Ralph Hill was born and raised in Marion, Ohio. He is a 1956 graduate of Harding High School. Ralph enlisted into the United States Navy looking for employment and wishing to serve his country. Mr. Hill was only 17 years old at the time of his enlistment and had not yet been able to secure work in Marion. Mr. Hill laughs as he recalls making only $69/month when he was first in the Navy.
Ralph Hill served on active duty in the Navy from 1956 until 1960, earning the rank of Machinist Mate 2nd Class. After being Honorably discharged he served in the Navy Reserves until 1976. Mr. Hill attended basic training at Bainbridge, Maryland, and was part of the last group of basic trainees to train at Hadegrave due to a fire that destroyed the wooden barracks. Mr. Hill went on to get his training in HVAC/Refrigeration units.
Ralph Hill first served on the USS Proteus (AS-19). The Proteus was Fulton-class submarine tender. While in Newport, Rhode Island, Ralph was still only 17 when he and another sailor were given the duty to transport the payroll. Ralph said they were to pick it up and deliver it to the paymaster. He said in those days it was all in cash and it filled a large push cart. Hill said he was scared to death to be in charge of all that cash.
For most of his time Hill was assigned to the USS Essex. The USS Essex (CVA-9) was an aircraft carrier. Hill was aboard when the Essex participated in the NATO Exercise Strikeback. The Essex later deployed with the 6th Fleet until May 1958, when it diverted to the eastern Mediterranean. Alerted to the Middle East Crisis, the Essex supported the US landings in Beirut, Lebanon, launching reconnaissance and patrol missions. It was here that Hill was assigned as a machine gunner, to which he had never been trained.

Hill’s normal duties on the Essex was operation and maintenance of the ship’s desalination units, which converted seawater into fresh water. He also worked with the equipment that recycled and clarified oil.
Hill’s time in the Navy began shortly after the Navy became integrated. He said that he was in an integrated basic training unit and later assigned to ships that were integrated. But the Navy at that time was still assigning colored troops to cooks and service jobs. Hill said his records indicated mistakenly that he was caucasian, when in fact he is colored. He feels this is why he was trained in refrigeration engineering and not as a cook. He says it took a long time to get his records corrected.

Even though the Navy and other services were desegregated, Hill said that when he and others went in town the colored service members were told they would not be served or were to sit in the balcony at the theaters. Hill didn’t want to cause trouble, but his Navy buddies, one an Italian American, were not used to this discrimination and put hands on theater staff. Hill had to calm his friend and assure him that they were not to cause trouble. Even on the docks of Africa’s Gold Coast, signs were posed that non-whites were to be back aboard ship before dark.
Hill states that he was treated fairly by his fellow sailors, but when returning to Marion, Ohio, he experienced racial discrimination. He was told there were no jobs by an employee of the employment office. Friends had asked him why he didn’t come to where they got jobs. He then contacted a supervisor at the main employment office and was offered a job. He would later secure a job at the BF Goodrich plant in Marion. Here he found out that other employees were told he was crazy. Another employee, Everet McCombs, befriended Hill and when the others saw that he got along began to speak to him.
Hill was also a barber here in Marion, behind the old Meister’s drug store. He said he enjoyed working there and liked the neighborhood atmosphere and relationships with the customers.
Hill is proud to have served in the Navy and feels that every young man should serve his country. Ralph Hill still lives in Marion, Ohio, and enjoys fishing, hunting and spending time woodcarving.

Sadly Ralph Hill passed away only days after this article posted.