Manitowoc in Manitowoc County, Wisconsin — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Manitowoc Submarines
Photographed by Keith L, September 16, 2008
1. Manitowoc Submarines Marker
At the outbreak of World War II in 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt called upon America to rearm. Increasing the number of submarines became a goal. Because existing shipbuilders could not meet production schedules, the U.S. Navy approached Charles C. West, president of the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company, and requested that his firm build submarines.
Government contracts led to the expansion and modernization of the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company facilities. Workers and engineers rapidly developed innovative construction methods, including side-launching of submarines. Ultimately, the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company employed some 7,000 workers in three shifts, seven days a week.
U.S.S. Peto, launched in 1942, became the first of twenty-eight fleet submarines built at Manitowoc. The submarines were towed to New Orleans via the Illinois-Mississippi Waterway using a special floating dry dock. U.S.S. Rasher, a Manitowoc submarine, sank 99,901 tons of Japanese shipping, the second highest total for an American submarine. Four Manitowoc submarines, Golet, Kete, Lagato, and Robalo, along with 336 officers and enlisted men were lost during the war.
Erected 1989 by the Wisconsin Historical Society. (Marker Number 285.)
Topics and series.
this page online
Location. 44° 5.568′ N, 87° 39.379′ W. Marker is in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, in Manitowoc County. It can be reached from the intersection of Maritime Drive and North 7th Street, on the right when traveling east. Marker is is near the Manitowoc River just west of the Wisconsin Maritime Museum. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 75 Maritime Drive, Manitowoc WI 54220, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is on Wisconsin’s Door Peninsula. It is also in the American Midwest, on the Great Lakes, and in the Corn Belt. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture and also the Northwest Territory.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: First Landing (within shouting distance of this marker); U.S.S. Cobia (within shouting distance of this marker); U.S.S. Peto (SS 265) (within shouting distance of this marker); U.S.S. Pogy (SS 266) (within shouting distance of this marker); U.S.S. Pompon (SS 267) (within shouting distance of this marker); U.S.S. Puffer (SS 268) (within shouting distance of this
Photographed by Keith L, September 16, 2008
2. Manitowoc Submarines Marker
Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker. Another Manitowoc Submarines marker in Peoria, Illinois
Also see . . .
1. Wisconsin Maritime Museum website homepage. Museum website homepage (Submitted on August 14, 2024, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.)
2. USS Cobia. Wikipedia entry. (Submitted on October 4, 2008.)
Additional keywords. SS-245
Photographed by Robert L Weber, January 5, 2011
3. Manitowoc Submarines Marker and Wisconsin Maritime Museum
Photographed by Keith L, September 16, 2008
4. U.S.S. Cobia
Photographed by Robert L Weber, January 5, 2011
5. U.S.S. Cobia marker nearby
Photographed by Keith L, September 16, 2008
6. Wisconsin Maritime Museum / Manitowoc Harbor
Photographed by Robert L Weber, January 5, 2011
7. Ralph Clark Huston Jr. gun mount and marker nearby
Only person to be buried at sea from the decks of a submarine.
Photographed by Keith L, September 16, 2008
8. Nearby Marker
Dedicated to those who constructed or served on Manitowoc built Submarines 1941 - 1945 on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the United States Navy Submarine Service 1900 - 2000.
Photographed by Keith L, September 16, 2008
9. Nearby Plaque
This spot marks the landing of the first white settlers in Manitowoc May 5, 1836
Manitowoc County Historical Society 1939
Manitowoc County Historical Society 1939
Photographed by Ian Lefkowitz, July 28, 2024
10. Manitowoc Submarines Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on April 3, 2025. It was originally submitted on October 4, 2008, by Keith L of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. This page has been viewed 5,756 times since then and 36 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on October 4, 2008, by Keith L of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. 3. submitted on January 6, 2011, by Bob (peach) Weber of Dewey, Arizona. 4. submitted on October 4, 2008, by Keith L of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. 5. submitted on January 5, 2011, by Bob (peach) Weber of Dewey, Arizona. 6. submitted on October 4, 2008, by Keith L of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. 7. submitted on January 5, 2011, by Bob (peach) Weber of Dewey, Arizona. 8, 9. submitted on October 4, 2008, by Keith L of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. 10. submitted on March 25, 2025, by Ian Lefkowitz of New York, New York. • Kevin W. was the editor who published this page.
