USS L-8 (SS-48)

USS "L-8" (SS-48) was an "L"-class submarine of the United States Navy. Her keel was laid down on 24 February 1915 by the Portsmouth Navy Yard in Kittery, Maine.

The L-boats designed by Lake Torpedo Boat ("L-5" through "L-8") were built to slightly different specifications from the other L-boats, which were designed by Electric Boat, and are sometimes considered a separate "L-5" class.

"L-8" was launched on 23 April 1917 sponsored by Miss Nancy Gill, and commissioned on 30 August 1917 with Lieutenant J. Parker, Jr., in command.

Following training operations along the East Coast, "L-8" prepared for European service. Departing Charleston, South Carolina, on 20 October, the submarine steamed for the Azores to join Submarine Division 6 for patrols against U-boats. She arrived Bermuda on 13 November, two days after the end of World War I, and was ordered to return to the United States.

After exercises and visits in Caribbean Sea and Central American ports, "L-8" arrived San Pedro, California, on 13 February 1919 to join the submarine flotilla on the West Coast. Remaining there from 1919 to 1922, she experimented with new torpedoes and undersea detection equipment. Following a period of commission, in ordinary, early in 1922, "L-8" departed San Pedro 25 July for the Atlantic, arriving Hampton Roads, Virginia, on 28 September. The submarine decommissioned there 15 November 1922 and was sold 21 December 1925 and scrapped.

References