If you've watched a few episodes and feel like I've earned it, be sure to subscribe so that you don't miss any new content when it comes out. Also be sure to check out The Gettysburg Museum of History and their store at www.gettysburgmuseumofhistory.com. Thanks!
I’m Going to subscribe just for this comment alone! Most people are like, “make sure you hit that subscribe” Then there’s this guy “ yo if you feel like Iv earned it, be sure to subscribe” love it
I know you might not see this or comment back but I need your help. You play a music clip a couple times and I want to know what it is. I tried scanning it but there is no record. Please tell me, it’s beautiful. Thanks, btw, great video!!
Awesome vid!...Thanks!....Check out the USS Albacore AGSS 569 in Portsmouth, NH (Albacore Park)..... Built in '53....Spent my last 8 months aboard her before discharge after 4.5 yrs active May 1968..... Served aboard the USS DACE SSN 607 '66-'67.....
I "qualified" on the USS Runner (SS476) in 1962, the same boat my Father made 4 war patrols on back in the war. He pinned his Dolphins on me in front of the crew, the Commodore was even present - it was quite emotional. What is unique is my Gran-father served on the boats during WW1. At any rate, I served on 2 diesel boats, a twin reactor boat (Triton), 3 fleet ballistic boats and 1 fast attack. I finally retired in 85 after 20 years at sea and 5 ashore. Now I pan for gold in Panama, have 3 kids, 5 grandkids, 4 dogs, 5 parrots, 2 horses and a goat. Oh, and a wife that puts up with me.
@@mvnorsel6354 That was on the Jackson 634. Can´t tell all my stories in one sitting.. Someday I´ll tell ya about painting the Fan Room and abanding ship.
@@smatejka1 Stonewall Jackson (B), James K Polk (G) and Andrew Jackson (G), made 16 patrols out of Holy Loch and Rota. We were diverted when the Scorpion went missing, things got ugly.
I was an officer on SS-340 "Entemedor". One of the last of the diesel boats in service. Boat was out of the main sub base, New London Ca., where the sub school was / is. Out of sub school and onto the boat in 1966. Was qualified as an Officer of the Deck, aka, OOD. Rode it to the Caribbean twice and across the Atlantic ocean to the Mediterranean once for 6 months. Left it as chief engineer in the shipyard for overhaul in Kittery Maine in 1970. You missed a big deal of interest, the batteries. 242 very large cells same as car batteries, lead acid. It would run submerged at 3 knots for about 15 hours off a full charge, or 7 knots for 15 minutes. All three engines flat out on the surface 15 knots. Three weeks to cross the Atlantic.
My dad served on the Entimidor but it was back in the early 50's. He was a quartermaster. I have a beautiful color photo of it hanging in my garage along with the USS Segundo. He retired from the navy in 1966
@@beesbythesea8899 So he got out just before I went in. I had a GREAT quartermaster on the boat that once when I complimented him for something which I cannot recall with my geriatric Teflon skillet brain these days, he replied with typical professional aplomb, "JDMJ" = "JUST DOING MY JOB.". Tell all your family that your dad was of superior intellect and skills, and should be recognized as such. Thanks for the note back.
In Navy jargon, the goat locker is a lounge, sleeping area, and galley on board a naval vessel which is reserved for the exclusive use of chief petty officers.[1] By tradition, all other personnel, including officers and even the commanding officer, must request permission to enter the goat locker
When I toured several years ago the retired sailor who led the group mentioned that the USS Razorback is still 95% operational, unlike most if not all other submarine museum naval craft. Add 5% work and she is out to sea. That's impressive.
As a former museum educator for Historic Ships in Baltimore, I seriously doubt that claim. It is official D0D/USN policy that any vessel to be used as a museum has to have the engines disabled. They don't want people taking them for a "joy ride".
@@keithrowe2996 Don't mean to quibble (much) but one of the Vessels I worked on is the USS TORSK SS 422. The engines, torpedo tubes, and dive apparatus were all non operational, per DoD/USN policy, as were most of the dials and the plumbing. But in giving a tour, 95% is impressive to say.
