Post World War II

    On 6 September 1951, CREVALLE was again commissioned and ordered to active duty in the Atlantic Fleet. She operated out of Norfolk, Virginia.  CREVALLE took part in training and fleet operations along the East Cost of the United States and in the Caribbean. Again on August 19 1955, CREVALLE was placed out of commission in reserve at New London, Connecticut.

    Sometime in late 1959, CREVALLE was ordered to evacuate Americans and others in the Diplomatic Corps from the rioting Dominican Republic. They were stranded there during this revolt.  Once again the boat was being utilized to rescue refugees from another conflict.

     This is the menu from a ships party on April 16, 1959 submitted by the former Executive Officer LCDR Daniel W. Cullivan who passed away on April 14, 2007 almost to the day of this happy event.  Its a bit fadded but readable with the names of the crew.

     On 1 April 1960, CREVALLE was re-designated making her an auxiliary general submarine (AGSS).  In addition to being in a constant state of readiness for any operation, CREVALLE was one of a group of submarines having the responsibility of training new submariners for duty in the fleet and was assigned to be a school boat for the United States Submarine School at Groton Connecticut.  She also was involved with training Navy Seals and Recon Marines in covert landings from a submarine.  Several of our Allies sent their best sailors to train on board CREVALLE notably Brazil, Chile, and Bolivia.  The Canadian Navy had an Officer on board training for two years as part of CREVALLE'S crew.  This was done subsequent to Canada receiving a Submarine The USS BURRFISH (SSR 312)  was loaned to Canada by the United States on 11 May 1961. She was re-commissioned in the Canadian Navy as the HMCS GRILSE (SS-71).

  Outbound - Thames River Groton, Connecticut with the Cost Guard Academy and the tall ship USCGS Eagle in the background - 1960 I am just fowared of the Sail

    On 18 November 1960 CREVALLE passed another milestone in her illustrious career, she passed the Eight Thousand Dive threshold. Our thanks go out to Paul Johnson (MM3 on CREVALLE) for passing on this information to us.

In 1961, the now Captain William J. Ruhe, USN was completing his assignment as the Division Commander of Submarine Division 22, held his change of command ceremony on board CREVALLE.  In his remarks, he stated that a part of the CREVALLE would always be with him.  The boat gave him great satisfaction in serving his country on five war patrols and as her Executive Officer and navigator.  It was quite moving for the men to listen to him recount the action that all of the WW II personal had endured.  He called attention especially to the fifth patrol that almost sunk CREVALLE, narrowly costing him and his shipmates their lives.  A special tribute to Lt. Jim Blind the only sailor, who had lost his life on CREVALLE, was respectfully rendered.

   CREVALLE was a great submarine that completed almost 10,000 dives during her commissioned service.  She was awarded the Navy Battle "E" and for, a school boat, this was quite extraordinary.  The CREVALLE was well on her way to completing requirements for the Engineering "E".   However, once again as on her fifth war patrol, sinister events struck this old war-horse.

    The boat got under way just after a turbulent northeaster had blown up the coast in early January of 1962.  The Officer Of The Deck (OOD) on the bridge in heavy seas had ordered the control room to close and open the main induction (air intake) valve on his command. This is done to keep seawater from flooding the engine air induction system when a large wave covered the bridge and cigarette deck. The main induction valves are just aft (behind) the bridge and under the extended cigarette deck (see sub photos). The CREVALLE had not been converted to a Guppy snorkel submarine. This conversion would have given the boat a large intake tower and valve located about 20 feet above the bridge.  The seas were running about 20 to 30 feet with some swells as high as fifty feet and suddenly a series of very large waves hit CREVALLE almost broadside.  The OOD was washed aside and could not give the command to close the main induction.  Several Tons of seawater cascaded down the main induction system. The seawater passed through the engine room induction as the engine room personnel had closed the engine room induction valves but unfortunately the water cascaded into the maneuvering room intakes. This is where the Main electrical control systems for submarines are located.

    Highly conductive salt water flooded the main bus and switch boards shorting the entire system.  A fire broke out in the maneuvering room and all normal electrical activity ceased.   CREVALLE was once again, in very serious trouble, dead in the water, no power and fire raging in the maneuvering room.  It took the entire energy of the crew and all of the CO2 extinguishers along with sealing the maneuvering room and shutting off the air to put out the fire.  This tremendous feat was accomplished while the boat was being tossed about in heavy seas.  Once again the CREVALLE survived and was not swallowed up by King Neptune.

    The boat languished for most of the day and into the next while the electricians and other members of the crew did a Herculean job.  They managed to remove the links from the starboard electrical bus and rig power to the port main motor, using the spare electrical bus bars that were available.  The starboard main motor had pitted and shorted its windings and was completely useless.  The boat drew enough power from the battery to radio New London with a mayday.  They offered to send a tug to tow the boat in but, true to its name, CREVALLE came several hundred miles to New London on one screw.  Steering a two-screw ship with only one propeller was extremely difficult, but no one in the crew would have it any other way.  The old "creeping CRE" a nickname she got after the Fifth War Patrol almost disaster would bring another group of men safely home again.

