Substitutes in the Navy?

[hisbluelady]

Hi! I'm new here, found the forum while searching for great-grandfather's enlistment information. I have his enlistment date and pension paperwork. It is believed that he substituted for someone else, which makes sense since he was at the time a German merchant seaman who was probably approached with the offer while in port in New York. I found one on Ancestry that is almost a match, but different enough that I'm wondering if it's the info for the one he subbed for. With the navy would the actual enlistment information be for the person who was drafted, or for the one who took his place?

Thanks for your help; waiting to be fully registered here.

 

[Gandycreek]

Welcome from West Virginia.

 

[Mark F. Jenkins]

Hi there!

The information is most likely to be that of the man actually entering the Navy, with a big asterisk; it was not uncommon for sailors to "ship" under assumed names. (If he was a German national, his data might be fudged a little, too.)

 

[TinCan]

Mark Jenkins or Andy Hall will most likely be the ones who can answer your question. Meanwhile, greetings and welcome from Kentucky.