Life Aboard USS Midway: The Doors That Held It All Together

What Was Life Like Aboard USS Midway?

The USS Midway was more than an aircraft carrier. It was a floating city.

Photo courtesy of USS Midway Museum, used with permission

At any given time, about 4,500 sailors lived and worked across multiple decks, each space carefully organized for a specific purpose. Passageways were tight. Activity was constant. Every movement had to be efficient, and every system had to work.

On land, a door is something you pass through without thinking. At sea, it can define safety, structure, and survival.

A Floating City Built on Structure and Discipline

Below the flight deck, the ship was divided into a network of compartments connected by narrow passageways. These spaces housed everything from sleeping quarters and mess areas to mechanical systems and ordnance preparation. Nothing about the layout was random.

Photo courtesy of Brian Engleman, used with permission

Every section of the ship was designed to be isolated if needed. Fire, flooding, or damage could be contained within a single compartment. That level of control depended on one critical feature found throughout the ship: watertight doors.

The Role of Watertight Doors at Sea

Watertight doors were essential to Midway’s ability to operate safely, especially during combat or emergencies. Their purpose was simple, but critical.

• Maintain watertight integrity

• Contain flooding within a single section of the ship

• Isolate fire and smoke

• Protect crew and essential systems

On a ship the size of Midway, survival depended on containing emergencies. If one area was compromised, the rest of the ship could remain operational. These doors helped make that possible.

Two Doors in One: Designed for Daily Life and Emergency Readiness

Watertight doors found throughout USS Midway were not simple barriers. They are used for passage through watertight bulkheads and are designed to resist as much pressure as the bulkheads through which they pass. In many areas, they were engineered as a combination of two systems built into one structure.

A large Cargo Door formed the outer barrier. This was a heavy steel plate designed to maintain the ship’s structural integrity and watertight boundaries. It was normally kept closed and secured. It would only be opened when necessary to move large items such as engines, equipment, ordnance, or supply pallets between compartments.

Photo courtesy of Brian Engleman, used with permission

Built directly into that larger door was a smaller Personnel Door. This smaller door allowed sailors to move freely through the ship during normal operations without opening the full cargo barrier, which was obviously quite a bit heavier. It saved time, reduced risk, and kept the ship functioning efficiently.

Photo courtesy of Brian Engleman, used with permission

It was a practical solution for life at sea. Keep the structure secure, but allow the crew to move.

The System Behind the Numbers

Every door on the USS Midway was labeled with a number that told you exactly where you were on the ship.

Photo courtesy of Brian Engleman, used with permission

This door, for example, was numbered 2-75-6. Each part of that number had meaning.

• 2 indicates the second deck, located just below the hangar deck

• 75 refers to the frame number, one of the ship’s structural ribs

• 6 identifies the door’s position relative to the centerline

The Navy used a consistent system for orientation. Odd numbers were assigned to the starboard side, and even numbers to the port side. This meant that a sailor did not just see a door. They saw a location. In an emergency, that number could guide you faster than memory alone.

Quick-Acting Watertight Doors: Built for Speed

The Personnel Door in this configuration was known as a Quick-Acting Watertight Door, or QAWTD. It was designed for speed and reliability.

Photo courtesy of Brian Engleman, used with permission

Instead of securing multiple clamps one at a time, a sailor could operate a single hand wheel that engaged all locking mechanisms at once. This allowed the door to be sealed quickly when needed.

During normal operations, these doors were typically left open to allow movement between spaces such as the forward mess and ordnance preparation areas. During General Quarters or emergency conditions, they were secured to protect the ship and crew.

a restful place flickr photo by Illetirres shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-ND 2.0) license

Many of these doors were painted differently on each side, often red on one side and blue on the other, helping crews quickly identify zones and functions as they moved through the ship.

Life Moving Through These Doors Every Day

These doors were part of everyday life aboard Midway. Sailors passed through them constantly as they moved between assignments. Food service, maintenance, flight operations, and ordnance handling all depended on the ability to move efficiently through the ship.

Photo courtesy of USS Midway Museum, used with permission

There was a rhythm to it. The weight of the door. The sound of the wheel turning. The transition from one compartment to another. Over time, these small interactions became second nature. The doors were not obstacles. They were part of the environment.

This video, courtesy of USS Midway Museum, shows us more about what it was like. 

