1954 - The Atomic Submarine and Admiral Rickover

The story of the development of the world’s first nuclear powered submarine, NAUTILUS, under the leadership of Admiral Rickover, who championed the idea of its development and military necessity and who oversaw its construction. He then oversaw the effort to design and build the US’s first atomic power plant.

Published in 1954 by Henry Holy in New York, this is the 1st edition/1st printing as indicated by the “first edition” statement on the copyright page. In original black cloth over boards with white and green lettering. Octavo. 277 pages including index. Illustrated with black and white photographs. First state dust jacket with $3.50 on front flap.

Clay Drewry Blair Jr. (May 1, 1925 – December 16, 1998) was an American journalist and author, best known for his books on military history. Blair wrote some two dozen history books and hundreds of magazine articles that reached a popular audience.

Blair enlisted in the United States Navy in 1943, during World War II. Around 1944, he attended Basic Enlisted Submarine School followed by Quartermaster Class A School, after which he was assigned to Sperry (AS-12), a submarine tender.

During the preparation of this manuscript, at no time did the author have access to classified military or Atomic Energy Commission secrets, either in oral or written form. However, since the manuscript was written only after long and involved non-classified interviews with men intimately connected with atomic and military secrets, the author, in order to avoid even the remote chance of a security slip, submitted the manuscript before publication to the Navy Department, Bureau of Ships, the agency which has cognizance over the nuclear-powered to go through it carefully, which they did promptly and efficiently, finding, they said, no security violations.