Special Collections Research Center

Scope and Contents Diary of Benjamin John Jefferson, who enlisted in the U.S. Navy during WW I on June 27, 1917. In December, 1917 he was transferred to the destroyer USS Kimberly  where he drilled and trained for duties aboard ship.  The USS Kimberly went in commission on April 29, 1918, and Benjamin Jefferson was among the crew of the first deployment.  His entries cover some of the stops in England and France, where the destroyer had the function of protecting other ships on the waters between France and...