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NavSource Online: Submarine Photo Archive
Patch contributed by Mike Smolinski

Thresher (SS-200)

Radio Call Sign: November - Alpha - Mike - Foxtrot
Tambor Class Submarine: Laid down, 27 April 1939, at the Electric Boat Co., Groton, CT.; Launched, 27 March 1940; Commissioned, USS Thresher (SS-200), 27 August 1940; Decommissioned, 13 December 1945, at Portsmouth, NH; Laid up in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet; Recommissioned, 6 February 1946; Decommissioned, 12 July 1946; Struck from the Naval Register, 23 December 1947; Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 18 March 1948, to Max Siegel of Everett, MA. Thresher received 15 battle stars and a Navy Unit Commendation for World War II service.

Specifications: Displacement, Surfaced: 1,475 t., Submerged: 2,370 t.; Length 307' 2" ; Beam 27' 3"; Draft 13' 3"; Speed, Surfaced 20 kts, Submerged 8 kts; Max. Depth Limit 250'; Complement 5 Officers 54 Enlisted; Armament, ten 21" torpedo tubes, six forward, four aft, 24 torpedoes, one 3"/50 deck gun, two .50 caliber machine guns, two .30 caliber machine guns; Propulsion, diesel-electric, four General Motors diesel engines, 5,400 hp, Fuel Capacity 93.993 gal., four General Electric motors, 2,740 hp, Battery Cells, 252, two propellers.
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Thresher 21k Commemorative post mark honoring the launching of the Thresher (SS-200), 27 March 1940.
Courtesy of Jack Treutle.
Thresher 386k Thresher (SS-200) getting ready for launching at the Electric Boat Co., Groton, CT., 27 March 1940. USN photo courtesy of ussubvetsofworldwarii.org.
Thresher 74k Thresher (SS-200) slides down the ways at the Electric Boat Co., Groton, CT., 27 March 1940.
 US Navy photo courtesy of Bruce A. Broseker @ broseker.net.
Thresher 164k Thresher (SS-200), surfaced and underway, probably off the New England coast just after her launching, late March 1940.
Thresher was typical of the big submarines prior to WW II, with her streamlined bridge fairwater & periscope shears & her 3 in/50 gun abaft the fairwater. The substantial masts fore & aft supported radio antenna cables.		 Partial text courtesy of U.S. Submarines Through 1945, An Illustrated Design History by Norman Friedman. Naval Institute Press.
US Navy photo # USN 456119 courtesy of Scott Koen & ussnewyork.com.
Thresher 220k Thresher (SS-200), surfaced and underway, probably off the New England coast just after her launching, late March 1940. She has no commissioning flag on her bow. She would be commissioned on 21 August 1940. US Navy photo courtesy of Scott Koen & ussnewyork.com.
Thresher 20k Thresher (SS-200) portside view, probably off the New England coast just after her launching, late March 1940.
 US Navy photo courtesy of Bruce A. Broseker @ broseker.net.
Thresher 25k Commemorative post mark honoring the commissioning of the Thresher (SS-200), 21 August 1940.
Courtesy of Jack Treutle.
Thresher 23k Commemorative post mark honoring the commissioning of the Thresher (SS-200), 27 August 1940 with Lt. Comdr. William L. Anderson in command.
Courtesy of Jack Treutle.
Thresher 136k Thresher (SS-200) in original configuration. Handwritten caption on the back reads: "This boat has made 11 successful combat patrols which means quite a number of Jap ships to her credit, and she is still giving them a run for their money. Picture was taken under the bridge as she was coming up the river to the base - Fort Trumbull the Maritime Officers School can be seen just under the corner of the span. Conn College for Women up on the hillside." "This Picture has been Officially released by the Navy Department." Text written sometime after 18 March 1945 after her 11th patrol. USN photo courtesy of Bill Gonyo.
Navy Day46k Commemorative post mark on the occasion of Navy Day, 27 October 1940, commemorating the participation of:
Sailfish (SS-192),
Seadragon (SS-194),
Sealion (SS-195),
Searaven (SS-196),
Seawolf (SS-197),
Tambor (SS-198),
Tautog (SS-199),
Thresher (SS-200), &
Triton (SS-201).
Note: YN1 Loyal Day was a plank-owner of Sealion and aboard when she was bombed on 10 Dec. 1941.
Courtesy of Ric Hedman.
Thresher 23k Commemorative post mark & photo honoring Thresher (SS-200), 8 January 1941.
Courtesy of Jack Treutle.
Thresher 210k On 10 April the Thresher (SS-200) sighted a second target later that day, and her hunting was better this time around. One torpedo broke the back of the 3,000-ton freighter Sado Maru off Yokohama harbor, sending her beneath the waves in three minutes. Enemy antisubmarine craft picked up Thresher within 30 minutes of the sinking, and the submarine began a game of hide-and seek. During one depth-charge attack, the boat lost depth control and began plunging towards unexplored depths before her bow was trimmed, and she regained control. Text courtesy of DANFS.
Photo courtesy of Tommy Trammp.
Photo added 10/08/11.
Thresher 127k Broadside view of the Thresher (SS-200) off Mare Island on 6 Oct 43. She was in overhaul at the shipyard from 8 Aug until 8 Oct 1943. USN photo # 6969-43 courtesy of Scott Koen & ussnewyork.com.
Thresher 120k Broadside view of the Thresher (SS-200) off Mare Island on 6 Oct 43. She was in overhaul at the shipyard from 8 Aug until 8 Oct 1943. USN photo # 6970-43, courtesy of Darryl Baker.
Thresher 117k Stern view of the Thresher (SS-200) in the Mare Island channel on 6 Oct 43. LST-31 is in the background to the left of Thresher.
 USN photo # 6968-43, courtesy of Darryl Baker.
Thresher 206k Bow on view of the Thresher (SS-200) in the Mare Island channel on 6 Oct 43.
USN photo # 6972-43, courtesy of Darryl Baker.
Thresher 73k Signal flags flying from Thresher's (SS-200) conning tower showing her war record at this moment, anytime from Jan. 1944 on. Note the boat's paint job and cut-down, war-patrol configuration of the conning tower.
 US Navy photo courtesy of Bruce A. Broseker @ broseker.net. Photo i.d. courtesy of Dan Taylor.
Thresher 70k Thresher's (SS-200) crew poses on deck with the ship's score card, circa 1945.
 US Navy photo courtesy of Bruce A. Broseker @ broseker.net.
Thresher 39k Thresher (SS-200) at Eniwetok, view looking port side aft, August - September 1945.
 US Navy photo courtesy of Bruce A. Broseker @ broseker.net.
View the Thresher (SS-200)
DANFS history entry located on the Haze Gray & Underway Web Site.
Crew Contact And Reunion Information
U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation
Fleet Reserve Association
Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
USS Thresher SS200
Through the Looking Glass, A Historic Look at Submarines
Ep-21 (1) - Victory At Sea ~ Full Fathom Five - HQ
Back To The Main Photo Index Back To the Submarine Index
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