USS ''Hoe'' (SS-258), a ''Gato''-class

submarine A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability.) The term "submarine" is also sometimes used historically or infor ...

, was a ship of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

named for the hoe, one of various sharks, especially the dogfish.

Construction and commissioning

''Hoe''s

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element of a watercraft, important for stability. On some sailboats, it may have a fluid dynamics, hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose as well. The keel laying, laying of the keel is often ...

was

laid down Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one ...

by the Electric Boat Company at Groton,

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, on 2 January 1942. She was launched on 17 September 1942, sponsored by Miss Helen Hess, and commissioned on 16 December 1942.

First and second war patrols, May – October 1943

After shakedown, ''Hoe'' sailed 19 April 1943 via the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal () is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean. It cuts across the narrowest point of the Isthmus of Panama, and is a Channel (geography), conduit for maritime trade between th ...

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 Reci ...

, where she arrived 15 May. She departed on her first combat war patrol 27 May, and patrolled the

Guam Guam ( ; ) is an island that is an Territories of the United States, organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, Guam, Hagåtña, and the most ...

Palau Palau, officially the Republic of Palau, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the western Pacific Ocean. The Republic of Palau consists of approximately 340 islands and is the western part of the Caroline Islands ...

s area. ''Hoe'' damaged two freighters before returning 11 July to Pearl Harbor via

Ulithi Ulithi (, , or ; pronounced roughly as YOU-li-thee) is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about east of Yap, within Yap State. Name The name of the island goes back to Chuukic languages, Proto-Chuukic ''*úlú-diw ...

and

Midway Atoll Midway Atoll (colloquialism, colloquial: Midway Islands; ; ) is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean. Midway Atoll is an insular area of the United States and is an Insular area#Unorganized unincorporated territories, unorganized and unincorpo ...

. ''Hoes second patrol, conducted west of Truk, was marred by considerable engine trouble. The submarine departed 21 August, damaged one tanker, and eluded several

depth charge A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon designed to destroy submarine A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited ...

attacks before returning to Pearl Harbor 18 October 1943. She also took part in the search for downed aviators off

Wake Island Wake Island (), also known as Wake Atoll, is a coral atoll in the Micronesia subregion of the Pacific Ocean. The atoll is composed of three islets – Wake, Wilkes, and Peale Islands – surrounding a lagoon encircled by a coral reef. The neare ...

, 8–9 October.

Third, fourth, and fifth war patrols, January – August 1944

Following extensive repairs, ''Hoe'' set out on her third patrol 26 January 1944. Patrolling between

Mindanao Mindanao ( ) is the List of islands of the Philippines, second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and List of islands by population, seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the ...

and

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

, the submarine made an attack 16 February which damaged one ship. Although shadowed by escort vessels, ''Hoe'' detected another convoy 25 February and in two separate attacks sank tanker ''Nissho Maru''. She returned to Fremantle, Australia, 5 March for refit and training. ''Hoe'' began her fourth war patrol from Fremantle 4 April, and operated in the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by South China, in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan island, Taiwan and northwestern Philippines (mainly Luz ...

, the vital

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese sea supply line. She attacked a convoy 8 May, but scored no hits. Two more attacks 17 May and 19 May resulted in several damaged freighters and severe retaliatory depth charge attacks on ''Hoe''. She returned to Fremantle 2 June 1944. Her fifth war patrol, in the same area, was conducted between 29 June and 23 August 1944.

Sixth and seventh war patrols, September 1944 – January 1945

The veteran submarine sailed on her sixth patrol 15 September as leader of a coordinated attack group consisting of ''Hoe'', , and . Operating southwest of

Lingayen Gulf Lingayen Gulf is a large gulf on northwestern Luzon in the Philippines, stretching . It is framed by the provinces of Pangasinan and La Union and sits between the Zambales Mountains and the Cordillera Central (Luzon), Cordillera Central. The Agno ...

, the submarines accounted for some 38,000 tons of valuable Japanese shipping in five night surface attacks. ''Hoe'' was credited with the sinking of passenger-cargo ship ''Kohoko Maru'' 8 October, and returned to Fremantle 22 October. Her seventh patrol, 23 November 1944 to 3 January 1945, resulted in no sinkings. Part of this cruise was conducted in coordination with and .

Eighth war patrol, February – March 1945

''Hoes final war patrol began 8 February 1945, when she again headed for the

. By this time the vigorous American submarine offensive had taken its toll and little Japanese shipping could be found. The submarine did detect a tanker with an escort 25 February and in a well-conducted submerged attack sank the escort, ''Shōnan''. Two days before, while patrolling off

Indochina Mainland Southeast Asia (historically known as Indochina and the Indochinese Peninsula) 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 th ...

, she and had been involved in one of the most unusual accidents of the war. While steaming at a depth of ''Hoe'' struck an object and broached, sustaining only light damage. Subsequent analysis proved that she had actually collided with ''Flounder'', one of the few submerged collisions on record. Ending her last patrol at

6 March, ''Hoe'' returned to the United States for overhaul and repairs.

Post-war service

She sailed again for the Western Pacific 5 July 1945 and was just entering

Apra Harbor Apra Harbor, also called Port Apra, is a deep-water port on the western side of the United States territory of Guam. It is considered one of the best natural ports in the Pacific Ocean. The harbor is bounded by Cabras Island and the Glass Breakwat ...

, when the war ended. A few days later she sailed for the East Coast via Pearl Harbor and the Panama Canal, arriving

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

29 September 1945. ''Hoe'' decommissioned 7 August 1946 at New London, Conn., and joined the Atlantic Reserve Fleet. In September 1956 she was taken out of reserve to act as a Naval Reserve Training Ship in a noncommissioned status in the

3rd Naval District United States Naval Districts is a system created by the United States Navy to organize military facilities, numbered sequentially by geographic region, for the operational and administrative control of naval bases and shore commands in the Unit ...

. She was subsequently sold 23 August 1960 to Laneett Inc.,

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. Hoe received seven

battle star A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star 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 service period. T ...

s for

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

service. Her first, third, fourth, sixth, and eighth patrols were designated successful.

References

Bibliography

External links

navsource.org: USS ''Hoe''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoe (SS-258) Gato-class submarines World War II submarines of the United States Ships built in Groton, Connecticut 1942 ships