    When the boat arrived at the Submarine Base, Groton, Connecticut the pier was packed with people.  The crew did not know how much of a scare that they had put into the folks that cared for then.  This sounds very much like what happened after the flooding disaster on her aborted fifth war patrol.

    Submarine Squadron "2" inspectors along with the Division Commander, Captain J. M. Seymour came aboard when the crew put the brow on the pier. A few days after the inspection, Commander Submarine Fleet Atlantic (COMSUBLANT) sent the Skipper Lt. Commander C. M. Irwin a definite order. The order read "that, if the boat was not underway and certified for sea in two weeks, it was unfortunately off to the scrap heap with her."  The reasoning was that major replacement parts for CREVALLE were scarce and impossible to procure.  Most of the original spare parts inventory for the older fleet boats had already been depleted.

    The Crew was completely demoralized. They had almost scored a double with the Engineering "E" and the Battle "E" and now their boat was going to the scrap heap.  With the main electrical bus mostly burned up and one main motor useless, it appeared that all was lost.

      However there was in mothballs at the Submarine Base, an old friend of CREVALLE, one of her wartime wolf pack members.  The USS Flasher (SS 249) was being held in reserve, because many veterans groups were trying to make a memorial out of her.  

    The CREVALLE crew covertly appropriated many of the replacement parts used to repair the damages to CREVALLE from FLASHER.  In the time allotted, the crew got their ship repaired and ready for sea.  The Division Commander, while looking at the repairs that were completed and with a copy of the casualty report in his hands could not believe that it could be accomplished.  He knew that there were no spare parts available and upon certifying the boat for sea, he really did not want to know where they had come from.

    Well now the story can be told, one proud old boat helping another proud old Submarine. The FLASHER had the best war record of all of the WW II boats.  However the veterans groups could not get it together to save her.   FLASHER was finally struck from the lists of naval ships and sold for scrap.  They did however save the conning tower, bridge and cigarette deck.  The memorial can be observed today just off Military road to the Submarine Base and Electric Boat Company. If you are driving along route 95 in the area of Groton CT. you will see the sign directing the public to the Submarine Veterans of WW II memorial

    Shortly after, in late February 1962 the crew received the news that CREVALLE would indeed be decommissioned.  However, instead of going to the scrap heap, she would become a part of the Reserve Training Force in Portsmouth New Hampshire.

    The entire ship's compliment was going to the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard and manning the re-commissioned USS Tigrone (SS 419).  Most of the equipment that was not essential for CREVALLE'S mission as a Reserve Training Boat was transported to Philadelphia and placed on TIGRONE. This included several radio transmitters, bunks, china, and anything that was of use to the TIGRONE.

    One large piece of CREVALLE was removed from just aft of the forward escape hatch.  It was a huge ammunition locker left over from WW II.  It was taken to Philadelphia and welded under the superstructure of the re-commissioned TIGRONE.  It served as an invaluable water proof pressure hull thick locker that held chipping guns, paint and various topside equipment that would have otherwise been kept inside the boat.  The spare electrical bus bars from FLASHER were installed on TIGRONE.  

See the Decommissioning of the Crevalle and the re-commissioning of Tigrone Link

    So CREVALLE and FLASHER lived on (in part) through the end of the WW II diesel boat era.  CREVALLE lived through her last crew and a piece of her hull on TIGRONE and FLASHER lived on with her spare parts.  The TIGRONE was the last WW II boat to be decommissioned and not until 27 Jun 1975. On 25 Oct 1976 TIGRONE was sunk for target practice.  "Rest your oars proud submarines".

The picture bellow appeared in the US Submarine Base Newspaper "The Dolphin" on the occasion of The Crevalle's last dive. Your author was proud and privileged to be the final Bow Planes man.  I am at the bottom left:

      The final decommissioning of CREVALLE on 9 March 1962 was highlighted by the presence of her WW II  Commanding officer, Captain Frank D. Walker Jr., Commander Submarine Division Ten.  She was then towed to the Portsmouth, NH Navy Base & Shipyard to further serve the Submarine Force as a Naval Reserve Training Ship. Her Mission was twofold. She and her crew taught basic submarine subjects to new reservists and continued the training of men released from active duty. She continued in that capacity for six years and then was stricken from the lists of United States Naval Ships on 15 April 1968 and sold for scrap on 17 March 1971.

The USS Crevalle (AGSS 291) at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard

with the United States Naval Reserve Center in the background.

Uss Crevalle at Sunset in The Portdmouth Naval Shipyard

    In June of 1993 the original ships bell; original commissioning pennant and a picture of the fish Crevalle that had hung in the wardroom during World War II was donated to the Submarine Museum at Groton Connecticut. Fifty people, including 17 former crewmembers and 7 original commissioning plank holders attended the ceremony. Ann Munson, widow of CREVALLE'S first Captain Henry  G. Munson donated the bell (she had carried it around with them as they moved for 50 years). Rocky Langfelt donated the commissioning pennant and Al Sherick donated the ward room picture.