USS ''Cod'' (SS/AGSS/IXSS-224) is a , the only vessel of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

to be named for the

cod Cod is the common name for the demersal fish genus '' Gadus'', belonging to the family Gadidae. Cod is also used as part of the common name for a number of other fish species, and one species that belongs to genus ''Gadus'' is commonly not call ...

, an important and very popular food fish of the North

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

and North

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contine ...

. ''Cod'' is now a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

, preserved as a memorial and museum ship permanently moored in Cleveland, Ohio, and is open to visitors daily from 1 May to 30 September.

Construction and commissioning

''Cod''′s keel was laid down by the

Electric Boat Company Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by ...

Groton, Connecticut Groton is a town in New London County, Connecticut located on the Thames River. It is the home of General Dynamics Electric Boat, which is the major contractor for submarine work for the United States Navy. The Naval Submarine Base New London i ...

, on 21 July 1942. The submarine's five V16

diesel engine The diesel engine, named after Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is a so-ca ...

s were built by General Motors Cleveland Diesel Plant on the west side of Cleveland, Ohio. She was launched on 21 March 1943, sponsored by Mrs. G. M. Mahoney, and commissioned on 21 June 1943 with Commander James C. Dempsey, USN; in command. Dempsey had already won fame by sinking the first Japanese destroyer lost in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

while in command of the submarine .

World War II

On 30 August 1943, the American Type C1-B cargo ship opened gunfire on ''Cod'' in the

Caribbean Sea The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...

at , about north-northwest of Baranquilla, Colombia, and east of the northern entrance to the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a condui ...

. Less than three hours later, ''Alcoa Patriot'' again sighted ''Cod'' and fired on her at , about northwest of Baranquilla and east of the northern entrance to the

. ''Cod'' suffered no damage or casualties in either incident.

First patrols, 1943 October – 1944 January

''Cod'' arrived in

Brisbane, Australia Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

, on 2 October 1943 to prepare for her first war patrol. She sailed from there 20 days later. Penetrating the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by the shores of South China (hence the name), in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan and northwestern Phi ...

, she contacted few targets, and launched an attack only once, on 29 November, with unobserved results. Returning to

Fremantle, Australia Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River (Western Australia), Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Austral ...

, to refit from 16 December 1943 to 11 January 1944.

Second patrol, 1944 February – 1944 March

''Cod'' put to sea for her second war patrol in the

, off

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mos ...

, and off

Halmahera Halmahera, formerly known as Jilolo, Gilolo, or Jailolo, is the largest island in the Maluku Islands. It is part of the North Maluku province of Indonesia, and Sofifi, the capital of the province, is located on the west coast of the island. Ha ...

. On 16 February, she surfaced to sink a sampan by gunfire, and on 23 February,

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, s ...

ed a Japanese merchantman. She sent another to the bottom on 27 February, Taisoku Maru (2,473 tons) and two days later attacked a third, only to be forced deep by a concentrated

depth charging A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon. It is intended to destroy a submarine by being dropped into the water nearby and detonating, subjecting the target to a powerful and destructive hydraulic shock. Most depth charges use h ...

delivered by a Japanese escort ship.

Third patrol, 1944 March – 1944 June

Refitting at Fremantle again from 13 March – 6 April 1944, ''Cod'' sailed to the Sulu Sea and the

off

Luzon Luzon (; ) is the largest and most populous island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the Philippines archipelago, it is the economic and political center of the nation, being home to the country's capital city, Manila, as ...

for her third war patrol. On 10 May, she attacked a heavily escorted

convoy A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...

of 32 ships and sank the destroyer ''Karukaya'' and cargo merchantman Shohei Maru (7,256 tons) before the escorts drove her down with

depth charges A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon. It is intended to destroy a submarine by being dropped into the water nearby and detonating, subjecting the target to a powerful and destructive hydraulic shock. Most depth charges use h ...

. Returning to Fremantle to replenish on 1 June 1944.

Fourth patrol, 1944 July – 1944 August

''Cod'' was put to sea again 3 July on her fourth war patrol, under the command of Commander James "Silver Leader" Adkins. She ranged from the coast of Luzon to Java. She sank the converted net tender, Seiko Maru (708 tons) on 3 August, and a landing craft, ''LSV-129'', on 14 August, and, once more successful, returned to Fremantle 25 August.

