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Namesake
Simon Lake competed with John Holland to build the first submarines for the U.S. Navy. Born in Pleasantville, New Jersey on September 4, 1866, Lake joined his father's foundry business after attending public schools in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Lake had a strong interest in undersea travel. He built his first submarine, Argonaut, in 1894 in response to an 1893 request from the Navy for a submarine torpedo boat. Neither Argonaut nor Lake's following submarine, the Protector, built in 1901, were accepted by the Navy. Protector was the first submarine to have diving planes mounted forward of the conning tower and a flat keel. Four diving planes allowed Protector to maintain depth without changing ballast levels. Protector also had a lookout chamber for divers to leave the submarine. Lake, lacking Holland's financial backers, was unable to continue building submarines in the United States. He sold the Protector to the Russian Navy in 1904 and spent the next seven years in Europe designing submarines for the Austrian, German, and Russian navies. When he returned to the United States in 1912, he founded the Lake Torpedo Boat Company, which built 24 submarines for the U.S. Navy during and after World War I. Lake's first submarine for the U.S. Navy, G-1 set a submergence record of 256 feet in November 1912. Financial difficulties forced the Lake Torpedo Boat Company to close in the mid-1920s. Following company closure, Lake continued designing maritime salvage systems, and advised the U.S. Navy on submarine technology and maritime salvage during World War II. By his death on June 23, 1945, Lake had witnessed the submarine's arrival as a front-line weapon in the U.S. Navy.
Text and photo from Submarine Warfare Division |
Bill Gonyo |
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USS Simon Lake (AS-33) underway, date and location unknown.
US Navy photos. |
Robert Hurst |
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USS Simon Lake (AS-33) with Fleet Ballistic Missile Submarine
USS Stonewall Jackson (SSBN-634) alongside, circa 1965, probably at Charleston S.C.
US Navy photo. |
Robert Hurst |
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USS Simon Lake (AS-33) underway in 1967, location unknown.
US Navy photo. |
Robert Hurst |
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USS Simon Lake (AS-33) arriving at Holy Loch, Scotland to relieve USS Hunley (AS-31) in 1966.
US Navy photo from "All Hands" magazine, October 1966. |
Joe Radigan MACM USN Ret. |
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USS Simon Lake (AS-33) moored, at Rota, Spain, December 1975 with USS Kamehameha (SSBN-642) alongside. |
©Richard Leonhardt |
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USS Simon Lake (AS-33), with USS Kamehameha (SSBN-642) alongside, and USS Spartanburg County (LST-1192) at Rota, Spain, December 1975 |
©Richard Leonhardt |
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USS Simon Lake (AS-33) moored in the Holy Loch, Scotland with USS Los Alamos (AFDB-7). Note, Los Alamos has a ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) in her dock, circa 1980s.
US Navy photo # NH 98381-KN from the collections of the US Naval Historical Center. |
US Naval Historical Center |
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USS Simon Lake (AS-33) moored at Holy Loch, Scotland, circa 1966-70 with supporting yard craft:
Large Auxiliary Floating Dry Dock Los Alamos (AFDB-7)
Large Covered Lighter (NSP) YFNB-31
Large Covered Lighter (NSP) YFNB-42
Floating Crane (NSP) YD-245
and not shown:
District Harbor Tug Large Piqua (YTB-793)
District Harbor Tug Large Saugus (YTB-780)
District Harbor Tug Large Natick (YTB-760)
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Carl Musseean |
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Looking into the Holy Loch from Large Auxiliary Floating Dry Dock Los Alamos (AFDB-7)
USS Simon Lake (AS-33)
Large Covered Lighter (NSP) YFNB-31
Large Covered Lighter (NSP) YFNB-42
Floating Crane (NSP) YD-245
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Carl Musselman |
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Looking into the Holy Loch from Large Auxiliary Floating Dry Dock Los Alamos (AFDB-7)
USS Simon Lake (AS-33) with resupply ship USNS Marshfield (T-AK-282) alongside
Large Covered Lighter (NSP) YFNB-31
Large Covered Lighter (NSP) YFNB-42
Floating Crane (NSP) YD-245
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Carl Musselman |
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USS Simon Lake (AS-33) moored at the Naval Submarine Base, Kings Bay, GA. while tending four submarines, circa 1979-80. |
Wendell McLaughlin |
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USS Simon Lake (AS-33)'s cranes transferring Trident C-4 missiles to USS Francis Scott Key (SSBN-657) at Naval Submarine Base, Kings Bay, GA., 2 October 1981.
DVIC photo # DN-SC-82-00002 from the collections of the Defense Visual Information Center. |
Bill Gonyo |
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USS Simon Lake (AS-33) moored at Naval Submarine Base, Kings Bay, GA., circa 1981.
Photo from "All Hands" magazine, December 1981 |
Joe Radigan MACM USN Ret. |
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USS Simon Lake (AS-33) secured to her mooring buoys in Holy Loch, Scotland, April 1988 |
Photo by Carl Musselman MM1/SS 1982-1995 |
09363340 |
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USS Simon Lake (AS-33) at anchor in the harbor at Palma, Mallorca, circa 1990s. |
Photo by Jose Antonio Rodriguez Carreņo |
09363341 |
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USS Simon Lake (AS-33) underway, date and location unknown. |
Nicholas Tiberio |
09363342 |
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USS Simon Lake (AS-33) underway off Norfolk, VA., date unknown.
©Nobe Smith |
Nicholas Tiberio |
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Ex-USS Simon Lake (AS-33), decommissioned, 31 July 1999, at Norfolk, VA. was towed to the Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance
Facility Philadelphia. She was under tow, departing Norfolk, 28 September 1999, arriving, 30 September 1999, at NISMF Philadelphia.
Photos by Mike Christian |
Ron Reeves |
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Ex-USS Simon Lake (AS-33) under tow, 3 December 2015, northbound in the Elizabeth River passing Craney Island in Hampton Roads VA.
Ex-Simon Lake was towed from the US Navy Inactive Ships Facility, Portsmouth, VA. to the James River Reserve Fleet anchorage at Lee Hall, VA. |
Photos by Brandon Varner |
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Ex-USS Simon Lake (AS-33) at Brownsville, TX. being scrapped. These photos were taken five weeks apart, dates unknown. |
Photos by Chris Holley |
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USS Simon Lake (AS-33) plaque |
Tommy Trampp |
