How do you locate a US Navy picture of a sailor that enlisted in May 1980?

Answer 1

If you're looking for the actual picture from boot camp, the only way you could do it is by tracking down a copy of his / her Company yearbook. Most of it is general stock images of boot camp, but back then unless you had a private picture taken off base after you graduated, the official B/W photo in the book is the only one available. They didn't include a picture in the member's service record unless you were an officer. Pictures, particularly color ones, were expensive in those days, and the cost was considered prohibitive and unnecessary. There were always plenty of private photo studios off base though.

You'd need to know the location of the boot camp he went to; for males & females, it's always been Orlando. For males only, it was San Diego or Great Lakes. After that, you'd need to know the Company number and dates of training.

The other option for pics after boot camp is the member's first training duty after boot camp, or subsequent duty stations. First training post-graduation classes often had pictures taken of the class (e.g., I have one from graduating Submarine School in February '80). Most afloat combat commands, and even support vessels, have deployment yearbooks (cruise books), for deployments, and they have pictures in them. For submariners, we didn't have them, since all of our operations were strictly classified. You had to have permission to even have a camera onboard ship.

If you have at least some information on where the member was stationed, you can do a search online for the command's alumni sites, or for seagoing commands, a search for cruise books if you know the the deployments the member was involved in. If you need specific assistance or have any questions, feel free to message me at the address at the top of my supervisor profile.