Fifth patrol, 1944 September – 1944 November

''Cod'' put to sea on her fifth war patrol 18 September 1944, bound for

Philippine The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

waters. She made her first contact, a cargo ship, Tatsushiro Maru (6,886 tons) on 5 October, and sank it. Two days later, she inflicted heavy damage on a tanker. Contacting a large convoy on 25 October, ''Cod'' launched several attacks without success. With all her torpedoes expended, she continued to shadow the convoy for another day to report its position. In November she took up a lifeguard station off Luzon, ready to rescue carrier pilots carrying out the series of air strikes on Japanese bases which paved the way for the

invasion of Leyte An invasion is a military offensive in which large numbers of combatants of one geopolitical entity aggressively enter territory owned by another such entity, generally with the objective of either: conquering; liberating or re-establishing con ...

later that month. ''Cod'' returned to

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the R ...

on 20 November 1944, and sailed on to a stateside overhaul at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, returning to

on 7 March 1945.

Sixth patrol, 1945 March – 1945 May

On 24 March she sailed from

for the East China Sea on her sixth war patrol. Assigned primarily to lifeguard duty, she used her deck gun to sink a tug and its tow on 17 April, rescuing three survivors, and on 24 April launched an attack on a convoy which resulted in the most severe depth charging of her career. The next day, she sent the

minesweeper A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping. History The earliest known usage of ...

''W-41'' to the bottom. On 26 April ''Cod'' was threatened by a fire in the aft torpedo room, but the ship's crew brought the fire under control and manually launched a torpedo already in its tube before the fire could detonate it. QM2c L.E. Foley and S1c A.G. Johnson were washed overboard while freeing the torpedo room hatch. Foley was recovered the next morning, but Johnson was drowned during the night, the ''Cod'''s only fatality during the war.

Seventh patrol, 1945 May – 1946 June

After refitting at

Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...

between 29 May and 26 June 1945, ''Cod'' put out for the Gulf of Siam and the coast of

Indo-China Mainland Southeast Asia, also known as the Indochinese Peninsula or Indochina, is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the west an ...

on her seventh war patrol under the command of

Lieutenant commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding ran ...

Edwin M. Westbrook, Jr. On 9 and 10 July she went to the rescue of a grounded

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

submarine, ''O-19'', taking its crew on board and destroying the Dutch boat when it could not be gotten off the reef. This was the only international submarine-to-submarine rescue in history. After returning the Dutch sailors to

Subic Bay Subic Bay is a bay on the west coast of the island of Luzon in the Philippines, about northwest of Manila Bay. An extension of the South China Sea, its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility, U.S. Naval Base Sub ...

, between 21 July and 1 August ''Cod'' made 20 gunfire attacks on the junks, motor sampans, and barges which were all that remained to supply the Japanese at

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

. After inspecting each contact to rescue civilian crew, ''Cod'' sank it by gunfire and torpedoes, sending to the bottom a total of 23. On 1 August, an enemy plane

strafed Strafing is the military practice of attacking ground targets from low-flying aircraft using aircraft-mounted automatic weapons. Less commonly, the term is used by extension to describe high-speed firing runs by any land or naval craft such ...

''Cod'', forcing her to dive, leaving one of her boarding parties behind. The men were rescued two days later by the . When ''Cod'' returned to Fremantle 13 August 1945, the crew of ''O-19'' was waiting to throw a party for their rescuers. During that celebration, the two crews learned of the Japanese surrender. To symbolize that moment, another symbol was added to ''Cod''s battle flag: the name ''O-19'' under a

martini Martini may refer to: * Martini (cocktail) * Martini (vermouth), a brand of vermouth * Martini (surname), an Italian surname * Martini (automobile company), a Swiss automobile company * Automobiles Martini, a French manufacturer of racing cars * M ...

glass. ''Cod'' sailed for home on 31 August. Arriving in

New London, Connecticut New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States, located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, Connecticut. It was one of the world's three busiest whaling ports for several decade ...

