The ship was laid down on 7 January 1963 by the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, Washington; launched on 8 February 1964; sponsored by Mrs. Cecil Ford and Mrs. Herbert Diamond; and commissioned on 7 November 1964.
Simon Lake sailed from Bremerton on 16 January 1965 for Pearl Harbor on her shakedown cruise and returned to Bremerton on 17 February for a six-week yard availability period. The Polaris submarine tender stood out of Bremerton on 16 April and proceeded to Charleston, South Carolina, via the Panama Canal.
Simon Lake arrived at Charleston on 1 May and tended submarines there until 11 July 1966. On that date, she sailed for Holy Loch, Scotland, where she relieved USSHunley as tender for Submarine Squadron 14. She operated from there until 24 May 1970 when she got underway for Charleston. In June, she sailed for Bremerton for her first overhaul since commissioning. The tender was in the yard from 6 July 1970 to March 1971 and, while there, was also converted to Poseidon missile capability.
Simon Lake returned to Charleston on 3 April and tended submarines there until 19 November 1972 when she sailed for Rota, Spain, as the relief for USSHolland.
Simon Lake arrived at the Charleston Naval Shipyard in North Charleston, South Carolina, January 1977 for extensive overhaul in one of the three drydocks. Over a year later, the drydock was flooded, the heavy ICBM missile cranes were weight tested, and the ship sent out on a shakedown" cruise.
Simon Lake was the first submarine tender to be stationed at Kings Bay Georgia in 1979 when the base first opened and was the first tender on the east coast that women served on in the U.S. Navy. After Refresher Training (REFTRA) in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, Simon Lake assumed duties tending submarines at the Naval Weapons Station, Goose Creek, South Carolina. In June 1979, USSCanopus relieved Simon Lake at the Naval Weapons Station Charleston, South Carolina.
From 1979-1985 Simon Lake serviced submarines in Kings Bay Georgia, where she also won two Battle Efficiency 'E' awards. In September 1985 she was driven to Ingalls Shipyard in Pascagoula Mississippi where she received a stem to stern, inside and out, grind to bare metal and repaint; a replacement of the helo deck; repair of the two 3-inch/50 rear-facing guns; and the addition of a 25mm Mk38 chain gun weapons system. She was relaunched in September 1986 at which time she did a short shakedown cruise to Guantanamo Bay until December 1986 when she returned to Charleston, South Carolina for a brief stop over to take on supplies before heading off to Holy Loch, Scotland in May 1987.
In May 1987 Simon Lake returned to Scotland to again relieve USS Hunley at Holy Loch where in 1988 and 1991, she won Battle Efficiency 'E' awards. She remained on station there until the base was closed and all assets withdrawn in 1992. Sailing for Norfolk, Virginia, that March, Simon Lake drew to a close thirty years of US Navy presence in Holy Loch, Scotland.
In March 1992, Simon Lake participated in Teamwork '92, a joint North Atlantic operation and conducted repairs to USS La Moure County (LST-1194) in Trondheim, Norway. Upon departure she crossed the Arctic Circle to perform the Order of the Bluenose for the crew, and stopped for a port call in Halifax, Nova Scotia prior to returning to Norfolk to conduct an extensive overhaul, converting from a ballistic missile submarine tender to an attack submarine tender. After completion of the overhaul and a visit to Palma, Spain in March 1993, she arrived at her new homeport of La Maddalena, Italy where she relieved USSOrion. For superior service to the fleet, she received the Battle Efficiency 'E' award, Weapons Black "W" and Meritorious Unit Commendation awards for the period 7 July 1993 - 31 August 1994.
Simon Lake's performance during her last two years of service was particularly noteworthy. Not only did she receive the awards associated with the Persian Gulf but she was nominated for the Secretary of Defense Maintenance Award, received the 1997 and 1998 Battle Efficiency 'E' awards, the 1998 Chief of Naval Operations Safety Award, and the 1998 Golden Anchor award, and became the first surface ship to receive both the Enlisted Surface Warfare and the Surface Warfare Officer pennants.
After being relieved by USSEmory S. Land, Simon Lake departed La Maddalena on 11 May 1999 and crossed the Atlantic for Norfolk, Virginia to be decommissioned.
Simon Lake was decommissioned on 31 July 1999 and, into 2008 was in the mothball fleet in Philadelphia. Simon Lake was placed out of service at Norfolk Naval Shipyards in Portsmouth, Virginia as part of the Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility's inventory.
