Robert Dickinson was born in Brooklyn, New York, in September 1924, the second of two children. At an early age his parents moved the family to Long Island, where he spent the rest of his life, except for his tour in the Navy. Dickinson's father was an electrical contractor in the city of New York. From the time he was ten years old, Dickinson worked with his father when he wasn't in school. In this way he got into the business without much outside training. Pearl Harbor was attacked when Dickinson was still in high school, and he knew he would get involved. He was tired of working, and figured that joining the armed services was a way out. Moreover, he mistakenly thought if he enlisted he could choose the path he wanted to follow. With a group of buddies, Dickinson went to the Marine recruiting office where they were all rejected. A week or so later, they went to see the Navy recruiters, and in August 1942 Dickinson was shuffled off to Newport for training. Dickinson had been a volunteer fireman during his last two years of high school, so he entered that fact on his Navy application, and when he graduated from boot camp, he was kept in Newport and assigned the base's fire department. To get out of that job, he volunteered for submarine service and was sent to New London, Connecticut for training that he really enjoyed and at which he excelled. Submarine training covered every post on the ship. The crew had to be familiar with the entire blueprint of the vessel and every man had to know how to do every job. In submarine school he met many new people, among them Yogi Berra, who would throw footballs with the sailors.

Robert Dickinson's training took place on one of the old S-boats. [Annotator's Note: The United States' S-class submarines, often call S-boats, were the first class of submarine built to the U.S. Navy designs.] It amazed the cadets that much of the equipment they were training on came from German submarines. Going below the surface for the first time didn't bother Dickinson because, for most of his life, his recreation had taken place in and on the water. Training included going through the escape tower. Immediately upon completion of sub school he was assigned to the Queenfish [Annotator's Note: USS Queenfish (SS-393)]. The Queenfish was already completed and in the water when Dickinson was in training, but the crew didn't go aboard until it was commissioned. After all the rigorous training, Dickinson felt the commissioning ceremony was a rewarding experience, and the dinner and dance with dates was fun. The ship's shakedown cruise took place in Key West, Florida, with a few stops in the Caribbean. After the ship was loaded in New London, the vessel was brought through the Panama Canal. Everybody aboard, according to Dickinson, got to know each other very well. The ship was like home to Dickenson.

Robert Dickinson boarded the newly commissioned USS Queenfish (SS-393) as a Seaman Second Class. It didn't seem like he was on a battleship. The older crew worked alongside the newer sailors, and Dickinson found it a comforting initiation. His duties included washing down the stainless steel bulkheads with diesel oil, standing lookout, and steering the bow and stern planes. He excelled as a lookout and spotted more ships and aircraft than any other crewman. A typical day at sea for him was alternating duty sections, four hours on and eight off. During down time he could clean, read, talk, tell stories, or sleep. He would get bored sometimes. He had shore leave in Panama and in Hawaii. Then they shipped out into the Pacific, and it was about a month before they found a convoy. Dickinson's first combat patrol took place when the Queenfish was moving through the channel into the China Sea. The channel was heavily mined, and they had to wait until it was very dark before proceeding. Dickinson was scared because it was all new to him. His first experience with depth charges was frightening, but after he knew what to expect, it wasn't so bad. The Queenfish always outmaneuvered them; the crew could tell they were out of range when the noise lessened. On the first run, the sub had trouble with the alcohol-run torpedoes: a lot of them went bad, but they were ultimately successful in sinking several ships. Robert Dickinson recalls that the Queenfish was patrolling with the Barb [Annotator's Note: USS Barb (SS-220)] and the Picuda [Annotator's Note: USS Picuda (SS-382)] when they had a call to pick up prisoners from sunken ships. There was a typhoon approaching, but they were able to arrive in several days, and just before the typhoon hit. The Queenfish picked up 18 survivors.

When on attack, Robert Dickinson was usually at the helm or on one of the bow or stern planes. When on the surface, he was on lookout. The Queenfish [Annotator's Note: USS Queenfish (SS-393)] was successful in sinking several vessels on their first run. It was procedure to fire and run because of the danger of depth charges. But the crew knew when they had a hit by the sounds: they could hear a click and then a boom. Whoever was on the scope could see some of what happened, take pictures through the scope, and enter data into the computer. The Queenfish was called off the attack to pick up the survivors of a sunken allied ship. The crew pulled as many out of the drink as they could. Nineteen people, British and Australians, were taken aboard, one of whom did not survive, and Dickinson witnessed his only burial at sea. The survivors had been in the water for five days, and were in bad shape; the crew cared for them, and brought them to Saipan, then went on attack again. When the Queenfish ran out of fish [Annotator's Note: naval slang for torpedoes], they went back to Pearl Harbor. A run was considered successful if the crew hit, damaged or sank a ship. Four out of the Queenfish's five patrols were successful.

