USS Grayback ( SS - 208 ) USS " Grayback " ( SS - 208 ) , a " Tambor " - class submarine , was the first ship of the United States Navy to be named for the lake herring . Her keel was laid down by the Electric Boat Company in Groton , Connecticut . She was launched on 31 January 1941 sponsored by Mrs . Wilson Brown , wife of Rear Admiral Wilson Brown , Superintendent of the United States Naval Academy , and commissioned on 30 June 1941 with Lieutenant Willard A . Saunders in command . Attached to the Atlantic Fleet " Grayback " conducted her shakedown cruise in Long Island Sound out of Newport , New London , and New York City . In company with she departed New London , Connecticut , on 8 September for patrol duty in the Caribbean Sea and Chesapeake Bay ; then arrived Portsmouth , New Hampshire , on 30 November for overhaul . With the United States ' s entry into the war , " Grayback " sailed for Pearl Harbor on 8 February . First patrol . " Grayback " ’ s first war patrol from 15 February to 10 April took her along the coast of Saipan and Guam . There she had a four - day encounter with an enemy submarine ; the enemy I - boat fired two torpedoes at " Grayback " on the morning of 22 February , then continued to trail her across the Pacific . " Grayback " spotted the enemy conning tower a couple of times , and the Japanese ship broached once ; but the " Grayback " could not get into position to attack . After four days , " Grayback " shook the other sub and continued on patrol . On 17 March she sank her first ship , a 3291 - ton cargo ship off Port Lloyd . " Grayback " ’ s second war patrol met with a dearth of targets although she even took the unusual and risky measure of patrolling surfaced during the day . On 22 June she arrived at Fremantle , Australia , which was to remain her home base for most of the war . On her third and fourth war patrols , in the South China Sea and St . George ' s Passage , " Grayback " was hampered by bright moonlight , shallow and treacherous water , and enemy patrol craft . Despite these hazards , she damaged several freighters and an enemy submarine . However , the very presence of " Grayback " and her sister ships in these waters — the threat they presented to shipping and the number of enemy escorts they tied up — was an important factor in the successful conclusion of the Guadalcanal campaign , America ' s first offensive campaign in the Pacific war . Fifth patrol . The fifth war patrol began as " Grayback " sailed from Australia on 7 December 1942 . Only a week out of port , Pharmacist ' s Mate Harry B . Roby was called upon to perform an emergency appendectomy , the second to be done on a patrolling submarine . With " Grayback " running a hundred feet beneath the surface , the untutored Roby successfully removed the infected appendix , and his patient was back standing watch by the end of the patrol . Then , on 25 December , " Grayback " surfaced to sink four landing barges with her deck guns . Four days later she was again fired on by an enemy submarine but maneuvered to avoid the torpedoes . On 3 January 1943 sunk " I - 18 " , one of 25 Japanese submarines destroyed by western submarines during the war . On 5 January " Grayback " served as beacon ship for the bombardment of Munda Bay and also indulged in rescue work . Lying off Munda early in the morning of 5 January , she received word that six survivors of a crashed B - 26 Marauder bomber were holed up on the island . " Grayback " sent ashore two men , then submerged at dawn to avoid enemy aircraft . The submariners located the downed aviators , three of whom were injured , and hid out with them in the jungle . As night fell , " Grayback " surfaced offshore and by coded light signals directed the small boat " home safe " with the rescued aviators . For this action skipper Edward C . Stephan received the Navy Cross as well as a Silver Star from the US Army . " Grayback " continued on patrol , torpedoing and damaging several Japanese ships . On 17 January she attacked a destroyer escorting a large maru , hoping to disable the escort and then sink the freighter with her deck guns . However , the destroyer evaded the torpedoes and dropped 19 depth charge s on " Grayback " . One blew a gasket on a manhole cover , and the submarine , leaking seriously , was ordered back to Brisbane where she arrived 23 February . Sixth patrol . On her sixth war patrol from 16 February to 4 April 1943 , " Grayback " again had a run of bad luck and from the Bismarck Islands - Solomon Islands area without any military success . Her newly installed SJ radar had failed to function ; and although she had taken several shots at " maru " s , none were sunk . Seventh patrol . The seventh patrol was more successful . Departing Brisbane on 25 April , " Grayback " intercepted a convoy whose position had been radioed to her by on 11 May . In a night surface attack " Grayback " fired a spread of six torpedoes