The Little Devils of the Deep – American Submarines in June 1900

In June of 1900, the American seagoing world was still adapting to the idea that a practical submarine machine had been brought into the family. With the Spanish American War in the rear-view mirror, 1900 was exploding with changes of all kinds. The twentieth century would come to be known as the American Century since […]

“Navies are soon to disappear, according to a critic in the New York Herald” July 1901

In 1901, predictions about the coming changes to the navies of the world were abundant. The industrial revolution had produced new technologies and science was rapidly advancing in many fields. The recent Spanish American war had shown how important a flexible navy was to a countries defense and the introduction of submarine warfare brought an […]

“The men who go down into the waters in these boats must take their lives in their hands.” Holland’s Invention in 1898

Sunday, April 24, 1898, the San Francisco papers and papers across the country were filled with the latest news about the Spanish American War that was already underway. America woke up that morning to the realization that it had seacoasts that stretched from north to south in both the east and the west. There was […]

All Hope was abandoned – the S-26 (Part 2)

Submarine rescues were still pretty rare in 1942. The rescue of the sailors from the sunken USS Squalus in 1939 was made possible because of the emerging technology that allowed a rescue bell to be attached to the boat. On the morning of May 23, 1939, the submarine USS Squalus slipped beneath the storm-tossed surface […]

Losing the World’s Largest Submarine – The Unsolved Mystery of the Surcouf (1942)

Losing the World’s Largest Submarine – The Unsolved Mystery of the Surcouf The Washington Times had a picture of an odd-looking French submarine on page A-3 of the January 20, 1942 edition. The caption read: Free French Operate World’s Largest Sub. I had previously written a story about a French submarine that escaped Germany’s clutches […]

From the Deep – The Story of America’s Boomers

Once upon a time, I lived and worked on the very first ballistic missile submarine known as the USS George Washington (SSBN 598). It was a unique experience that allowed me to become a submariner and experience things that most never will. The GW was already about 14 years old by the time I got […]

The question of the monster (the fictional vision that became the Fast Attack Submarine)

The Monster “THE year 1866 was signalised by a remarkable incident, a mysterious and inexplicable phenomenon, which doubtless no one has yet forgotten. Not to mention rumours which agitated the maritime population, and excited the public mind, even in the interior of continents, seafaring men were particularly excited. Merchants, common sailors, captains of vessels, skippers, […]

Grandfather to the Fast Attack – USS Carp (SS 20) F-1 (The Mysterious loss of Bob the Submarine Dog)

When the Navy bought its first Holland class submarine, the future of the craft was still as murky as the water it would dive into . The original boats were very limited in depth capability and the propulsion mechanism was still primitive by today’s standards. The vision for many was to mimic Jules Verne’s novel […]

Killing the Sea Monsters

Killing the Sea Monsters Two views on submarine versus submarine warfare were recorded after the end of the war where this type of combat was first initiated. Prior to this time, no submarines had been engaged in direct combat with each other. The challenges of the technology, the nature of the sea and the […]

Pirates of the Seven Seas – Those Dastardly Submariners

1920 The new decade had begun. The echoes of the war were still reverberating in society with the recent return of so many of the men from overseas that had seen the ravages of that horrific conflict. The emergence of the submarine as a frightful weapon spawned many stories in the press. People across the […]