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NavSource Online: Submarine Photo Archive
Patch on left contributed by Mike Smolinski, patch on right contributed by Don McGrogan, BMCS, USN (ret.)

V-9 (SC-5)
Cuttlefish (SS-171)

Radio Call Sign: November - India - Delta - Juliet
Cachalot Class Submarine: Authorized as V-9 (SC-5); Laid down, 7 October 1931, as Cuttlefish (SS-171) at Electric Boat Co., Groton, CT.; Launched, 21 November 1933; Commissioned USS Cuttlefish (SS-171), 8 June 1934; Decommissioned, 24 October 1945, at Philadelphia Navy Yard, Philadelphia, PA.; Struck from the Naval Register, 3 July 1946; Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 12 February 1947. Cuttlefish received two battle stars for World War II service.

Specifications: Displacement, Surfaced: 1,130 t., Submerged: 1,650 t.; Length 274'; Beam 24' 0"; Draft 12' 11"; Speed, surfaced 17 kts, submerged 8 kts; Depth Limit 250'; Complement 4 officers 39 enlisted; Armament, four 21" torpedo tubes forward, two 21" torpedo tubes aft, 18 torpedoes; one 3"/50 deck gun, two 30 cal. mgs.; Propulsion, diesel electric, Maschinfabrik - Augusburg- Nurnburg, Electric Boat Co., diesel engines, hp 3100, Fuel Capacity, 83,290 gal., Westinghouse Electric Co., electric motors, hp 1600, Battery Cells 240, twin propellers.
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SS-171631kCuttlefish (SS-171) Platform Deck; Hold; Inboard Profile, 14 June 1933.National Archives Identifier: 78116493
Photo courtesy of catalog.archives.gov
SS-171751kCuttlefish (SS-171) Main Deck, Outboard Profile.National Archives Identifier: 78116495
Photo courtesy of catalog.archives.gov
SS-171323kLaunching of the Cuttlefish (SS-171) on 21 November 1933.AP Wire photo courtesy of Ron Reeves (of blessed memory).
SS 171
0817139		 NR Uncle Sam's submarines are launched with fancy names these days. This one is the Cuttlefish (SS-171), the last thing in submarine efficiency, which drew a big gathering to the Groton, Conn., shipyards when she was launched and christened by Mrs. E. A. Bullard, wife of Lieut. Comdr. Bullard. PDF Image and text provided by Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
Photo from Evening Star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 03 December 1933, Image 103 via chroniclingamerica.loc.gov.
SS-171143kA photo of a model on the Cuttlefish (SS-171) as built.USN photo courtesy of Darryl L. Baker.
SS 171
0817140		 NR Launching of the Sub
First Victory Sub launched at E. B., with original Sponsor's party. New London Tapestry.		 Image and text provided by Connecticut State Library, Hartford, CT.
Photo from Eastern Connecticut News. (Groton, Conn.) 1946-194?, 02 September 1946, Image 14, via chroniclingamerica.loc.gov.
SS-17161kCommemorative postal cover marking the commissioning of the Cuttlefish (SS-171), 8 June 1934. Courtesy of Jack Treutle (of blessed memory).
SS-171139kCuttlefish (SS-171) with bow planes rigged out just prior to diving, on builder's trials off Connecticut, summer 1934. USN photo from NARA # 19-N-14770, courtesy of Daniel Dunham. Photo I.d. courtesy of David Johnston.
SS-171100kCuttlefish (SS-171) probably on post commissioning trials, late summer 1934.
She was one of the last two V-boats (SS-163-171), a link between the big cruisers and the much smaller submarines that the London Treaty of 1930 forced the U.S. Navy to accept. Although externally she was much like the later "fleet submarines," internally she was quite different, with vastly different propulsion.		Text courtesy of U.S. Submarines Through 1945, An Illustrated Design History by Norman Friedman. Naval Institute Press.
USN photo from NARA # 19-N-15253, courtesy of Daniel Dunham. Photo I.d. courtesy of David Johnston
SS-171136kCuttlefish (SS-171) probably on post commissioning trials, late summer 1934.USN photo from NARA # 19-N-15260, courtesy of Daniel Dunham. Photo I.d. courtesy of David Johnston.
SS-171424kCuttlefish (SS-171), probably on post commissioning trials, late summer 1934.
Note her bell. 		USN photo courtesy of Scott Koen & ussnewyork.com.
