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USS Gurnard (SS-254)
Encyclopedia
, a Gato-class
Gato class submarine
The United States Navy Gato class submarine formed the core of the submarine service that was largely responsible for the destruction of the Japanese merchant marine and a large portion of the Imperial Japanese Navy in World War II...
submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
, was the first 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 gurnard
Sea robin
Sea robins, also known as gurnard, are bottom-feeding scorpaeniform fishes in the family Triglidae. They get their name from their large pectoral fins, which, when swimming, open and close like a bird's wings in flight....
, a trigloid fish having three free pectoral rays, a food fish of the genus Trigla
Trigla
Trigla is a small genus of fish in the family Triglidae. It has two described species.-Species:* Piper gurnard, Trigla lyra Linnaeus, 1758.-See also:* List of prehistoric bony fish* List of extant animal genera represented in the fossil record...
. The striped gurnard inhabits the South Atlantic.
Her keel was laid down by the Electric Boat Company, Groton
Groton, Connecticut
Groton is a town located on the Thames River in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 39,907 at the 2000 census....
, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
on 2 September 1941. 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...
1 June 1942 (sponsored by Miss Suzanne Slingluff), 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...
18 September 1942, Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant commander (United States)
Lieutenant commander is a mid-ranking officer rank in the United States Navy, the United States Coast Guard, the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Corps, with the pay grade of O-4 and NATO rank code OF-3...
Charles. H. Andrews (Class
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...
of 1930) in command.
Atlantic Patrol
Following shakedown out of New LondonNaval Submarine Base New London
Naval Submarine Base New London is the United States Navy's primary submarine base, the "Home of the Submarine Force", and "the Submarine Capital of the World".-History:...
, Gurnard sailed for Rosneath, Scotland, 2 November 1942 and reached that port 13 days later. Her first war patrol, 28 November to 27 December 1942, brought her to the Bay of Biscay
Bay of Biscay
The Bay of Biscay is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Brest south to the Spanish border, and the northern coast of Spain west to Cape Ortegal, and is named in English after the province of Biscay, in the Spanish...
where she lay off the Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
coast awaiting German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
blockade runners bound for Spanish ports. The patrol was uneventful; no enemy ships were sighted and subsequently Gurnard returned to New London 9 February 1943 for repairs and alterations.
Second, third, and fourth war patrols, May 1943 – January 1944
After reaching Pearl HarborPearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
26 May, the submarine got underway 12 June for her second war patrol. She patrolled off Toagel Mlungui Passage and on 29 June saw action for the first time, damaging two Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese merchantmen
Cargo ship
A cargo ship or freighter is any sort of ship or vessel that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year; they handle the bulk of international trade...
and surviving 24 depth charges thrown by an enemy destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
. Varied damage was inflicted on other ships in these waters before Gurnard made her first kill, sinking cargo ship
Cargo ship
A cargo ship or freighter is any sort of ship or vessel that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year; they handle the bulk of international trade...
Taiko Maru at 12°53′N 131°49′E. on 11 June 1943. Having expended all torpedoes, the submarine returned via Midway Island to Pearl Harbor, arriving 26 July for refit.
Underway again 6 September, she sailed to the South China Sea
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around...
to begin her third war patrol. A five-ship convoy was sighted near midnight 7 October and Gurnard began stalking, closing at 01:39 on 8 October and sending to the bottom cargo ship Taian Maru and passenger-cargo ship Dainichi Maru west of Luzon
Luzon
Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
. This successful patrol terminated at Pearl Harbor 28 October.
One month later she sailed on her fourth patrol to prowl off the southeast coast of Honshū
Honshu
is the largest island of Japan. The nation's main island, it is south of Hokkaido across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyushu across the Kanmon Strait...
and soon found good hunting. A convoy was sighted 24 December and at 07:10 Gurnard attacked. Two minutes later cargo ship Seizan Maru No. 2 had broken in two and sunk; she was soon joined by cargo ship Tofuku Maru. Japanese destroyers attacked the submarine with over 80 depth charges without success. After damaging another merchantman on 27 December, Gurnard returned to Pearl Harbor 7 January 1944. From there she was sent Stateside
Stateside
Stateside may refer to:* stateside, a slang term for the United States, usually used concerning an American currently outside the country, particularly in a military context* Stateside Records, the British record label...
for overhaul.
Fifth, sixth, and seventh war patrols, April – November 1944
Celebes Sea
The Celebes Sea of the western Pacific Ocean is bordered on the north by the Sulu Archipelago and Sulu Sea and Mindanao Island of the Philippines, on the east by the Sangihe Islands chain, on the south by Sulawesi, and on the west by Kalimantan in Indonesia...
