. He was commissioned an ensign in March of that year, thus becoming one of the first black officers on active duty with the U.S. Navy. He served initially at Hampton Naval Training School in Virginia, then overseas on Okinawa and Guam. After completing his college education, he played professional football in Canada, then was recalled to active service to help recruit blacks into the Navy. He remained on duty during the Korean War and eventually became executive officer of an amphibious boat unit before returning to civilian life. In Southern California area, he worked for the state, the local chapter of the Urban League, and developed a successful career in real estate. His only son, John W. Reagan, Jr., was killed in the Vietnam War.

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9781682692097

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Paul Stillwell is an independent historian and retired naval officer. He worked for thirty years at the U.S. Naval Institute as an oral historian and editor of Naval History magazine. He is the author or editor of fourteen books, including four on battleships and an award-winning volume on the Navy’s first African American officers, The Golden Thirteen. His 2021 book Battleship Commander: The Life of Vice Admiral Willis A. Lee Jr. also received acclaim. He lives in Arnold, Maryland.

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