USS N-5 (SS-57) was a N-class coastal defense submarine

United States N class submarine

The United States N class submarines were a class of seven coastal defense submarines of the United States Navy.The boats were constructed by two companies to slightly different specifications; N-1, N-2, and N-3 by the Seattle Construction and Drydock Company of Seattle, Washington, and N-4, N-5,...

 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...

. Her keel was laid down on 10 April 1915 by Lake Torpedo Boat

Lake Torpedo Boat

The Lake Torpedo Boat Company of Bridgeport, Connecticut was an early maker of submarines for the U.S. Navy. Founded by Simon Lake in 1912, the firm competed with John Philip Holland's Electric Boat Company until financial difficulties led to the company's demise in 1924.-External links:**...

 Company in Bridgeport, Connecticut

Bridgeport, Connecticut

Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Located in Fairfield County, the city had an estimated population of 144,229 at the 2010 United States Census and is the core of the Greater Bridgeport area...

. The N-boats built by Lake had slightly different specifications from the ones built by Seattle Construction and Drydock and are sometimes considered a separate class.

N-5 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 22 March 1917 sponsored by Mrs. George Bevans, 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...

 at New York Navy Yard on 13 June 1918 with Lieutenant Commander Morris D. Gilmore in command.

Service history

Sailing from New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 on 20 June to New London, Connecticut

New London, Connecticut

New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States.It is located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, southeastern Connecticut....

, for fitting out and thence proceeding to Newport, Rhode Island

Newport, Rhode Island

Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...

, to load torpedoes, N-5 began patrols off New England

New England

New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...

 and in Long Island Sound

Long Island Sound

Long Island Sound is an estuary of the Atlantic Ocean, located in the United States between Connecticut to the north and Long Island, New York to the south. The mouth of the Connecticut River at Old Saybrook, Connecticut, empties into the sound. On its western end the sound is bounded by the Bronx...

 on watch against attacks on coastal shipping by German U-boat

U-boat

U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...

s. On 7 September, after parting tow from her escort in a heavy sea, she was mistaken by an armed transport for a U-boat

U-boat

U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...

 and was fired upon. Fortunately for the submarine, all 15 shells fell short and N-5 was able to proceed on to New London. She continued her patrols until 24 October when she put into New York Navy Yard for repairs, and remained there following the Armistice with Germany

Armistice with Germany (Compiègne)

The armistice between the Allies and Germany was an agreement that ended the fighting in the First World War. It was signed in a railway carriage in Compiègne Forest on 11 November 1918 and marked a victory for the Allies and a complete defeat for Germany, although not technically a surrender...

 until sailing to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...

, on 21 February 1919.

Overhauled, the submarine departed Philadelphia on 27 March, arriving New London on 10 April. Remaining in ordinary at the Submarine Base until 10 March 1920, the submarine then operated off the East Coast in training until placed in reserve at New London on 7 June. On 1 October, N-5 sailed to Philadelphia Navy Yard for extensive overhaul lasting until 7 April 1921 when she returned to New London, once again being placed in ordinary. There she remained for the next year, while her main engines were removed for transfer to a newer L-class submarine

United States L class submarine

The United States L class submarine was the United States Navy's first attempt at designing and building ocean-going submarines, which at the time was a yawning gap in capability compared with other major navies...

. Then, towed by tug she moved to Philadelphia Navy Yard, arriving on 14 April 1922. N-5 decommissioned on 19 April 1922 and was sold to Joseph G. Hitner

Joseph G. Hitner

Joseph G. Hitner owned an iron works in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.He purchased many United States Navy ships in the early 1900s, converting some of them to merchant ships and scrapping others.-References:...

of Philadelphia for scrap on 25 September 1922.