Dan Altimus
Personnelman Second Class, U.S. Navy (1950-1955)
I served in the U.S. Navy from Oct. 10, 1950, until my honorable discharge Sept. 9, 1955. Originally, my enlistment was for four years, but I extended it so that I could be transferred from the United States to Guam. My first assignment was on an AKS supply ship running in Korea between Sasebo and Pusan, during the Korean conflict. My second assignment was in the Marianas Islands, Guam, in the office of the U.S. Naval Forces commanding officer.
Soon after, I worked for the Commandant 1st Naval District in Boston, processing enlisted personnel assignments. I moved from there to MIT and served as a clerk for Adm. Hyman Rickover while he was helping to develop the Navy's nuclear submarine. This assignment required a top-secret clearance, which was obtained without question.
Throughout my five years of service, I knew I was gay. I socialized with enlisted men, lower- and upper-echelon officers and numerous civilian personnel. At one point in Guam, I served as the court martial recorder for enlisted men who detested their duty assignments so much that they falsely identified themselves as gay so they could return to the United States with a discharge, often a dishonorable one.
I am quite sure the number of gays in the military is as great today as it was then. I am also quite sure that if all gay personnel had been summarily discharged during my service it would have placed the military in dire straits.