The first national Navy Day celebration, on October 27, 1922, a date selected because it was the birthday of former President Theodore Roosevelt, was chaired by former Navy League National President Breckenridge and was a spectacular success.

Tens of thousands of Americans flocked to see the Navy on display. Navy ships hosted open houses in most of American's port cities, as did Navy shore stations, both coastal and inland. Hundreds of newspapers and magazines contributed to the favorable publicity by using fact sheets provided by the Navy League to write Navy Day articles and editorials reaching millions of readers.

Although it was not a national holiday, Navy Day did receive special recognition from the President of the United States. In a letter to Secretary of the Navy Denby, and reflecting the painful cuts in fleet numbers being enacted by his administration under the terms of the Five Power Treaty, President Harding wrote:

"From our earliest national beginnings the Navy has always been, and deserved to be, an object of special pride to the American people. ... It is well for us to have in mind that under a program of lessening naval armaments there is a greater reason for maintaining the highest efficiency, fitness and morale in this branch of the national defensive service. I know how earnest the Navy personnel are (in their devotion) to this idea and want you to be assured of my hearty concurrence."

The Navy League might actually have had to close its doors permanently (due to acute financial problems) but for three mitigating factors, including the annual Navy Day celebrations, which kept both the League and its educational message in the national spotlight...

Navy Day celebrations lasted at least several days, and in some of the nation's larger coastal cities a week or more, usually when there were a number of major ships in port at the same time. The second Navy Day, fully supported by President Coolidge, was an even bigger success than the first.

Navy Day proclamations were issued that year by 31 governors and more than 100 mayors. Dozens of cities scheduled and carried out special commemorative exercises and activities ranging from parades and open houses to receptions and wreath-laying ceremonies.