USS ''Daniel Boone'' (SSBN-629), a ballistic missile submarine, was the only ship 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

Daniel Boone Daniel Boone (September 26, 1820) was an American pioneer and frontiersman whose exploits made him one of the first folk heroes of the United States. He became famous for his exploration and settlement of Kentucky, which was then beyond the we ...

(1734–1820), the pioneer and frontiersman.

Construction and commissioning

The contract to build ''Daniel Boone'' was awarded to Mare Island Naval Shipyard at

Vallejo, California Vallejo ( ; ) is a city in Solano County, California and the second largest city in the North Bay region of the Bay Area. Located on the shores of San Pablo Bay, the city had a population of 126,090 at the 2020 census. Vallejo is home to th ...

, on 21 July 1961 and her keel was laid down there on 6 February 1962. She was launched on 22 June 1963 sponsored by Mrs. Margaret Smith Wakelin, wife of Dr. James H. Wakelin, Jr., a

physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...

who was the Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Research and Development) from 1959 until 1964. ''Daniel Boone'' was commissioned on 23 April 1964, with Commander George P. Steele, III, in command of the Blue Crew and

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 ...

Alan B. Crabtree in command of the Gold Crew. Following her commissioning, ''Daniel Boone'' was assigned to Submarine Squadron 15, becoming the first ballistic missile submarine assigned to the Pacific Fleet.

Operational history

During her first major overhaul , like the rest of her class, ''Daniel Boone'' was retrofitted with Poseidon C-3 missiles and the associated Mark 88 firecontrol system. Poseidon was replaced by Trident C-4 missiles and on 6 September 1980, ''Boone'' became the first ''James Madison'' operational with the new missile. ''Daniel Boone'' entered the Tenneco Shipyard at Newport News, Virginia sometime in late 1985 or early 1986 for refit. During post-refit sea trials on 7 April 1987 she ran aground in the James River at Newport News. This grounding occurred primarily because the OOD (Officer of the Deck), in an attempt to counter act tidal currents, lowered the SPM (Secondary Propulsion Motor) which was quickly and violently snapped off on a sandbar. The OOD then ordered the SPM retracted which, when retracted would have opened up an unpluggable 6" diameter hole in the hull. This potentially catastrophic mistake was countermanded by watchstanders on the scene in the Machinery space. In spite direct orders from the CONN and Maneuvering, the senior watchstander on the scene prevented the SPM from being retracted, preventing the submarine from sinking in the James River. This accident, however, significantly delayed her departure from the refit yards because they had to obtain another SPM and repair the hull penetration in Tenneco Shipyard's dry dock. No ballistic missiles were on board.

Decommissioning and disposal

''Daniel Boone'' was decommissioned on 18 February 1994 and 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 ...

the same day. Her scrapping via the Nuclear-Powered

Ship and Submarine Recycling Program The Ship-Submarine Recycling Program (SRP) is the process that the United States Navy uses to dispose of decommissioned nuclear vessels. SRP takes place only at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard (PSNS) in Bremerton, Washington, but the preparations ...

Bremerton, Washington Bremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington. The population was 37,729 at the 2010 census and an estimated 41,405 in 2019, making it the largest city on the Kitsap Peninsula. Bremerton is home to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and the Bremer ...

, was completed on 4 November 1994.

References

* * – Keel Laying - Launching * – Sea Trials - Pre Commissioning * – Pre Commissioning * – Active Service - Decommissioning James Madison-class submarines Nuclear submarines of the United States Navy Cold War submarines of the United States United States submarine accidents Maritime incidents in 1987 Ships built in Vallejo, California 1963 ships {{US-submarine-stub