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Naval History and Heritage Command

Naval History and Heritage Command

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  • Boats-Ships--Submarine
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  • Ship History
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  • World War I 1917-1918
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Salmon I (Submarine No. 19)

1910-1911

A soft-finned, gamy fish highly valued for their rich, succulent meat, which inhabits the coasts of America and Europe in northern latitudes and ascends rivers for the purpose of spawning.

(Submarine No. 19: displacement 288 (normal); length 134'10" (overall); beam 13'11" (extreme); draft 11'8" (mean); speed 13 knots (surfaced), 8.5 knots (submerged); complement 15; armament 4 18-inch torpedo tubes; class Narwhal)

The first Salmon (Submarine No. 19) was laid down on 16 April 1908 by the Fore River Shipbuilding Co., Quincy, Mass., under subcontract from Electric Boat Co., New York, N.Y.; launched on 12 March 1910; sponsored by Miss R. Fitzgerald; commissioned on 8 September 1910, Lt. David A. Weaver in command.  

Salmon joined the Atlantic Torpedo Fleet at Newport, and less than a year after she was commissioned, she was renamed D-3 on 17 November 1911. The torpedo fleet was active along the east coast and made a cruise to the Caribbean between 17 October 1912 and 20 January 1913 after which D-3 remained to serve with the forces operating in Mexican waters following the occupation of Vera Cruz in the spring of 1914. She rejoined the flotilla at Norfolk on 16 June 1914 and with them visited Washington, D.C., from 17 to 22 July, before returning to their homeport on 24 July. From 21 September 1917, D-3 served as flagship of Submarine Division 2. She trained aspiring submariners at Newport and New London until placed in commission in reserve on 5 September 1919; on 17 July 1920, she was reclassified as SS-19 vice Submarine No.19.

Placed in ordinary [a non-commissioned status] on 15 July 1921, she was towed to the Philadelphia Navy Yard, arriving there 20 March 1922.  D-3 was decommissioned the same day [20 March 1922] and was sold on 31 July 1922.

Updated, Robert J. Cressman

 12 May 2021


 

Published: Wed May 12 09:07:59 EDT 2021