SS 171
0817104		 497k What looks to be Big Lucky Cups, White Beef, Old Plantation written on the van backdropped by the Cuttlefish (SS-171), still emblazoned with C2 on her conning tower in Miami, Florida, August, 1934. Photo courtesy of Doug Barylski.
SS-17118kCommemorative postal cover marking the Cuttlefish's (SS-171) shakedown cruise to New Orleans, 3 September 1934. Courtesy of Jack Treutle (of blessed memory).
SS-171NR Newest U. S. Submarine Visits Washington Navy Yard for Brief Stay
Right-Lieut. (J. G.) T. B. Klakring, torpedo officer, ringing the ship's bell. Lower: Wash day aboard the submarine. E. A. Whitworth and T. F. Schmidt are hanging up clothes that would do credit to any laundry. The Cuttlefish (SS-171) was commissioned in June and made her shakedown cruise to Southern waters, visiting a variety of ports. She carries 5 officers and 45 enlisted men.
The newest "pig boat” in Uncle Sam's Navy—now at the Washington Navy Yard, where she will stay until Monday next, when she departs for New London, Conn. The vessel may be viewed from the docks at the yard, but visitors are not being allowed aboard Navy Department authorities said.		Image and text provided by Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
Photo & text by Evening Star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 12 September 1934, Image 3, courtesy of chroniclingamerica.loc.gov.
SS-17116kCommemorative postal cover & photo marking the first Xmas of the Cuttlefish (SS-171), 25 December 1934. Courtesy of Jack Treutle (of blessed memory).
SS-1712.53kPortsmouth N.H. Navy Yard, photo date 29 April 1935: I believe this boat to be Cuttlefish (SS-171). The configuration of the boat could only make her Cachalot (SS-170) or Cuttlefish and the first boat was already in the Pacific when the photo was taken. Cuttlefish was commissioned on 8 June 1934. In April 1935 she was working up for her pending transfer to the Pacific, and although DANFS isn't specific on it, it is likely that she spent some time in the yard prior to the voyage.Photo i.d. courtesy of Ric Hedman & David Johnston.
Record Group 18: Records of the Army Air Forces, ca. 1902 - 1964
Series: "Airscapes" of American and Foreign Areas, 1917 - 1964
File Unit: New Hampshire - Portsmouth
Local Identifier: 18-AA-81-35
National Archives Identifier: 23942479
Photo courtesy of catalog.archives.gov
SS-1711.00kCuttlefish (SS-171) surfacing with an odd stern first angle, circa 1935-38, location unknown. USN photo courtesy of John Shane, whose grandfather, Lieutenant Commander Louis Shane, Jr. served aboard the Cuttlefish at New London Naval Yard in the mid 1930's and was lost at sea while commanding the Shark (SS-174), approximately 11 February 1942.
I.d. courtesy of David Johnston & Ric Hedman, Darryl L. Baker, John Hummel & John Hart.
SS-171141k Starboard broadside photo of the Cuttlefish (SS-171) circa 1935.USN photo courtesy of John L. Ross. Photo I.d. courtesy of David Johnston
Navy Day 78k Commemorative postal cover marking:
Bass (SS-164);
Dolphin (SS-169);
Porpoise (SS-172);
Argonaut (SS-169);
Nautilus (SS-168);
Cuttlefish (SS-171)
Barracuda (SS-163);
Narwhal (SS-167)
Bonita (SS-165); &
Cachalot (SS-170) on Navy Day, 27 October 1935. 		Courtesy of Jack Treutle (of blessed memory).
SS-17168kCommemorative postal cover marking the third anniversary of the launching of the Cuttlefish (SS-171), 8 June 1937. Courtesy of Jack Treutle (of blessed memory).
SS-17118kAdmiral Robert Lee Dennison, then Lieutenant Commander, commanded the Cuttlefish (SS-171) from 1937-1938. USN photo courtesy of Bill Gonyo.
SS-17127kCommemorative postal cover marking the Cachalot (SS-170) & Cuttlefish (SS-171) celebration of Xmas & New Years, 1938.Courtesy of Jack Treutle (of blessed memory).
SS-171256kCuttlefish (SS-171) circa 1939.USN photo courtesy of the US Naval Historical Center.
SS-171638kPort side view of the Cuttlefish (SS-171) about to enter Pearl Harbor, HI., circa 1939.USN photo by Tai Sing Loo, courtesy of ussubvetsofworldwarii.org.
