Consolidated by MC1 Gary Granger Jr., Naval Facilities Engineering Command
The 55-gallon drum is second only to the Quonset Hut in its flexibility and mass-use during any conflict or peacetime effort. Through Seabee ingenuity, the drum was and is still used in hundreds of different ways from roofing tiles to culverts to a BBQ.
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110th Naval Construction Battalion's supply department building was named "The Vermont Syrup Co." and was built and operated by the Seabees of the battalion during World War 2 located in the Marianas. (Courtesy of U.S. Navy Seabee Museum/Flickr)
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The 7th Naval Construction Battalion builds a shower and shaving stand on Espirtu Santos during World War 2. (Courtesy of U.S. Navy Seabee Museum/Flickr)
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30 January 1945, Seabees with the 7th Naval Construction Battalion make roofing tiles from old oil drums. (Courtesy of U.S. Navy Seabee Museum/Flickr)
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During World War 2, Seabees construct a radiator for a bulldozer out of a 55-gallon drum. (Courtesy of U.S. Navy Seabee Museum/Flickr)
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During World War 2, Seabees with the 4th Naval Construction Brigade build an incinerator out of spare parts and 55 gallon drums. (Courtesy of U.S. Navy Seabee Museum/Flickr)
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Mobile equipment servicing unit built by the 70th Naval Construction Battalion at Algiers. The unit carries air compressor for high pressure lubrication and force feed fueling from barrels. The unit is constructed from salvaged chassis of a bombed truck and could easily be towed at high speeds by a jeep. (Courtesy of U.S. Navy Seabee Museum/Flickr)
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CBMU 301 working at Khe Sanh, 1968. (Courtesy of U.S. Navy Seabee Museum/Flickr)
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CBMU 301 has a BBQ at Khe Sanh, 1968. (Courtesy of U.S. Navy Seabee Museum/Flickr)
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Construction Battalion Detachment 1042 Seabees create a hot water sink for cleaning field gear after chow and a BBQ all in one out of 55 gallon drums and trash cans in 1944 at Pearl Harbor. (Courtesy of U.S. Navy Seabee Museum/Flickr)
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The Construction Battalion Maintenance Unit 528 head during World War 2. (Courtesy of U.S. Navy Seabee Museum/Flickr)
These empty metal cylinders still serves as a multipurpose material today.
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Military personnel walk past latrines constructed by the Seabees at a forward operating base located at Kandahar International Airport, Kandahar, Afghanistan, during Operation Enduring Freedom, pictured here January 16, 2002. (US Marine Corps photograph by Capt. Charles Grow)
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Nicholas Moore, Steelworker Constructionman, uses a grinder to remove the bung from a 55-gallon drum to complete his field-crafted barbecue grill in the village of Kagay. Stationed in Gulfport, Miss., Seabees from Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 1 are assigned to Joint Special Operations Task Force - Philippines and are constructing two school buildings and a connecting bathroom. (U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Luis Alarcon)