Between his first and second patrols Robert Dickinson was on the island of Hawaii for rest and relaxation. A relief crew readied the submarine for its next tour. On its second patrol, the Queenfish [Annotator's Note: USS Queenfish (SS-393)] sank an aircraft carrier, and came under intense fire from depth charges. The sub was under for so long its batteries nearly ran out. The long term effect of this type of battle for Dickinson was his loss of hearing. The total number of kills for the Queenfish on its second run was four ships. When the ship returned to port, the boat was being awarded a Presidential Citation, a fact that the crew didn't learn about until it was back in the Pacific for its next run. Dickinson said the citation meant nothing; there were no ceremonies and all the crew got was a letter in the mail. By the third run, Dickinson was Fourth Class, and combat had become routine.

Robert Dickinson's fourth patrol [Annotator's Note: aboard the USS Queenfish (SS-393)] included the sad story of the Awa Maru. [Annotator's Note: The MV Awa Maru (1942) was a Japanese ocean liner requisitioned and refitted for auxiliary use by the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War 2.] The Queenfish had received word from SubComPac [Annotator's Note: ComSubPac stands for Commander, Submarine Force, US Pacific Fleet] that there was a Japanese hospital ship crossing their path, with lights on, and they should let it get through. It was an extremely foggy night, and the Queenfish was traveling on the surface. Dickinson was on the bridge when radar picked up a zigzagging ship traveling without lights at an unusually high speed. Assuming it was a destroyer or small enemy ship, the crew went to battle stations, and the skipper decided to go for the interloper. One fish [Annotator's Note: naval slang for a torpedo] blew it apart and it disappeared. The next morning, the Queenfish went back to check and found one survivor, the captain's steward, who spoke a little English and identified his ship as the Awa Maru. The crew also found bales of rubber, cans of titanium, and other contraband in the debris field. Soon the sub was called back to Guam, and the skipper got notice that he was being court-martialed. Dickinson got notice that he had to attend as a witness, but in the end, he wasn't called to testify. Coincidentally, Dickinson was awarded a letter of commendation, and, after the court-martial, received word that he was being given a 30 day leave and a transfer. He traveled back to the United States with his skipper, who was relieved of his duties. Dickinson said he felt lost when he learned that he had to leave the Queenfish, and has very fond memories of his ship, skipper and crew.

When he heard that the war had ended, Robert Dickinson was disappointed that he wasn't going back to combat in the Pacific. He participated in the commissioning and shake-down cruise for the USS Remora (SS-487). Because of his rank and experience, he sometimes acted as the sub's Chief. Dickinson said service on a submarine in peacetime was like being on a holiday. He considered staying in the Navy, but he was needed at home, so he moved to the inactive reserves. His military career came to an end with his discharge on 15 June 1946. His rank was Gunner's Mate 3rd Class (GM3c). Dickinson eventually bought out his father's business, and did well, in part because of his hero status. He retired in 1980 and moved to Florida, where he participated in the building of Epcot. [Annotator's Note: Epcot is a theme park in the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida.]

Even with his hearing difficulties, Robert Dickinson still jumps when loud noises go off, in just the way he did when depth charges were dropped near his sub [Annotator's Note: Dickinson went on four war patrols aboard the submarine USS Queenfish (SS-393)]. But that does not constitute his most memorable experience. He feels really good about the rescue; the thing that was bad was the taking of human lives. He went into World War 2 as a young boy, and came out as a man. Another good thing that came out of his years in the service was meeting his wife at a social event, inviting her to the commissioning of the Remora [Annotator's Note: USS Remora (SS-487)], and eloping with her while he was still in the Navy. Today, he is proud of his military service, and appreciates the recognition veterans are enjoying. Until now, he only shared his memories with fellow servicemen, and feels his was a unique experience only sub-mariners understand. He thinks it is very important to tell the story of the war, and regrets there isn't a better understanding of the submarines' silent service.