USS Nathanael Greene (SSBN-636)
| Career | | | Ordered: | 21 July 1961 |
| Laid down: | 21 May 1962 |
| Launched: | 12 May 1964 |
| Commissioned: | 19 December 1964 |
| Decommissioned: | 15 December 1986 |
| Fate: | submarine recycling |
| Stricken: | 31 January 1987 |
| General Characteristics |
|---|
| Displacement: | 7250 tons surfaced, 8250 tons submerged, 6700 tons light |
| Length: | 129.5 m (425 ft) |
| Beam: | 10 m (33 ft) |
| Draft: | 9.6 m (31 ft 5 in) |
| Propulsion: | S5W reactor |
| Speed: | 16 knots (30 km/h) surfaced, 21 knots (39 km/h) submerged |
| Depth: | 1300 ft (396 m) |
| Complement: | two crews of 14 officers and 126 men each |
| Armament: | 16 missile tubes, 4 x 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes forward |
| Motto: |
USS Nathanael Greene (SSBN-636), a
James Madison-class submarine, was the only ship of the
United States Navy to be named for Major General
Nathanael Greene, who served in the
Continental Army during the
American Revolutionary War.
Her keel was laid down on
21 May 1962 at the
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in
New Hampshire. She was
launched 12 May 1964 sponsored by Mrs. Neander W. Wade, a descendant of General
Nathanael Greene, and
commissioned on
19 December 1964 with Commander Robert E. Crispin in command of the Blue Crew and Commander William M. Cossaboom in command of the Gold Crew.
Nathanael Greene departed
Portsmouth, New Hampshire, for shakedown on
30 December 1964, with her Gold Crew embarked. They were relieved
1 February 1965 by the Blue Crew. Her shakedown period was followed by availability at Portsmouth, after which the submarine, with Blue Crew embarked, departed Portsmouth for a missile loadout and her initial
Polaris missile deterrent patrol.
On
13 March 1986 Nathanael Greene ran aground in the
Irish Sea, suffering severe damage to her rudder and ballast tanks. Deactivated while still in commission in May, she was decommissioned on
15 December and stricken from the
Naval Vessel Register on
31 January 1987.
Nathanael Greene's grounding was the first serious accident involving an American nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine, but her removal from service allowed the
United States to easily comply with the missile limits of the
SALT II Treaty.
ex-
Nathanael Greene began the Navy's Nuclear Powered
Ship and Submarine Recycling Program in
Bremerton, Washington, on
1 September 1998. On
20 October 2000, she ceased to exist.
This article includes information collected from the
Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
