Dick Fricke Orchestra at Lagarto commissioning party

Date

• October 9, 1944

Summary

• This is a view of the stage at Silver Lake Lodge near Manitowoc, Wisconsin during the commissioning party for the submarine U.S.S. "Lagarto" on October 9, 1944. Members of the Dick Fricke Orchestra, which provided music for the event, are seated on stage with their instruments as a Navy officer in uniform stands at a microphone. A large 48-star United States flag hangs at the back of the stage. Decorating the front edge of the stage is an image of the Lagarto’s battle insignia, over which are large cut-out letters spelling “USS Lagarto.” The Lagarto was one of twenty-eight submarines built in Manitowoc by the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company during World War II. She was laid down January 12, 1944; launched May 28, 1944; and commissioned October 14, 1944. Like the crews of other Manitowoc-built submarines, the Lagarto’s crew were stationed in Manitowoc for training while the submarine was being constructed and tested. Local bands like the Fricke Orchestra played for most of the commissioning parties, which were held at various halls around the community. The officer at the microphone is probably Lieutenant Walter Raymond Shaw. Shaw died February 8, 1945 as a result of injuries suffered in an automobile accident on Saipan while the Lagarto was moored there after a training exercise. About three months later, on May 3, 1945, the Lagarto was sunk while on war patrol in the Gulf of Siam, with all hands lost. The wreck site was discovered in 2005.