I served on the Razorback - from August of '68 till Sept. of '69.. I brought my son down there to see it back in '06 (IIRC) and we spent two days just going through the old girl.. When you entered the after torpedo room, the upper, RH (actually port side) bunk first visible in the video was where I slept.. Dan Durange (TM2-(SS) was my boss at the time. You did decent job on the video.. Just a couple of notes - the 'operations' room is actually the 'control room'. When you left the after engine room and entered maneuvering, that big box-like area you passed to get to the controls is called the 'cubicle'.. It's where all the electric power generated by the batteries and generators is amassed and redistributed throughout the boat.. over 80,000 amps is on tap in there.. Anyhoo - good job sir, and best wishes..
I grew up near Portsmouth Navel Ship Yard. My Grandfather, Uncle, and Father worked there for many years. My father retired in the early 80’s. He worked on this boat and many others. He worked on the Thresher and was scheduled to go out on sea trials. He came down with a cold or flu and was taken off the sea trial the Thresher was lost on. He lost many friends on it. But I was lucky and didn’t lose my dad! He especially liked the challenges of refueling. It was interesting being his son. I went to many launches, sub tours and commissioning’s. Brings back many memories. He is gone, but have his sub memorabilia all over the house. He served his country 35yrs of government service. RIP Father
I served two combat tours in Vietnam (65-66/70-71) . My first tour I went over by ship like Marines should. We went from San Diego to Okinawa on the USS General Mitchel, then from Okinawa to Vietnam aboard the LSD USS Oakhill. While in Okinawa we attend Counter Guerilla Warfare, Escape and Evasion and Amphibious Raider Training. Part of the raider training consisted of us be taken aboard a WW-2 era diesel electric sub and surfacing at night and paddling small rubber boats ashore to destroy a target then back to the sub and submerge. Quiet the experience. Tom Boyte GySgt. USMC, retired 0331 Infantry, Machine Guns Bronze Star, Purple Heart
I got to tour a Soviet sub from the 50's that was a museum in Long Beach right next to the Queen Mary. I'm 6'2 and had to pretty much bend over the whole time I was inside. There obviously had to have been a hight limit for these crew's. Otherwise I have no idea how you could do it.
This is my 'qual boat'! I joined her in San Diego in January 1960 and qualified aboard her, earning my dolphins, in September 1960. Her #1 engine does run but the connection to the generator is severed, hence no power is generated. Her props are on the seawall, so no propulsion. Other than that, she is very close to operational.. Her crewmember association is still active and we still love our lady on the river.
@@rudycarlson8245 The Turks seemed to use #4 as a parts engine and it has been canabalized badly. We started working on it a long time ago as it's exhaust faced away from the museum. We found that piping, valves and cylinder parts are just missing and it wouldn't turn over by hand. #3 is another story so it's possible but not examined closely enough for the limited time and resources available. #1 needs constant adjusting to run properly but its wonderful when it fires up and settles down to a nice idle.
Goat locker comes from the days of wooden sailing vessels, when goats were kept aboard ship (to eat garbage and provide milk). The goats were traditionally housed in the CPO mess, hence the term .
@@Rodney221976 why does yours make more sense? JD asked why it was called goat locker. It looks like we both checked Wikipedia. Your comment concerns the traditions of the goat locker. My comment is why it got its name.
Goat locker is a throwback term to the days of sail when livestock was kept on board for fresh meat. The pens were in the Chiefs area to protect the animals from hungry crew, etc. Another story is that since the chiefs were invariably the oldest crew members they were known as Old Goats. I personally think the first one is probably the best. Edward L. Beach has some great stories about the 'Guppy' program and subs in general.
Thank you so much for showcasing what life on a submarine was like back in WWII. As a former sailor myself who spent time on a submarine, it warms my heart that you showed this. One thing to comment on, for the new subs, people have to double bunk in those sleeping quarters. So imagine having a second person in that bunk with you.
Das boot is probably the most realistic submarine movie you can find. Check it out sometime. Great video sir, always appreciate your content and how respectful you are.
When I watched that movie I felt I needed to be degreased after the final credits rooled. Oil, smoke those German cigarettes with the black smoke. Great movie, I bet the actors had PTSD from filming.
Remember, men in the sub-service during WWII were smaller folks between 5'5" to 5'9" and only weighed about 145 to 170. Men were smaller in those days, and the aircraft of the era were the same.
Das Boot has been mentioned in the comments. It's one of my favorite movies. Probably one of the greatest war movies ever made. I'm 6'3 and 220lbs. I don't know if I could have survived this long term
I'm 6'4" and 220 lbs (was about 195 then). I served 3 1/2 years aboard Razorback and while I had to learn where certain overhead projections were, it wasn't so bad. Lt. Alexander was also about 6'4" and had size 14 feet. We had some funny times trying to pass in some tight passageways.
