USS ''R-12'' (SS-89) was an
''R''-class coastal and harbor defense
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 ...
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 ...
.
Construction
''R-12''′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
Fore River Shipbuilding Company
Fore may refer to:
*Fore people, a highland people of Papua New Guinea
* Fore (golf), a warning yelled by golfers
* Fore Abbey, a 6th century abbey in Ireland
* Fore River (Maine), a river
*''Fore!'', the 4th album by Huey Lewis and the News
* Fore ...
of
Quincy, Massachusetts
Quincy ( ) is a city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the largest city in the county. Quincy is part of the Greater Boston area as one of Boston's immediate southern suburbs. Its population in ...
, on 28 March 1918. She was
launched on 15 August 1919, sponsored by Miss Helen Mack, and
commissioned at
Boston
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 ...
, Massachusetts, on 23 September 1919.
History
''R-12'' remained at
Boston
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 ...
, Massachusetts until she headed down the coast on 11 March to
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 outlet of the Thames River (Connecticut), Thames River in New London County, Connecticut, which empties into Long Island Sound. The cit ...
, whence she operated until the end of May. She then continued south to
Panama
Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...
; transited 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 ...
at the end of June; arrived at
San Pedro, Los Angeles
San Pedro ( ; ) is a neighborhood located within the South Bay (Los Angeles County), South Bay and Los Angeles Harbor Region, Harbor region of the city of Los Angeles, California, United States. Formerly a separate city, it consolidated with Los ...
, in July; and with the
hull classification symbol
The United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, and United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) use a hull classification symbol (sometimes called hull code or hull number) to identify their ships by type and by ind ...
"SS-89", departed the California coast for
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 ...
at the end of August. Arriving on 6 September 1920, she remained in Hawaiian waters, with occasional exercises on the West Coast and off
Johnston Island
Johnston Atoll is an unincorporated territory of the United States, under the jurisdiction of the United States Air Force (USAF). The island is closed to public entry, and limited access for management needs is only granted by a letter of autho ...
until 1930. On 10 May 1921 R-14 ran out of usable fuel and lost radio communications while searching for the ocean going tug, , which was lost as sea en route from Mare Island to Pearl Harbor. The crew stitched together blankets, hammocks and battery deck covers, and then spent 5 days under sail to travel 120 miles back to Hawaii. The CO received a letter of commendation for the crew's innovative actions from his Submarine Division Commander, CDR Chester Nimitz. On 12 December 1930, ''R-12'' got underway for the East Coast and returned to New London, Connecticut, on 9 February 1931. She conducted exercises with Destroyer Squadrons of the Scouting Force into the spring, then following overhaul trained personnel assigned to the Submarine School. On 27 September 1932, she departed New London for
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
, Pennsylvania, where, after decommissioning on 7 December, she joined other ''R''-boats berthed there in the Reserve Fleet.
Some seven and a half years later, on 1 July 1940, ''R-12'' recommissioned in ordinary and shifted to New London to complete activation. Recommissioned in full on 16 October, she sailed for Panama on 10 December, arrived on 23 December, and into October 1941, patrolled the approaches to the Panama Canal. On 31 October, she returned to New London and for the next three months operated off the
New England
New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
coast. In February 1942, she commenced patrols to the south and for the next year operated primarily from
Guantanamo Bay and
Key West
Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida, at the southern end of the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it con ...
, Florida. In March and April 1943, she was back at New London, then in May she returned to Key West, Florida, where she trained
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 ...
rs for the remainder of her career.
Accident and loss
Shortly after noon on 12 June 1943, ''R-12'', while underway to conduct a
torpedo
A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, such ...
practice approach, sounded her last diving alarm. As she completed preparations to dive, the forward battery compartment began to flood.
The collision alarm was sounded and a report was made that the forward battery compartment was flooding. Orders were given to blow main ballast, but the sea was faster. In about 15 seconds, ''R-12'' was lost. The commanding officer Lieutenant Commander
Edward E. Shelby, one other officer, and three enlisted men were swept from the bridge as the boat sank and were rescued from the sea about six hours later by the submarine chaser USS ''SC-449''. The subsequent 14-day search involved as many as 14 ships.
Forty-two people died.
[ ''R-12'' 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 ...
on 6 July.
Discovery
Sometime before 25 May 2011, an exploration team led by Tim Taylor aboard the expedition vessel RV ''Tiburon'' located and documented the wreck of ''R-12''. The reason for her loss remains unknown. In making the discovery, the team deployed a state-of-the-art autonomous underwater robot which collected first ever imagery of the remains of ''R-12''. They are collaborating and sharing their findings with the US Navy. RV ''Tiburon'' intends to launch a future expedition to further investigate the possible causes of the sinking, and collect detailed archeological baseline data.
Updated information from the Department of the Navy shows the following:
On 12 June 1943, the ''R-12'' headed out from Key West to practice launching torpedoes. But as the boat prepared to dive, the forward battery compartment began to flood, and the sub sank in 15 seconds, according to a Navy Court of Inquiry.
Memorials
* There is a granite marker in honor of ''R-12'' at the National Submarine Memorial in Groton, Connecticut
Groton ( ) is a town in New London County, Connecticut, United States, located on the Thames River (Connecticut), Thames River. It is the home of General Dynamics Electric Boat, which is the major contractor for submarine work for the United St ...
.
* There is a small monument in honor of ''R-12'' and her crew at the Rhode Island Veterans Cemetery in Exeter, Rhode Island
Exeter is a town in Washington County, Rhode Island, United States. Exeter extends east from the Connecticut border to the town of North Kingstown. It is bordered to the north by West Greenwich and East Greenwich, and to the south by Hopkint ...
.
* There is a granite marker in honor of "R-12" and her crew at the Pacific Fleet Submarine Memorial Museum in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
Awards
*American Defense Service Medal
The American Defense Service Medal was a United States service medals of the World Wars, military award of the United States Armed Forces, established by , by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, on June 28, 1941.
The medal was intended to recogniz ...
with "FLEET" clasp
*American Campaign Medal
The American Campaign Medal was a military award of the United States Armed Forces which was first created on November 6, 1942, by issued by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The medal was intended to recognize those military members who had per ...
*World War II Victory Medal
The World War II Victory Medal was a service medal of the United States military which was established by an Act of Congress on 6 July 1945 (Public Law 135, 79th Congress) and promulgated by Section V, War Department Bulletin 12, 1945.
Histo ...
References
External links
On Eternal Patrol: USS ''R-12''
r12sub.com R-12 (SS-89) Submarine: Official website of the exploration of the sunken US WWII submarine USS R-12
Ocean explorer discovers 5 sunken WWII subs, giving closure to hundreds of families
Anna Schecter and Rich Schapiro. NBC News.
*''Loss of R-12'', CDR John Alden USN Ret., The Submarine Review, July 2008, Pages 107–119.
{{DEFAULTSORT:R-12 (SS-89)
United States R-class submarines
World War II submarines of the United States
World War II shipwrecks in the Caribbean Sea
United States submarine accidents
Lost submarines of the United States
Ships built in Quincy, Massachusetts
1919 ships
Maritime incidents in June 1943