USS Gudgeon (SS-211) - First War Patrol

First War Patrol

On 11 December, Gudgeon (commanded by Elton W. "Joe" Grenfell) departed Pearl Harbor on the first American submarine war patrol of World War II. Her commanding officer was provided with explicit written orders to carry out unrestricted submarine warfare. Gudgeon made her first contact on a target in Japanese Home Waters 31 December. When she returned 50 days later, Gudgeon had contributed two more impressive "firsts" to the Pacific submarine fleet. She was the first American submarine to patrol along the Japanese coast itself, as her area took her off Kyūshū in the home islands. On 27 January 1942, en route home, Gudgeon became the first United States Navy submarine to sink an enemy warship in World War II. Gudgeon fired three torpedoes, and I-73 was destroyed; though Gudgeon claimed only damage, the loss was confirmed by .