Oblong Folio album (ca. 26x33.5 cm). 50 card stock leaves. With ca. 218 mounted and 1 loosely inserted gelatin silver photographs, including 2 large images ca. 17,5x25 cm (7 x 9 ¾ in) and 2 panoramas from ca. 7,5x28 (3 x 11 in) to ca. 8,5x21 cm (3 ¼ x 8 ¼ in); the rest of the photos  from ca. 12x17,5 cm (4 ¾ x 7 in) to ca. 7,5x11 cm (2 ¾ x 4 ½ in). Most of the photos with period white ink manuscript captions. Period maroon patterned cloth album fastened with a string; front board with an embossed gilt pictorial image of a ship. A couple of photos removed, ca. three images slightly loose, A couple of photos with mild silvering, but otherwise a very good album with strong interesting photos.

Historically important extensive collection of vivid and lively vernacular photos taken by a U.S. Navy serviceman from Aerial Squadron 51 during the Neutrality Patrol in the Caribbean in 1939-1941. The Patrol, initiated by President Franklin Roosevelt in September 1939, aimed to preserve American neutrality during the early years of WWII by monitoring and reporting on belligerent warship activities in the Atlantic and the West Indies.

The album features over eighty interesting views of Panama (Cativa, Panama City, San Blas, Portobello) captured during the compiler's stay at Coco Solo Naval Air Station. Most of the candid urban photos portray Colon, showcasing local hotspots - the Silver Spray Casino (“One of the ‘Elite’ Nite Clubs in Colon”), Bilgray’s Tropical Bar (1924-1974), the Atlantic Night Club, and the Chinese Bar (adorned with delicate posters of Chinese ladies). There are also lively scenes of Panamanian Boy Scouts carrying American flags, butchers selling meat in the native market, locals buying lottery tickets (“Everybody buys a lottery ticket”), uniformed men examining theatre posters, and people enjoying meals at a soda fountain. About ten photos capture the festive atmosphere of the 1941 Pre-Lent Celebration in local streets (several signboards are clearly visible), with participants in ceremonial attire joyfully waving from cars. Additionally, a series of images document the aftermath of the 1940 Great Fire and the temporary quarters for the fire victims “furnished by the U.S. Army."

The rest of the interesting “Panamanian” photos capture scenes of the San Blas Indian Village, including native children swimming in canoes, sharing smiles with Squadron soldiers, standing alongside native huts, and an “Indian family” dressed in traditional clothing seated in a boat. Several photos show the Madden Dam near the city of Gamboa (completed in 1935), Berlanga Cathedral in Panama City, and likely the compiler posing beside the "Ruins of Old City of Panama."

Most photos from Puerto Rico (the San Juan Camp) and Cuba (Guantanamo Bay Naval Base) vividly document Squadron 51’s military life, showcasing officers' quarters, washrooms, tents (the exterior & the interior), PBY plane lineups, morning musters, soldiers during exams, rifle practices, and abandon ship drills. One interesting image features Frank Knox, 47th United States Secretary of the Navy, on his early inspection trip to the Squadron camp in San Juan. There are also about forty lively group portraits (mostly with captions) of the squadron members playing baseball, volleyball, poker & billiard, joining in a “tug-of-war” game, drinking & laughing at a beer party, singing, playing violin & drums, “quenching thirst in the Jungle,” visiting the Caribbean National Park, etc. Several photographs show the Capitol and the University of Puerto Rico, as well as the aerial view of the Bacardi Rum Mill in Guantanamo.

The album also includes two large photos (Guantanamo Harbor and "Squadron Baseball Game") and two panoramas (the city of New Panama and the U.S. Naval Station in Guantanamo Bay). Overall, a historically important collection documenting the American Presence in the Caribbean during the Neutrality Patrol.