House Passes Bill Honoring Nautilus, The Day

House Passes Bill Honoring Nautilus

By Jennifer Grogan

The Day

July 16, 2008

The U.S. House of Representatives has passed a resolution to honor the 50th anniversary of the USS Nautilus' crossing of the North Pole.

Rep. Joe Courtney, D-2nd District, introduced the resolution, which the House passed 375 to 0 Monday night, in April. Courtney, in his speech on the House floor, said the “history and the legacy of the Nautilus is not only meaningful to my congressional district, but to the entire submarine force and our nation.”

”Too often the critical achievements of our submarine force, our 'silent service,' go unnoticed,” he said, calling the resolution a way to honor the Nautilus crew and those who supported its journey under the ice cap.

Nautilus (SSN 571) left Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on July 23, 1958, under top-secret orders to conduct Operation Sunshine, the first crossing of the North Pole by a ship. The crew of 116 men reached the North Pole at 11:15 p.m. on Aug. 3, 1958. They received the Presidential Unit Citation, the first ever issued in peacetime.

The resolution states that the Nautilus “completed these significant and laudable achievements during a critical phase of the Cold War, providing a source of inspiration for Americans and raising the hopes of the free world.”

The Nautilus is now part of the U.S. Navy Submarine Force Museum in Groton.

A ceremony to celebrate the anniversary is planned for Aug. 3 at 2 p.m. at the museum. Courtney and Rear Adm. Bruce E. Grooms, commander of Submarine Group Two, are scheduled to speak about the Nautilus' achievements and the Navy's operations in Arctic waters.