William O. Rainnie papers

William Ogg Rainnie, Jr. was born April 27, 1924. He graduated from Harbor High School in Ashtabuca, Ohio and attended Severn Prep School in Severna Park, Maryland before entering the U.S. Naval Academy in 1943. He graduated in 1946 with a B.S. (Mechanical Engineering) and served on light cruisers for the next four years as gunnery, fire control and deck division officer. In 1950 he volunteered for submarine service and attended the Navy Submarine School in New London, Connecticut, graduating first in a class of sixty officers. He served in all officer positions, including diving officer, navigator and engineering officer.

In 1954 as a senior lieutenant, Bill resigned his commission to go into private industry. He joined Fairbanks Morse and Company as a mechanical engineer in their Research and Engineering Department in Beloit, Wisconsin and later as the company representative in Washington, DC he was liaison to various government agencies. In 1960 he became technical assistant assigned to the staff of the Mine Advisory Committee of the National Academy of Sciences until 1961 when he was recruited by Allyn Vine to come to Woods Hole to head up the Aluminaut group. Aluminaut was a submersible built by the Reynolds Metal Company and at that time proposed to be operated by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Shortly after joining the staff it was decided that the Navy would fund the construction of a small submersible to be assigned to Woods Hole (later to be named Alvin ). Bill, as oceanographic engineer and research specialist, was designated by then Director Paul M. Fye to head up the program. Bill participated in the design, construction, testing and operation of Alvin as well as the support ship, Lulu . He was the first qualified pilot and took the first manned test dives to 6000 feet in 1964. He directed the H-bomb search and recovery off Palomares, Spain in 1966 and the Alvin salvage recovery from 5000 feet in 1968. Alvin stayed on the bottom for almost a full year during which time Bill Rainnie argued successfully and convinced the Navy that Alvin should be recovered, refurbished and returned to service for science in 1969. In all, Bill conducted eighty dives as pilot-in-command and about 220 dives as expedition leader/operations from 1966-1973. He was awarded commendation citations and Navy meritorious public service awards for his leadership and efforts in deep submergence.

In 1973 Bill left the Deep Submergence Group to assist in the development of the newly acquired Quissett Campus and the construction of the Clark Laboratory as supervisor of planning and construction. Upon completion of the laboratory, Bill moved into fund raising and as special assistant for private resources, headed up the Development and Public Information offices in addition to the Associates Program.

Late in 1976, Bill applied for and received a leave of absence to relocate in Pass Christian, Mississippi. In 1977 he terminated his employment and began employment as chief engineer with the National Data Buoy Office, NOAA, in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.

William O. Rainnie died on May 29, 1985 in Gulfport, Mississippi.