RARE! WW1 USMC US MARINE CORPS " The McCLEMORE MARINES " HOUSTON PHOTO c.1917

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RARE! WW1 USMC US MARINE CORPS " The McCLEMORE MARINES " PHOTOGRAPH c.1917
RARE !  IMPORTANT PIECE OF U.S. MARINE CORPS HISTORY, TEXAS HISTORY and U.S.MARINE CORPS AVIATION HISTORY !
WW1 USMC U.S. MARINE CORPS " The McCLEMORE MARINES " of HOUSTON, TEXAS PHOTO c.1917.
THE ORIGINAL "A" COMPANY OF " The McCLEMORE MARINES " HOUSTON, TEXAS POSE IN FRONT OF THE MARINES BARRACKS AT THE
NAVAL AIR STATION (NAS) PENSACOLA, FLORIDA
LATE MAY 1917. The McCLEMORE MARINES WERE ORGANIZED BY LIEUT. McCAULEY CLAYBURN and the NOTED USMC AVIATOR (PIONEER) PILOT CAPTAIN THOMAS RODNEY SHEARER SEATED IN THE FRONT CENTER.
NOTE THE CAMOUFLAGED BARRACKS BUILDING. (for your convenience please see; color picture of the same building at Pensacola NAS in the modern era ; another black and white picture from the time of an overview of the
camouflaged buildings at the same NAS ...
not included with the listing, only for reference).
IDENTIFIED IN THE LOWER CENTER OF THE NEGATIVE (please see pictures):
COMPANY “ A “ N.N.V.  (M. C. B. ) McCLEMORE MARINES, OF HOUSTON, TEXAS
( COMPANY "A" NATIONAL NAVAL RESERVE MARINE CORPS BATTALION / BRANCH
McCLEMORE MARINES, OF HOUSTON, TEXAS
)
LARGE DETAILED MOUNTED SEPIA PHOTOGRAPH IN VERY FINE CONDITION WITH 2 VERY MINOR 1/2" CRACKS ON THE TOP MARGIN OF THE PHOTO ITSELF NOT AFFECTING THE SUBJECTS. ONE APPROXIMATELY 3" CRACK TO THE MOUNT AT THE TOP CENTER EDGE ALONG WITH SOME CHIPS TO MOUNT ON THE EDGES AND CORNERS (NONE AFFECTING THE SUBJECTS). THE PHOTO WILL BE VERY CAREFULLY FLAT PACKED FOR SHIPPING TO HELP REDUCE THE CHANCES OF ANY FURTHER CRACKING.
SHARP FOCUS AND VERY GOOD CONTRAST.
OUTER MOUNT DIMENSIONS: 11 13/16" x 13 7/8"
(please see pictures)
THIS IS NOT A COPY OR A REPRODUCTION.
PLEASE SEE MY 100% POSITIVE FEEDBACK AND BUY WITH CONFIDENCE.
* Captain Thomas R. Shearer - Texas Naval Militia Member, National Naval Volunteer, and Marine Corps Reserve Aviator
Captain Thomas R. “Bull” Shearer was among the Marine Corps Reserve’s aviators who did not deploy to Europe during WWI but gained
command stateside. Shearer began his journey to be- come a Reserve aviator via Company “A”, Texas National Naval Militia, Marine Corps Branch, in April 1917. Shearer is possibly the sole Marine aviator to gain wartime command with a career beginning in the Marine element of a state naval militia.
According to
The Recruiters’ Bulletin
of March 1917, Shearer “of Houston, Texas organized and mustered into the state Service the first Marine Company in the Texas Naval Militia.” The 51-man company asked to be called “The McLemore Marines” in honor of Colonel Albert S. McLemore, the assistant adjutant and inspector of the Marine Corps, who headed Marine Corps recruiting.
The Marine company was organized on 10 February 1917 with Shearer as its captain. On 6 April 1917, less than two months after the unit was created, the company was ordered to federal service, the day the United States declared war against Germany. The same day, motivated Texans and their enthusiastic commander reported to the local rendezvous site in Houston. From there, the company members traveled to the federal rendezvous site in New Orleans, Louisiana, arriving on 12 April. There they were enrolled into the National Naval Volunteers (NNV).
By late May, Shearer and his unit were stationed at Marine Barracks NAS Pensacola, Florida.
In January 1918, while still a member of the NNV, Shearer was transferred to command the Marine Aviation Section at NAS Pensacola and began flight training to become a qualified seaplane pilot. On 4 April 1918, he was designated Naval Aviator No. 559. Just one month later, as the commander, Shearer suspended himself from duty for 5 days for “flying in the fog.”
On 1 July 1918, he transferred from the NNV, Marine Corps Branch, to the Marine Corps Reserve at the rank of captain. At that point, he became commander of the Marine Aviation Section, NAS Miami, and on 15 July 1918, he was placed in charge of all aerial patrols flying from the NAS. His unit flew the difficult air patrols in the Florida Straits until just after the Armistice.