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The Pacific Fleet Submarine Memorial Association (PFSMA) was created in 1978 to establish a memorial to the gallant sailors of the Silent Service, and to maintain as a centerpiece of this memorial the Fleet Submarine USS BOWFIN (SS 287).

In 1979, the PFSMA saved the decorated Balao-class USS Bowfin (SS-287) from scrapping and began the painstaking process of restoring her to her 1945 configuration.

Bowfin signed over to PFSMA

The site that would become the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum & Park was obtained, Bowfin opened to the public in 1981, and an empty dirt lot soon expanded to include numerous outdoor exhibits.
Bowfin ca. 1979
In 1986, construction began on a museum facility. In 2021, following extensive renovations, our campus was renamed the Pacific Fleet Submarine Museum.
Bowfin Park, ca. 1979

The museum now offers hands-on, interactive experiences that tell the story of the Silent Service from WWII to the Cold War to present day. In December 2021, USS Bowfin welcomed her 10 millionth visitor.

MUSEUM & SITE

In 2021, the Pacific Fleet Submarine Museum and campus completed a makeover. The museum was expanded, and the interior was completely redesigned with three galleries that document the history of the United States Navy’s Submarine Force during World War II, the Cold War, today, and into the future. There are many different exhibits that the whole family can enjoy.

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BOWFIN WAR PATROLS

USS Bowfin (SS-287) is a WWII Fleet Submarine and legend of the Silent Service. She served with distinction on nine successful war patrols between 1943 and 1945, destroying enemy ships in the Pacific, providing assistance to guerillas in the Philippines, and even venturing into the mine-laden Sea of Japan. Launched 7 December 1942, exactly one year after the Pearl Harbor attack, she was appropriately nicknamed “The Pearl Harbor Avenger.”
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