I took the Badger there from Michigan and took the tour of the USS Cobia. Very interesting that many of our submarines were built on Lake Michigan. I also learned about The Rush-Bagot Treaty or Rush-Bagot Disarmament treaty between the United States and Great Britain limiting naval armaments on the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain, following the War of 1812. This treaty is still in effect today.
I just preached on Joel this Sunday. Thanks for being brave enough in mentioning your Bible habits. I am a big fan. You bring history to life. Thank you!
I agree. JD is a great content provider and entertaining on his own right, but the fact he is a Christ follower, unashamed to share that fact, makes him my favorite YT channel. I don't feel like I have to really peruse his channel carefully before sharing with my kids or anyone else for that matter.
@@edge7387 Religion is man made- true worship is a relationship with GOD thru his Son Jesus! Man engages in many bad things as all men are sinners and have fallen short of GOD'S glory. It is when we admit this to GOD and ask him to save us by excepting the free gift that JESUS offers from the cross that we change and are saved and JESUS becomes our Lord! That is where the BIBLE (GOD'S word) comes in as we read and learn how GOD wants us to live! The blood of Christ WILL set us free IF we accept his free gift!
Good overall presentation. I stumbled across it by accident and have read most of the comments. I've visited the Razorback 3 times. As an ex-submariner, they allowed me to go onboard alone and with my family without a tour guide. I only saw one glaring error. That was when you said something about going forward when you were actually heading aft. I laughed when I saw you try to get in the bunk. I spent well over 1000 "nights" in similar bunks... as I got seniority, I was able to get my choice. You didn't talk about how to use the toilet. I don't blame you. [USS Casimir Pulaski, SSBN 633 (blue crew) -- six 90-day (or so) deterrent patrols in the North Atlantic]
@@TheHistoryUnderground ... I always used them the correct way. I actually never knew of anyone making the mistake of trying to flush when the sanitary tank was pressurized..., but there were stories. and so far as height restrictions, on nuclear subs, I didn't know of any. I'm 6'3" and was on the sub in the mid-1970s. (I stayed in nuclear after I got out of the navy.)
My dad served in USS Spikefish 404 during early 1951 thru 1958. His job was Fire Control Weapons Tech, Petty Officer 1st Class he was responsible for inputting fire solution into electro-mechanical computer to shoot torpedos. He worked up coning tower with skipper & executive officer while under way. He shared a lot of stories about surfacing evening, submerged during daylight. His boat served end WW2 for 6 months only, said is was like brand new early 1950’s. They evidentially used Spikefish as training boat, pre-atomic subs, and chased & player cat & mouse with many Russian subs entering US waters during height if Cold War. He told me his time subs with crew was best times of his working life. He said he would have stayed but married navy wave (mom) and had us 5 kids. I made several tours various ww2 class similar boats as his before he past on. Even when he was 85+ plus years old, and blind he could still go up/ down ladders, and name every station of boat like it was yesterday. Thank you for the video, detail and tour. Hope you enjoyed sleeping in the bunk..
Great Informative Visit ! I was a destroyer junior officer on DD-783 Gurke, and exchanged positions with an officer off the Bugara SS-331 while in South China Sea in Vietnam era 1969. We were heloed onto fan tails for a supposed 3 hour visit during torpedo exercises. A typhoon came up suddenly and I enjoyed 3 days on the Bugara, bathing with 2 sponge-fulls, sleeping in a “drawer”, listening to rocket-launched torpedoes aimed at US, but enjoying the incredible experience. My father-in-law was a ltjg on board during WW2. Best Regards, Rog
@@TheHistoryUnderground yeah, he censored himself because my mom was around. She was a nurse and he always volunteered at the hospital. He promised to tell me what a Shanghai gin mill was like😆 i had his records pulled, come to find out he got into a little grand theft auto. Was about to be awol, was drunk, and borrowed some dude's car. He got arrested and the guy patriotically didn't press charges because there was a war on. Old Eddie.
I live in North Little Rock! Was so confused when I saw the bridge in the opening scene... I was like "Wait, I know that bridge!" lol. Fantastic episode.
