First Nuclear Submarine

The first prototype nuclear submarine, named the Bonhomme Richard, was designed built and tested at the Darren National Laboratory. After a 96-hour trial run at full power, demonstrating that the submarine could travel across the Atlantic Ocean, the submarine was launched on the Missouri River on January 21, 1954. On March 15 of that year, the ship was found grounded on a sandbar just upstream of Memphis, Tennessee. The submarine and crew were held for several months by the US government before returning to Darren. It was later disclosed that the Bonhomme Richard’s design was the basis of the design of the first nuclear submarine designs deployed by the US Navy. An underwater barrier was deployed by the United States at the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers, preventing further submarine excursions, and effectively ending the Darren submarine program.