Just over a century ago, New Suffolk residents were treated to an unusual sight: what looked like two masts moving through the water at about five knots, no boat, no engines, no smoke.
The masts belonged to the country's first submarine, launched from what may today seem a most unlikely spot: the tiny hamlet of New Suffolk, present-day population about 350.
But that 54-foot vessel inaugurated a boatbuilding enterprise that led eventually to this country's modern submarine fleet, an international force not to be taken lightly.
"She was a breakthrough because she was the first to incorporate the [modern] submarine design," said Ret Millis, a sub enthusiast with the East End Seaport and Marine Foundation in Greenport.
Submarine centennials are being planned all over the country with the U.S. Submariners Association dedicating a monument on April 11 in New Suffolk to the first launch of what eventually became the U.S.S. Holland. And Mr. Millis and company have centennial plans of their own.
Plans are under way to build a life-size mockup of the Holland's crew quarters and to print a one-quarter-size photo of the whole ship. It's all part of a display the foundation plans for its Greenport museum, hoping to help people better remember a little known but important chapter in North Fork maritime history.
Sub bore builder's name
John Holland first started construction of his sub in Elizabeth, N.J., then moved his Holland Submarine Torpedo Boat Company to New Suffolk, where he launched his first vessel, ultimately named for him.
It was a tiny sub by today's standards, with room for a crew of five or six. A 50 hp electric motor powered the sub above the surface, and a bank of batteries propelled an electric motor on dives.
After a successful launch in Little Peconic Bay outside New Suffolk on May 17, 1897, Mr. Holland pitched his new boat to the U.S. Navy. It took the Navy three years to sign on and on April 11, 1900, the U.S.S. Holland was accepted into the fleet.
On Oct. 12, 1900, the sub was officially commissioned. Mr. Holland sold his sub company, which was then moved to Groton, Conn. The rest is history that the foundation hopes to display at its museum.
The U.S.S. Holland had one torpedo tube and about five feet of clearance for the crew to stand. There was a little extra headroom by the hatch and that was where the captain stood.
"The crew compartment was only five feet so it wasn't a walk-in [vessel], it was a crawl-in," said Mr. Millis.
Ditto for the replica the foundation is planning. The museum doesn't have the room for the full sub so just the crew's quarters will be on display.
"It's not so much a thing for the parents, it's more for the kids," said Mr. Millis.
But there will be plenty of history for the parents to peruse this summer at the museum. Along with the full-size photo, the Electric Boat Company in Groton, heir to Mr. Holland's business, has supplied smaller photos, schematics of the boat and lots of documentation.
Along with the support of the U.S. Submarine Museum in New London, the foundation has the knowledge of its members to tap in putting together the display. "To have that kind of expertise helping is wonderful," said Mr. Millis.