@@TheHistoryUnderground I definitely will..!!! Keep up the great work, love your channel/videos. Especially when you talk about sod houses. My ancestors were some of the first "Soddies" in central/south central Nebraska back in the 1860s-1880s
@@TheHistoryUnderground yeah, Submariners are a different breed for sure. He has a wealth of knowledge on subs and Naval history in general. You're passion for history is awesome, I'm the same way.
USS Lionfish (SS-298) - another Balao-class submarine, is a museum boat at Battleship Cove, Fall River, MA. A sister boat - she is arguably even more original than Razorback - having never had the "Guppy" sail conversion and retaining her WWII gray paint scheme.
Thanks for the tour. It reminds me of the night I spent on a decomishened WWII sub names the Dentuda. It was a t a dock in San Francisco bay and my dad who was a sub sailor stationed at Hunters Point volunteered his family to stand duty on it on New year's eve. Me and my brothers has the run of the whole boat which was fantastic for a bunch of little boys. Years later I practiced locking in and out of a sub as a Navy frogman in Subic bay Philippines. Very claustrophobic in the lock out chamber. Can't remember the name of the boat it wasn't the Greyback but it was a modernized diesel boat. What great experiences
I’ve been on that submarine in San Francisco. We was on holiday from the U.K. and went down too the docks. Me being a WW2 history nut I had to take a tour of the sub. I think was only a couple of dollars too go on board and too my surprise even my wife who isn’t really interested in stuff like that, found it fascinating. She asked how do that many men live on board for months at a time? I just you have to get on with your fellow crew really well!
I've also toured the WWII Era submarine in San Francisco Bay around the way from Fisherman's Wharf. It was a great experience and it was in the 1980's. I was out visiting my Dad who lived in San Francisco for 20 years.
A lot of years ago, departure aboard the Balao class submarine SS 21 Simpson with my father, ship commander was my uncle, ship was former USA SS Spot (SS-413) 1944 to 1966 year it was transferred to Chile, test of various devices, several practices, in one of dives a crew member makes a valve “mistake”, healing mistake the ship at 45° to the bottom, alarms, bells and all red lights aboard, to the bottom near 70 meters, we were 2 hours at the bottom, until after several maneuvers and a dungeon to the crew member of the "mistake" the ship come to the surface again, was absolutely incredible.
Thank you so much for this tour My father was Torpedoman 3rd Class on the USS Sailfish in the South Pacific during The Big One. Sailed out of Guantanamo. He talked about drinking "torpedo juice" among other wild stories.
I went aboard the USS Drum in Mobile AL. I was astonished at how tiny the conning tower was. 2 or 3 people could barely fit. Then I watch a movie like Run Silent, Run Deep and it's laughable how much room they have.
That's a Gato class sub if I remember correctly and is smaller than the Razorback on the inside. The Drum had to be pulled out of the water because the hull started leaking from hurricane damage if I recall correctly. Glad you visited the sub and I trust you visited the ship too while you were in my hometown.
One of my extended families members was a crew member on the Razorback and part of his time on it was during a nuclear bomb test, every thing went as planned except according to him they hadn’t planned on the water losing its density, the sub went on a 30 second free fall. He said there was a bit of excitement but they did what was drilled for and eventually steered their way out of it.
We practiaced daily for a couple weeks with a large depth charge towed by a tug.The charge was at varying distances from us and depths and always seemed to just be a large BOOM! They would count down over the 1MC so we all knew when it was coming. Every valve seal and every locker was re-secured and tightened down throughout the boat. We were generally at PD so we could get a photo of the water plume. Got to be boring after awhile and we all thought the real thing was going to be the same. When THE DAY came along, we prepared as before and checked and double checked everything. and reported in to the DO. The ASROC blast was much sharper and concussive than the depth charges had been and a few seconds after the BOOM came a really strong shock wave that pushed us way over to port so that my feet was on the side of the #4 main engine.and the boat was heeling way over. We didn't evpect that and the galley took a hit as some things crashed out of their normally secure hold downs. It was a bit unnerving to say the least as the boat shook through that shock wave and finally settled down. No damage but it was not expected and we were glad it was over with no do-overs! We headed north after that and ended up at the 1962 Worlds Fair in Seattle. You can see photos of the Razorback in the Ballard Locks transiting from Puget Sound to Lake Washington to view the Unlimited hydroplanes Gold Cup races. What a trip!
