US Navy Maritime Technical Information Center Renamed After ‘Hidden Figure’
Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC), Carderock Division, also known as the David Taylor Model Basin, has renamed the Maritime Technical Information Center, a conference center used by Carderock employees and other government entities, as the Raye Montague Center for Maritime Technology, in honor of the first person to ever design a ship using a computer.
Raye Montague designed the first draft of the Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate in 1971 in less than 19 hr., earning her a Meritorious Civilian Service Award and revolutionizing ship design.
As a black female, Montague faced many hurdles in her life, including being prevented from pursuing engineering programs in the 1950s. She initially began work for the Navy as a clerk typist at the David Taylor Model Basin, but quickly showed her aptitude for computers and was reassigned to work with the new UNIVAC computer system. Her career then blossomed over several decades, during which she realized her dream of becoming an engineer and ultimately became the program director for Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) Integrated Design, Manufacturing and Maintenance Program, among many other accomplishments.
NSWC Carderock Division is the full-spectrum research and development, test and evaluation, engineering, and fleet support organization for the Navy’s ships, submarines, military watercraft, and unmanned vehicles, with insight into new concepts and diverse technologies for the Navy fleet of the 21st century.