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Posted on 12/12/2003 12:01:15 AM PST by SAMWolf
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 are acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated.
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| Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should feel free to address their specific circumstances or whatever issues concern them in an atmosphere of peace, understanding, brotherhood and support. The FReeper Foxhole hopes to share with it's readers an open forum where we can learn about and discuss military history, military news and other topics of concern or interest to our readers be they Veteran's, Current Duty or anyone interested in what we have to offer. If the Foxhole makes someone appreciate, even a little, what others have sacrificed for us, then it has accomplished one of it's missions. We hope the Foxhole in some small way helps us to remember and honor those who came before us.
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  Turtle David Bushnell’s Turtle was the first American submarine. Built in 1775, was created to break the British blockade of New York Harbor during the Revolutionary War. With slight positive buoyancy, it normally floated with approximately six inches of exposed surface. It was propelled by a hand driven propeller. The operator would attach his mine to the target using a screw attached to the vertical propeller.  Alligator The Alligator was the first submarine purchased by the U.S. Navy. It contained two crude air purifiers, a chemical based system for producing oxygen and a bellows to force air through lime.  Hunley The Confederate Submarine H.L. Hunley is credited with the first recorded successful underwater attack, against the USS Housatonic using a torpedo, which was projected from the submarine by a pole. Eight men turned the propeller using a handcrank. Maximum speed was 4 knots. Air was provided by two four-foot pipes, although the hull contained enough air for approximately ½ hour of submerged operations.  Intelligent Whale The Intelligent Whale, a man-powered submarine purchased by the U.S. Navy in 1870, but never placed into service, featured air purifiers, pressurized air to empty ballast tanks and the ability to release a diver while submerged. The Intelligent Whale is credited with inspiring John Holland to develop his first submarine.  USS Holland The USS Holland had been purchased at the suggestion of the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Theodore Roosevelt in 1898. He saw the potential use of this type of vessel in Havana Harbor during the Spanish-American War. John P. Holland’s company was purchased by his electric battery supplier in 1900. The resulting firm, Electric Boat Company of Groton, CT, grew to become one of Connecticut’s largest employers throughout the 20th Century.  USS Seal USS Seal, the first U.S. submarine built by Simon Lake. Mr. Lake was the only competitor of John Holland and is credited with the following design aspects of the modern submarine: escape trunk, conning tower, diving planes, control room, and the rotating, retractable periscope.  C-1 Coastal and harbor defense was one of the earliest missions of the submarine force. Since early submarines could not transit over long distances they were transported by colliers. The U.S. Navy recognized the need to improve submarine design to allow for long range, high-speed operation while submerged. During the winter of 1909, the U.S. submarine C-1 conducted the first tests of the predecessor to today’s snorkel masts. Called ventilator tubes, this technological innovation provided surface air to the diesel engines while the submarine was at periscope depth.  S-83 Simon Lake’s R-6 (S-83) submarine served as a test platform for the first U.S. experimental snorkel in 1945.  L-10 L-10, one of the Electric Boat L class submarines. This class introduced the first strengthened internal bulkheads in submarines, which allowed the boats to dive to deeper depths.  L-boats The L-boats, stationed in the Azores during World War One, introduced air purification to the submarine fleet. Stale air was blown over chemicals, and compressed oxygen was released into the submarine to supplement the interior atmosphere.  H-2 World War I illustrated a need to shift the priorities in submarine construction and operation. In order to be effective combatants, submarines required improved stealth capabilities such as rapid submergence (i.e., crash dives) and long submerged endurance at low speeds following a torpedo attack. Existing submarines were all considered too small to incorporate these capabilities. However, such designs like the H-boat pictured here, H-2 (circa 1920), were the only ones that could be built quickly. As a result, these submarines were overloaded with the addition of key elements required for wartime sailing-chariot bridge, torpedo room ventilation, oscillator, and gyrocompass.  Argonaut Following World War I, a long range, high endurance submarine became a critical need. The first U.S. unit was authorized for construction in 1925. V-4, later renamed Argonaut, was originally intended for a minelaying mission. This submarine had twice the battery volume of earlier designs and included the first 240v electrical system, allowing for smaller onboard electric motors. Argonaut served as a predecessor to the submarine designs utilized during World War II.  S-1 Another consideration in the early 1920s was the use of a submarine to forward deploy aircraft. Submarine S-1 was the first U.S. submarine fitted out and extensively tested with a small scout plane.  Cuttlefish The Cuttlefish was basically an Americanized U-boat. This design incorporated the first complete double hull in a U.S. submarine and had an 11,000 nm range at 19 kts.  S-class The S-class boats were used as the test platforms for a range of sonar designs tested in the 1920s and 1930s. Higher frequencies and small, trainable transducers allowed for narrow beam width and exclusion of natural sea noises and other interference.  Porpoise The Porpoise (SS-172) class was the first all-electric drive submarine, and the precursor to the World War II fleet submarines. With its new diesel engine, this design had a maximum surface speed of 19 kts. Auxiliary diesels avoided the need to drain the battery while operating surfaced. This reduced battery charging cycles from 150/year to 30/year, greatly extending battery life.  Gato Gato (SS 212) provided the prototype design for the World War II vintage submarine. Construction of this class was accelerated in 1940 due to the escalation of the war in Europe. In order to increase production capability the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company in Wisconsin was contracted to build submarines under license from Electric Boat.  Herring The advent of the submarine bathothermograph (SBT) in 1942 provided the submarine force with an important tool for covert patrol operations and attacks. Herring (SS-233), pictured, was an early example of the successful application of the SBT.  Irex Within two years of the end of the war, the U.S. Navy had a functional snorkel mast on an operational, high speed submarine- the Irex (SS 482).  Tang The Tang was the first submarine designed for underwater performance rather than surfaced speed and handling. Key features included removing the deck guns, streamlining the outer hull, replacing the conning tower with a sail, installing new propellers designed for submerged operations, installing more air conditioning and a snorkel mast, and doubling the battery capacity.  Guavina In 1951 the submarine force achieved another important milestone. Guavina (SS 362) used an experimental searchlight sonar to distinguish the sound signature of Seacat (SS 399) and the fleet tug Salinian (ATF 161) at ranges of 9-10 nm.  Albacore The experimental submarine Albacore (AGSS-569) introduced the distinctive teardrop shape hull, which has influenced all follow-on submarine designs. This design provided for major advances in noise reduction, underwater speed and the use of low carbon (HY-80) as a structural steel. It also tested the first fiberglass sonar dome, installed in 1953.  Barbel The first warships built with a teardrop shape hull were the Barbel (SS 580) class. This class was also the first to incorporate a centralized arrangement of ship controls and combat operations, or "attack center".      |
I can't imagine how anyone could go to sea that couldn't swim! Of course I realize you don't expect to end up in the water but I'd be even more frightened if I didn't know how to swim.
No need to remind folks at the Foxhole!
The FReeper Foxhole Remembers The CSS Hunley - Mar. 2nd, 2003
What a singer! Click on Connie.
the FIRST SUCESSFUL submarine was the CSS Hunley
I knew that. :-)
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