The first service number of file was #532 which was issued to Samuel R. It is possible that these were retroactive but the Navy did not keep records of which officers held these numbers. The first thirty service numbers (501 – 531) were issued but never recorded. The service numbers 501 to 999 were reserved for officers who were then serving on active duty in 1920. In the end, the Navy never proceeded with the retroactive presentation of officer service numbers and the first five hundred numbers remained un-issued. There was much discussion within the Navy as to which Navy officer should receive Navy service #1, with suggestions ranging from George Dewey to John Paul Jones.

The first Navy service numbers, which ranged from 1 to 500, were designated for retroactive presentation to retired naval officers who had served in the First World War and prior.

Navy officer service numbers were simple in design since the Navy officer corps in 1920 was relatively small and there was little need for a complex service number system.

The creation of Navy service numbers coincided with those of the Marine Corps, as the Marines were under the authority of the Department of the Navy.

United States Navy service numbers were created in 1920, one year after the close of the First World War.

World war ii enlisted records navy