USS Blackfish (SS-221)
History of the USS Blackfish Submarine
The USS Blackfish (SS-221) was ordered for the U.S. Navy before the United States entered World War II. Her keel was laid down by the Electric Boat Company in Connecticut on July 1, 1941. She was launched on April 18, 1942 and commissioned on July 22, 1942 under the command of Commander Raymond W. Johnson.
The USS Blackfish left New London on October 19, 1942 to participate in the troops’ landing at North Africa. While patrolling near Dakar on November 9, she fired her torpedoes at the sloop Commandant Bory but caused no damage. Her patrol ended on November 27 at Rosneath, Scotland. She patrolled the North Atlantic from December 21 until January 18, 1943 without making enemy contact.
On February 1, the USS Blackfish sailed for her next patrol in the Bay of Biscay. She sank the German patrol craft Halterbank on February 19, but she was damaged by the resulting depth charge attack. The submarine headed to Plymouth, England for repairs on February 22.
Repairs were completed by April 5, and USS Blackfish began her patrol of the Norwegian Sea. This uneventful patrol ended on May 14 at Rosneath. Her next uneventful patrol ended on July 4, and she headed to New London, Connecticut for overhaul. Once the work was done, she sailed for her next patrol north of New Guinea via Brisbane on October 19. The submarine sank the Japanese transport Yamato Maru No. 2 on November 23 and claimed another unconfirmed sinking the next day before her patrol ended on December 4 at Milne Bay.
Christmas Eve marked the beginning of the USS Blackfish’s next patrol of the Bismarck Archipelago. She claimed damage to an oiler on January 8, 1944, but this was never confirmed. Eight days later, she sank the enemy transport Kaika Maru and claimed the sinking of a tanker, but this second sinking was unconfirmed. The submarine claimed unconfirmed damage to a Japanese destroyer on February 3 before ending her patrol at Brisbane 10 days later.
The USS Blackfish began her eighth patrol on March 1 off the coast of New Guinea. She claimed unconfirmed damage to a light cruiser or destroyer on April 27 before ending her patrol on May 19 at Pearl Harbor. From there, she headed to San Francisco, California for an overhaul that lasted from May 27 until August 31.
When her overhaul was complete, the USS Blackfish headed for Saipan via Pearl Harbor. Her next rather uneventful war patrol near Formosa lasted from October 4 until November 17. On January 1, 1945, she left for her patrol of the South China Sea. The submarine damaged a sailing vessel on January 23. Seven days later, she sank one Japanese sampan and damaged another. She sank three more sampans on February 1 before ending her patrol 20 days later at Guam.
The USS Blackfish sailed for her uneventful patrol of the South China Sea from March 21 until May 10, ending at Pearl Harbor. After refitting there, she conducted another patrol of the East China Sea and the Yellow Sea from June 14 until August 14. She made no contact with the enemy, but she rescued six downed aviators on August 8.
After the war ended, the USS Blackfish headed back to Naval Submarine Base New London in Connecticut via New York and Camden. She was decommissioned on May 11, 1946, struck from the Naval Vessel Register on September 1, 1958, and sold for scrap on May 4, 1959. The submarine earned eight 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
