USS N-4 (SS-56) was a N-class coastal defense submarine

United States N class submarine

The United States N class submarines were a class of seven coastal defense submarines of the United States Navy.The boats were constructed by two companies to slightly different specifications; N-1, N-2, and N-3 by the Seattle Construction and Drydock Company of Seattle, Washington, and N-4, N-5,...

 of the United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

. Her keel was laid down on 24 March 1915 by Lake Torpedo Boat

Lake Torpedo Boat

The Lake Torpedo Boat Company of Bridgeport, Connecticut was an early maker of submarines for the U.S. Navy. Founded by Simon Lake in 1912, the firm competed with John Philip Holland's Electric Boat Company until financial difficulties led to the company's demise in 1924.-External links:**...

 Company in Bridgeport, Connecticut

Bridgeport, Connecticut

Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Located in Fairfield County, the city had an estimated population of 144,229 at the 2010 United States Census and is the core of the Greater Bridgeport area...

. The N-boats built by Lake had slightly different specifications from the ones built by Seattle Construction and Drydock and are sometimes considered a separate class.

N-4 was launched

Ship naming and launching

The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...

 on 27 November 1916 sponsored by Miss Dorothy H. Elliott, and commissioned

Ship commissioning

Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...

 at New York Navy Yard on 15 June 1918 with Lieutenant J. R. Mann, Jr., in command.

Service history

Departing New York on 25 June 1918, N-4 proceeded to the New London Submarine Base for outfitting and then she proceeded to the Torpedo Station at Newport, Rhode Island

Newport, Rhode Island

Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...

. Returning to New London, Connecticut

New London, Connecticut

New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States.It is located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, southeastern Connecticut....

, on 11 July, she once again departed on 28 July to patrol along the New England

New England

New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...

 coast and guard coastal shipping against German U-boat

U-boat

U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...

s. Alternating out of New London and New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

, she continued this duty until 3 November. The signing of the Armistice with Germany

Armistice with Germany (Compiègne)

The armistice between the Allies and Germany was an agreement that ended the fighting in the First World War. It was signed in a railway carriage in Compiègne Forest on 11 November 1918 and marked a victory for the Allies and a complete defeat for Germany, although not technically a surrender...

 found this submarine tied up at New London, where, but for a training cruise to Salem, Massachusetts

Salem, Massachusetts

Salem is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 40,407 at the 2000 census. It and Lawrence are the county seats of Essex County...

, and Portland, Maine

Portland, Maine

Portland is the largest city in Maine and is the county seat of Cumberland County. The 2010 city population was 66,194, growing 3 percent since the census of 2000...

, from 14 July to 30 September 1919, she remained until 1920.

During the first half of 1920, N-4 made short voyages to New York and Newport before she was placed in reserve at New London on 7 June. Taken out of reserve in early September, N-4 sailed for Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...

, on 15 September for extensive overhaul until 28 March 1921. Returning to New London in early April, she operated off the New England coast, out of Newport and New London until she put into New London on 6 December to have her main engines removed and transferred to a newer L-class submarine

United States L class submarine

The United States L class submarine was the United States Navy's first attempt at designing and building ocean-going submarines, which at the time was a yawning gap in capability compared with other major navies...

. Tug then towed the hulk of N-4 to Philadelphia. She arrived on 13 April 1922, and was decommissioned on 22 April. The submarine was sold for scrapping on 25 September to Joseph G. Hitner

Joseph G. Hitner

Joseph G. Hitner owned an iron works in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.He purchased many United States Navy ships in the early 1900s, converting some of them to merchant ships and scrapping others.-References:...

of Philadelphia.