And what's more interesting about the messenger buoys, they're typically welded to the superstructure to prevent them from rattling (making noise) while submerged. At least that's how they were on my boat (USS Stonewall Jackson SSBN-634) and all other 41 For Freedom boats assigned to Submarine Squadron SIXTEEN in Kings Bay GA. So while welding them down does prevent them from rattling, it also prevents them from ever being deployed. LOL But really, they're pointless anyway when you figure the cable is only 1500 feet long and the ocean depths of where we'd be operating would be well over 5000' deep. So even if you could deploy the buoy, nobody would ever see it because it would still be underwater, not to mention... the boat would implode long before reaching the bottom anyway, instantly killing all on board leaving nobody left to release the buoy.
Great video JD. My deepest respect to all Submariners past and present, especially in combat. It would take a special person for this particular branch of the service.
Why don’t you have your own History Channel or Travel Channel show yet? You would get great ratings!! 😊 Thank you for taking us along on your adventures! 🥰
Funny story. I actually had a production company who was making a show for History Channel reach out to me about hosting. I didn’t have exactly what they were looking for though.
@@TheHistoryUnderground well they are crazy!!! You have exactly what is needed in a good host! I enjoy your videos so much more than any they put out. And the number of subs you are gaining is the proof. They really are blind to not see how amazing your content is. I whole heartedly enjoy every video you have put up. I feel like I’m part of your adventure 🤗 Thank you!
As far as I know the USS Siversides still allows overnight berthing. We always had a great time taking when our Boy Scouts would spend the night. The dads would stay up all night in shifts and the scouts would eat pizza and watch sub movies. Everyone had a great time and never had any problems. The boys learned a lot and were very respectful of the Silversides staff. The staff would leave about 1700 and the ship was ours for the night
As one of the few female military history enthusiasts, I just wanted to say great video. I toured the Razorback about 10 years ago and nearly spent the night. The tour guide told me that there's even pizza delivery available, which I thought was funny and cool. I regret not staying overnight, but I am happy I got to walk through this amazing piece of military history. As a Virginia native, I highly recommend Norfolk, the Smithsonian, Williamsburg, and all of the beautiful Civil War battlefields up and down I-81 and Rte 11 in the Shenandoah Valley. The movie "Gods and Generals" was filmed in my area. Thanks for the upload!
Just made morning coffee and what was waiting on the lap-top? A new "History Underground" A great day.... The hardest thing about subs is the maintenance it takes to keep them running. What a fun way to spend time with your family, a night on a WWll sub... Thanks for your time and work....
That, "office space," you looked at, was probably were encrypted radio messages were decrypted, before passing them to the Captain or whichever officer was on deck at the time. The radio operator usually didn't to the encoding or decoding, but it was passed on to the sailor responsible for that detail. Not every sailor had the ability to write or read the encoding used by the Navy then.
I spent 12 years on ships in the Navy and once I became a civilian had a chance to go onboard the sub my cousin was stationed on, USS Jimmy Carter. I've been on two museum submarines and they don't smell anything like subs on active service. Yes, there's that oily odor, but the body/honey pot funk permeates throughout the whole sub! Considering it was a nuclear submarine, there isn't enough Fabreeze to make that odor go away within a decade. So you got the sanitary sleep over. Great channel BTW.
Welcome to Little Rock. Downtown is filled with history. Hope you visited the Territorial Restoration and the old state capitol building - the history is great.
Such an important piece of history in an area I never heard of J.D. Glad you made this for the men who fought and died there in 1944. Sad so many died, when the enemy knew they were totally beaten. Pride then takes over as well as fear, of what would happen to them or their family’s had they surrendered. Great video and story J.D on Hurtgen Forest, and it’s surrounding battle areas.
My old man was a chief petty officer in the Royal Australian Navy. Lots of stories when we were kids particularly about submariners and how they stank of a combination of diesel and BO. They were stopped off in Subic Bay in the late 50s when a British sub came into port. The RN Sub's sewerage and water systems had broken down so my old man went over and offered the showering facilities on their RAN destroyer to the poms. One thing about the Aussie armed forces is a priority around personal hygiene. He reckons there was not one taker... and to this day my old man who is in his eighties uses the expression 'drier than a pommies towel' ; )
The term goat locker takes its origins from wooden ship sailing times, when goats were kept aboard ship. ... The quarters for the goat were traditionally in the Chief Petty Officer mess, which inherited the moniker "goat locker".
My oldest brother served on this class of submarine in the 1960s. He was on the USS HardHead 365. I had a tour of the Clamagore in the early 70s when it was on a South America Unitas.
