USS Garfish

USS H-3 underway, circa 1922
History
Name:	USS H-3
Builder:	Moran Bros., Seattle, Washington
Laid down:	3 April 1911, as Garfish
Launched:	3 July 1913
Commissioned:	16 January 1914
Decommissioned:	23 October 1922
Renamed:	H-3, 17 November 1911
Struck:	18 December 1930
Fate:	Sold for scrap, 14 September 1931
General characteristics
Type:	H-class submarine
Displacement:	358 long tons (364 t) surfaced 467 long tons (474 t) submerged
Length:	150 ft 4 in (45.82 m)
Beam:	15 ft 10 in (4.83 m)
Draft:	12 ft 5 in (3.78 m)
Installed power:	950 hp (710 kW) (diesel engines) 600 hp (450 kW) (electric motors)
Propulsion:	2 × New London Ship & Engine Co. diesel engines 2 × Electro Dynamic Co. electric motors 2 × shafts
Speed:	14 kn (16 mph; 26 km/h) surfaced 10.5 kn (12.1 mph; 19.4 km/h) submerged
Test depth:	200 ft (61 m)
Complement:	25 officers and men
Armament:	4 × 18 inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes (8 torpedoes)

USS H-3 (SS-30) was a H-class submarine originally named Garfish, the only ship of the United States Navy named for the garfish, a popular target for recreational anglers.

Garfish was laid down by Moran Bros. in Seattle, Washington. She was renamed H-3 on 17 November 1911, launched on 3 July 1913 sponsored by Ms. Helen MacEwan, and commissioned at Puget Sound on 16 January 1914, Lieutenant, junior grade William R. Munroe in command.

After shakedown, H-3 was attached to the Pacific Fleet and began operations along the coast from lower California to Washington, exercising frequently with H-1 and H-2.

H-3 ran aground in heavy fog while attempting to enter Humboldt Bay on the morning of 16 December 1916. The crew were rescued by Coast Guard Humboldt Bay Life-Saving Station; many were brought to shore by breeches buoy. Storm surf pushed H-3 high up on a sandy beach, surrounded by quicksand. At low tide, she was 75 ft (23 m) from the water, but at high tide, the ocean reached almost 250 ft (76 m) beyond her. The submarine crew pitched camp on the Samoa, California beach near their stranded submarine, while the tug Iroquois steamed from Mare Island Navy Yard to attempt salvage. Combined efforts of Iroquois and Cheyenne were unable to dislodge H-3, so both ships returned to Mare Island while the Navy requested bids from commercial salvage firms. Only two bids were received. The largest marine salvage firm on the west coast offered to pull the submarine into deep water offshore for $150,000 and the Mercer-Fraser Company of Eureka offered to pull the submarine over the Samoa peninsula into Humboldt Bay for $18,000.