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All the United States Idaho Arco The Devil Boat

The Devil Boat

Supposedly Satanic numbers adorn this preserved submarine sail.

Arco, Idaho

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The tall conning tower.   Frank Kovalchek on Flickr
The tall conning tower.   Frank Kovalchek on Flickr
The Devil Boat at Night   OliverWDahl / Atlas Obscura User
  OliverWDahl / Atlas Obscura User
  Collector of Experiences / Atlas Obscura User
Devil Boat in a town of Arco   widokzwenus / Atlas Obscura User
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About

Located in the city of Arco, ID, the so-called Devil Boat (otherwise called the "Submarine in the Desert") is actually the preserved sail of the submarine USS Hawkbill. The number 666 displayed on the sail was actually her hull number, and has no connection to the occult (officially).

After being decommissioned in 2000, the monument was placed in the roadside Idaho Science Center to honor Arco's long association with the Navy and the nuclear fleet in particular. Specifically, for just 60 minutes on July 17, 1955, Arco was the first city on Earth to be lit solely by nuclear electricity, thanks to the BORAX-III reactor at the Idaho National Laboratory (then called the National Reactor Testing Station). A more morbid record was that it was the first fatal nuclear accident, and so far the only one in the U.S.

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Monuments

Community Contributors

Edited By

cruiserbob, godsend1, Mishipeshu, EricGrundhauser...

  • cruiserbob
  • godsend1
  • Mishipeshu
  • EricGrundhauser
  • widokzwenus
  • Collector of Experiences
  • OliverWDahl
  • mumina

Published

June 6, 2013

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Sources
  • "AEC Press release for BORAX-III lighting Arco, Idaho". United States Department of Energy, Argonne National Laboratory. 1999. Retrieved 2012-07-26.
  • https://vocal.media/wander/nuclear-accidents-craters-and-the-devil-boat-of-arco-idaho
  • Proving the Principle
  • https://factsheets.inl.gov/SiteAssets/PnP-Flibbook/index.aspx?page=1
The Devil Boat
400 South Front Road
Arco, Idaho, 83213
United States
43.634168, -113.297102
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Experimental Breeder Reactor-I

Arco, Idaho

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Photo of Arco

Arco

Idaho

Places 3

Nearby Places

Experimental Breeder Reactor-I

Arco, Idaho

miles away

Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve

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miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Arco

Arco

Idaho

Places 3

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