World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseUSS Rock entered service in late 1943. After a month of shakedown training in Lake Michigan, she passed through the Chicago Drainage Canal (now Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal) to Lockport, Illinois, United States, where she was entered into a floating drydock for transportation down the Mississippi River, arriving at New Orleans, Louisiana, United States on 29 Nov 1943. Arriving at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, United States via the Panama Canal, she prepared for her first war patrol, which began on 8 Feb 1944. She made her first contact on 29 Feb, detecting a large Japanese convoy en route to Truk, Caroline Islands. While approaching on the surface under the cover of the dark night sky, however, she was detected by the escorting Japanese destroyer Asashimo. As the destroyer closed in to attack, searchlights illuminating her and 130-millimeter shells splashing around her, she fired a salvo of four stern torpedoes; none of the torpedoes hit the attacker. She dove, and consequently suffered a depth charge attack that lasted four hours. She survived the attack, but suffered extensive damage, thus she returned to Pearl Harbor for repairs. Her second war patrol, which lasted from Apr to May 1944, was uneventful. She departed Majuro on 22 Jun on her third war patrol as a member of a wolfpack, the other members being USS Tilefish and USS Sawfish. On 19 Jul, in the Luzon Strait between Taiwan, China and Luzon, Philippine Islands, she detected a convoy of seven Japanese transports escorted by three combat ships; she fired ten torpedoes and immediately dove to avoid attacks from escorts; she recorded six detonations, but could not determine whether she achieved any sinkings. Two days later, she detected another convoy consisted of six transports and four escorts; two of the four torpedoes fired detonated, but again evasion action caused her to be unable to confirm any sinkings. On 26 Oct, during her fourth war patrol in the South China Sea area, she finally was able to confirm a sinking after observing three of the six torpedoes fired hit Japanese tanker Takasago Maru No. 7; this would prove to be her only confirmed sinking. On 27 Oct, she scuttled the damaged submarine USS Darter at Bombay Shoal in the Spratly Islands about 75 kilometers north of the southwestern tip of Palawan, Philippine Islands to prevent Japanese capture. After a period of refitting, she departed Fremantle, Australia for her fifth war patrol on 14 Dec; during this patrol she rescued one downed airman from USS Lexington. During her sixth war patrol, she bombarded a Japanese radio station at Batan, Batanes Islands, Philippine Islands and claimed the sinking of a Japanese destroyer escort (which would not be confirmed). She arrived at San Francisco, California, United States for overhaul on 14 May 1945, not returning to Pearl Harbor until 7 Aug, by which date the Pacific War was entering its final days. After a visit at New Orleans, where she participated in the 1945 Navy Day celebrations, she sailed to New London, Connecticut, United States for inactivation. She was decommissioned in 1946 and was placed into the Atlantic Reserve Fleet.

ww2dbaseIn early 1951, USS Rock was towed from New London to the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, Pennsylvania, United States to be converted into a radar picket submarine; her bow was extended by 9 meters to house a new combat information center and additional electronic equipment. Recommissioned back into service in late 1953, she performed training with Submarine Squadron 6 off the Virginia Capes on the east coast of the United States and then joined Submarine Squadron 5 in San Diego, California; with the latter squadron, she made several patrols in the western Pacific Ocean. By 1959, there was no more need for US Navy to maintain radar picket submarines, thus all such vessels, including USS Rock, were reclassified auxiliary general submarines. She was deployed to the western Pacific several more times in the 1960s. Between 11 Jul and 16 Aug 1969, she supported fleet training operations off Hawaii. She was decommissioned for the second and final time at Mare Island Naval Shipyard in California, United States.

Submarine Rock (SS-274) Interactive Map

Photographs

Rock Operational Timeline

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