World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseIn Oct 1944, submarine USS Darter was scuttled in the Philippine Islands after running aground. Darter's crew were taken off, brought back to the United States, and formed the crew for the newly completed submarine that would be commissioned in Jun 1945 as USS Menhaden. She conducted training in Lake Michigan, transited down the Mississippi River, and departed New Orleans, Louisiana, United States on 27 Jul 1945 for the Panama Canal Zone for further training. On 16 Sep 1945, she arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii to join Submarine Squadron 19, by which time the Pacific War had come to a close, thus USS Menhaden would see no action in WW2. She was decommissioned in 1946. After the war, she underwent GUPPY IIA snorkel submarine conversion in late 1952 and early 1953. Subsequently, she served on the west coast of the United States and patrolled Far East waters on multiple tours; based out of Yokosuka, Japan, she visited various ports in Japan, Republic of China (Taiwan), the Philippines, and Australia and patrolled waters off Korea and Vietnam. She was decommissioned for the final time in 1971. In 1976, she was towed from California to Keyport, Washington further north on the west coast of the United States. Painted yellow and without engines, she gained the nicknames "Yellow Submarine" and "The Hulk" while at Keyport. For the next few years, she served as a remotely-controlled submersible for the purpose of testing new under water weapons and for target training. She was sold for scrap in 1988; during the scrapping process, she during a high tide, delaying the scrapping process which would ultimately be completed.

Submarine Menhaden (SS-377) Interactive Map

Photographs

Menhaden Operational Timeline