The Abraham Lincoln (SSBN-602) was the only one of the five George Washington (SSBN-598)-class strategic missile submarines to be built at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. Sponsored by President Lincoln's great granddaughter, she was launched on 14 May 1960 and commissioned on 11 March 1961. Commander Leonard Erb of the Blue Crew and Commander Donald Miller of the Gold Crew were the Abraham Lincoln's first commanding officers.
The Abraham Lincoln conducted her shakedown cruise and testing in the spring and summer of 1961. She was subsequently assigned to Submarine Squadron 14, and was homeported in Holy Loch, Scotland, in October 1961. Following a brief refit alongside the Proteus (AS-19), the Abraham Lincoln, armed with sixteen Polaris missiles, began her first deterrence patrol in late 1961.
During her four years of deployment out of Holy Loch, the Abraham Lincoln took part in many memorable patrols, most notably her October 1962 deployment during the Cuban Missile Crisis. During this time, the Abraham Lincoln was deployed on short notice and successfully completed a 65-day patrol, during which the world was on the brink of a nuclear war.
The Abraham Lincoln began a refueling overhaul in Groton, Connecticut, on 25 October 1965. She returned to Holy Loch on 3 June 1967, and resumed deterrence patrols. The process of patrol, followed by upkeep alongside a submarine tender continued until March 1972 when she returned to the New London Submarine Base on 25 April 1972.
After two brief dependents' cruises, the Abraham Lincoln deployed to the Pacific Fleet with an overhaul en route. She offloaded her missiles in Bangor, Washington, before arriving at Mare Island Naval Shipyard on 25 June 1972 to begin another refueling overhaul.
The Abraham Lincoln was back in service by December 1973 and conducted tests and other operations at Cape Kennedy, Florida, and Charleston, South Carolina, in the summer of 1974. The Abraham Lincoln then returned to the Pacific and arrived at her new home port of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on 10 September 1974, before arriving at her advanced base at Guam on 18 October. In 1977, the Abraham Lincoln became the first submarine to conduct 50 strategic deterrence patrols.
The Abraham Lincoln completed her last patrol in October 1979 and arrived at Bangor, Washington, on 30 October to offload her missiles. The Abraham Lincoln was decommissioned on 28 February 1981 and stricken from the Navy List on 1 December 1982.