Psst…Hey shipmate, what do we call this boat again?
BY
DAVID L. JOHNSTON
© 2008
Photo from NAVSOURCE
This is a photo of the USS G-2 (Submarine #27), taken sometime in 1915. It
highlights the Navy's rather schizophrenic approach to submarine identification
at the time. At the bow is her name (G-2), in the middle of the conning tower
fairwater is her hull number (27), and just forward of that is another vertically
spaced number (31). Two digit numbers that don't correspond to the boat's name
or hull number have turned up frequently in photos of this era. Some theories
have been thrown around, with the most likely being that they were squadron or
flotilla identifiers. Just to confuse the average person even more, G-2 was
originally named Tuna! Her name was changed while still on the building ways when
the Navy changed its naming convention for submarines from sea creature names to
a letter/number system. In addition, G-2 never officially carried the designator
SS-27 as she was decommissioned before the hull number designation system was made
official on 17 July 1920. Prior to this date, all U.S. Navy vessels were simply
designated as Battleship #4, Destroyer #10, Submarine #27, etc. The two letter
codes were added to the hull number when the change in the system became official.
This photo also highlights the G-2's unusual bow arrangement. It was sometimes
hard to tell if she was coming or going, as her bow looked like a stern! She had
three 18" bow torpedo tubes. Two of them were blistered outward from the port and
starboard sides of the bow under the waterline, looking like headlights on an old
car. The third was in the superstructure above the waterline with the muzzle door
underneath the platform structure, which served as an anchor point for a mast that
supported the forward end of her radio aerial.
Photo from NAVSOURCE
The fourth torpedo tube was at the stern and was mounted in the superstructure.
Two clamshell doors opened to port and starboard to expose the tube muzzle. (See Photo Below)
Photo from National Archives
G-2's bow was rebuilt during an overhaul in 1916-17 and the superstructure
mounted tube was apparently removed. The superstructure was extended all the way
to the bow and squared off. In addition, a sheltered, "chariot" bridge was installed
around the fairwater mounted steering station.
Photo from NAVSOURCE
G-2 was an unusual boat in many ways. She lacked bow planes, but had
three sets of midships mounted planes! This reflected builder Simon Lake's emphasis
on even keel diving. Her streamlined fairwater concealed two separate conning
towers, one for the captain and one for the navigator, in addition to a large
access trunk that let into the engine room.
Photo from NAVSOURCE
She was the last submarine built with gasoline engines (G-4 was actually
commissioned a year before her and G-3 had diesels) and these engines were
unfortunately connected together in tandem, two to a shaft. The forward engine
was connected to the aft engine at the crankshaft via a clutch. The inability
to precisely match the speed of the two engines led to excessive vibrations that
frequently broke engine foundations and crankshafts. The Navy did not learn its
lesson here as they repeated this arrangement on the later T-class boats with the same results.
Not well liked by her crews or the Navy, G-2 still managed to perform two short
defensive war patrols off Block Island in 1918. She also performed experimental
work with new sonar devices and acted as a school boat at the Submarine School.
She clung to life until 1919 when she was decommissioned and designated as a
sonar and depth charge target. Moored in Two Tree Channel in Niantic Bay, CT.,
she suddenly sank on 30 July 1919, unfortunately carrying down three men sent
aboard for an inspection. Never raised, she rests there to this day, 134 fathoms deep.
Henderson Arnold G. EM2
Kervin Doyle EM2
Uhlic Sidney D. GM3
R.I.P.
POSTSCRIPT (13 November 2008)
I was rather bored at work today and was doing some web surfing. I pulled up this
site and re-read my article here. I got to the bottom and as I read the last two
sentences a thought started rolling around in my head.
"Hmmm…. Niantic Bay, Connecticut… 134 fathoms…"
Something just didn't sound right. 134 fathoms is 804 feet and that sounded awfully
deep for Long Island Sound. Being an old Quartermaster, I began rooting around on
the Net until I found a site with a chart of the Connecticut coast. I'll be damned
if I didn't discover that no where in Two Tree Island Channel is the depth greater
than 80 feet, with most of the channel running between 20 and 40 feet. Rather upset
with myself for not catching this earlier, I discovered from other sources that my
original source had mistaken 13 ˝ fathoms for 134 fathoms, a simple typo.
Further searching found a reference at the website usscasimirpulaski.com/submarinehistory.htm.
The table on this page indicates that the G-2 lies in 80 feet of water off Pleasure
Beach. She was partially raised and scrapped in 1962. Problem solved.
However, this information turns up several interesting points. Every Navy related
information source that I found indicates that as far as the Navy is concerned,
the G-2 still lies were she sank. No mention is made of a salvage, even a partial
one. That seems to indicate that Navy had nothing to do with it and that the salvage
was carried out by a private firm. Why was she salvaged and why wasn't the whole boat
raised? Another question would be, did the salvagers realize that the G-2 is a tomb?
Were the bodies of Petty Officers Henderson, Kervin, and Uhlic recovered and reburied
ashore or do they still rest inside the remains of the G-2?
All interesting questions. This boat and her story continues to fascinate me.
Dave
