In August of 1946, President Harry Truman and key advisors took a two week trip on the USS Williamsburg to Newport, Rhode Island, via the Potomac River, stopping at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, transiting the Chesapeake Bay, C&D Canal to Newport. They were escorted by a Navy warship and paused in Delaware Bay to swim.
Imagine the tough job it was to protect the sharks from this band of politicians.
After leaving Rhode Island, the Presidential voyagers traveled to Bermuda, fished along the way, and visited with the Governor of Bermuda. Challenges in post-war Asia and Europe were topics of discussion as the first steps towards the Cold War were underway.
See more from the Truman Library: Ideological Foundations of the Cold War
Telegram, Walter Bedell Smith to George Marshall, April 11, 1946
President Harry S. Truman enjoying a swim in the harbor at Cape Henlopen, during his cruise on the U.S.S. WILLIAMSBURG to Rhode Island and Bermuda.
The Naval Air Station at Quonset, Rhode Island, looking toward the U S S Philippine Sea. The escort ship for the Williamsburg, the U. S. S. Weiss is at right. This photograph was taken from Williamsburg as it carried the President and his party to Bermuda.
Onboard the presidential yacht Williamsburg just prior to luncheon for the Governor of Bermuda. Left to Right: Charles Ross; General Harry Vaughan; Ted Marks; Clark Clifford; President Harry S. Truman; John Snyder; George E. Allen; General Wallace Graham and Admiral James Foskett.
President Harry S. Truman (center, back turned to camera), poses for photographers as he leaves the USS Williamsburg to return to the White House after his vacation cruise.
Credits: The taxpayers of the United States who provided funding for the Library of Congress, the U.S. Navy, and the Truman Library.