There is a submarine in Galveston Texas that is now different that it was when I was a kid in the 1970s. My sister was having surgery at Shriner's and Dad took me over to it with my uncle who was a retired Navy. When Uncle Jr took us through it the vet was so thrilled to have my uncle there we were given a total tour of everywhere on the sub. The park was named after a sub that was lost in WWII along with the crew. I remember as a kid all it smelled like was rust, I was worn out from going up and down all of the ladders and "stairs" I know we got to see engines but I don't know for what, I remember my uncle talking of the torpedo chutes but I think I was so tired then I probably just smiled and nodded lol I remember it was painted gray on the interior I think the exterior was gray also lol but I have slept since then.
I remember visiting Seawolf Park in the 70s and going through the sub. Yeah, didn't make much of an impression on me then. I wonder what I'd think now.
Years ago when this was first opened to the public. My Dad a U.S. Navy Veteran and I took the tour. We went into the sub on the stern and came out on the bow. And the men who gave the tour had actually served on WW II subs . I wish that my Dad was still here so we could go on the U.S.S. Hoga but Dad passed away on Feb.15,2019. I guess that I will have to take the tour in his memory.
Sorry for your loss. Your fathers generation was one of a kind! I had relatives that served in WW2, in the pacific. I lost my father back in 95 when I was ten, unexpectedly. Now that I’m older, when I read comments like yours I realize how much I missed out on. -Cheers
I think that was one of the smallest subs being made by US before WW2. Today, aside from a museum, did they accomodate overnight stay with minimal charge for limited persons inside the sub? Interesting to know theyve made it educational instead of dumping to a junk shipyard. Thanks for nice sub tour sir.
I once went aboard a small submarine which was moored at Birkenhead Docks, and was astonished at just how horribly cramped it was. Some bunks were so tight to the pressure hull that the occupant could only sleep laying down, as there was no room to side sleep. The proximity of and to everything was remarkable, and the thought of going to war inside such a confined 'tube' was not something I wanted to contemplate.
I had forward top rack on my first boat for a two month underway. It was like you described. If you wanted to turn over you had to slide your chest and hips out then side back in.
Retired Navy here. I literally SMH'd at the Goat Locker part...but you were humble and respectable the entire time. I spent 9 years on the aircraft Carrier USS Carl Vinson. You actually brought tears to my eyes by the end by how decent a production you provided "RU-vid" not being a Squid. (Navy guy). Bringing your daughters along was worth its weight in gold.
First, loved that we got to see the family in this one. Second, love that you read scripture each day.🙏🏻 Third, the USS Razorback was one of only 12 US submarines selected to be in Tokyo Bay for the surrender of the Japanese. Fourth, a submarine is a boat, not a ship. My Dad taught me this. You can put a boat on a ship but you can’t put a ship on a boat.😁 Last thing. The USS Razorback was one of the submarines launched from the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine on the day that the most submarines were launched in a single day in 1944. As a side note; my Dad retired from the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in 1971 after 21 years in the United States Navy. He final duty station and where he was the Chief in charge of the sub barracks among his duties. So, the sub has a special significance to me. Oh, I didn’t go Navy…I went Army…something one of my sisters was so distressed about, that she refused to even speak to me for three weeks after I enlisted in 1977.🤣👊🏻 Thanks for another great video and please, stick with the guitar music you had in the first part of the video…liked that a lot!😁
It took some very brave and dedicated servicemen to enter that vessel knowing full well that there was a very high probability that they could perish in the most horrifying ways imagineable. We all owe the freedoms we enjoy today because of the brilliant engineers who designed these amazing machines, and the honorable people who risked their lives operating them - past and present
Hi ... thank you for posting some great memories of the tour thru the Razorback. I was also stationed aboard a Balao class submarine. And as it turned out, we were both stationed in San Diego in the late '60s, and I remember seeing the Razorback several times in port. I really appreciated the view of the inside of the submarine; many things reminded me of my old 'home'. You showed the Torpedo Loading Ramp. In your video, it appeared that it might be the after torpedo loading ramp. But there was also a forward torpedo loading ramp (In the early times of my tour of duty there, I was on the "Seaman" crew, and we loaded many torpedoes ... from my memory, they were mostly from the front). Early in my sailing experiences, I was incredibly sea sick. And I was in that condition several times when we went out to sea. Eventually, though, I got sick and tired of being sick and tired, and, for me, it was truly a matter of mind over matter. It