Charles Woods, former Rocky Mount High School band director, served in the U.S. Navy B-1 Band.
When the 40+ young men left Raleigh for Norfolk on the morning of May
27, 1942, they were headed for basic training. A few were recent
college graduates, a few recent high school graduates. They knew they
were entering World War II, and they also were stepping into history,
becoming on that May day the first African Americans to serve in the
modern U.S. Navy in any capacity other than galley work.
