Description
The USS Cuttlefish (SC-5/SS-171), was a Cachalot-class submarine and one of the “V-boats,”. Her keel was laid down by Electric Boat Company in Groton, Connecticut. She was launched on 21 November 1933 sponsored by Mrs. B. S. Bullard, and commissioned on 8 June 1934, Lieutenant Commander Charles W. “Gin” Styer in command. Cuttlefish was the first submarine built entirely at Electric Boat’s facility in Groton, Connecticut; construction of previous Electric Boat designs had been subcontracted to other shipyards, notably Fore River Shipbuilding of Quincy, Massachusetts. Four Peruvian R-class submarines had previously been finished in Groton, using material from canceled S-boats salvaged from Fore River.
Cuttlefish arrived at Pearl Harbor on June 16, 1939, and was based there on patrol duty, as well as joining in battle problems and exercises in the Hawaiian area. That autumn, she cruised to the Samoan Islands, and in 1940 to the West Coast. On 5 October 1941, she cleared Pearl Harbor for an overhaul at the Mare Island Navy Yard.
After returning to Pearl Harbor, Cuttlefish put to sea on her first war patrol on 29 January 1942. On 13 February, she performed a reconnaissance of Marcus Island, gaining valuable information, and after patrolling in the Bonin Islands, returned to Midway Island on 24 March. She refitted there and at Pearl Harbor, and on 2 May cleared Midway for her second war patrol. From 18 to 24 May, she reconnoitered Saipan and the northern part of the Mariana Islands. On 19 May, she attacked a patrol ship, and while maneuvering for a second attack, was detected. She was forced deep to endure four hours of severe depth charging, more of which came her way on 24 May when she challenged three enemy destroyers. The next day an alert enemy plane caught her on the surface and dropped two bombs as she went under, both of them misses.
As it became obvious the Japanese Fleet was out in strength, Cuttlefish was ordered to patrol about 700 nautical miles (1,300 km) west of Midway, remaining on station during the Battle of Midway from 4–6 June 1942. She returned to Pearl Harbor on 15 June, and there and at Midway prepared for her third war patrol, for which she sailed on 29 July under the command of Lieutenant Commander Elliot E. Marshall.
Patrolling off the Japanese homeland, she attacked a destroyer on 18 August, and received a punishing depth charge attack. Three days later, she launched a spread of torpedoes, three of which hit a freighter and one of which hit an escort. Explosions were seen, but the sinking could not be confirmed. On 5 September, she attacked a tanker which, it is believed, she sank.
Returning to Pearl Harbor on 20 September 1942, Cuttlefish was ordered to New London, where she served the Submarine School as a training ship from December 1942 to October 1945. On 8 December 1944, she suffered minor damage in a collision with USS Bray (DE-709). She was decommissioned at Philadelphia on 24 October 1945, and sold for scrap on 12 February 1947.
Claude Augustus Swanson (March 31, 1862 – July 7, 1939) was an American lawyer and Democratic politician from Virginia. He served as U.S. Representative (1893–1906), Governor of Virginia (1906–1910), and U.S. Senator from Virginia (1910–1933), before becoming U.S. Secretary of the Navy under President Franklin D. Roosevelt from 1933 until his death in 1939. Swanson and fellow U.S. Senator Thomas Staples Martin led a Democratic political machine in Virginia for decades in the late 19th and early 20th century, which later became known as the Byrd Organization for Swanson’s successor as U.S. Senator, Harry Flood Byrd.
Made of solid steel, this is an AMAZING piece of history! Featuring the profile of a Shark Fin, this was manufactured by the Electric Boat Company, and presented to the Secretary of the Navy, Claude A. Swanson. Presumably, to demonstrate the type of material and type of welding used in the construction of the USS Cuttlefish, and commemorating the launch. There are some slight marks and wear, but it is VERY solid with no damage! It is engraved on both sides, and indicates:
ELECTRIC WELDING
UNITED STATES SUBMARINE CUTTLEFISH
THE HONORABLE CLAUDE A. SWANSON
SECRETARY OF THE NAVY
There are traces of black paint inside the lettering, so it is presumed that at one time, all the letters were blackened when it was made. This has faded over time, and does not detract. Would make a FANTASTIC addition to any collection or display!
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