Author Topic: Hello to everyone Fact finding for a GATO class submarine  (Read 42887 times)

Offline Materene

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Re: Hello to everyone Fact finding for a GATO class submarine
« Reply #15 on: March 03, 2011, 11:17:01 PM »
All and any help is appreciated thank you.  Strange we don't see more of those cruise type photos floating around, I know just about every ship was making one after the war, this one however appears to be taken in the war years.
The photography paper was extremely thick and now it is getting very brittle.  I'm glad I have digital copies.

Offline BrokenArrowtiger

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Re: Hello to everyone Fact finding for a GATO class submarine
« Reply #16 on: March 03, 2011, 11:44:23 PM »
So i looked on nav source and i do beleive thats the barb the same deminsions deffintly and the reason why ur dads name is not on the submarine registry..yes i spelt all that wrong...is becuse if he was on the barb she participated in special ops against japan mainland and maybe the navy didnt want people to know about this ...thats my only guses that photo if from the barb is from early in the war id say 1943 abouts
I am a fan of the batfish and the U-505 i have been interested in world war 2 since i was little my dad and his father and my dads fathers mother served in wars i am interested in the Submarine war of world war 2 and someday i want to be a marine archaeologist and or a world war 2 historian

Offline Materene

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Re: Hello to everyone Fact finding for a GATO class submarine
« Reply #17 on: March 03, 2011, 11:59:57 PM »
Interesting, I'm going for a look see now, thanks I'll get back with ya, prolly come morning, gotta work and I'm old.

Offline BrokenArrowtiger

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Re: Hello to everyone Fact finding for a GATO class submarine
« Reply #18 on: March 04, 2011, 12:40:24 AM »
what u got to remeber is that alot of the submariners transfered from boat to boat throughout the war most only spent a couple patrols ona boat then were transfered to another.
I am a fan of the batfish and the U-505 i have been interested in world war 2 since i was little my dad and his father and my dads fathers mother served in wars i am interested in the Submarine war of world war 2 and someday i want to be a marine archaeologist and or a world war 2 historian

Offline Materene

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Re: Hello to everyone Fact finding for a GATO class submarine
« Reply #19 on: March 04, 2011, 01:01:21 AM »
I agree with you I think there was a lot of boat to boat, and I looked at the Barb very closely and the one photo of her refitting at Mare in 45 they purposely circled that rectangular vert hole amidships in their official photo.  I spoke of this in one of the earlier post I made, I have not seen that on any of the GATOs except the one above.  That would explain that mystery, also I see in the same photo that they have installed a gun mount on the forward smoking deck.
That photo may be right there in Frisco Bay or near without the gun mounts.  If it does turn out to be the boat I guess I'll have to try and give the photo to the proper organization so the photo list can be added to.  I certainly hope the service records shed some light on the other photos taken on the Cobia.  I couldn't see the large dent on the starboard side hull Bow area on the black and whites of the Barb , they were taken too far away.

Got to go to bed, thanks for all the help. 

Offline BrokenArrowtiger

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Re: Hello to everyone Fact finding for a GATO class submarine
« Reply #20 on: March 04, 2011, 01:11:50 AM »
No Problem and good night i have to go study. I recently was able to identify and collect information on my moms dads navy ship the uss montrose and im hopeing they will accuretly give u information on ur dads ship.
I am a fan of the batfish and the U-505 i have been interested in world war 2 since i was little my dad and his father and my dads fathers mother served in wars i am interested in the Submarine war of world war 2 and someday i want to be a marine archaeologist and or a world war 2 historian

Offline Darrin

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Re: Hello to everyone Fact finding for a GATO class submarine
« Reply #21 on: March 04, 2011, 01:45:56 AM »
All, the boat in the picture is NOT the USS BARB SS 220.... SORRY folks :-[

http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/08220.htm

That is the USS BARB SS 220

Offline Path

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Re: Hello to everyone Fact finding for a GATO class submarine
« Reply #22 on: March 04, 2011, 11:03:08 AM »
That colorized photo at the beginning of the thread is not a GATO class.  It is a Balao class boat, EB design.  You can tell by the chariot style fairwater and the dimple extension in the fairwater (right side fwd on the fairwater) where the conning tower hatch is (Gatos did not have that feature).  The GATOs (which is what the other pictures are) has a higher bridge and by the end of the war most were cut down leaving vertical ribs showing, the so called 'covered wagon' effect.  Cobia was one of the boats that did not receive that mod, however.

