USS Cod facts for kids
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| History | |
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 United States |
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| Name | USS Cod |
| Namesake | Cod |
| Ordered | 9 September 1940 |
| Builder | Electric Boat Company, Groton, Connecticut |
| Laid down | 21 July 1942 |
| Launched | 21 March 1943 |
| Sponsored by | Mrs. G.M. Mahoney |
| Acquired | 21 June 1943 |
| Commissioned | 21 June 1943 |
| Decommissioned | 21 June 1954 |
| In service | 21 March 1943 |
| Out of service | 15 December 1971 |
| Stricken | 15 December 1971 |
| Fate | Decommissioned in 1971 and now a museum ship in Cleveland, Ohio |
| Status | Museum ship at Cleveland, Ohio since 1 May 1976 |
| Badge |  |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Gato-class diesel-electric submarine |
| Displacement |
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| Length | 312 ft 0 in (95.10 m) |
| Beam | 27 ft 3 in (8.31 m) |
| Draft | 17 ft (5.2 m) maximum |
| Propulsion |
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| Speed |
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| Range | 11,000 nautical miles (13,000 mi) surfaced at 10 kn (12 mph) |
| Endurance |
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| Test depth | 300 ft (90 m) |
| Complement | 6 officers, 54 enlisted |
| Armament |
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USS Cod (submarine)
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USS Cod moored at its permanent location in Cleveland, Ohio's North Coast Harbor.
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 Location in Cleveland
Location in Ohio
Location in the United States
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| Location | Cleveland, Ohio |
| Area | Less than one acre |
| Built | 1942 |
| Built by | Electric Boat Company, Groton, Connecticut |
| Architectural style | Submarine |
| NRHP reference No. | 86000088 |
| Added to NRHP | 14 January 1986 |
The USS Cod (SS-224) is a famous submarine from the United States Navy. It's a Gato-class submarine, a type of submarine known for its strength and speed during World War II. The Cod is special because it's the only U.S. Navy ship named after the cod fish, a popular fish found in the North Atlantic and North Pacific oceans.
The Cod was built by the Electric Boat Company in Groton, Connecticut. Its powerful diesel engines were made in Cleveland, Ohio. The submarine was launched on March 21, 1943, and officially joined the Navy on June 21, 1943. Its first commander was James C. Dempsey, a brave officer who was already famous for sinking a Japanese destroyer earlier in the war.
Today, the Cod is a National Historic Landmark and a museum ship. It's docked in Cleveland, Ohio, and you can visit it from May 1 to September 30 each year.
Contents
USS Cod in World War II
The USS Cod played a big role in World War II, completing seven successful war patrols. A war patrol is like a long mission where a submarine searches for enemy ships.
First Missions: 1943-1944
The Cod arrived in Brisbane, Australia, in October 1943 to get ready for its first mission. It sailed into the South China Sea but didn't find many targets. After this, it went to Fremantle, Australia, for repairs and supplies.
For its second mission, the Cod returned to the South China Sea. On February 16, 1944, it used its deck gun to sink a small Japanese boat called a sampan. A few days later, it fired torpedoes at a Japanese merchant ship, sinking it. It sank another ship on February 27 and attacked a third, but Japanese escort ships dropped depth charges, forcing the Cod to dive deep to escape.
More Action: 1944
After more repairs in Fremantle, the Cod went on its third mission to the Sulu Sea and South China Sea. On May 10, it attacked a large group of 32 enemy ships. It managed to sink the Japanese destroyer Karukaya and a cargo ship before enemy escorts forced it away with depth charges.
The fourth mission, starting in July 1944, took the Cod from Luzon to Java. During this patrol, it sank two more enemy ships: a net tender (a ship that handles nets) and a landing craft.
Lifeguard Duty: 1944-1945
The Cod's fifth mission began in September 1944 in the Philippines. It sank a cargo ship on October 5 and heavily damaged a tanker. After using all its torpedoes, it continued to follow a large group of enemy ships to report their location. In November, the Cod took on a special "lifeguard" role. This meant it waited near Luzon to rescue American pilots whose planes might be shot down during air attacks on Japanese bases. These air strikes were preparing the way for the Battle of Leyte, a major invasion.
After these missions, the Cod returned to Pearl Harbor and then went to a shipyard in the U.S. for a big overhaul. It returned to Pearl Harbor in March 1945.
Final War Patrols: 1945
On March 24, 1945, the Cod began its sixth war patrol in the East China Sea. Its main job was still lifeguard duty. On April 17, it used its deck gun to sink a tug and its tow, rescuing three survivors. On April 24, it attacked an enemy convoy and faced the most intense depth charge attack of its career. The next day, it sank a Japanese minesweeper ship.