, on 3 November after a visit to

Miami, Florida Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

, ''Cod'' sailed to

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

for overhaul, returning to

New London New London may refer to: Places United States *New London, Alabama *New London, Connecticut *New London, Indiana *New London, Iowa *New London, Maryland *New London, Minnesota *New London, Missouri *New London, New Hampshire, a New England town ** ...

where she was decommissioned and placed in reserve 22 June 1946.

Post-War service 1946 June – 1954 June

''Cod'' was mothballed in 1946, ''Cod'' was recommissioned in 1951 to participate in

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

anti-submarine training exercises under the command of Captain Francis E. Rich, USN. During the Cold War, ''Cod'' traveled to

St. John's, Newfoundland St. John's is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, located on the eastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland. The city spans and is the easternmost city in North America ...

, as well as

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...

Great Lakes training vessel, 1954 June – 1971 December

''Cod'' was decommissioned on 21 June 1954 and placed in reserve. In 1959 she was towed through the St. Lawrence Seaway to Cleveland, Ohio and was used as a training vessel. The ''Cod'' served as a training platform during the reservists' weekend drills. The ''Cod'' was reclassified first as an Auxiliary Submarine (AGSS-224) on 1 December 1962, and later as a Unclassified Miscellaneous Submarine (IXSS-224) on 30 June 1971. The ''Cod'' was in commission, but classed as "in commission in reserve". On 15 December 1971, the ''Cod'' was stricken from the

Naval Vessel Register The ''Naval Vessel Register'' (NVR) 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 t ...

Awards and decorations

''Cod'' is credited with sinking more than 12 enemy vessels totaling more than 37,000 tons, and damaging another 36,000 tons of enemy shipping. All seven of her war patrols were considered successful and ''Cod'' was awarded seven

battle stars A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star inch (4.8 mm) in diameter that is authorized to be worn by members of the eight uniformed services of the United States on medals and ribbons to denote an additional award or ser ...

for her service in

, ''Cods battleflag and conning tower both carry a cocktail glass above the name ''O-19'' to commemorate the rescue and the party.

Museum ship and National Historic Landmark

General Motors Model 16-248 V16 diesel engine

A group of Cleveland residents formed the Cleveland Coordinating Committee to Save ''Cod'', Inc., with the goal of preserving the ship as a memorial. In 1976 January, the

gave guardianship of the submarine to the group. ''Cod'' opened for public tours as a floating memorial on 1 May 1976. In 1986, the

U.S. Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government headquartered at the Main Interior Building, located at 1849 C Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is responsible for the man ...

designated ''Cod'' a

. The memorial is open daily between 1 May and 30 September of each year from 1000 to 1700 hours. Today, ''Cod'' is one of the finest restored submarines on display and is the only U.S. submarine that has not had stairways and doors cut into her pressure hull for public access. ''Cod'' is the only

Fleet submarine A fleet submarine is a submarine with the speed, range, and endurance to operate as part of a navy's battle fleet. Examples of fleet submarines are the British First World War era K class and the American World War II era ''Gato'' class. The t ...

that is still intact and in her wartime configuration. Visitors to the ship use the same vertical ladders and hatches that were used by her crew. She also has unique attractions such as the 5-inch deck gun that still can be rotated by visitors and mock-fired by ''Cod''s volunteer crew. The ''Cod''s Mark IV Torpedo Data Computer is also fully restored, as well as other various parts on the submarine. Cleveland can claim partial credit as ''Cod''s birthplace, since the submarine's five diesel engines were built at the General Motors

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

Diesel Plant on Cleveland's west side. ''Cod'' acquired two General Motors Model 248

V16 engine A V16 engine is a sixteen-cylinder piston engine where two banks of eight cylinders are arranged in a V configuration around a common crankshaft. V16 engines are less common than engines with fewer cylinders, such as V8 and V12 engines. Each ban ...

s that had originally been used aboard another

submarine, '. The engines were used for parts for the restoration of ''Cod'' engines. Four out of the five main engines on the ''Cod'' are in running and working order, and are fired up on special events throughout the year. The ''Cod'' operates an amateur radio station, W8COD, and participates in various amateur radio contests and other events such as Field Day. Normally,

submarines are

dry-dock A dry dock (sometimes drydock or dry-dock) is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform. Dry docks are used for the construction, maintenance, ...

