A sad and ignoble end.

[Ducimus]

( SS-199 ) USS Tautog.

Commissioned: 3 July 1940
Decommissioned: 8 December 1945


This boat was at pearl harbor during the Dec 7th attack, Not only was she there, she manned her guns and fought back, sharing credit in the first kill of the war.

She completed 13 war patrols, sinking 26 Japanese ships for a total of 72,606 tons. Becoming the top boat of the war in terms of number of ships sunk. (not tonnage, but in number)

She was known as "The Terrible T", and this is how she died.

[TorpX]

Yes, it is sad.

But, better that, than going down with all hands.

[Ducimus]

Originally Posted by TorpX

Yes, it is sad.

But, better that, than going down with all hands.

True. But here was a boat that finished her last patrol in Febuary 1945. She finished most of the war, and was there as a participant on day 1 of WW2 for the US.

I never understood why the Navy would use old boats as target ships. Now i think i do. Sinking the Tautog as a target would have been a better ending for that boat then the scrappers torch. Being sunk as a target would have given the boat something akin to "a soliders death" as it were.

[WernherVonTrapp]

Originally Posted by Ducimus

I never understood why the Navy would use old boats as target ships. Now i think i do. Sinking the Tautog as a target would have been a better ending for that boat then the scrappers torch. Being sunk as a target would have given the boat something akin to "a soliders death" as it were.

That's actually a good way of looking at it. Almost as if she's being laid to rest at sea, like so many other heroes of that war.

[Ducimus]

Found this page yesterday but it wouldn't load. But its loading today.
http://www.pigboats.com/subs/199.html

Some great pictures there.

[ReallyDedPoet]

Originally Posted by Ducimus

Found this page yesterday but it wouldn't load. But its loading today.
http://www.pigboats.com/subs/199.html

Some great pictures there.

Great site

[TorpX]

Originally Posted by Ducimus

True. But here was a boat that finished her last patrol in Febuary 1945. She finished most of the war, and was there as a participant on day 1 of WW2 for the US.

I never understood why the Navy would use old boats as target ships. Now i think i do. Sinking the Tautog as a target would have been a better ending for that boat then the scrappers torch. Being sunk as a target would have given the boat something akin to "a soliders death" as it were.

I see your point about giving the boat a honorable send off. I just read she had been slated to be a target at one of the post war A-bomb tests, but was saved to become a training vessel at Great Lakes (stationary, I think).

I would have thought, she would have been one of those saved for posterity, given her unique history.

As a footnote; the U-505, came close to being sunk/used for target practice after the war, eventhough it was (originally) in good condition and there were people who wanted to save it. It seems it was a crapshoot as to whether a ship was saved or not.

[Ducimus]

What's ironic is we take better care of u505, then we do our own boats from the same period. U505 is tucked away in a specially built underground, climate controlled vault. You won't find any of our boats getting treatment like that.

[TorpX]

Originally Posted by Ducimus

What's ironic is we take better care of u505, then we do our own boats from the same period. U505 is tucked away in a specially built underground, climate controlled vault. You won't find any of our boats getting treatment like that.

Yes it is now. After it being outside and exposed for years, I think they realized they had to do something. It is the MSI's main exhibit and they were able to raise the money to move it. I have no idea what the situation is with the others. Clearly, moving any of these boats overland is a daunting task.

[Armistead]

Originally Posted by Ducimus

True. But here was a boat that finished her last patrol in Febuary 1945. She finished most of the war, and was there as a participant on day 1 of WW2 for the US.

I never understood why the Navy would use old boats as target ships. Now i think i do. Sinking the Tautog as a target would have been a better ending for that boat then the scrappers torch. Being sunk as a target would have given the boat something akin to "a soliders death" as it were.

The Enterprise suffered the scrap fate, she certainly deserved to be sunk as a reef. Hard to believe they couldn't get the funds to make a memorial or museum out of her in New York, but they tried.. Always thought it was a shame that such a famous warship that fought more battles than any US warship was not made a floating museum

[Marauder7]

It really disgusts me that our government would take what are truly war memorials and monuments to the bravery of our greatest generation and turn them into "razor blades".

If we dishonor our past then we don't deserve a future.

[kylesplanet]

I'm glad to see that was documented but it's sad to see it cut up. A very significant part of history was Tautog.

[TorpX]

Did any of her crew or Capt's ever document her patrols?

[Ducimus]

Originally Posted by TorpX

Did any of her crew or Capt's ever document her patrols?

http://issuu.com/hnsa/docs/ss-199_tautog_part1?mode=a_p
http://issuu.com/hnsa/docs/ss-199_tautog_part2?mode=a_p
http://issuu.com/hnsa/docs/ss-199_tautog_part3?mode=a_p

edit:
http://www.hnsa.org/doc/subreports.htm

[commandosolo2009]

that made me . What a fine boat she was. R.I.P. Tautog.