Author Archives: Rick Spilman
Large Underwater Structure in the Sea of Galilee Puzzles Archaeologists
It is a conical shaped structure built of boulders, roughly 230 feet in diameter, 30 feet high and weighing an estimated 60,000-tons, 40 feet underwater in the Sea of Galilee. And archaeologists have no idea what it is. Based on the … Continue reading
Don’t Be Shellfish – Save the Coney Island Mermaid Parade!
One unexpected victim of Superstorm Sandy was New York’s Coney Island Mermaid Parade, or more specifically, the historical museum, performance space and gift shop that helped to financially support the free parade. The parade is ”an American celebration of ancient mythology and honky-tonk rituals … Continue reading
Britain’s Atlanti? Scientists Mapping the Sunken Landscapes of One Atlantis or Another
What is the plural of Atlantis? Atlanti? Atlantises? Recently two different underwater areas have been in the news, both of which are referred to as ”Britain’s Atlantis.” One is called Doggerland, a huge undersea region swallowed by the sea … Continue reading
Musings on National Maritime Day – the Wisdom of Pogo
Today, in the United States, is National Maritime Day. There is a presidential proclamation and everything. The day, May 22nd, was chosen because that was the date that the American steamship Savannah set sail from Savannah, Georgia in 1818 on the first … Continue reading
Gray Whale Sighted in South Atlantic, First Ever Observed Below the Equator
A gray whale has been sighted in Walvis Bay, Namibia. This is amazing news, as gray whales were hunted to extinction in the North Atlantic by the 18th century and have never been sighted before south of the equator. Gray whales … Continue reading
Joan Druett’s A Love of Adventure – Free Today & Tomorrow on Kindle
Joan Druett’s A Love of Adventure is free today and tomorrow as an Amazon Kindle edition. From our review, last August: Many of the classics of nautical literature are stories of young men who set off to sea, often compelled, in … Continue reading
Navy Dolphins Find Rare 19th Century Howell Torpedo off California Coast
The Howell Automobile Torpedo of 1889 was the first self-propelled torpedo in United States Navy service. Only fifty were built and until recently, only one was known to have survived. Then in late April, Navy dolphins located a lost Howell … Continue reading
Fleet Week without the Fleet on the Historic Buoy Tender Lilac
For the last 30 years, New York has welcomed ships and crews from the US Navy and Coast Guard to the harbor around the Memorial Day weekend during a celebration of Fleet Week. Unfortunately, this year’s Fleet Week has been scuttled … Continue reading
Beckoning Ice & Hell Around the Horn – Free Today and Tomorrow on Kindle
Joan Druett’s Beckoning Ice, the fifth in her series of Wiki Coffin nautical mysteries, is free today and tomorrow on Kindle. Joan’s detective, Wiki Coffin, is a half-Maori, half-Yankee “linguister,” who is also the representative of American law and order with the … Continue reading
Shaped on all Six Sides – A Look at Wooden Boatbuilding
The opening line of this seven minute video suggests that “men build [wooden] boats because they can’t have babies.” I am not sure that I buy into that idea. Then again, most boats and ships that I have built or worked on … Continue reading
Celebrate MARY A WHALEN’s 75th Birthday!
PortSide NewYork is hosting an open-house (open-ship?) on the historic tanker MARY A WHALEN this Tuesday, May 21, at Pier 11, Atlantic Basin, Red Hook, Brooklyn, from 1-7pm, with cake and remarks from 5-7pm. May 21 is also the 75th anniversary of the launch of the … Continue reading
The Mysterious Disappearance of Richard Decker, and Yes, His Boat is for Sale at Auction
All the reporting on this story talks about a “ghost ship” for sale by auction in Newburyport, MA. “Newburyport ‘ghost ship’ on the block,” is pretty typical. The “ship” in question is, in fact, an Endeavour 37 sailboat, a bit small to be … Continue reading
Twice Forgotten: Story of the WWII Submarine R-12
An interesting Kickstarter fundraiser to complete the documentary “Twice Forgotten: Heroes of the R12 Submarine,” about the WWII submarine USS R-12, which sank off the coast of Key West, Florida on June 12, 1943 with the loss of 40 American sailors and 2 Brazilian officers. … Continue reading
Free Books from Old Salt Press – Hell Around the Horn, The Beckoning Ice and A Love of Adventure
To celebrate the upcoming publication of Joan Druett’s Promise of Gold trilogy, Old Salt Press will be running a free book promotion for Rick Spilman’s Hell Around the Horn, and Joan Druett’s The Beckoning Ice and A Love of Adventure over the … Continue reading
Joan Druett Publishing with Old Salt Press
Joan Druett, the award winning maritime historian and novelist, will be publishing her Promise of Gold trilogy with Old Salt Press. The three novels; Judas Island, Calafia’s Kingdom, and Dearest Enemy; will be be published as e-books on Amazon in the next few days. Joan’s A … Continue reading
Murder of a Tall Ship Sailor – Kyle Bruner, Chief Mate on Liberty Clipper, Gunned Down in Nassau, Bahamas
Sadly, the world is a dangerous place, both at sea and ashore. Over the weekend, Kyle Bruner, chief mate on the schooner Liberty Clipper was murdered in Nassau, Bahamas while attempting to stop a mugging. As reported by NBC Chicago: Kyle … Continue reading
Amorita’s Unlucky Day
The first time I saw Billy Black‘s photo of the collision, I had to look twice to believe what I was seeing. It show two white yachts, both under full sail, one slicing half-way through the other. The collision took … Continue reading
“Whisky Galore” Bottles fetch £12,050
Two bottles of whisky salvaged from the wreck of the cargo ship SS Politician have been sold for £12,050 after an online auction. The wreck inspired the novel “Whisky Galore” and the movie of the same name. Whisky Galore bottles … Continue reading
Mother’s Day on HMAS Toowoomba 2013
We hope that everyone is having a happy Mother’s Day. Here is a great little video by made by the sailors on the HMAS Toowoomba,a Royal Australian Navy frigate currently deployed in the Middle East. Mother’s Day on HMAS Toowoomba 2013
Charles W. Morgan Restoration
We posted yesterday about the “shutter plank” being fastened to the whaleship Charles W. Morgan in Mystic Seaport in Connecticut. The Morgan, built in 1841, is America’s last surviving wooden whaleship and has been undergoing a fiver year restoration. I came a across … Continue reading
