--- title: "These 12 historical photos vividly show where the Navy’s term “salty” came from" date: "2019-01-28" modified: "2020-10-21" authors: - name: "Blake Stilwell" job_title: "Editor-In-Chief, Air Force Veteran" link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/blake/" url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/mighty-history/these-12-historical-photos-vividly-show-where-the-navys-term-salty-came-from/" categories: - "History" - "Navy" --- # These 12 historical photos vividly show where the Navy’s term “salty” came from ![]() "Salty" is a term from the United States Navy used to describe an experienced sailor – someone for whom the romanticized idea of ship life is gone and replaced with sea salt. Recently WATM published photos [from the 1898 Spanish-American War that were found during a U.S. Navy archive office renovation](). One of our readers asked if we could find historical photos of the U.S. Navy's saltiest sailors throughout history, so we did. --- **Check these sea dogs out:** ![]() *An older sailor with a young one, circa 1917.* ![]() ![]() *Exchanging seas stories, circa 1900* ![]() *Sailors aboard the USS Oregon, circa 1900* ![]() *These are U.S. Navy sailors from the Spanish-American War period. This photo was recently found in an archival building.* ![]() *The crew of the Holland, the Navy's first commissioned Submarine in 1899* ![]() *Sailors from the USS Hartford, circa 1876* ![]() *Sailors aboard the USS Ohio circa 1870.* ![]() *Sailors of the Union Navy during the Civil War, 1865* ![]() *Confederate officers aboard the CSS Alabama, 1863* ![]() *Admiral DD Porter, 1860* ![]() *A Mexican-American War Era Navy Commander, circa 1850* ## Author Blake Stilwell is We Are The Mighty's Editor-in-Chief, covering military news, entertainment, and history, along with veteran education, employment and entrepreneurship. He is a former U.S. Air Force combat cameraman with degrees in Graphic Design, Television and Film, International Relations, Public Relations, Business Management and Middle Eastern Affairs. After leaving the military, he began working in film and television production in New York and Los Angeles, work that included ABC News, NBC Olympics, and HBO Sports. He then spent two years in Washington with White House Communications, before joining the Near East Foundation. At NEF he served as an International Development Fellow, then Communications Officer, and finally, Media Officer for the Middle East and Africa. Based in the Palestinian Territory, he coordinated strategic communications between eight country offices, international media, and government and NGO partners. He began a career focused on writing and editing in 2015 with We Are The Mighty. He left in 2019 for Military.com, but returned as Editor-in-Chief in 2025. Blake’s work has been seen on CBS News, Fox News, CBC, The Chicago Tribune, Task & Purpose, Military Times, Recoil, Skillset, American History, and was shockingly even used in a Supreme Court argument. He is an avid traveler and small business owner in Ohio, where he spends most of his energy fixing up a very old house. ### Author social links [Facebook]() [Twitter]() [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()