BLUEFISH SS 222

Ship Name and Designation History

This section lists the names and designations that the ship had during its lifetime. The list is in chronological order.

Gato Class Submarine Keel Laid June 5 1942 - Launched February 21 1943 USS BLUEFISH SS-222 Commissioned May 24 1943 - Decommissioned February 12 1947 Recommissioned January 7 1952 - Decommissioned November 20 1953 Laid up in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet Struck from Naval Register June 1 1959 Sold June 8 1960 for scrapping

Naval Covers

This section lists active links to the pages displaying covers associated with the ship. There should be a separate set of pages for each incarnation of the ship (ie, for each entry in the "Ship Name and Designation History" section). Covers should be presented in chronological order (or as best as can be determined).

Since a ship may have many covers, they may be split among many pages so it doesn't take forever for the pages to load. Each page link should be accompanied by a date range for covers on that page.

1. Covers Page 1     (1943-44)

 

Postmarks

This section lists examples of the postmarks used by the ship. There should be a separate set of postmarks for each incarnation of the ship (ie, for each entry in the "Ship Name and Designation History" section). Within each set, the postmarks should be listed in order of their classification type. If more than one postmark has the same classification, then they should be further sorted by date of earliest known usage.

A postmark should not be included unless accompanied by a close-up image and/or an image of a cover showing that postmark. Date ranges MUST be based ONLY ON COVERS IN THE MUSEUM and are expected to change as more covers are added.
 
>>> If you have a better example for any of the postmarks, please feel free to replace the existing example.

 

Postmark Type --- Killer Bar Text	Date From to Date To	Thumbnail Link To Postmark Image	Thumbnail Link To Cover Image

 

Groton CT Machine

1942-06-05

Keel Laying

 

Groton CT Machine

1943-02-21

Launching, cachet by Fred Hebditch

 

Locy Type 3z "BLUEFISH / LAUNCHED" Groton, CT

1943-02-21

No Image

Launching, cachet by Fred Hebditch

 

USPO Machine Groton, Conn.

1943-05-24

Hebditch Commissioning Cachet

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NO POSTMARKS REPORTED

POSTMARK DATE

Note:

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Locy Type 7z

1943-07-13

Censored wartime (WWII) use
Posted from another vessel or shore station...ship had no post office

 

Locy Type 2z

1944-10-06

Censored wartime (WWII) use
Posted from another vessel or shore station...ship had no post office

 

Other Information

USS BLUEFISH earned 10 Battle Stars for her WWII service
* 1st War Patrol September 9 1943 Java Sea
* 2nd War Patrol November 1943 South China Sea
* 3rd War Patrol December 1943 Java Sea
* 4th War Patrol March 1944 South China Sea
* 5th War Patrol June 1944 Netherlands Indies
* 6th War Patrol August 1944 Philippines
* 9th War Patrol July 1945 Netherlands Indies

Credited with sinking...
The 595-ton Japanese Torpedo Boat KASASAGI, September 27 1943 Netherlands Indies
The 3228-ton Japanese Merchant Vessel AKASHI MARU, September 29 1943 Netherlands Indies
The 10570-ton Japanese Tanker KYOKUEI MARU, November 8 1943 South China Sea
The 900-ton Japanese Torpedo Boat SANAE, November 18 1943 South China Sea
The 5061-ton Japanese Oiler ICHIYU MARU, December 30 1943 Java Sea
The 6046-ton Japanese Tanker HAKKO MARU, January 4 1944 South China Sea
The 10536-ton Japanese Oiler OMINESAN MARU, March 4 1944 South China Sea
The 1422-ton Japanese Merchant Vessel NANSHIN MARU, June 16 1944 Celebes Sea
The 3280-ton Japanese Transport Ship KANAN MARU, June 21 1944 Makassar Strait
The 5135-ton Japanese Tanker SHINPO MARU, August 14 1944 Philippines
The 18300-ton Japanese Fleet Tanker/Seaplane Carrier HAYASUI, August 19 1944 Philippines
The 2650-ton Japanese Submarine I-351, July 15 1945 Java Sea
An Un-named small Japanese vessel, July 19 1945 Netherlands East Indies

NAMESAKE - Named for a fish of the Atlantic coast of the United States

 

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If you have images or information to add to this page, then either contact the Curator or edit this page yourself and add it. See Editing Ship Pages for detailed information on editing this page.

 

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