60th Anniversary Of The Nautilus – Home To Heroes

September 30th marked the 60th anniversary of the commissioning of USS Nautilus. The celebration was held at the pier next to the submarine at the Submarine Force Museum and Library in Groton, Connecticut. Attendees included several well-known faces and politicians including: Senator Richard Blumenthal, Congressman Joe Courtney, Governor Dannel Malloy, and Electric Boat Vice President of Engineering and Design Programs, Will Lennon. The U.S. Navy’s Director of Naval Nuclear Propulsion, Admiral John M. Richardson was also joined by several plank owners of the Nautilus and former and retired Naval commanders of the historic submarine.
The Nautilus (SSN 571) was considered the “First and Finest” of its kind. It was a part of a project started by Admiral Hyman G. Rickover (also known as the “Father of the Nuclear Navy”) and his team of engineers in an effort to move naval operations from diesel-driven engines to the nuclear powered engines that submarines use today.
Electric Boat designed and built the Nautilus in Groton, Connecticut and on January 17, 1955, she was finally “Underway on Nuclear Power” according to Cmdr. Eugene P. Wilkinson, the boat’s first skipper.
“Electric Boat couldn’t be prouder of its roll in producing the Nautilus”, said Will Lennon, VP of Electric Boat’s Engineering and Design Program, “it set the standard for high performance technology in the world.”
Blumenthal also commented, ”Great boats that our nation depends on emerge here in Groton”
“Connecticut is the only state that contributes directly to build out a naval base. This base provides 3.4 billion in economic activity and over 15,000 jobs to this area”, said Governor Dannel Malloy stressing the impact the Nautilus has made on the economic growth of the area.
The Nautilus had a 25 year service life and since her commissioning 60 years ago, 18 classes of submarines have been designed and 200 have been built. It paved the way for the newest Virginia class submarines and the upcoming Ohio class replacement submarines.
After the ceremony, a small reception was held inside the museum. Families and loved ones of Nautilus crews past and present shared their fondest memories with each other. Some of the invitees came from across the country just to say hello and wish the Nautilus a happy anniversary.
“We came from Colorado”, said William O’Halloran as he stood in front of the ship he served on in the 1950’s, “Those were some crazy days!”
Across the room, Captain David S. Boyd (ret) shook hands with CDR Jefferey C. Metzel, Jr., the fourth skipper of the Nautilus. Metzel was also joined by his family, including his nephew, Blues Traveler lead singer, John Popper.
“I am so proud of my uncle. He’s always been my hero”, said Popper.
Judging by the mood of the day, the Nautilus was clearly home to several heroes and pioneers of the nuclear navy. She changed the way people thought about the submarine community and showed them that nuclear propulsion could and would be done.