lifeguard duties in the South China Sea and off Hong Kong as the final series of air attacks on Japan were carried out. Returning to Subic Bay, Croaker sailed for Saipan and continued on to Galveston, Tex., and New London, where she was then decommissioned and placed in reserve 15 May 1946 in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet. Post-War Recommissioned on 7 May 1951, she served as schoolship out of New London until 18 March 1953, when she was again decommissioned at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard for conversion to a hunter-killer submarine. She was reclassified SSK-246 on 9 April 1953, and was recommissioned on 11 December 1953. Returning to active duty in February 1954, she operated along the East Coast and in the Caribbean, visiting ports in England while taking part in NATO exercises in 1957 and 1958. Croaker was reclassified SS-246 again in August 1959. Special submarine exercises took her to England once more in February 1960, after which she resumed local operations out of New London. In September 1960, Croaker departed on a cruise which saw her sailing through the Mediterranean and Suez Canal to call at various Near Eastern ports and Karachi, Pakistan. She returned to New London in mid-December, retracing her outward track. She was reclassified Auxiliary Submarine AGSS-246 in May 1967. Decommissioned for the last time on 2 April 1968, Croaker was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 20 December 1971 and reclassified Miscellaneous Unclassified Submarine IXSS-246 in December 1971. From 1977 to 1987, Croaker was displayed as a private attraction in Groton, Connecticut by the Submarine Memorial Association until the Navy revoked its agreement with the group citing a requirement for historical preservation of the vessel. Since 1988, Croaker has served as a museum ship at the Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park in Buffalo, New York. Awards Navy Unit Commendation American Campaign Medal Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with three battle stars World War II Victory Medal National Defense Service Medal with star Along with the Navy Unit Commendation, Croaker received three battle stars for those of her war patrols designated as "successful": the first, second, and fifth of her six. She is credited with having sunk 19,710 tons of shipping. Croaker was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on 12 September 2008. See also Gato-class submarine#Hunter-killer - details of SSK conversion Attack submarine - discusses origins of SSK program References External