James S. Reyburn

Electric Boat Corporation (Images of America) (Ct) James S. Reyburn

Electric Boat Corporation has been a world leader in submarine development, design, and construction for more than a century. In 1900, the company delivered the Holland, the first submarine accepted by the United States Navy. Fifty-five years later, it turned fantasy into fact by sending the world's first nuclear-powered ship, the submarine Nautilus, off on its maiden voyage. It later built the world's first ballistic

missile-firing submarine, the George Washington, and most of the nation's current underseas fleet. Between those years, it pioneered standardized construction of merchant ships, submarine chasers, torpedo boats, and yachts and also produced airplanes, fishing trawlers, diesel engines, and electric motors. This collection of more than 200 archival photographs traces the company's sometimes roller-coaster existence through 10 historic decades when America--and Electric Boat Corporation--grew into an industrial giant. It is an engaging collective portrait of American ingenuity, know-how, and persistence driving technology to new heights.