AS 3 59k Panoramic photograph of Holland (AS-3) moored at Buoy 19, San Diego, CA, 1940, with eleven submarines alongside. Submarines are (from left to right):
Salmon (SS-182);
Seal (SS-183);
Stingray (SS-186);
Perch (SS-176);
Pollack (SS-180);
Cachalot (SS-170);
Cuttlefish (SS-171);
Skipjack (SS-184);
Sturgeon (SS-187);
Snapper (SS-185)
and Sargo (SS-188).
SS-182 through SS-187 were members of Submarine Division 15, commanded by R.W. Christie. Richmond (CL-9), flagship of the Commander Submarine Force, Pacific, is in the right distance.
 USN photo # NH 68481, from the collections of the US Naval Historical Center, courtesy of US Naval Institute, James C Fahey Collection.
SS-17157kCuttlefish (SS-171) is shown in a prewar configuration. Although C & R developed the basic design, the builder, E.B., was responsible for detailed arrangement. It provided a separate crew's mess, as in the much larger V-4 & 5 classes (SS-166-168). Both versions of this design had full double hulls, a feature taken from WW I German practice: narrow tanks at the ends proved very difficult to clean & preserve.
Note the boat's direct-drive diesel. Note also the considerable space around the conning tower, within the large bridge fairwater. As in later boats, the fairwater was drastically cut down in WW II & the 3-in gun relocated forward at the bridge.		Drawing by Jim Christley. Text courtesy of U.S. Submarines Through 1945, An Illustrated Design History by Norman Friedman. Naval Institute Press.
USN photo courtesy of the US Naval Historical Center.
SS 171
0817110		 931k Cuttlefish (SS-171) crew photo: back says circa 1939. The LCDR at center is a good match for George Edmund Peterson, Cuttlefish's CO from 1938-1941. Photo courtesy of David Wright.
SS-171450kBlack and white full size print of the above painting of the Cuttlefish (SS-171), firing a torpedo while submerged, in company with a number of amberjacks, dolphins and other fish. Painting by Harrison Miller, 1942. Official USN photo courtesy of George K.Chastain, Executive Director of The Belle W. Baruch Foundation.
SS 171
0817141		 NR The Comforts of Home Under the Sea
The Cuttlefish (SS-171), a modern submarine, was built to provide comfortable quarters for its crew as well as to raise havoc with the enemy. Its facilities include a reception room, shower, and radios used solely for amusement. At left, a yeoman keeps records in the sub’s office. Those records show that the Cuttlefish has sunk one Jap warship and three Jap merchant ships although it was launched very recently. At center is the crew’s quarters, and at right, the cook smiles as he prepares turkey for dinner. The spacious engine room and other compartments of this sub belie the visions of cramped living conditions so often associated with submarines. The Cuttlefish is powered with Diesel engines and has the latest safety developments in its escape hatch.		 Image and text provided by University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE.
Photo from The Frontier. (O'Neill City, Holt County, Neb.) 1880-1965, 24 June 1943, Image 7 via chroniclingamerica.loc.gov.
SS-17176kCuttlefish (SS-171), underway, circa mid-1943, while serving on training duty out of New London, Connecticut. Official USN photo # 80-G-K-3350, now in the collections of the National Archives.
SS-17176kCuttlefish (SS-171), submerging, while serving on training duty out of New London, Connecticut, circa mid-1943. Official USN photo # 80-G-K-3348, now in the collections of the National Archives.
SS-171258kCuttlefish's (SS-171) bow knifes sharply upward as it surfaces on 8 June 1943. The photograph is included in Lewis Parks's photo album entitled "Submarine Pictures W. War II."
Photo # 2015-50 courtesy of trumanlibrary.org.
SS-171279kCuttlefish (SS-171) lookout with binoculars ready should unidentified aircraft or ships appear. The photograph is included in Lewis Parks's photo album entitled "Submarine Pictures W. War II."
Photo # 2015-52 courtesy of trumanlibrary.org.
SS-171563kCuttlefish (SS-171) lathes, June 1943.U.S. Navy Photograph # 80-G-68657, now in the collections of the National Archives courtesy of the National Museum of the U.S. Navy, via flickr.com.
SS-171554kThe Officer of the Deck of Cuttlefish (SS-171) takes a bearing in the conning tower, 9 June 1943.U.S. Navy Photograph # 80-G-41791, now in the collections of the National Archives courtesy of the National Museum of the U.S. Navy, via flickr.com.
