L-6 (Submarine No. 45)
1917-1922
(Submarine No. 45: displacement 456 (surfaced), 524 (submerged); length 165'; beam 14'9"; draft 13'3"; speed 14 knots (surfaced), 10.5 knots (submerged); complement 28; armament 1 3-inch, 4 18-inch torpedo tubes; class L-5)
L-6 (Submarine No. 45) was laid down on 27 May 1914 at Long Beach, Calif., by Craig Shipbuilding Co. [subcontractor for the Lake Torpedo Boat Co.]; launched on 31 August 1916; and sponsored by Mrs. William R. [Katherine] Monroe, wife of Lt. William R. Munroe, U.S. Navy, Inspector of Machinery at Long Beach.
L-6 at her building yard, 30 September 1917. The men standing on deck serve as a useful yardstick to measure the size of this undersea craft. (U.S. Navy Bureau of Ships Photograph 19-N-1328, National Archives and Records Administration, Still Pictures Division, College Park, Md.)
Commissioned on 7 December 1917, Lt. Howard B. Berry in command, L-6 conducted her shakedown, then exercises along the west coast, before ultimately departing Pacific waters on 20 April 1918. She reached Charleston, S.C., on 10 June. Following a brief overhaul, the submarine patrolled off Charleston until she sailed on 15 October for the eastern Atlantic. Arriving at Ponta Delgada, Azores, in early November, L-6 joined Submarine Division 6 just prior to the signing of the Armistice on 11 November.
After making stops in Caribbean and Central American ports, L-6 arrived at San Pedro, Calif., on 14 February 1919, completing one of the best long-distance, seagoing performances of America’s youthful submarine force. From 1919 to 1922, she remained on the west coast, experimenting with new torpedoes and undersea detection equipment, during which time she was redesignated from Submarine No. 45 to SS-45 on 17 July 1920.
L-6 was placed in commission in ordinary [a decommissioned status] on 24 March 1922 but returned to full commission on 1 July. She sailed for the east coast the same month. Upon arrival at Hampton Roads, L-6 was decommissioned on 25 November 1922, and was sold to M. Samuel & Sons on 21 December 1925 for scrapping.
Updated, Robert J. Cressman
28 May 2020
