Keith Jessop: Salvage Diver Who Recovered the Gold from HMS Edinburgh

May 31, 2010 · Filed Under Current, History, Ships · 1 Comment 

Keith Jessop, the salvage diver who recovered the gold from the HMS Edinburgh, died on May 22, 2010, aged 77. Keith Jessop: salvage diver On May 2, 1942, after three days of attacks by German submarines, destroyers and aircraft in the Barents Sea, the mortally wounded cruiser HMS Edinburgh was given her coup de grâce [...]

Another Naval Tradition Bites the Dust – No More Obelisk Climbing

May 31, 2010 · Filed Under Current, Lore of the Sea · Comment 

What make this story interesting are not the facts but the reaction to them.   A sixty year tradition of Naval Academy plebes climbing a greased obelisk at the end of their first year is coming to an end.   So far of the emails received by the Navy times on the story,  over thirty oppose the ending the [...]

Battle of Surigao Strait by Anthony P. Tully – a Review

May 30, 2010 · Filed Under Newbooks, Reviews, Seastories · Comment 

A new look at the last battleship battle of  World War II and perhaps of all time.  A review by Steven Toby, republished with permission from the MarHst list. In this new book, Battle of Surigao Strait,  author Anthony P. Tully mines some hitherto little known Japanese sources to create a more even-handed account of the Battle [...]

John Finn, Medal of Honor Winner, Dies at 100

May 30, 2010 · Filed Under Lore of the Sea · Comment 

John Finn, Medal of Honor Winner, Dies at 100 John W. Finn, the last survivor of the 15 Navy men who received the Medal of Honor for heroism during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, died Thursday at a nursing home in Chula Vista, Calif. He was 100 and had been the oldest living recipient [...]

The Great Unknowns in Gulf Oil Spill

May 29, 2010 · Filed Under Current, Lore of the Sea · 3 Comments 

We haven’t posted about the Deepwater Horizon blow-out and spill.  The folks over at the Maritime Texas and the gCaptain blogs have been doing a great job of covering the environmental disaster as it continues to unfold and we have had nothing  to add.   Now after more than a  month of leaking oil, a few comments do [...]

The 1st EU piracy trial starts in the Netherlands

May 29, 2010 · Filed Under Current, Lore of the Sea · 2 Comments 

Five alleged pirates went on trial this week in the Netherlands in what is believed to be the first piracy trial in the European Union.  The Netherlands has called for an international tribunal for the prosecution of sea pirates, but thus far no EU action has been forthcoming.   In the US a pirate captured in the attack on the [...]

Schooner Amistad Returns to Mystic for Repairs after Rigging Failure

May 28, 2010 · Filed Under Current, Lore of the Sea, Rigging, Ships · 2 Comments 

After suffering what was described as “serious rigging failure” in heavy seas off the Florida coast last week, the schooner Amistad has returned to Mystic, CT for repairs.   She is expected to “be there for some time.”  The Amistad was built at Mystic Seaport between 1998 and 2000.   The Amistad was scheduled to participate in the 2010 Great [...]

Pirate Fighting Dolphins?

May 28, 2010 · Filed Under Current, Lore of the Sea, Ships · Comment 

A wonderful, if odd, account reported by Robert Mackey in the NY Time Lede blog: China Reports Dolphins Foiled Pirate Attack According to a report from China’s official news agency Xinhua, “thousands of dolphins” recently prevented an attack on Chinese merchant ships by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden. Xinhua’s Web site published the [...]

Fleet Week New York – “the Super Bowl of Fleet Weeks”

May 27, 2010 · Filed Under Current, Lore of the Sea, Ships · Comment 

New York’s Fleet Week 2010 is underway.  “This is the Super Bowl of Fleet Weeks,” said Michael Salerno, the Navy’s director of Fleet Week, a reference to the many Fleet Weeks that take part around the country, the first of which originated in San Diego in 1935 and is now in its 23rd iteration in [...]

Floating Gold by Margaret Muir – a Review

May 27, 2010 · Filed Under Newbooks, Reviews, Seastories · Comment 

Margaret Muir’s new novel, Floating Gold, is a wonderful blend of classic Georgian naval fiction, a mystery/thriller and a grand treasure hunt.   A rousing tale, well told. It is due to be released in the United States on May 31.  It is currently available in the UK. Captain Oliver Quintrell is on the beach, [...]

Commander Dilip Donde – First Indian Solo Circumnavigator

May 26, 2010 · Filed Under Current, Lore of the Sea · 5 Comments 

The teenagers have been getting more press, but Zach, Mike, Jessica and Abby are not the only intrepid solo circumnavigators out there.  On Saturday,  Commander Dilip Donde sailed into Mumbai,  completing the first recorded solo circumnavigation by an Indian. Navy commander first Indian to circumnavigate globe solo

DUNKIRK: THE FORGOTTEN HEROES

May 26, 2010 · Filed Under Current, Lore of the Sea · 1 Comment 

A few days ago we posted about the “Little Ships of Dunkirk” returning to Ramsgate to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the evacuation.  This Friday there is what looks to be a very interesting documentary, Dunkirk: The Forgotten Heros,  focusing on escape of the British Expeditionary Force including the capture of 40,000 soldiers which was kept a [...]

Schooner: Building a Wooden Boat on Martha’s Vineyard

May 25, 2010 · Filed Under Lore of the Sea, Newbooks · 8 Comments 

I haven’t seen it yet but Schooner: Building a Wooden Boat on Martha’s Vineyard by Tom Dunlop,  looks fascinating. From the publisher:   Schooner takes you through the construction of Rebecca of Vineyard Haven, a sixty-foot wooden schooner designed and built by one of the few boatyards in the United States devoted exclusively to the design, construction [...]

Spy Cruising?

May 25, 2010 · Filed Under Current, Lore of the Sea, Ships · Comment 

I am not entirely sure why I find this funny, but I do. Perhaps it is because it seems like it all should be secret.  Nevertheless, there appears to be an affinity cruise for everyone so why not a “SpyCruise?”  I wonder if a cloak and dagger is required in the dining room? SpyCruise® A National Security Educational Lecture/Seminar Series

HMS Bounty and Privateer Lynx in Portsmouth, NH

May 24, 2010 · Filed Under Current, Lore of the Sea, Seastories, Ships · Comment 

HMS Bounty and the Privateer Lynx will be in Portsmouth, NH for the annual Tall Ships Portsmouth Festival on Memorial Day weekend from May 29-31. It sounds like a great event.  The local paper reports all the details, which is all well and good. What is a shame but probably unavoidable  is the description of  HMS Bounty as a “”classic pirate [...]

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