The USS Blueback was built by Ingalls Shipbuilding Corporation at a cost of $21 million. The Blueback's keel was laid on April 15, 1957 and the submarine was launched on May 16, 1959. The SS 581 was commissioned into the Submarine Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet on October 15, 1959, and was first deployed in March of 1961. After 31 years in service, the Blueback was decommissioned on October 1, 1990, and berthed at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, Washington.

OMSI took formal possession of the Blueback in February of 1994, and towed her from Bremerton to Portland. The U.S.S. Blueback opened to the public on May 15, 1994, tied to her dock at OMSI on the banks of the Willamette River.

What is a Blueback? Blueback is the common name for the Sockeye Salmon, the most common of the North American Pacific Salmon species. Therefore, it makes sense that the U.S.S. Blueback is on exhibit on a river in the Pacific Northwest!

When the Blueback was commissioned in 1959, submarines were named after fish. Since the 1970s, most U.S. Navy submarines have been named after cities and states. Why the change? Admiral Hyman G. Rickover commented, "Fish don't vote!"