That 'colorized' boat in my opinion, is shown in a post WWII configuration.  During 47-48, in an effort to streamline the boats in SubPac. on many the guns were removed and the fwd and after gun decks were trimmed back to remove the overhang. (some just fwd) in what was called a "Pearl Harbor" conversion.  This left a rather bare looking fleet boat, which is consistent with the colorized photo. 

Here is a link to a photo of MAPIRO on sea trials in Lake Michigan, a Manitowoc built "Balao" class boat, to compare to the first photo.
http://lh6.ggpht.com/_KZKtgQBJEn0/RuY520ag6JI/AAAAAAAAIf8/2jIDZvvIPlA/SUBMARINE%20USS%

Here is another link to a Gato class (USS Rasher running on Lake Michigan) to illustrate the difference.
http://www.wisconsinmaritime.org/typo3temp/pics/aebd302953.jpg

I'm not suggesting the colorized photo is of MAPIRO, it is just for comparison.

Offline Path

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Re: Hello to everyone Fact finding for a GATO class submarine
« Reply #23 on: March 04, 2011, 11:17:22 AM »
Since the pix of Mapiro didn't work, here is one of Hammerhead, another Manitowoc "EB" Balao, instead.
http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/0836506.jpg

Offline Materene

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Re: Hello to everyone Fact finding for a GATO class submarine
« Reply #24 on: March 04, 2011, 01:28:47 PM »
Thanks Path for the good information , I have to say I was leaning with another Boat Class myself after I could never find a match from the GATO.  I'll look more closely at this class you think is correct. 

Offline Karen D.

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Re: Hello to everyone Fact finding for a GATO class submarine
« Reply #25 on: March 04, 2011, 01:46:35 PM »
Well if it turns out its a Manitowoc boat, I can certainly help you out with research. We have extensive records on all 28 Manitowoc subs.

Offline Gil Bohannon

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Re: Hello to everyone Fact finding for a GATO class submarine
« Reply #26 on: March 04, 2011, 04:12:08 PM »
I was thinking post war as well - I have a very similar colorized photo of Torsk taken after the war.

Gil

Offline BrokenArrowtiger

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Re: Hello to everyone Fact finding for a GATO class submarine
« Reply #27 on: March 04, 2011, 08:57:46 PM »
what ever the ship maybe just know that ur father was amazing becuse of the job he did i was walking oin the batfish last year for the first time and just seeing how small the radar operator space was makes me think of how good todays submariners really got it and the fact that he won the presidential citation is amazing as well means he did a good job
I am a fan of the batfish and the U-505 i have been interested in world war 2 since i was little my dad and his father and my dads fathers mother served in wars i am interested in the Submarine war of world war 2 and someday i want to be a marine archaeologist and or a world war 2 historian

Offline Darrin

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Re: Hello to everyone Fact finding for a GATO class submarine
« Reply #28 on: March 05, 2011, 01:15:51 AM »
Gil,

That is the picture that I was thinking about was the one from the Torsk, it looks similar but the dents are not in the right spot on the Starboard side for it to be the Torsk..

Pat, thank you for stepping up and trying to help out in this search to figure out what boat this is and the time frame that he may have been onboard.

Darrin

Offline Gil Bohannon

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Re: Hello to everyone Fact finding for a GATO class submarine
« Reply #29 on: March 05, 2011, 01:29:20 AM »
Darrin,

Yes, very similar. You're right about the dents being in the wrong place - and Torsk didn't have them yet, in the time frame this was taken. Plus the anchor is on the wrong side! :)

Gil