Where did the navy seals originate?

Answer 1

The US Navy SEALs were commissioned by directive of President John F Kennedy. He felt that each branch of the US Armed Forces should have Special Forces type of unit. The Army had the Special Forces (Green Berets). The Air Force had PJs and Air Commandos. The Marines had Force Recon. The Navy had Underwater Demolition Teams but their expertise in land warfare was limited. The Navy decided to form an elite unit capable of land warfare and drew from the UDTs. They were all Airborne qualified and Combat Swimmer qualified. The Navy sent the newly formed SEALs to various Army and Marine training schools. On January 1, 1962 SEAL TEAM ONE and SEAL TEAM TWO were commissioned.

Answer 2

The person credited as the father of SEAL teams and their predecessors is Draper Kauffman who started the NCDUs or Naval Combat Demolition units whos jobs later evolved to UDT or Underwater Demolition teams. But in 1962 President John F. Kennedy ordered the military to greatly expand our nations "Unconventional Warfare" capabilities which resulted in the creation of the Army Special Forces and the Navy SEAL Teams who recruited heavily from the UDT teams and eventually replaced them as they were capable of their waterborne operations and much more in the air and on the land. So basically Kauffman although Kennedy had a large role in their expansion/creation.

Answer 3

http://www.navyseals.com/navy-seal-history

Answer 4

Though the SEAL's have their origins in WWII, the weren't officially created as an operational unit within the Navy until January 1, 1962, by then President John F. Kennedy.