Navy Schools at Treasure Island 1971


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I arrived at TI on July 12 1971 and attended 3 Navy Electronics "A" schools. These schools were required for my new rate as an Electronic Warfare Technician. My wife joined me a few days later and we found an apartment in Oakland. I have very fond memories of TI and the time I spent there. On one of my long weekends of duty, I walked nearly entire perimeter of the Island with my camera and a friend on a search for remnants of the 1939 Fair. We talked to several people who knew more about it than we did and they directed us to several more sights.
It was a very busy place during that time. Viet Nam was still hot and we all knew that many of us would soon be joining in the fight, especially since we were being trained for such warfare.
My pay was less than poverty level as an E3, so there was not much left to spend on entertainment after the rent was paid and groceries were purchased, so we did most of our shopping at the Navy Exchange. The highlights of the months there included the BART strike, leaving most of the guys without cars, land-locked on TI begging rides to the city. School Busing was a real hot issue and raised the tempers of the parents on TI, who understood that our base was already about as integrated as a community could get. War protestors were everywhere and the daily news was filled with the horrors of the Viet Nam War. Haight Ashberry was becoming a Yuppie haunt and the San Francisco elders were trying to chase out the Street Artists downtown. Traffic had become uncontrollable and grid lock awaited us everywhere. It was hectic and crazy but we loved it.
The area provided a lot of free entertainment in it's parks, museums and local attractions, but Treasure Island has always remained one of my favorites. I took up tennis while there and since I attended evening classes, the courts were open. Unfortunately the Enlisted Tennis Courts were in terrible shape, so I complained to the Base C.O. and he gave us permission to use the Officers Courts until repairs could be made to ours. The next morning four of us arrived at the courts in dungaree cutoffs and loud "T" shirts. We played for three hours and did we ever get the hateful stares from the officers who were there. One officer even challenged our right to be there and I told him how we had been given permission. He got very angry and guaranteed that it would stop immediately. We played there for the next month.
The living quarters were very different than what I had expected. They were practically new with a very diverse population. The women were on a floor of their own which was off limits to the men and there were also many foreigners who were housed while attending our schools. I vividly recall stayin up late and watching old TV shows on the large screen TV and drinking beer, of all things, in the lounge area. It was sold in the vending machines for a buck a can. I adjusted to my duty nights in those "Barracks" very quickly.
TI was a secluded little city like no other I had ever seen then or since and I didn't want to leave, but the time came when I finished my schools and received my orders. I signed out on March 24 1972 and headed home with my wife and son to be, by car to Cleveland, Ohio with orders to the USS Lawrence home ported in Norfolk and then on to Viet Nam.
I returned again in 1974 for 6 more weeks of school and was delighted to see that things were even more improved.
I will always remember my time at Treasure Island with a smile. It was quite and adventure. My only regret is that I did not take many photos of our time there.


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