On June 4, 1944, a Navy Task group with a mission to sink German submarines that had devastated Atlantic sea traffic, captured U-boat 505 off the west coast of Africa. It was the first enemy ship captured by the U.S. Navy since 1817. Chicagoan Navy Captain Daniel Gallery, who led the task force, convinced the Navy to donate the captured sub to the City of Chicago in 1954. It has been on display at the Museum of Science and Industry since then. Last year, an excellent new exhibit details the effects the submarine warfare had in the Atlantic and the story of the capture of U-505. Capt. Gallery had dreamed of capturing a ship, but nearly faced court-martialling for not sinking it. He was later promoted to Admiral.
Capt. Gallery on the deck of the USS Guadalcanal
When I was a small boy, a visit to U-505 was a mandatory stop when going to my favorite museum, along with visiting the walk-in human heart, coal mine tour, and hatching baby chicks. At that time, the sub was painted green and sat outside behind the museum. After decades of weathering, an underground home was built to display the submarine. The sub had been painted green after capture to disguise it as an American ship and to maintain the secret of the capture. Last year the exterior and interior were repainted to its appearance during the war.
U-505 on display at the Museum of Science and Industry
The exhibit tells the fascinating history of the capture and aftermath. Lt. David led the boarding party, and was the only Atlantic Fleet sailor to receive the Medal of Honor. A picture of the eight sailors who boarded the sub and prevented it from being scuttled is on display. When the picture was taken, Lt. David had been called away, and another sailor was photographed in the group by mistake. When the Navy published the image after the war, the other sailor was edited out of the image, and the museum added Lt. David into the image for its display.
U-505 landing party
The U-505 and its contents was the largest single intelligence capture in the Atlantic, and remained a secret until the war was over. The allies were on the verge of the Normandy landing, and did not want the Germans to know of the capture so that they might change their coded communication that the allies had cracked. Two Enigma machines were in the sub along with several code books were immediately sent to the British code breakers in Blenchly Park. The torpedoes were analyzed so defenses against them could be improved. The German submariners were isolated in a prisoner of war camp in Louisiana, violating Geneva Conventions by keeping their capture secret, denying visits by the Red Cross, and prohibiting the prisoners from communicating with family who had been informed they were dead. The sub was towed to Bermuda, rather than a base in nearby Casablanca because of the German spies who were in the African city.
Enigima ciphers
There is a multi-sensory tour of the interior with lights and sound-effects. It doesn’t have the smell of 49 sailors confined in a small space for three months, but amazingly, the engine room still smells strongly of diesel fuel from 75 years ago. The museum has entrance free days for Illinois residents for most weekdays in January and February.
U-505 interior