was a mental conquering of sea-sickness. When we were rigged for sea, there were two crewman's bunks that were suspended with chains just below the torpedo loading ramp. (I think that these bunks have special names in some of the submarines vernacular, and I have heard those names, years later, but (my apologies) I have just forgotten them, but I'll just call them the 'cradle'.) I always considered myself to be so fortunate to be able to 'bunk' in one of those to 'racks'. One experience I had was that during some pacific operations, we were transiting from Pearl Harbor back to San Diego, and we encountered a typhoon. The sea was incredibly rough, and in the forward part of the ship, the movements seemed especially exaggerated. But when I crawled up into my 'rack' (in the cradle) and layed back to go to sleep, it seemed like I was being rocked to sleep by the sea. Yes, there some incredibly deep movements from the ocean, but to me [I synchronized my breathing with the movements], it was so relaxing. And, it was in that time period that I fell in love with the sea. I think the sea is like that, though, it grabs you by your heart and draws you in. It might very well be in a different way for different people, but that's what it does; it grabs your heart and draws you in. It is an incredibly beautiful place, but still an incredibly treacherous place. Back to the Sub. In the Control room of the Sub, you can see this big round thing under a table as you go through. That is the Gyroscope. Primarily it is how you navigate. (How important is that!). There's a whole lot of stuff going on in the Control room that you don't see. I think you should visit a submarine and find out some of the other things happening here (and you may even see some of them on movies). It's pretty incredible stuff. I was so glad to see the Radio Room. (In the Balao class, it was located at the back side of the Control Room, just before you go through one of those (incredibly important ... as in 'could save lives') 'little' doors (as they are called in the video) to the Crew's Mess. For much of my time on-board, I was not allowed to watch movies. (being a relatively newby, I was not 'Qualified in Submarines' yet. After I became qualified, though I could watch them all) But yet, this is a major social center for the crew. (Behind the movie screen that you see in the video, there is a sink where the 'mess cook' washes all the dishes. Everyone gets their turn to do this, as you advance through the procedures to be finally 'accepted' as one of the crew ... Under the Mess Cook's feet, is the door to the cooler. [Thank goodness for the cooler!!! ... "Thar be Ice Cream and other good food down there!"]). Leaving the Crew's Mess, and going aft, you find the Crew's berthing. There's a whole lot of 'Racks' back here. I have a story about that, but, sorry, maybe for a different time. Going still aft, there are two different Engine Compartments. In this video, they had 3 Fairbanks-Morse engines, (one had been removed). In our boat, we had 4 GM engines. (none removed). Behind the two Engine Compartments was the Maneuvering Room. This is an incredibly important part of the ship, where they basically control all the energy of the engines and batteries. And behind that is the After Torpedo Room. Our Sail was not like the Razorback Sail, where the Razorback had a full height sail, front to back, but our sail was half height up front.
Wait for it, at 15 minutes he finally bumps his head. Kinda like watching a race expecting a wreck, Lol. Thanks for the tour, very interesting and nice to know it is there and you can actually stay the night on board.
There was a term used on submarines called “hot racking” which means as one crew member got out of the rack to start the day, the off-going member was assuming the sleep position
@@TheHistoryUnderground nice video.👍👍. Did you see the movie below ? Haunted sub ww2 movie .... I visit the. Uss bowfin in pearl harbor years ago... Did this sub still have diesel smell??..
I spent a whole weekend on the Alabama battle ship in Mobile Alabama with the Boy Scouts. It was in February, super cold. Me and my son had a blast playing ship battles. So cool.
This is cool, I served on a f 18 squadron attached to a carrier myself. Screw being stuck under water in a submarine! Especially one as small as that lol.
Man that looks like great fun to me I grew up a navy brat and I still remember dad bringing us down to see the ship he was serving on at the time that was about 40 years ago .
One note about all the levers and gauges on a WWII sub, every crewman had to be able to operate every piece of equipment on the boat before he was "qualified" to be a sailor on that boat and since no two boats were ever exactly alike each sailor had to qualify on each boat he served on.
Spent 5 years on the old diesel boats. Both Balao class. I did not have any trouble requalifying because they were built at the same time and went through the Guppy 2 modifications at the same time. The nuke fast attack was a lot different but somehow pretty much the same except for the tea kettle. Boomers were a really different story. Kind of boring on the patrols creeping along waiting for a signal to destroy the world. 7 years accumulated under water time. Sleeping on a old diesel boat is not on my bucket list. Been there, done that.
