The S Boats - Gallant Ladies of the Past

	I'm indebted to Karen Haubold of the Naval Art Collection and the Navy Historical Society for these next four photo's. Thank you Karen for pointing them out to me. The first photo shows the S-17 (SS 127) berthed in New York City. Also tied up inboard of the S-17 are the R Boats USS R-1 (SS 78), USS R-4 (SS 81), and USS R-13 (SS-90).
	The S-22 (SS 127) at Portsmouth Navy Yard in November of 1929. This photograph shows the changes to the superstructure that were incorporated in the shipyard. These include the marker buoy, escape hatch and lifting eyes. The S-22's 4 inch 50 caliber gun is trained outboard and the barrel is raised in order to clear the torpedo loading slide.
	The officers and crew of the S-22 (SS 127) taken at New London, Connecticut in 1941. The officers seated left to right are Lieutenant Joseph F. Enright, Lieutenant Commander George H. Wales (CO), Lieutenant Ernest S. Friedrick, and Ensign Alvin E. Kirstein.
	USS S-22 was commissioned in June 1924. Though usually stationed in the Atlantic, S-22 visited Hawaii in 1925 and operated out of Pearl Harbor from 1931 to 1938. This 1943 photo shows her as HMS P554 operating in Placentia Sound, Newfoundland. There is a harbor defense boom in the background.
	These next two pictures of the S-22 were given to me by Dave P. of Canada and also show the boat as HMS P554. She was used extensively to train Canadians in Anti-Submarine warfare. This shot shows her off Halifax Nova Scotia in 1944
	This Second Shot of HMS P554 ex-USS S-22 gives a good idea of the harsh winter conditions these submarine sailors had to endure. The shot was taken in St. Johns, Newfoundland in the winter of 1942/43.
	The USS S-23 (SS 128) tied up in Dutch Harbor January 6, 1943.
	*The S-24 (SS 129) entering port. At the end of World War One, the S Class* boats were the state of the art in submarine construction.**
	*The S-25 (SS 130) leaving port 1941. The S-boats were known as Pigboats* and would have been scrapped for the newer fleet boats if World War II hadn't broken out. S-25 became the Polish Jastrzab.**
	The officers and crew of the S-25 (SS 130), LT. H.W. Gordon, Commanding.
	S-26 (SS 131) was lost on 24 January, 1942 in the Gulf of Panama in a collision with PC-460. The PC-460 had been escorting S-21, S-26, S-29, and S-44. There were only three survivors.
	The S-26 (SS 131) launching ceremony at the Fore River Shipbuilding Co. in Quincy, MA. She was sunk on January 24, 1942. There were three survivors out of a crew of 49.
	The S-26 (SS 131) at sea, underway surface steaming.
	In 1942 the S-27 (SS 132) went aground on a reef off Amchitka Island in the Aleutians. Efforts to free her were futile and the crew abandoned ship. All hands were rescued by PBY Airplanes.
	The S-28 (SS-133) was lost in 1944 while conducting torpedo exercises with the Coast Guard cutter Reliance. The exact cause of the loss of S-28 was never determined. Commander J. G. Campbell had assumed command (his first), just one month prior.
	The S-28 (SS 133) entering port. You can see the sterns of two additional S-Boats at bottom of photo. The S-28 was launched September 20, 2025 at the Fore River Shipbuilding Co.
	A third photograph of the S-28 (SS 133) with a good view of her deck gun.
	The S-Boats were a familiar sight off the Philippines and the China coast between the two World Wars. Many of them were assigned to the old Asiatic Fleet. This is S-32 (SS 137) off Tsingato, China in 1928.
	Later in the war when new construction Fleet Boats joined the fleet, the S Boats were sent to patrol the Aleutian Islands. Surfacing in these northern heavy seas to charge batteries, S-32 took three 65 degree rolls. Notice the battle pennants claiming three warships and two cargo ships sunk.
	The S-34 was one of the boats assigned to the Aleutian Islands. Here she is seen off Attu Island.
	*This shot is from Volume Four of Submarine Veterans of World War II* and shows the crew of the USS S-35 celebrating Christmas in 1944.**
	During her second patrol in route to Surabaya, Java, S-36 (SS 141) grounded on a reef in Makassar Strait. She was abandoned and destroyed. All hands were saved. She is credited with the sinking of one 5000 ton transport.
	A nice close-up of the S-36 (SS 141) showing the typical Sugar Boat conning tower. Notice the difference in the hull number. The boats assigned to the Asiatic fleet did not display the S-number.