USS ''Clamagore'' (SS-343) was a submarine, which operated as a museum ship at the Patriot's Point Naval & Maritime Museum outside Charleston, South Carolina from 1979 to 2022. Built in 1945 for 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 ...

, she was still in training when

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 ...

ended. She was named for the clamagore. 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 ...

, she was the last surviving example of a

GUPPY The guppy (), also known as millionfish and rainbow fish, is one of the world's most widely distributed tropical fish and one of the most popular freshwater aquarium fish species. It is a member of the family Poeciliidae and, like almost all ...

III type submarine. On 15 October 2022,the USS CLAMAGORE,stripped of sail and superstructure was removed from Patriots Point and towed to Norfolk VA to begin final recycling.

Construction

''Clamagore'' was built by Electric Boat Co. in

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 ...

near the end of World War II. She was launched on 25 February 1945 and sponsored by Miss Mary Jane Jacobs, daughter of Vice Admiral Randall Jacobs and commissioned on 28 June 1945, with Commander S.C. Loomis, Jr., taking command.

Operational history

''Clamagore'' was first assigned to Key West, Florida, and reported there on 5 September 1945. She operated off Key West with various fleet units and with the

Fleet Sonar School The Fleet Sonar School was a United States Navy facility located at Naval Station Key West, Florida for the training of Service personnel in Sonar techniques and equipment, and Anti-submarine warfare. The facility opened in 1940, after personnel ...

, voyaging on occasion to

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 the

Virgin Islands The Virgin Islands ( es, Islas Vírgenes) are an archipelago in the Caribbean Sea. They are geologically and biogeographically the easternmost part of the Greater Antilles, the northern islands belonging to the Puerto Rico Trench and St. Cro ...

until 5 December 1947, when she entered

Philadelphia Naval Shipyard The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard was an important naval shipyard of the United States for almost two centuries. Philadelphia's original navy yard, begun in 1776 on Front Street and Federal Street in what is now the Pennsport section of the ci ...

for GUPPY II modernization and installation of snorkel. ''Clamagore'' returned to Key West 6 August 1948 and assumed local and Caribbean operations for the next eight years, except for a tour of duty in the Mediterranean from 3 February to 16 April 1953. ''Clamagore'' called at

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 ...

and

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and northeast of New Yor ...

early in 1957, returning to Key West 13 March. Between 23 September and 7 December she took part 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 ...

exercises in the North Atlantic, calling at

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

, England, and

Naval Station Argentia Naval Station Argentia is a former base of the United States Navy that operated from 1941 to 1994. It was established in the community of Argentia in what was then the Dominion of Newfoundland, which later became the tenth Canadian province, Ne ...

, Newfoundland. On 29 June 1959, she arrived at Charleston, her new home port, and after a period of coastwise operations, sailed 5 April 1960 to join the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean for a tour of duty which continued until July, when the submarine returned to Charleston. For the remainder of 1960 ''Clamagore'' operated off the east coast. In 1962, ''Clamagore'' became one of only nine boats to undergo the GUPPY III conversion. She had a hull extension added forward of the control room, a plastic sail and the BQG-4 PUFFS passive ranging sonar, which included the three sharkfin sensors on her deck. ''Clamagore'' finished her GUPPY III conversion in February 1963, and was transferred to

Submarine Squadron 2 Submarine Squadron Two (SUBRON 2) was a United States Navy submarine squadron based at Groton, Connecticut. History Submarine Squadron 2 started World War II at Mariveles Naval Section Base in the Philippines as part of the United States Asiatic F ...

(SUBRON2) in Groton, Connecticut.

Post operational history

''Clamagore'' was decommissioned on 12 June 1975 and stricken on 27 June 1975 after having served in the Navy for thirty years. She was donated as a museum ship on 6 August 1979. ''Clamagore'' arrived at Patriot's Point Naval & Maritime Museum, Charleston, South Carolina in May 1981, where she was moored as a museum ship along with aircraft carrier and destroyer . ''Clamagore'' was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

and designated a

on 29 June 1989. and
According to the South Carolina Department of Archives and History, ''Clamagore'' "is now the only surviving GUPPY type III submarine in the United States. She represents the continued adaptation and use of war-built diesel submarines by the Navy for the first two decades after the war." The GUPPY conversion submarines constituted the bulk of the nation's submarine force through the mid-1960s. Due to severe degradation of the hull the Patriot Point museum has on several occasions looked for an alternate means to preserve the vessel. On 10 January 2017 the Palm Beach County Commissioners voted unanimously to approve funds for the vessel to be sunk as an artificial reef. On 16 April 2019 a group of retired submariners sued the State of South Carolina to save the ''Clamagore''. In early 2020, the museum formed a plan to sink ''Clamagore'' at the Vermilion Reef site before the 2021 hurricane season. As of 2022 the museum has announced plans to scrap the submarine as the cost of preservation is considered unsupportable. During the summer of 2022, the museum began the process of scrapping the Clamagore despite calls to save the historical submarine. File:USSClamagore112403.jpg, USS ''Clamagore'', 24 November 2003 (the three distinctive shark-fin domes are the PUFFS sonar). File:21-24-123-clamagore.jpg, Interior of USS ''Clamagore''

Awards

* Meritorious Unit Commendation *

Navy Expeditionary Medal The Navy Expeditionary Medal is a military award of the United States Navy which was established in August 1936. Award criteria The General Orders of the Department of the Navy which established the medal states, "The medal will be awarded, to ...

American Campaign Medal The American Campaign Medal is 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 perfo ...

World War II Victory Medal The World War II Victory Medal is 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. The Wo ...

Navy Occupation Medal The Navy Occupation Service Medal is a military award of the United States Navy which was "Awarded to commemorate the services of Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard personnel in the occupation of certain territories of the enemies of the U.S. durin ...

with "EUROPE" clasp *

National Defense Service Medal The National Defense Service Medal (NDSM) is a service award of the United States Armed Forces established by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953. It is awarded to every member of the US Armed Forces who has served during any one of four ...

with star

References

External links