| 👁 Image USS R-25, probably at the Lake Torpedo Boat Company. at Bridgeport, Connecticut, in 1919 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| 👁 Image United States | |
| Name | R-25 |
| Ordered | 29 August 1916 |
| Builder | Lake Torpedo Boat Company, Bridgeport, Connecticut |
| Cost | $848,818.04 (hull and machinery)[1] |
| Laid down | 26 April 1917 |
| Launched | 15 May 1919 |
| Sponsored by | Mrs. Rosalinda Robinson |
| Commissioned | 23 October 1919 |
| Decommissioned | 21 June 1924 |
| Stricken | 9 May 1930 |
| Identification | |
| Fate | Sold for scrap, 30 July 1930 |
| General characteristics [2][3] | |
| Class & type | R-21-class submarine |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 175 feet (53 m) |
| Beam | 16 ft 7 in (5.05 m) |
| Draft | 13 ft 11 in (4.24 m) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed |
|
| Range | 3,523 nautical miles (6,525 km; 4,054 mi) at 11 kn (20 km/h; 13 mph), 6,499 nmi (12,036 km; 7,479 mi) if fuel loaded into the main ballast tanks |
| Test depth | 200 ft (61 m) |
| Capacity | 17,922 US gallons (67,840 L; 14,923 imp gal) fuel |
| Complement |
|
| Armament | |
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USS R-25 (SS-102), also known as "Submarine No. 102", was an R-21-class coastal and harbor defense submarines of the United States Navy commissioned after the end of World War I.
Design
[edit]The R-boats built by the Lake Torpedo Boat Company, R-21 through R-27, are sometimes considered a separate class, R-21-class, from those built by the Fore River Shipbuilding Company, R-1 through R-14, and the Union Iron Works, R-15 through R-20, R-1-class.[2]
The submarines had a length of 175 feet (53.3 m) overall, a beam of 16 ft 7 in (5.1 m), and a mean draft of 13 ft 11 in (4.2 m). They displaced 497 long tons (505 t) on the surface and 652 long tons (662 t) submerged. The R-21-class submarines had a crew of 3 officers and 23 enlisted men. They had a diving depth of 200 ft (61.0 m).[2][4]
For surface running, the boats were powered by two 500-brake-horsepower (373 kW) Busch-Sulzer diesel engines, each driving one propeller shaft. When submerged each propeller was driven by a 400-horsepower (298 kW) Diehl Manufacture Company electric motor. They could reach 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph) on the surface and 11 kn (20 km/h; 13 mph) underwater. On the surface, the R-21-class had a range of 3,523 nautical miles (6,525 km; 4,054 mi) at 11 kn (20 km/h; 13 mph), or 6,499 nmi (12,036 km; 7,479 mi) if fuel was loaded into their main ballast tanks.[4]
The boats were armed with four 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes in the bow. They carried four reloads, for a total of eight torpedoes. The R-21-class submarines were also armed with a single 3 in (76 mm)/50 caliber deck gun.[2][4]
Construction
[edit]
R-25's keel was laid down on 26 April 1917, by the Lake Torpedo Boat Company, in Bridgeport, Connecticut. She was launched on 15 May 1919,[5] sponsored by Mrs. Rosalinda Robinson,[6] and commissioned on 23 October 1919 with future Vice Admiral and Commander, Submarines, Southwest Pacific (COMSUBSOWESPAC), Lieutenant Commander Charles A. Lockwood, Jr., in command.[5]
Service record
[edit]At the end of November, R-25 got underway for her homeport, Coco Solo, in the Panama Canal Zone, arriving 11 January 1920.[5]
When the US Navy adopted its hull classification system on 17 July 1920, she received the hull number SS-102.[3]
Except for overhaul periods at Balboa, and on the East Coast, R-25 operated in the waters off the Panama Canal Zone, until the fall of 1923.[5]
Fate
[edit]In November of that year she arrived at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, and underwent inactivation overhaul. On 21 June 1924, she was decommissioned after just over four-and-a-half years of service. She was laid up at League Island, until she was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 9 May 1930, and sold for scrap on 30 July 1930.[5]
References
[edit]- ^ Navy List 1921, p. 770.
- ^ a b c d Friedman 1995, p. 308.
- ^ a b Priolo & R-25.
- ^ a b c Gardiner & Gray 1985, p. 129.
- ^ a b c d e DANFS & R-25.
- ^ Hall 1925, p. 188.
Bibliography
[edit]- "Table 21 - Ships on Navy List June 30, 1919". Congressional Serial Set. U.S. Government Printing Office: 770. 1921.
- Friedman, Norman (1995). U.S. Submarines Through 1945: An Illustrated Design History. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-263-3.
- Priolo, Gary. "R-25 (SS-102)". Navsource.net. Retrieved 20 November 2025.
- Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal (1985). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-85177-245-5.
- "R-25". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Navy Department, Naval History and Heritage Command. 26 August 2015. Retrieved 20 November 2025.👁 Public Domain
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. - Hall, Anne Martin (1925). Ships of the United States navy and their sponsors, 1913-1923. Retrieved 21 November 2025.
External links
[edit]
- Photo gallery of USS R-25 (SS-102) at NavSource Naval History
