Ten Years Ago, We said farewell to the 711 Boat

Submarines — Their Origin, Development and Work (1926)

Theleansubmariner will pass the 1,000,000 mark sometime later today. The host server has a counter for individual “reads” meaning every time someone clicks on one of the stories I post. When I started posting over fifteen years ago, I wondered if I would have enough interest in the stories I create. So this is a […]

Simon Lake Was a Dreamer

Early Submarine Development Around the World

Happy Casimir Pulaski Day

As we wait for Columbia to be finished and brought on line, this question still remains

Even in times of peace, the Navy still needed sailors

The Beginning of a New Era – September 30, 1954

In the beginning… I was born in 1954 in the Mon Valley area. That area is where the Monongahela River winds through the of western Pennsylvania. The area was famous for the many steel mills and coal mines and the air growing up was always smokey and had distinct odors depending on which way […]

Under the Ice Warfare: Kill or Be Killed

In my career I received the Order of the Ditch and was a Shellback. The first means that I transited the Panama Canal and of course the second means that I crossed the Equator. Going across the equator involves a lot of pomp and circumstances surrounded by a great deal of silliness. I will freely […]

Feeding Submariners – 1930 Style

The early American submarines were very small and lacked any significant ability to feed their crews for any length of time. Since they were not seen as critical independent operators ranging the blue waters of the world, habitability was not as critical. More often than not, they were nested alongside larger tenders where the ability […]