When Everything Changed: General Quarters

In an emergency, everything shifted. Watertight doors were secured throughout the ship, sealing off compartments and limiting movement. What was once an open and active environment became controlled and contained.

2017-05-21_08-04-41 flickr photo by Joy Grassman shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA 2.0) license

Each door now played a critical role. This was how the ship protected itself. Not with a single system, but with hundreds of individual barriers working together. In those moments, the Midway was no longer just a place to live and work. It was a fortress.

The Story Behind the Material

The material used for these tags comes from authentic watertight doors aboard the USS Midway, including doors such as 2-75-6, located on decks below the flight operations level where daily life and work took place.

Photo courtesy of Brian Engleman, used with permission

Positioned along the ship’s internal structure, these doors connected key operational spaces, including areas tied to food service, maintenance, and ordnance preparation. Like others throughout the ship, they were designed to balance accessibility with protection. The smaller personnel door allowed for constant movement, while the larger cargo door remained secured unless heavy equipment or supplies needed to pass through.

Each door was built with reinforced internal structure to maintain strength under pressure, while its outer surfaces carried layers of paint that reflected both function and location within the ship.

Over time, these doors became part of the rhythm of life aboard Midway. Open. Closed. Passed through thousands of times.

From Ship to Story

“When we receive a piece like this, our job is not to change it. It’s to respect it, preserve it, and let the history already in the material speak for itself.” - Dave Hall, MotoArt PlaneTags founder

Rob Schneider, Brian Engleman & Dave Hall aboard the USS Midway

Today, what remains is more than just material.

After being carefully removed as part of the USS Midway Museum’s ongoing preservation and reconfiguration efforts, these door components began a new journey. They were transported to MotoArt Studios in Torrance, California, where the process of transforming them could begin.

Each piece is handled with intention. The material is cut from the original door, preserving as much of its character as possible. Layers of paint, markings, and wear are not erased. They are part of the story. 

No two pieces are exactly alike. What emerges is a balance between preservation and craftsmanship. The strength of the original structure is still there, but now it is something you can hold. Something you can study up close.

These tags carry more than the material itself. They carry the life of the ship. The movement through its passageways. The systems that kept it operating at sea. What looks like a simple piece of metal is, in reality, a small part of a much larger story, one that began aboard the USS Midway and continues in a new form.

A Partnership to Preserve and Share History

The materials used for these tags are not random pieces of scrap. They are part of a thoughtful and ongoing partnership between MotoArt and the USS Midway Museum.

As the Midway continues to evolve as a museum, certain components are removed during maintenance, restoration, and the reconfiguration of spaces to create new exhibits and visitor experiences. Rather than discard these historic materials, the museum is working with MotoArt to preserve and share them in a meaningful way.

This partnership ensures that pieces of the ship’s structure can continue to tell their story beyond the deck.

The first Midway PlaneTags introduced tags made from the ship’s propellers / screws, crafted from manganese bronze and finished to highlight their history and material. Those pieces represent the power that moved the Midway through the water.

These door tags tell a different story. They come from the interior of the ship, from spaces where daily life unfolded and where critical systems quietly did their job. They reflect the structure, discipline, and design that allowed the Midway to operate safely at sea.

Like the USS Midway Propeller PlaneTags, these releases directly support the USS Midway Museum and its ongoing mission. Proceeds help fund preservation efforts, educational programs, and the continued care of the ship for future generations.

This is not just about creating a collectible. It is about extending the life of Midway’s history, one piece at a time.

Further Reading: USS Midway, Naval Aviation, and PlaneTags History

If you enjoyed learning about life aboard the USS Midway and the systems that kept it operating at sea, explore more stories from this historic aircraft carrier and the aircraft that served alongside it.

• USS Midway: A Legendary Aircraft Carrier and Its Lasting Legacy - A comprehensive look at the Midway’s decades of service, from its Cold War origins to its role as a modern museum.

• USS Midway History: Preserving the Materials of a Legendary Carrier - Explore how materials from the Midway are carefully preserved and repurposed, connecting the ship’s history to new forms of storytelling.

• USS Midway (CV-41): A Brief Historical View from the Flight Deck - A high-level historical perspective from the flight deck, highlighting the ship’s scale, operations, and enduring significance, from guest writer Brian Engleman, USS Midway Museum Docent and Airwing Volunteer