Timeline
- 1936: Merchant Marine Act abolishes Shipping Board and establishes Maritime Commission.
- 1937: Joseph P. Kennedy appointed by President Roosevelt as the first head of the Maritime Commission
- 1938: Maritime Commission authorizes large merchant fleet
- 1940: Maritime Commission agrees to build 60 Ocean class merchant ships for the British Ministry of War Transportation.
- 1941 Beginning of the Emergency Shipbuilding Program
- 1942: The War Shipping Administration was established
- 1942: The United States Coast Guard takes over Bureau of Marine Inspection and Navigation
- 1942: United States Merchant Marine Academy opens at Kings Point, Long Island, New York
- 1942: Maine Merchant Marine Academy, later named Maine Maritime Academy, opens in Castine, Maine
- 1950: Functions of Maritime Commission transferred to Department of Commerce and MARAD, United States Maritime Administration
Read more about this topic: United States Maritime Commission