SS-1711.52kLife onboard Cuttlefish (SS-171): Crew quarters are compact, but comfortable. Here during off duty hours, seaman read, shine shoes, or just sit and talk. Photographed 8 June 1943.U.S. Navy Photograph # 80-G-41788, now in the collections of the National Archives courtesy of the National Museum of the U.S. Navy, via flickr.com.
SS-171853kLife onboard Cuttlefish (SS-171): As the submarine moves along on the surface, crew members ready the deck gun for action. Photographed 8 June 1943.U.S. Navy Photograph # 80-G-41787, now in the collections of the National Archives courtesy of the National Museum of the U.S. Navy, via flickr.com.
SS-1711.48kLife onboard Cuttlefish (SS-171): Wearing an oxygen "lung," a seaman comes up through the escape hatch in a practice rescue drill. Photographed 8 June 1943.U.S. Navy Photograph # 80-G-41782, now in the collections of the National Archives courtesy of the National Museum of the U.S. Navy, via flickr.com.
SS-171516kLife onboard Cuttlefish (SS-171): The food served on submarines is famed throughout the Navy. Here is a ship's cook is getting turkeys ready for dinner. Photographed 8 June 1943.U.S. Navy Photograph # 80-G-41781, now in the collections of the National Archives courtesy of the National Museum of the U.S. Navy, via flickr.com.
SS-1711.36kLife onboard Cuttlefish (SS-171): Submarines are powered by diesel engines when operation on the surface. Here Machinist Mates check the mammoth twin diesels in the engine room. Photographed 8 June 1943.U.S. Navy Photograph # 80-G-41780, now in the collections of the National Archives courtesy of the National Museum of the U.S. Navy, via flickr.com.
SS-1711.04kLife onboard Cuttlefish (SS-171): Lookouts scan the seas from conning tower of the submarine. Photographed 8 June 1943.U.S. Navy Photograph # 80-G-41778, now in the collections of the National Archives courtesy of the National Museum of the U.S. Navy, via flickr.com.
SS-171515kLife onboard Cuttlefish (SS-171): Officer wardroom, circa WWII. U.S. Navy Photograph # 80-G-68658, now in the collections of the National Archives courtesy of the National Museum of the U.S. Navy, via flickr.com.
SS-171481kLife onboard Cuttlefish (SS-171) in the battery compartment and Officers Berthing. Text i.d. via Ric Hedman.
U.S. Navy Photograph # 80-G-68655, now in the collections of the National Archives courtesy of the National Museum of the U.S. Navy, via flickr.com.
SS-171248kLife onboard Cuttlefish (SS-171): Ye local watering hole, circa WWII. U.S. Navy Photograph # 80-G-68654, now in the collections of the National Archives courtesy of the National Museum of the U.S. Navy, via flickr.com.
SS 171
0817138		 NR AMERICAN HEROES BY LEFF
When Richard Breckenridge's submarine made a hurried dive off Japan, a hatch jammed, but he ignored the order to abandon the rapidly flooding conning tower and remained behind, desperately trying to fasten it. By succeeding, he saved vital equipment for his submarine and became the first enlisted man in the submarine service to win the Navy Cross. He was willing to give his life. How much of your income will you invest in Payroll Savings? 		Insert photo via findagrave.com.
Image and text provided by University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Library, Chapel Hill, NC.
Photo & text by The Onslow County News and Views. (Jacksonville, N.C.) 193?-1946, 24 August 1943, Image 2, courtesy of chroniclingamerica.loc.gov.
SS-171315kMid war views of the of the Cuttlefish (SS-171), portside at port and starboard at starboard.USN photo # 80G-419709 & 80G-419715 (inset), from National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), College Park, Maryland, courtesy of Sean Hert.
SS-17132kCommemorative postal cover marking the 40th anniversary of the decommissioning of the Cuttlefish (SS-171) at Philadelphia, Pa, 24 October 1985.Courtesy of Jack Treutle (of blessed memory).
View the V-9 / Cuttlefish (SS-171)
DANFS history entry located on the Haze Gray & Underway Web Site.
Crew Contact And Reunion Information
U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation
Fleet Reserve Association
Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
Ep-21 (1) - Victory At Sea ~ Full Fathom Five - HQ
PigBoats.COM TM, A Historic Look at Submarines.

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