267

Mariano Floresca.

Diary and memoir of a Filipino-American naval steward, serving on cruises with Franklin Roosevelt.

Various places, 1 January to 23 December 1935 (diary) and 1929-1945 (memoir)
2 volumes: diary, 6 x 4 inches, original limp cloth, worn, [179] manuscript pages; and "Cruise Notes" in a worn composition book, 10 x 7½ inches, 48, [7] manuscript pages, with 2 photographs laid in.

  • Notes: Mariano Concepcion Floresca (1908-1988) was born in the Philippines and serves as a steward in the United States Navy from 1929 to 1945. He became a United States citizen in 1942. 

    The diary begins in San Diego, where Floresca spends his off hours at the Philippine Hall. He does not discuss the details of his work often, but notes on 14 January: "Underway at 7:15 a.m., fleet tactics. Weather is fair, no sea sick. . . . Make sandwiches, coffee & cocoa." The early months of the diary are spent aboard the USS Yarnall, USS Nitro, USS Reina Mercedes, a punishment ship docked in Annapolis where he "assumed duty at the mess hall" on 6 May, and USS Cumberland. On 25 April, he noted "arrived Guantanamo, no liberty." On 29 May, "I saw personally two actors, Tom Brown & Richard Cromwell." 

    On 22 August he transferred to the USS Sequoia, the presidential yacht, but wrote minimal entries until sent across the country by train on 23 September to join the USS Houston in San Diego. There he served on a long presidential vacation cruise: on 1 October "the Pres. arrived on board" and the next day left "to review the U.S. Fleet," followed by a leisurely presidential vacation off Baja California and Costa Rica, where Secretary of the Interior Harold Ickes arrived aboard for a fishing party. On 10 October Floresca prepared a "picnic for the presidential party" while at anchor at the Cocos Islands far off the shore of Costa Rica. In Balboa, Panama, "the Pres. leaves the ship at about 10 a.m. with full military hon., all his aides are going with him. Ride on airplane across the canal. . . . The Pres. had a tea party, the Pres. of Panama hon. guest" (16 October). 

    The Houston arrived in Charleston, SC on 23 October, and Floresco took the train to Washington with the President before transferring back to the presidential yacht Sequoia. On 7 December he apparently worked a side gig, catering a dinner party for a family in Portsmouth, VA. 

    Floresca's memoir covers a longer period. The first entry was written in 1931, recounting his first days in the Navy from 1929 onward. He describes visits to Panama; Haiti; New York City; Portland, OR; Guantanamo, Cuba; and other ports of call. The period of his 1935 diary is recorded on pages 38-46. He also mentions President Roosevelt in the final 7 pages covering 1937-1945: "During the years 1937-1941 the Pres. made only one trip to New Orleans, La., then back to Wash. D.C. . . . I believe that I brought the President to Hyde Park, New York with a man called Mitchell and also a Filipino paster named Eugene Lapara." Soon after Pearl Harbor, "they decided to get a new yacht. This is a Coast Guard ship called the Electra. After it is converted, changed for the convenience of the President, we moved to the USS Potomac." In late 1943, "we all transfered to the USS Iowa, so our job begins to take good care of the President party," passing through Gibraltar to Algiers and Egypt. "This trip was hard for us to, because we find the place new to us, and the kitchen are different from where we are used too. It was rough but we manage to satisfy the people we had to take care. We were aware that Gen. Chiang Kaisec and Priminister Churchill is here too, to meet with the President." He accompanied the President on a Pacific inspection tour in July 1944. In Adak, Alaska, "the President went to the mess hall and dined with the crew." The final two pages describe the close of war with Japan, and mention a trip with President Truman.
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November 20, 2025 10:30 AM EST
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