About This Archive

About USS Cod

USS Cod (SS-224) was a Gato-class submarine built by Electric Boat Company in Groton, Connecticut. Commissioned on June 21, 1943, she conducted seven war patrols in the Pacific Theater, primarily under the command of Commander James C. Dempsey.

Operating primarily in the South China Sea and waters around the Philippines, Formosa, and Indochina, Cod was credited with sinking approximately 27,000 tons of enemy shipping. Her patrols took her from Brisbane and Darwin, Australia to Fremantle, and later to Subic Bay in the Philippines.

Today, USS Cod is a National Historic Landmark and museum ship docked in Cleveland, Ohio at North Coast Harbor. She is one of the best-preserved WWII submarines, with her fully operational Mark IV Torpedo Data Computer restored to working condition.

About This Archive

This website provides searchable access to the original war patrol reports filed by USS Cod after each combat patrol. These historical documents offer a detailed, day-by-day account of submarine operations during WWII.

What's Included

• Seven complete patrol reports — Original documents with narrative accounts, position reports, and contact logs
• Interactive patrol maps — Visualize Cod's routes across the Pacific with ship contacts, aircraft sightings, and daily positions
• Full-text search — Search across all documents for specific terms, dates, or events
• Glossary tooltips — Hover over military terms, aircraft names, and acronyms for instant definitions

How to Use This Site

• 🔍
  Search — Enter any term in the search box on the homepage. Results show matching text with context and link directly to the relevant page. Note: OCR quality varies considerably due to the condition of the original microfilm. Some text may not be recognized, so searches might miss occurrences.
• 📄
  Browse Documents — Use the dropdown menu to select and view any patrol report. Navigate pages using the toolbar or keyboard shortcuts.
• 🗺️
  Patrol Maps — Click "Patrol Maps" to view interactive maps showing Cod's routes. Toggle individual patrols on/off using the layer control. Click any waypoint marker to see details including date, time, position, and for aircraft contacts, identification photos.
• 💡
  Glossary — When viewing documents, terms like Betty or TDC are highlighted. Hover over them to see definitions and, for aircraft, identification photos.

Keyboard Shortcuts (PDF Viewer)

• ← / → — Previous/Next page
• + / - — Zoom in/out
• Ctrl + F — Search within document

Map Legend

The patrol track maps use the following markers:

• ● Red pins — Ship contacts (enemy vessels, fishing boats, friendly ships)
• ● Blue pins — Aircraft contacts (enemy and friendly aircraft)
• ● Green circles — Noon positions (daily navigation fixes)
• ● Orange circles — Inferred positions (derived from narrative descriptions)
• ⭐ Gold star — Special events (Japan surrender announcement)

Directional arrows on the track lines indicate the direction of travel. Each patrol is shown in a different color and can be toggled on/off using the layer control.

Sources & Acknowledgments

The patrol reports in this archive are sourced from the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) via the Maritime Park Association. Position data has been compiled from the original documents and cross-referenced with historical sources.

Additional historical context drawn from:

• Clay Blair's Silent Victory: The U.S. Submarine War Against Japan
• USS Cod Submarine Memorial archives
• Historic Naval Ships Association documentation

Aircraft identification images sourced from Wikipedia Commons and other public domain sources.

Contact

This archive was created and is maintained by Joe Knapp (jmknapp@gmail.com).

Questions, corrections, or additional information about USS Cod's wartime service are welcome. For inquiries about the submarine herself, contact the USS Cod Submarine Memorial in Cleveland, Ohio.