Original Items: Only One Group Available. Now this is a fantastic grouping we have to offer. This is a beautiful trio of items that once belonged to Fireman First Class Lambert Hoffman who served aboard the USS Archerfish. We have not been able to locate much on his time in service but we were able to find he served on the Archerfish as well as other vessels before the war, as he enlisted on October 1, 1937. This is a wonderful grouping and a perfect candidate for further research.

The general rate of Fireman is one of five that Naval enlistees can enter when they begin their careers in the United States Navy by serving an apprenticeship. Starting with the apprenticeship and throughout their careers, Firemen work with propulsion systems, electrical generation gas turbines, electronic machinery, wiring, plating, and so forth, which makes the name of this apprenticeship somewhat misleading. The name “Fireman” is actually a nod to the days of steam-powered vessels; Firemen were responsible for keeping the fires going that stoked the ship’s boilers and created the steam to turn turbines and propellers.

The Items In This Grouping:
- (1) US Navy P1940 Dog Tag: In World War II members of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps wore Dog Tags of a different shape than the Army and Air Force. They were oval shaped, had either one (P1917) or two (P1940) holes, and were engraved or etched rather than debossed or stamped.

This dog tag reads as:

LAMBERT
DALL
HOFFMAN
299-87-03
T-12-41
USN 0

- U.S.S. Rigel U.S. Destroyer Base Liberty Card: In port, sailors serving on board U.S. Navy vessels had liberty, a short, authorized time away from the ship. Sailors carried passes to show that they had been granted liberty. They were supposed to turn in their cards upon returning from liberty, or they risked being charged with unauthorized absence.

This liberty card is for F1c Hoffman and it still has a clear picture as well as a clear date of birth; JAN. 24, 1918.

- Submarine Combat Patrol Insignia with (3) Gold Stars, Denoting Four Successful Patrols: The Submarine Combat Patrol Insignia is a uniform breast pin worn by officers and men of the United States Navy's Submarine Service who have completed combat patrols during declared wars. Such patrols were last conducted during World War II. During and after the war several varieties were manufactured.

The pin shows the broadside of a Gato-class diesel submarine. A scroll beneath the submarine holds service stars, one gold star for each successful patrol after the first or a silver star for five successful patrols. Successful patrols were those so designated by fleet commanders.

The Submarine Combat Patrol Insignia is considered a "secondary insignia" and is typically worn in conjunction with a primary warfare badge, such as the Submarine Warfare Insignia. Personnel eligible to wear other secondary insignias, such as the SSBN Deterrent Patrol Insignia or the Deep Submergence Insignia, may only wear one insignia at a time according to their personal desire.

This lovely grouping comes more than ready for further research and display.

USS Archerfish (SS-311)
USS Archerfish (SS/AGSS-311) was a Balao-class submarine. She was the first ship of the United States Navy to be named for the archerfish. Archerfish is best known for sinking the Japanese aircraft carrier Shinano in November 1944, the largest warship ever sunk by a submarine. For this achievement, she received a Presidential Unit Citation after World War II.

Archerfish's keel was laid down on 22 January 1943 in the Portsmouth Navy Yard in Kittery, Maine. She was launched on 28 May 1943, sponsored by Miss Malvina Thompson, the personal secretary to first lady Eleanor Roosevelt. The boat was commissioned on 4 September 1943.

Archerfish underwent shakedown training through the first part of November off the New England coast, and headed for Hawaii via the Panama Canal. She arrived at Pearl Harbor on 29 November 1943 and joined the Pacific Fleet.

First four patrols, December 1943 – September 1944
After receiving voyage repairs and undergoing training exercises, Archerfish got under way on 23 December for her first war patrol. She paused at Midway Atoll on 27 December to refuel before proceeding to her patrol area north of Taiwan. During this patrol, she attacked three ships, but scored no kills before returning to Midway on 16 February 1944 for repairs and training.

The submarine stood out of Midway on 16 March 1944 on her second war patrol but encountered no Japanese targets during her 42 days at sea, mostly near the Palau Islands. She returned to the Submarine Base at Pearl Harbor via Johnston Island on 27 April to commence refitting.

A month and a day later, Archerfish left Pearl Harbor, bound for the Bonin Islands area and her third patrol. She was assigned lifeguard duty during the strikes against Iwo Jima on 4 July, and rescued downed aviator Ensign John B. Anderson before returning to Midway on 15 July.

After a refit alongside submarine tender Proteus and training exercises, Archerfish got under way again on 7 August to begin another patrol. She prowled the waters off Honshū for more than a month without bagging any enemy ships, and returned to Pearl Harbor on 29 September after 53 days at sea.