A good book is Thunder Below by Flukey who was the captain on several patrols of the USS Barb, the only sub to derail a train during the war. Great video, If you are out west visit the USS Blueback in Portland OR, the last diesel powered sub class in the US Navy.
Well done recondo. Slept overnight on the USS Massachusetts - very cool experience. If your travels ever take you to Battle Ship Cove, Fall River, MA, then check it out (especially before the WWII vets who tell their story pass on). Best memory was the smell of coffee at 0400 mixed with faint smell of oil.
Outstanding video. I always love it when you show the radio room on the ships you visit. My Dad was a radioman on the USS Jerome County, LST 848, during World War 2. Gotta say I loved your choice of Scripture for your morning reading. Do your girls love history as much as you? My kids didn't like it. Thanks for sharing.
I looked it up for us...Goat Locker The term “goat locker,” is another example of how the goat has influenced Navy culture. In 1893, when the chief petty officer rank was established, the goat locker was still the area where goats were kept aboard ship. The goats were under the charge of the chief petty officers and the livestock pens were in the chiefs’ quarters. “Goat locker” is still used today as a nickname for the chief petty officers’ mess and berthing. The Bluejacket’s Manual also states that the goat locker is a “good-natured reference to chiefs as ‘old goats.’”
I don't think I'd last very long without smacking my head on something. I can't even walk around my house without doing it most days 😅. Very cool that you give your daughters this kind of experience. My dad used to do the same kind of things with us as kids and they're things I still remember. I've stayed in quonset hut style barracks at Wright Patterson Air Force Base, flown on an old Ford Trimotor plane from Port Clinton Ohio to Put-In-Bay on South Bass Island in Lake Erie, to recall a few.
Love the video’s, especially this one. The name Razorback rang a bell with me so I asked my dad if he ever served on her. He never served a long period but did take students from sub school out for 2 weeks at a time on her. He taught at the sun school in New London, Con. Sometime around 1963-65 or so. He also served on the Perch and the Bluegill during Vietnam. Thanks for the video. I said I would show it to him when I go up for Thanksgiving.
Like the German U-boats, internal combustion engines (typically diesels) ran on the surface and electric motors ran the boat while submerged. Of course, the engines charged the batteries via generators while on surface. The submarines of WWII traveled mainly on the surface, as the technology of the time didn't allow for long underwater cruises. With the advent of nuclear power, that all changed-John in Texas
Thank you. I qualified on two Balao class boats in early 1960's, Sea Devil and Pomfret. These boats were older than me. Tx for bringing back the memories.
I like how they included old photos of the activities of the crew when the submarine was in active service. I went up in the conning tower in the Drum in Mobile and yes, it was a bit dangerous to climb up into - and also climbing down - but I was able to look into the periscope and see the Alabama. Too bad you couldn’t sleep in the captain’s quarters and your family in XO’s quarters. What an honor and privilege to spend the night on the Razorback! Thank you, JD! Nice touch about reading the story of Jonah! Perfect! (Maybe Jonah got swallowed up by a Razorback Whale!)
Thx for the walkthu! Not much has changed since my time in the fleet. I was on a surface ship (submarine tender), and while it was bigger than the razorback, it was still pretty claustrophobic in places. Those racks (Navy term for bed) were exactly what I slept on for 4 years. You always tried to get a middle or lower rack, never the top one, as you'd have to contend with overhead pipes and fittings. It's awesome you get to have experiences like this, and demonstrate a little history. I never cease to be amazed at what sub sailors had to work with and live like while at sea- much respect!
This is the first of your videos I have seen, great job! I am a retired submarine sailor, but newer boats so much more room. It was interesting, I may have to try to spend the night.
Goat locker : CPO’S are affectionately referred to as old goats. We didn’t actually call them old goats out loud though. Space was so small. There was a space with a table were chiefs would sit
I have lived 7 miles away from the maritime museum in manitowoc,wi. For 35 years now where the uss cobia is docked! And have never toured it yet, but still on the bucket list. And you can do over nites on this submarine too. The amazing thing is the Diesel engines are still in operating condition, I know the last time some of the crew that served on it they brought the ship to life, and started the diesels on it! And damn it smoked like crazy, but it was neat. I can’t remember how many subs were built in manitowoc, but the cobia was not
