One of the six services to qualify for membership in the Naval Order is the US Public Health Service. If you or a family member have ever served in the commissioned corps of the USPHS, then you should contact us for membership details!
Nationally, USPHS began with its maritime roots 219 years ago. A brief history of this service can be found HERE, including the following details:
The Public Health Service traces its roots back to 1798 and the Marine Hospital Fund. President John Adams signed into law the Act for the Relief of Sick and Disabled Seamen. It started a system of hospitals providing care for merchant sailors arriving in U.S. ports. The Act was extended to the U.S. Navy.
Today the role of USPHS has expanded far beyond the waterfront. Take a look at the USPHS official website HERE and learn about their team of over 6,500 professionals now serving at duty stations, which include twenty plus federal departments or agencies.
Locally in the Puget Sound area, HistoryLink.org describes a fascinating story about “A ‘Pest House’ for People”, where sailors with contagious diseases were isolated.
The article begins “In November 1893, the Federal Marine Quarantine Station for Puget Sound opens at Diamond Point, located at the northeastern tip of Clallam County across Discovery Bay from Port Townsend. The Quarantine Station provides disinfection services for vessels wishing to enter Puget Sound, and an isolation hospital for passengers found to be suffering from or suspected of carrying infectious disease. The facility will grow from three to 27 buildings over the course of its 43 operational years.” You can read the complete report HERE.
Naval Order of the US - Northwest 