Boys for the Navy United States Training Ship “Minnesota”

Training exercises aboard the steam frigate Minnesota.

This lively pair of woodcut prints was originally published in New York as part of the April 27, 1878 issue of Harper’s Weekly. Each sheet presents a collage of scenes depicting naval life aboard the U.S.S. Minnesota, launched in 1855 and recommissioned as a training ship after the Civil War.

The ship was stationed in New York until 1881, when she was transferred to Newport, Rhode Island and served as the flagship of the US Navy Training Squadron. Gunnery drills, physical examinations, leisure activities, and portraits of splendidly-dressed commanding officers are all presented in an idyllic fashion across the two pages. A scene also shows the African-American stewards – Venus, Adonis, and Cupid.

Descriptive text on the verso provides additional information. “Our sketches on pages 328 and 329 will give our readers a good idea of life on board a training ship, and will doubtless awaken in many a youthful heart the desire to serve his country on the blue water.”