Lucky Bag

The Lucky Bag is the term for the United States Naval Academy yearbook dedicated to the graduating classes.

A traditional Lucky Bag has a collection of photos taken around the academy and photographs of each graduating officer along with a single paragraph describing the individual written by a friend.

The facts collected about the Navy during that time — hints dropped by messmates — opinions, notions, &c., have, been picked up and carefully preserved in this “bag.” Before I proceed though, to arrange from this medley of the “bit o’ writin” for you, mm, I must in good earnest bespeak the indulgence of your readers, and seriously invite their attention to the facts which go to show a link to 10 pages,[1] Matthew Fontaine Maury, USN, used the term "Lucky Bag", and defined it, long before the United States Naval Academy was created.

The United States Naval Academy, to a huge extent, was created due to Matthew Maury's "Scraps From The Lucky Bag" that were published under noms de plumes in newspapers, copied, and passed around in flyers in and outside of the USN to stir people to action for changes in the Navy and transcribed by William Maury Morris for these modern times.

According to the 1940 edition of The Bluejacket's Manual (a handbook for U.S. Navy enlisted personnel), "The lucky bag is a place where the police petty officers stow for safe-keeping effects that are found adrift about the ship.