USS Argonaut (SM-1)
History of the USS Argonaut Submarine
The USS Argonaut (SM-1) was originally planned as the USS V-4. She was ordered for the U.S. Navy in the 1920s. Her keel was laid down at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in New Hampshire on May 1, 1925. She was launched on November 10, 1927 and commissioned on April 2, 1928 under the command of Lieutenant Commander W.M. Quigley.
The USS V-4 started her career with Submarine Division 12 out of Newport, Rhode Island. She conducted trials in early 1929 before being reassigned to Submarine Division 20 out of San Diego, California on February 26. The submarine was renamed the USS Argonaut on February 19, 1931. She headed to Pearl Harbor in June 1932 as part of Submarine Division 7, where she served in patrol duty, minelaying operations, and exercises for several years.
The USS Argonaut became the flagship of Captain Freeland A. Daubin, Commander Submarine Squadron 4 in 1939. She then returned to the West Coast in April 1941 for fleet exercises. The submarine was patrolling near Midway when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 and the United States entered World War II. She encountered two Japanese destroyers bombarding Midway Island but did not attack, making the same decision when she made contact with three or four destroyers the following week. The submarine entered Mare Island Naval Shipyard in California for overhaul in January 1942, refitting her with a Torpedo Data Computer and other gear to shift from minelaying operations to attack mode.
It was August when the USS Argonaut returned to the South Pacific, and she transported Marines for the raid on Makin Island. The submarine arrived back at Pearl Harbor on August 26 and was reclassified as a transport submarine, APS-1, on September 22. Though she was never officially designated as SS-166, the hull number was set aside for her.
Brisbane became the USS Argonaut’s new base of operations later that year, and she began her patrol of the area between New Britain and Bougainville Island in December. The submarine sank the Japanese gunboat Ebon Maru on January 2, 1943. Eight days later, she encountered an enemy convoy of five freighters and three destroyer escorts. She was sunk by a depth charge, killing 105 men, the worst loss of life for a submarine during wartime. Her name was removed from the Naval Vessel Register on February 23, 1946. The submarine earned two battle stars for her service in World War II.
The use of asbestos was common in shipbuilding components for much of the 20th Century because of its resistance to heat, fire, water and corrosion. Because of their asbestos exposure onboard ship and in the shipyards, seaman, shipyard workers and longshoreman are at risk for developing asbestos-related diseases like mesothelioma.
Sources include:
Asbestos and Ship-Building: Fatal Consequences, by John Hedley-Whyte and Debra R Milamed