On April 26, a fire broke out in the Cod's aft torpedo room. The crew quickly put out the fire and even managed to launch a torpedo that was already in its tube before the fire could make it explode. During this event, two crew members were washed overboard. One was rescued the next morning, but the other, S1c A.G. Johnson, sadly drowned. He was the only Cod crew member lost during the war.
After getting supplies in Guam, the Cod started its seventh and final war patrol in the Gulf of Siam in June 1945. On July 9 and 10, it performed a very special rescue. A Dutch submarine, the O 19, got stuck on a reef. The Cod rescued all of its crew members and then destroyed the Dutch submarine so it wouldn't fall into enemy hands. This was the only time in history that one submarine rescued the entire crew of another submarine from a different country!
After taking the Dutch sailors to Subic Bay, the Cod spent time attacking small Japanese boats like junks and sampans, which were used to supply Japanese forces. It would inspect each boat to make sure no friendly people were on board, then sink it. It sank 23 such boats. On August 1, an enemy plane attacked the Cod, forcing it to dive and leaving some of its crew members behind. Luckily, another U.S. submarine, the USS Blenny, rescued them two days later.
When the Cod returned to Fremantle on August 13, 1945, the crew of the O-19 was waiting to throw a party for their rescuers. During this celebration, everyone learned that Japan had surrendered, ending World War II. To remember this moment, a special symbol was added to the Cod's battle flag: the name O-19 under a martini glass.
The Cod sailed home and was officially taken out of service on June 22, 1946, and placed in reserve.
Post-War Service: 1946-1971
Training Vessel: 1951-1954
The Cod was brought back into service in 1951 to help with NATO training exercises. During the Cold War, it traveled to places like Newfoundland, Cuba, and South America.
Great Lakes Training: 1954-1971
In 1954, the Cod was taken out of service again. In 1959, it was moved through the St. Lawrence Seaway to Cleveland, Ohio. Here, it became a training vessel for Navy reservists, who are part-time sailors. The Cod was used for weekend drills and training. It was officially removed from the Navy's list of ships on December 15, 1971.
Awards and Recognition
The USS Cod is recognized for sinking more than 12 enemy ships and damaging many others during World War II. All seven of its war patrols were considered successful. For its brave service, the Cod received seven battle stars.
Medals Received
- American Campaign Medal
- Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with seven battle stars
- World War II Victory Medal
- National Defense Service Medal
- Philippine Liberation Medal
A Museum Ship and National Historic Landmark
A group of people in Cleveland worked hard to save the Cod and turn it into a memorial. In 1976, the U.S. Navy gave the submarine to this group. The Cod opened to the public as a floating museum in May 1976. In 1986, the U.S. Department of the Interior named the Cod a National Historic Landmark, which means it's a very important historical site. You can visit the Cod every day from May 1 to September 30.
Today, the Cod is one of the best-preserved submarines you can visit. It's unique because no new stairways or doors were cut into its hull for visitors. This means you use the same ladders and hatches that the original crew used, giving you a real feel for what it was like to be on a submarine. It also has special features like a 5-inch deck gun that visitors can rotate and pretend to fire. Many parts of the submarine, including its torpedo data computer, have been carefully restored.
Cleveland has a special connection to the Cod because the submarine's five huge diesel engines were built there by General Motors. Four of the five main engines on the Cod can still run and are sometimes started up for special events. In 2013, a company called PetroLiance donated 500 gallons of fresh oil to help get the restored engines running again.
The Cod also has an amateur radio station, W8COD, and takes part in radio contests and events like Field Day.
Normally, active Navy submarines are taken out of the water for maintenance every five years. But for a museum ship like the Cod, which is in fresh water, this can be extended to 25 years. In September 2020, the USS Cod announced it needed donations to go to Erie, Pennsylvania, for dry docking. This is where the submarine will be taken out of the water for repairs to its underwater hull. The last time the Cod was dry-docked for repairs was in 1963. This project will help make sure this 78-year-old submarine stays well-preserved as a memorial for naval veterans. After the work is done, the Cod will return to its home in Cleveland.
Cod in Media
The Cod has been featured in several TV shows and documentaries:
- It was the subject of an episode of the television series The Silent Service called The U.S.S. Cod's Lost Boarding Party, which aired on NBC in 1958.
- The Cod was used for filming scenes in the 2016 Smithsonian Channel documentary Hell Below. It helped show what other famous submarines like the USS Tang and German U-boats looked like inside and out.
- The Cod was also the subject of a two-part documentary called Naval Legends: USS Cod on the World of Warships YouTube channel in 2019.
- It was used in the National Geographic documentary WWII: Hell Under the Sea to show submarine action during World War II.