. On this patrol she chalked up one of the highest single-patrol tonnage scores of the Pacific war, attacking the Take Ichi convoy
Take Ichi convoy
The convoy was a Japanese convoy of World War II. The convoy left Shanghai on 17 April 1944, carrying two infantry divisions to reinforce Japan's defensive positions in the Philippines and western New Guinea. United States Navy submarines attacked the convoy on 26 April and 6 May, sinking four...
on 6 May and sinking 6,886-ton cargo ship Tenshinzan Maru, 6,995-ton passenger-cargo vessel Taijima Maru, and 5,824-ton passenger-cargo ship Aden Maru. Nearly a hundred depth charges rained down around her but she eluded the hunters and escaped undamaged. This vital convoy carried 40,000 troops intended to oppose Gen. MacArthur
Douglas MacArthur
General of the Army Douglas MacArthur was an American general and field marshal of the Philippine Army. He was a Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s and played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor for his service in the...
in New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
, and the embarked units suffered losses of nearly 50 percent. Gurnards next kill occurred 24 May when several torpedoes sent to the bottom the 10,090-ton tanker Tatekawa Maru. No further opportunities presented themselves; and Gurnard put in at Fremantle
Fremantle, Western Australia
Fremantle is a city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle was the first area settled by the Swan River colonists in 1829...
, 11 June 1944 with the completion of the patrol.
The submarine stood out on her sixth patrol 8 July for the Banda
Banda Sea
The Banda Sea is a sea in the Maluku Islands of Indonesia, technically part of the Pacific Ocean but separated from it by hundreds of islands, as well as the Halmahera and Ceram Seas...
, Molucca
Molucca Sea
The Molucca Sea is located in the western Pacific Ocean, within the country of Indonesia. The region is rich in coral and has many diving sites.-Location:...
, Celebes, Sulu
Sulu Sea
The Sulu Sea is a body of water in the southwestern area of the Philippines, separated from the South China Sea in the northwest by Palawan and from the Celebes Sea in the southeast by the Sulu Archipelago. Borneo is found to the southwest and Visayas to the northeast.Sulu Sea contains a number of...
, and Mindanao Seas. After topping off at Darwin
Darwin, Northern Territory
Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities...
she patrolled off the Peleng Straits and damaged one merchantman before returning to Fremantle 5 September.
Gurnards seventh patrol commenced 9 October after refit. While cruising off Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
, she detected a five-ship enemy convoy. A successful attack was pressed home 3 November at the end of an 18-hour hunt, and two torpedoes demolished cargo ship Taimei Maru. Gurnard returned to her Australian port 17 November after this victory.
Eighth and ninth war patrols, December 1944 – May 1945
The submarine's eighth and ninth patrols (11 December 1944 – 1 February 1945 and 10 March – 9 May 1945) included reconnaissance off Camranh Bay and patrols with submarines and , but hunting was poor and no ships were sunk. Gurnard finished her final patrol at Pearl Harbor 9 May and put in at Mare IslandMare Island Naval Shipyard
The Mare Island Naval Shipyard was the first United States Navy base established on the Pacific Ocean. It is located 25 miles northeast of San Francisco in Vallejo, California. The Napa River goes through the Mare Island Strait and separates the peninsula shipyard from the main portion of the...
, Calif., 9 days later for a major overhaul. Following a round-trip voyage thence to Pearl Harbor and Midway, she returned to San Francisco 11 September 1945 and decommissioned there 27 November 1945.
Gurnard remained in reserve until 1 July 1949 when she reported to the San Francisco Naval Shipyard
San Francisco Naval Shipyard
The San Francisco Naval Shipyard was a United States Navy shipyard in San Francisco, California, located on of waterfront at Hunters Point in the southeast corner of the city...
for activation as an armory for naval reserve submarine training. Towed to Pearl Harbor 27 November to 9 December 1949, the submarine served there until returning under tow to Tacoma, Wash.
Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma is a mid-sized urban port city and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. The city is on Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. The population was 198,397, according to...
, 18 May 1953 to continue reserve training duties in that port until June 1960. She was then inactivated in preparation for disposal. Her name was struck from the Navy List
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...
1 May 1961. She was sold for scrapping 26 September 1961 to the National Metal and Steel Corporation, Terminal Island
Terminal Island
Terminal Island is an island located in Los Angeles County, California between Los Angeles Harbor and Long Beach Harbor. Originally a mudflat known to the Spanish as Isla Raza de Buena Gente, and later called Rattlesnake Island, it has officially been Terminal Island since 1918...
, Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
Awards
Gurnard received six battle stars and the Navy Unit CommendationNavy Unit Commendation
The Navy Unit Commendation of the United States Navy is an award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944...
for service in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. War patrols numbers two through seven were designated "successful".