The Hunley was decommissioned from the regular navy, in 1995 transferred to the US Maritime Commission, and in 2007 sold as scrap to a metal recycling company in Louisiana.

In September 2008, during Hurricane Gustav, the decommissioned ship broke free of its moorings in the New Orleans Inner Harbor, but caused little or no damage while adrift.

[1] Hunley had the distinction of being the first ship designed and built from the keel up to service and maintain the U.S. Navy's nuclear-powered Ballistic Missile Submarine Fleet.

After which the Hunley paid a 3-day visit to New York City to host the Naval Reserve Officers Seminar "New Ships for the Modern Navy".

Almost immediately she began taking the load off USS Proteus, whom she officially relieved 15 March 1963 as tender to Submarine Squadron 14 at Holy Loch.

A Polaris milestone was reached in December 1965 when USS Thomas A. Edison came alongside to commence the 100th refit of a nuclear ballistic submarine (SSBN) by the Hunley.

This represented some 200 months of Polaris on station or 161⁄2 years of submerged strategic deterrent since Hunley's arrival in Holy Loch 9 January 1963.

Hunley met demands from making water-borne propeller replacements to encapsulation of AC induction motors; delicate repairs to navigation and fire control, and many other varied tasks to ensure that each SSBN had the finest of care on each refit.