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USS Guardfish (SSN-612)
Encyclopedia
USS Guardfish (SSN-612), a , was the second ship of the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
to be named for the guardfish, a voracious green and silvery fish with elongated pike
Esox
Esox is a genus of freshwater fish, the only living genus in the family Esocidae — the esocids which were endemic to North America, Europe and Eurasia during the Paleogene through present.The type species is E. lucius, the northern pike...
-like body and long narrow jaws.
The contract to build her was awarded to New York Shipbuilding Corporation in Camden, New Jersey
Camden, New Jersey
The city of Camden is the county seat of Camden County, New Jersey. It is located across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 77,344...
on 9 June 1960 and her keel was laid down on 28 February 1961. She was launched
Ship naming and launching
The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...
on 15 May 1965 sponsored by Mrs. Kenneth E. BeLieu
Kenneth E. BeLieu
Kenneth E. BeLieu was the United States Assistant Secretary of the Navy 1961-65, Under Secretary of the Navy in 1965; Under Secretary of the Army 1971-73; and then director of the National Petroleum Council in the late 1970s.-Early Life:Kenneth E. BeLieu was born in Portland, Oregon on February...
, wife of the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and commissioned
Ship commissioning
Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...
on 20 December 1966 with Commander Gulmer A. Hines, Jr. in command.
- History from 1966 to 1992 needed.
Guardfish was decommissioned and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register
Naval Vessel Register
The Naval Vessel Register is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from the time a vessel is authorized through its life cycle and...
on 4 February 1992. Her hulk entered the Nuclear Powered Ship and Submarine Recycling Program and ceased to exist on 9 July 1992.