ed every five years while on active duty. If permanently moored in fresh water the maintenance interval can be extended to 25 years. On 30 September 2020 The ''USS Cod'' announced that they needed more donations so ''Cod'' can be sent to Donjon Shipbuilding & Repair in

Erie, Pennsylvania Erie (; ) is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. Erie is the fifth largest city in Pennsylvania and the largest city in Northwestern Pennsylvania with a population of 94,831 ...

for dry docking to repair and renew her underwater hull. The last time the ''Cod'' was in dry dock for repairs was in 1963 in Lorain, Ohio. ''Cod'' was closed to tours for approximately 60 days for a dry dock maintenance program that started 13 June 2021. The goal of the $1.4 million project is to conserve and restore the underwater hull of this 78 year old submarine so that she will continue to be a well-preserved

and memorial for Naval veterans. ''Cod'' spent 63 days in Erie at Donjon Shipping & Repair. ''Cod'' returned to Cleveland on 18 August 2021 to the 1201 North Marginal Road berth that she has occupied since her arrival in

in 1959. ''Cods next dry docking project should happen in about eight to ten years.https://www.wkyc.com/article/news/local/cleveland/uss-cod-submarine-renovations/95-fdd0df39-f173-4457-95ee-abd6ebd5f457/ USS Cod undergoing $1.4 million renovations Cod return

Media Productions

''Cod'' was subject of the television series ''The Silent Service'' and was the main plot for an episode titled "The U.S.S. Cod's Lost Boarding Party" which aired on 30 May 1958 on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

. ''Cod'' was used for exterior and interior scenes in the 2016

Smithsonian Channel The Smithsonian Channel is an American pay television channel owned by Paramount Global through its media networks division under MTV Entertainment Group. It offers video content inspired by the Smithsonian Institution's museums, research facili ...

war documentary ''

Hell Below ''Hell Below'' (aka ''Pigboats'') is a 1933 American MGM pre-Code film set in the Adriatic Sea during World War I about submarine warfare based on Commander Edward Ellsberg's novel ''Pigboats''. The film stars Robert Montgomery, Walter Huston ...

'' to depict the USS ''Tang'', and . Filming took place aboard the ''Cod'' in 2015. The series premiered Sunday 17 July 2016. ''Cod'' was the subject of a two-part documentary in the

World of Warships ''World of Warships'' is a free-to-play naval warfare-themed multiplayer online game, developed. produced and published by Wargaming. Players can battle others at random or play cooperative battle types against bots or an advanced player versus e ...

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

channel named ''Naval Legends:'' USS ''Cod.'' The documentary published on 2 and 4 July 2019. ''Cod'' was used for exterior and interior scenes in the National Geographic war documentary ''WWII: Hell Under the Sea'' to depict

submarine action. ''Cod'' was used for exterior and interior scenes for the

Dolph Lundgren Hans Lundgren (, ; born 3 November 1957), better known as Dolph Lundgren, is a Swedish actor, filmmaker and martial artist. His breakthrough came in 1985, when he starred in '' Rocky IV'' as the imposing Soviet boxer Ivan Drago. Since then, Lu ...

motion picture ''Operation Seawolf'' to depict

German

U-Boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare ro ...

s. The motion picture released on 7 October 2022.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* ::
Hinman, Charles R., and Douglas E. Campbell. ''The Submarine Has No Friends: Friendly Fire Incidents Involving U.S. Submarines During World War II''. Syneca Research Group, Inc., 2019.
.

External links

''USS Cod'' Official Websitehazegray.org: USS ''Cod'' Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships
* Historic Naval ships Association
Video of ''USS Cod'' sinking ''O-19''USS''Cod'' on Hell Below
Smithsonian Channel
Naval Legends: USS ''Cod'' part 1
World of Warships YouTube Documentary
Naval Legends: USS ''Cod'' part 2
World of Warships YouTube Documentary
The USS ''Cods Lost Boarding Party
The Silent Service USS ''Cod'' Lost Boarding Party
USS ''Cod'' on WWII: Hell Under the Sea
National Geographic
Operation Seawolf
IMDb
Operation Seawolf Official Trailer
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