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The "bureau system" of the United States Navy was the Department of the Navy's material-support organization from 1842 through 1966. The bureau chiefs were largely autonomous, reporting directly to the Secretary of the Navy and managing their respective organizations without the influence of other bureaus. In 1966, the bureaus were gradually replaced by unified commands (generally known as "systems commands" or SYSCOMs) reporting to the Chief of Naval Operations. Seal The United States Department of the Navy was established by an Act of Congress on April 30, 1798, to provide administrative and technical support, and civilian leadership to the United States Navy. ...
Flag of the United States Secretary of the Navy. ...
The Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) is the senior military officer in the United States Navy. ...
Before the bureaus
For the first several decades of the Navy Department's existence, all procurement and material matters were handled directly by the Office of the Secretary of the Navy. As the Navy expanded during the War of 1812, it became clear that this system was not sufficient for the Service's needs. Seal The United States Department of the Navy was established by an Act of Congress on April 30, 1798, to provide administrative and technical support, and civilian leadership to the United States Navy. ...
Flag of the United States Secretary of the Navy. ...
Combatants United States United Kingdom Strength United States Regular army : 99,000 Volunteers: 10,000* Rangers: 3,000 Militia: 458,000** Naval and marine: 20,000 Indigenous peoples New York Iroquois: 600 Northwestern allies: ? Southern allies: ? United Kingdom Regular army: 10,000+ Naval and marine: ? Canadian militia: 86,000+** Indigenous...
On February 7, 1815, Congress established a three-member Board of Naval Commissioners to handle material-support matters. As part of the Navy Secretary's office, the Board's jurisdiction generally extended only logistical matters such as supply and construction. The Secretary of the Navy remained in control of many operational aspects of the Navy. The Battle of New Orleans 1815 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ...
The Board of Naval Commissioners was created February 7, 1815, as part of an expansion of the U.S. Navy Department, but its authority was generally confined to procuring stores and materials and to constructing, arming, and equipping vessels of war. ...
Establishment of the bureau system, 1842 Ultimately, the Board system was unable to provide the Navy with the necessary technical and management control. Among other things, naval technology was becoming increasingly complex during the first half of the 19th century, and required more specialized oversight. In the early 1840s, Congress decided to abolish the Board of Naval Commissioners and replace them with a more specialized bureaucracy based on broad functional areas such as shipbuilding.
The first five bureaus were established by Act of Congress on August 31, 1842. They were the: August 31 is the 243rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (244th in leap years), with 122 days remaining. ...
1842 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ...
- Bureau of Naval Yards and Docks
- Bureau of Construction, Equipment, and Repairs;
- Bureau of Provisions and Clothing;
- Bureau of Ordnance and Hydrography; and
- Bureau of Medicine and Surgery
Reorganization, 1862 The system was reorganized during the early years of the Civil War. By an act of Congress of July 5, 1862 (12 Stat. 510), the existing bureaus were reorganized and increased to eight. As reorganized, these included the: Combatants United States of America (Union) Confederate States of America (Confederate) Commanders Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee Strength 2,200,000 1,064,000 Casualties Killed in action: 110,000 Total dead: 360,000 Wounded: 275,200 Killed in action: 93,000 Total dead: 258...
The United States Bureau of Ordnance was the U.S. Navys organization responsibile for the procurement, storage, and deployment of all naval ordnance from 1818-1967 (albeit under various names). ...
The Bureau of Construction and Repair was a sub-department in the United States Navy and was key in the building of warships, like Iowa class battleships, during the Depression (under the Preliminary Design Branch). ...
The U.S. Navys Bureau of Navigation was established in 1862 as part of the reorganization of the Navy Department. ...
Late 19th century through World War II The bureau system dominated the Navy's procurement for the rest of the 19th century and into the World War II years. There were a few changes, often brought about by changes in technology or changing missions.
The increasing role of Naval aviation, for example, led Congress in 1921 to consolide technical authority under a new Bureau of Aeronautics (BuAer), with responsibility for the procurement of naval aircraft. Previously, this responsibility had been divided among several other Navy bureaus. Naval aviation is the application of manned military air power by the navies of the world such as those operated by the United States Navy. ...
1921 (MCMXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ...
The Bureau of Aeronautics (BuAer) was the U.S. Navys material-support organization for Naval Aviation from 1921 to 1959. ...
Naval aviation is the application of manned military air power by the navies of the world such as those operated by the United States Navy. ...
Other changes were more superficial, as in 1892 when the Bureau of Provisions and Clothing was renamed the Bureau of Supplies and Accounts (BuSandA).
World War II brought about several other changes. The Bureau of Ships (BuShips) was established in 1940, through the merger of the Bureau of Construction and Repair and the Bureau of Engineering. In 1942, the Bureau of Navigation was renamed the Bureau of Naval Personnel (BuPers), to reflect its change in mission. The United States Navys Bureau of Ships (BuShips) was established by Congress on June 20, 1940, by a law which consolidated the functions of the Bureau of Construction and Repair and the Bureau of Engineering. ...
Post-World War II through the 1960s The bureaus' traditional autonomy became hard to maintain after World War II, with the Armed Services' greater emphasis on "Jointness." The complexity of post-war weapons systems was promoting a "systems engineering" approach -- an approach that did not fit well with the bureau systems' semi-independence. Other problems related to jurisdiction; the Bureau of Aeronautics' work on unmanned aircraft, for example, overlapped to some degree with the Bureau of Ordnance's work on guided missiles. This particular controversy was resolved in 1959 with the establishment of the Bureau of Naval Weapons (BuWeps), which merged BuAer and BuOrd. Systems engineering (or systems design engineering) is an interdisciplinary approach and means for enabling the realization and deployment of successful systems. ...
The bureau system largely came to an end in the mid-1960s, in the midst of the Defense Dept.'s overhaul of its entire planning and budgeting system. The bureaus were replaced with "systems commands," or SYSCOMs, which consolidated their functions into broader "systems." The Bureau of Naval Weapons, for example, was replaced with the Naval Air Systems Command, with responsibility for all aircraft, aerial weapons, and related systems. BuShips was replaced with the Naval Ship Systems Command (later Naval Sea Systems Command), with responsibility for all naval shipbuilding. With modifications, the systems-command model remains in place today.
See also The Board of Naval Commissioners was created February 7, 1815, as part of an expansion of the U.S. Navy Department, but its authority was generally confined to procuring stores and materials and to constructing, arming, and equipping vessels of war. ...
The Naval Air Systems Command, or NAVAIR, is the part of the United States Navy focused on airborne weapon systems, including planes. ...
The Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) is the largest of the U.S. Navys five systems commands, consisting of four shipyards, 8 warfare centers (2 undersea and 6 surface), four major shipbuilding locations and the NAVSEA headquarters, located at the Washington Navy Yard, in Washington D.C.. NAVSEAs...
External links - National Archives - Guide to Federal Records
- Naval Records Collection of the Office of Naval Records and Library (ONRL)
- Records of the Bureau of Aeronautics
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