They are responsible for executing and managing the planning, design, acquisition, construction, operation, and maintenance of the Navy's shore facilities.

Civil engineers were employed by the Navy Department as early as 1827, when Mr. Loammi Baldwin was appointed to superintendent of the construction of dry docks at Boston and Norfolk.

[2] Prior to the passage of the Act of 2 March 1867 civil engineers were appointed by the Secretary, but under authority of that act they were to be commissioned by the President by and with the advice and consent of the Senate; they were appropriated for as part of the civil establishment at the several navy yards and stations under the control of the Bureau of Yards and Docks until 1870.

[2] While the pattern of this corps device remained the same, uniform regulations issued in 1919 specified that it was to be embroidered in gold instead of silver and worn on the sleeve of frock, evening dress, and blue service coats, above the gold lace strips, and on shoulder marks for white service coat and overcoat.

Naval regulations stated that military command of naval personnel was strictly limited to line officers, yet BuDocks deemed it essential that these Construction Battalions be commanded by officers of the Civil Engineer Corp, who were trained in the skills required for construction work.

Besides providing the command leadership and engineering skills needed by the Naval Construction Force (NCF), the CEC made a major contribution to the war effort.

He went through training at Camp Endicott and was posted as the Public Works officer at Manana Barracks, Hawaii Territory as a Lieutenant.

He eventually was promoted to Lieutenant Commander which made him the Navy's highest ranking African American during WWII.

The first CEC killed in Pacific combat were Lt. Irwin W. Lee and Lt. (jg) George W. Stephenson along with 23 enlisted of the 24th CB.

The Seabees named their Naval Training Center at Quoddy Village Eastport, Maine, Camp Lee-Stephenson in honor of them.

[7] The first CEC killed in the Atlantic combat was Lt. Carl M. Olson of St Paul, Minnesota, on 10 September 1943 at Salerno, Italy.

[11][12][13] Those battalions were then given USMC designations and the men were given standard Marine Corps issue in addition to their dress naval uniform.

For CEC the standard gold and silver officer corps insignia was replaced by a brass subdued one on the garrison hat.

[5] Its purpose was to enable the Marines to land on Tinian's beaches bordered by coral embankments up to 15 feet high.

The first phase began at Amphibious Training Base (ATB) Solomons, Maryland with the establishment of Operational Naval Demolition Unit No.

Six Officers and eighteen enlisted men reported from NTC Camp Peary dynamiting and demolition school, for a four-week course.

Lt. Thomas C. Crist CEC, from NCB 10 was in Honolulu from Canton Island where he had been involved in a lagoon coral head clearance project.

Admiral Turner and V Amphibious Corps were interested in dealing with coral and had identified the Seabees as the only people with any applicable knowledge.

The Admiral commissioned Lt. Crist with developing a method to blast coral under combat conditions and staging qualified men in Pearl to form a unit for that task.

W. Acheson CEC anticipated that they may not to get the intel Admiral Turner wanted just paddling a dinghy and wore swim trunks under their fatigues.

[20] They were a rare item in the Hawaiian sports stores so Lt. Crist and Seabee Chief Howard Roeder and put in a request to the Supply Corps for them.

[20] In 1944 the Navy created an unheralded program to dredge harbors to increase accessibility and stevedoring productivity at advance bases.

[21] One POW, Lt. Jerry Steward CEC, received the Navy Cross, Purple Heart with three gold stars, Army Distinguished Unit Badge with Oak leaf cluster, Philippine Distinguished Service Star and was the most decorated CEC officer of WWII.