Simon Lake departed Norfolk Naval Shipyard on 5 February 2015. Beginning in September 2011, Simon Lake underwent the deactivation process in preparation for dismantling. The ship was placed in the James River Reserve Fleet on 3 December 2015 in the care of the U. S. Maritime Administration to await recycling. She arrived at Steelcoast (ex-ESCO Marine) in Brownsville, Texas, for ship recycling on 27 February 2019.
USS John Marshall (SSBN-611) was an Ethan Allen-class submarine, the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for John Marshall (1755–1835), the fourth Chief Justice of the United States. Originally a fleet ballistic missile submarine designated SSBN-611, she later was reclassified as an attack submarine and re-designated SSN-611.
USS Thomas Jefferson (SSBN-618), an Ethan Allen class nuclear-powered submarine, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for Founding Father Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), the third President of the United States (1801–1809). She later was reclassified as an attack submarine and redesignated SSN-618.
USS Shark (SSN-591), a Skipjack-class submarine, was the seventh ship of the United States Navy to be named for the shark.
The third USS Proteus (AS-19) was a Fulton-class submarine tender in the United States Navy.
USS George C. Marshall (SSBN-654), a Benjamin Franklin-class ballistic missile submarine, was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for General of the Army George C. Marshall (1880-1959), who served as U.S. Secretary of State from 1947 to 1949 and as U.S. Secretary of Defense from 1950 to 1951.
USS Ulysses S. Grant (SSBN-631), a James Madison-class fleet ballistic missile submarine, was the third shipa of the United States Navy to be named for Ulysses S. Grant (1822–1885), American Civil War general and the 18th President of the United States (1869-1877).
USS Casimir Pulaski (SSBN-633), a James Madison-class ballistic missile submarine, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for Casimir Pulaski (1745–1779), a Polish general who served in the American Revolutionary War.
USS Whale (SSN-638) was a Sturgeon-class submarine nuclear-powered attack submarine of the United States Navy. She was the second ship of that name, after the whale family of aquatic mammals.
USS Trepang (SSN-674), a Sturgeon-class attack submarine, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for the trepang, Holothuroidea, a marine animal with a long, tough, muscular body.
USS Sunfish (SSN-649), a Sturgeon-class attack submarine, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for the ocean sunfish, a marine species having a deep body truncated behind, and high dorsal and anal fins.
USS Ray (SSN-653), a Sturgeon-class attack submarine, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for the rays.
USS Seahorse (SSN-669), a Sturgeon-class attack submarine, was the second submarine and third ship of the United States Navy to be named for the seahorse.
USS Lapon (SSN-661), a Sturgeon-class attack submarine, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for the lapon, a scorpionfish of the Pacific coast of North America.
USS Flying Fish (SSN-673), a Sturgeon-class attack submarine, was the third ship of the United States Navy to be named for the flying fish, any of number of fishes whose long winglike fins make it possible for them to move some distance through the air.
USS Skylark (ASR-20) was a Penguin-class submarine rescue ship of the United States Navy.
USS Emory S. Land (AS-39) is a United States Navy submarine tender and the lead ship of her class. She was named for Admiral Emory S. Land.
USS Canopus (AS-34) was a Simon Lake-class submarine tender of the United States Navy, operational from 1965 to 1994. The vessel was used to repair and refit submarine-launched Polaris nuclear-armed ballistic missiles and the submarines that deployed with them. The vessel primarily served US naval bases on the US Atlantic Coast and in Europe. In 1969, the ship was overhauled to maintain the new Poseidon Missile Systems. Taken out of service in 1995, the US Navy's intent to have the ship broken up for scrap in the United Kingdom was controversial. By 2010 demolition had been completed.
USS Holland was a submarine tender in service with the United States Navy from 1963 to 1996.
USS Orion (AS–18) was a Fulton-class submarine tender of the United States Navy. She was laid down 31 July 1941 at the Moore Dry Dock Company, Oakland, California; launched 24 June 1942; sponsored by Mrs. Robert A. White; and commissioned 30 September 1943.
USS Hunley (AS-31) was a submarine tender of the United States Navy launched on 28 September 1961 and commissioned 16 June 1962. The Hunley was designed to tend most of the long-term requirements of the Polaris Class of submarines. The ship achieved several records and milestones in its service. The Hunley was decommissioned from the regular navy, in 1995 transferred to the US Maritime Commission, and in 2007 sold as scrap to a metal recycling company in Louisiana. In September 2008, during Hurricane Gustav, the decommissioned ship broke free of its moorings in the New Orleans Inner Harbor, but caused little or no damage while adrift.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
United States
