CLEVELAND — A famous historical landmark that was given a multimillion-dollar makeover is now back in Cleveland.

What You Need To Know

  • The USS Cod is a World War II-era Gato class fleet submarine

  • It is named after one of the world's most important food fish

  • It was originally launched March 21, 1943

  • The USS Cod is the last fully intact world war II fleet submarine in existence

Ever since Paul Farace heard the World War II stories from his uncles, he knew he wanted to honor them one day.

“You know that greatest generation, their sacrifice needed to be remembered,” Farace, the president of the USS Cod Memorial, said. 

In 1976, the United States Navy gave guardianship of the submarine to the memorial group. 

“Well, Cod is 312 feet long," Farace said. "It was built at Electric Boat Company, produced seven war patrols for the Navy."

After 58 years on display in Lake Erie, the submarine needed repairs, so it was taken on a slow, 13-hour journey to Erie, Pa., to be dry-docked and repaired.

“We were kind of surprised at the amount of corrosion, but the shipyard wasn’t fazed," Farace said. "They took measurements, looked at the blueprints, began fabricating replacement steel and, as I said, 63 days later with a new hull coating of paint donated by Sherwin Williams company. God bless Sherwin Williams. They saved us quite a bit of money."

While walking through the submarine, you can feel how small and tight the quarters are. There is a mess hall for the officers then one for the crew. There’s the torpedo room and the bridge. 

The Cod became a national historic landmark in 1986 preserved as a memorial and museum ship on Lake Erie.

“Well the Cod is one of only a handful of World War II fleet submarines that pretty much won the war in the Pacific by interdicting Japanese merchant shipping,” said Farace.

Now that the USS Cod has had its multimillion-dollar facelift, the submarine will be a place for people to learn and honor veterans for decades to come.