at the seven freighters and their three escorts . The three escorts charged and she had to go deep to elude the attacking enemy . She was credited with the sinking of cargo ship " Yodogawa Maru " . On 16 May she torpedoed and seriously damaged a destroyer . The following day " Grayback " intercepted four marus with one escort and sank freighter " England Maru " and damaged two others before she was forced to dive . She arrived Pearl Harbor on 30 May , then proceeded to San Francisco , California , for a much needed overhaul . Eighth Patrol . Arriving Pearl Harbor on 12 September 1943 , " Grayback " prepared for her eighth war patrol , now under the command of John Anderson Moore . Sailing 26 September with , she rendezvoused with at Midway Island to form the first of the Submarine Force ' s highly successful wolfpack s . The three submarines under Captain " Swede " Momsen in " Cero " , cruised the China Sea and returned to base with claims of 38 , 000 tons sunk and 3300 damaged . " Grayback " accounted for two ships , a passenger - cargo vessel torpedoed 14 October and a former light cruiser , " Awata Maru " , torpedoed after an end - around run on a fast convoy 22 October . Wolf pack tactics came into play 2 October as " Grayback " closed a convoy already attacked by " Shad " and sunk a 9000 - ton transport listing from two of " Shad " ’ s torpedoes . The submarines had now expended all torpedoes , and on 10 November they returned to Midway . Grayson CO , John Anderson Moore was awarded after this mission by Navy Cross ( see Bureau of Naval Personnel Information Bulletin No . 329 ( August 1944 ) ) Ninth patrol . With almost a quarter of her crew untested in battle " Grayback " departed Pearl Harbor for the East China Sea on 2 December for her ninth war patrol . Within five days of her first contact with Japanese ships , she had expended all her torpedoes in a series of attacks which netted four ships for a total of over 10 , 000 tons . On the night of 18 December to 19 December " Grayback " attacked convoy of four freighters and three escorts . She sent freighter " Gyokurei Maru " and escort " Numakaze " to the bottom and damaged several others in surface attack . Two nights later , 20 December to 21 December , she spotted another convoy of six ships ; and , after an end - around run she fired a spread of nine torpedoes into the heart of the Japanese formation . This first attack sunk one freighter and damaged another before " Grayback " dived to elude depth charge s . Three hours later she surfaced and sank a second freighter . After an unsuccessful attack the following night had exhausted her torpedo supply , " Grayback " headed home . The submarine surfaced 27 December and sank a good - sized fishing boat with deck guns before reaching Pearl Harbor on 4 January 1944 . Grayback ' s CO , John Anderson Moore was awarded after this mission by second Navy Cross ( see Bureau of Naval Personnel Information Bulletin No . 330 ( September 1944 ) ) Tenth Patrol . " Grayback " ’ s tenth patrol , her most successful in terms of tonnage sunk , was also to be her last . She sailed from Pearl Harbor on 28 January 1944 , for the East China Sea . On 24 February " Grayback " radioed that she had sunk two cargo ships 19 February and had damaged two others ( Taikei Maru and Toshin Maru sunk ) . On 25 February she transmitted her second and final report . That morning she had sunk tanker " Nanho Maru " and severely damaged Asama Maru . With only two torpedoes remaining , she was ordered home from patrol . Due to reach Midway on 7 March , " Grayback " did not arrive . On 30 March ComSubPac listed her as missing and presumed lost with all hands . From captured Japanese records the submarine ' s last few days can be pieced together . Heading home through the East China Sea , on 27 February " Grayback " used her last two torpedoes to sink the freighter " Ceylon Maru " . That same day , a Japanese carrier - based plane spotted a submarine on the surface in the East China Sea and attacked . According to Japanese reports the submarine " exploded and sank immediately , " but antisubmarine craft were called in to depth - charge the area , clearly marked by a trail of air bubbles , until at last a heavy oil slick swelled to the surface . " Grayback " had ended her last patrol , one which cost the enemy some 21 , 594 tons of shipping . Grayson CO , John Anderson Moore was posthumously awarded after this mission by third Navy Cross ( see Bureau of Naval Personnel Information Bulletin No . 336 ( March 1945 ) ) " Grayback " ranked 20th among all submarines in total tonnage sunk with 63 , 835 tons and 24th in number of ships sunk with 14 . The submarine and crew had received two Navy Unit Commendation s for their seventh , eighth , ninth , and tenth war patrols . " Grayback " received eight battle stars for World War II service . See also . See also List of U . S . Navy losses in World War II .