View source for USS George Washington Carver

{{short description|Submarine of the United States}}

{{for|the Liberty ship|SS George Washington Carver}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=[[Image:Uss george washington carve.jpg|300px|USS George Washington Carver (SSBN/SSN-656)]]
|Ship caption=USS ''George Washington Carver'' (SSBN-656) ca. June 1966
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=United States
|Ship flag={{USN flag|1993}}
|Ship name=USS ''George Washington Carver''
|Ship namesake=[[George Washington Carver]] (1865–1943), an American [[researcher]] and [[inventor]]
|Ship ordered=
|Ship awarded=29 July 1963
|Ship builder=[[Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company]], [[Newport News, Virginia]]
|Ship laid down=24 August 1964
|Ship launched=14 August 1965
|Ship sponsor=Miss [[Marian Anderson]] (1897-1993)
|Ship acquired=
|Ship commissioned=15 June 1966
|Ship decommissioned=18 March 1993
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship struck=18 March 1993
|Ship reinstated=
|Ship motto=''Strength Through Knowledge''
|Ship fate=Scrapping via [[Ship and Submarine Recycling Program]] completed 21 March 1994
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=
|Ship class={{sclass|Benjamin Franklin|submarine|4}} [[fleet ballistic missile submarine]]
|Ship displacement=*{{convert|7300|LT|t|0|lk=in|abbr=on}} surfaced
*{{convert|8250|LT|t|0|abbr=on}} submerged
|Ship length={{convert|425|ft|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam={{convert|33|ft|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship draught=
|Ship draft={{convert|33|ft|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship power={{convert|15000|shp|0|abbr=on}}
|Ship propulsion=One [[S5W reactor|S5W pressurized-water nuclear reactor]], two geared [[steam turbine]]s, one shaft
|Ship speed=Over 20 [[Knot (unit)|knots]]
|Ship range=
|Ship endurance=
|Ship test depth={{convert|1300|ft|m}}
|Ship complement=Two crews (Blue Crew and Gold Crew) of 100 [[Commissioned officer|officers]] and [[Enlisted man|enlisted men]] each
|Ship sensors=
|Ship EW=
|Ship armament=*16 [[ballistic missile]] tubes with one [[Polaris missile|Polaris]], later [[Poseidon missile|Poseidon]], ballistic missile each
*4 × {{convert|21|in|mm}} torpedo tubes
|Ship notes=
}}
|}
[[File:George Washington Carver c1910 - Restoration.jpg|left|thumb|150px|Botanist George Washington Carver]]
'''USS ''George Washington Carver'' (SSBN-656)''', a {{sclass|Benjamin Franklin|submarine|4}} [[fleet ballistic missile submarine]], was the second ship of the [[United States Navy]] to be named for [[George Washington Carver]] (1865–1943), an American [[researcher]] and [[inventor]].

==Construction and commissioning==
The contract for ''George Washington Carver''{{'}}s construction was awarded on 29 July 1963, and her [[keel]] was laid down on 24 August 1964 by the [[Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company]] at [[Newport News, Virginia|Newport News]], [[Virginia]]. She was [[Ship naming and launching|launched]] on 14 August 1965, sponsored by [[African-American]] [[contralto]] [[Marian Anderson]] (1897–1993), and [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] on 15 June 1966 with [[Captain (naval)|Captain]] R. D. Donavan in command of the Blue Crew and [[Lieutenant commander (United States)|Lieutenant Commander]] Carl J. Lidel in command of the Gold Crew.

==Service history==
{{Expand section|date=December 2009}}
Following [[shakedown cruise|shakedown]], ''George Washington Carver'''s began her first strategic deterrent patrol on 12 December 1966. She operated out of Holy Loch, Scotland until September, 1971, when she transferred to Groton, Conn. for two months of special operations before entering the shipyard at Electric Boat Div., Groton, Conn. in November, 1971, for reactor refueling and overhaul. ''George Washington Carver'' was in dry dock at Naval Station Rota, Spain for overhaul beginning February 1977. A team from Electric Boat Div. Groton, CT was deployed to complete the overhaul/refit.

:''History needed for 1966-1991.''

===Conversion of missile tubes===
{{Expand section|date=December 2009}}
In 1991, ''George Washington Carver'''s [[ballistic missile]] had missiles removed and tubes were filled with ballast at Naval Weapons Station, Charleston, SC. The submarine and crew then received a change of homeport to Naval Submarine Base, Bangor, WA and assisted on the west coast in various assignments before finally entering the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard at Bremerton, Washington.

:''History needed for 1991-1993.''

{{stack|[[Image:Uss gw carver insignia.jpg|alt=Insignia of the USS George Washington Carver|thumb|The insignia of USS ''George Washington Carver'' (SSBN-656).]]}}
==Decommissioning and disposal==
''George Washington Carver'' was both [[Ship decommissioning|decommissioned]] and stricken from the [[Naval Vessel Register]] on 18 March 1993 at the [[Puget Sound Naval Shipyard]] in [[Bremerton, Washington|Bremerton]], [[Washington (state)|Washington]], where her scrapping via the U.S. Navy{{'}}s [[Ship and Submarine Recycling Program]] was completed on 12 March 1994.

== References ==
*{{DANFS|http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/g4/george_washington_carver.htm}}
*{{Naval Vessel Register|hull=SSBN-656}}
*{{navsource|08/08656}}

{{Benjamin Franklin class submarine}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:George Washington Carver (SSBN-656)}}
[[Category:Benjamin Franklin-class submarines]]
[[Category:Cold War submarines of the United States]]
[[Category:1965 ships]]
[[Category:Ships built in Newport News, Virginia]]


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