Exactly what happened to the ill-fated Franklin expedition remains a mystery. in 1845, Captain Sir John Franklin, with a crew 129, attempted to traverse the last unnavigated section of the Northwest Passage and never returned. Some of the bodies expedition crew have been found but the wrecks … Continue reading
Category Archives: History
On this the fiftieth anniversary of the sinking of the USS Thresher, we are reposting an article from three years regarding the link between the discovery of the wreck of the Titanic and the US Navy’s secret search for the lost submarines, USS Thresher and the USS Scorpion. … Continue reading
Fifty years ago today, the nuclear submarine USS Thresher (SSN-593) sank during deep diving tests in the Atlantic off Massachusetts with a loss of 129 officers, crewmen, and military and civilian technicians. The sinking of the submarine is considered to be a watershed event in the … Continue reading
Here is a video of the scuttling of HMS Implacable in 1949. She was originally the French Navy’s Téméraire-class ship of the line Duguay-Trouin, launched in 1800. The Duguay-Trouin fought in and survived the Battle of Trafalgar, only to be captured by the British in … Continue reading
A brand new copy of a 4,000 year old craft was paddled out on a short maiden voyage in Falmouth, Cornwall on Wednesday. Christened the Morgawr after a mythical monster of Falmouth Bay, she is a 50 foot long, six-ton … Continue reading
A team of archaeologists think that they may have found the first Viking sunstone. Two years ago we posted about Viking sunstones, the legendary, and indeed considered by many to be mythical, devices which allowed Viking navigators to locate the position of … Continue reading
Retiree Edd Hale writes in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette about surrendering his status as an armchair sailor to sail the Great Lakes in the Brig Niagara, a replica of the Master Commandant Oliver Hazard Perry‘s flagship on which he won the Battle of Lake Erie, one … Continue reading
In the construction of replica sailing ships, the 18th century is reasonably well represented. The 17th also has not been left out. Replicas of Columbus’ ships have ensured that 15th century replicas still sail. Recently two replica ships from the 16th … Continue reading
Today is Samuel Plimsoll‘s birthday. Born on February 10, 1824, Plimsoll, a British politician and social reformer fought for reasonable loading of cargo ships, which lead the adoption of the first modern loadline, which became known as the Plimsoll mark or Line. In … Continue reading
A fascinating video about the legacy of shipbuilders of Essex, Massachussets being carried on by the Essex Historical Society and Shipbuilding Museum. Thanks to Peter Lane for pointing it out. See also our previous posts, The Shipbuilders of Essex and Launching the Schooner … Continue reading
In late January we posted about the “Shackleton Epic Expedition,” led by Australian Tim Jarvis, shoving off from Elephant Island in the lifeboat Alexandra Shackleton, in an attempt to reenact the incredible 1916 voyage of Ernest Shackleton and his six man … Continue reading
The Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley is credited as the first successful submarine, in that it was the first submarine to sink an enemy warship in combat. New findings, however, might cause some to reconsider this “success.” The Hunley may have been sunk … Continue reading
In the Antarctic winter of 1916, Ernest Shackleton and a crew of five sailed in a decked over lifeboat from Elephant Island to South Georgia. They were on a desperate rescue mission across 800 miles of the roughest ocean in … Continue reading
Recent winter storms have washed ashore four large, barrel-shaped pieces of lard onto the beach at St.Cyrus nature reserve in Scotland. They are believed to be from the wreck of a merchant vessel that was bombed in WW II. Therese Alampo, St … Continue reading
During World War II, the United States worked to develop a “bat bomb” that consisted of an air dropped canister containing Mexican free-tailed bats with a small timed incendiary bombs attached to their tails. Work on the bat bomb was cancelled due to the … Continue reading
While hundreds of thousands shiver waiting for the ball to drop in TImes Square, a few miles away at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, a small but likely warmer crowd gathers to hear Chief Engineer Conrad Mister blow his collection … Continue reading
For a handful of ships, the great age of sail has not yet ended. In 2013, the Russian Navy sail training ship Kruzenshtern will call in 20 seaports in 11 countries and will take part in several international regattas. The ship, originally built in … Continue reading
The custom of sending Christmas card is said to have originated in 1843 with Sir Henry Cole, a civil servant, who wanted to promote the new ‘Public Post Office.’ He arranged for his artist friend, John Horsley to design a card. Two batches … Continue reading
We recently learned that good Saint Nicholas, long associated with Christmas and gift-giving, is also the patron saint of ships and sailors. The St. Nicholas Center notes: “Many ports, most notably in Greece, have icons of Nicholas, surrounded by ex-votos … Continue reading
In Volume II of the Encyclopædia Britannica published in 1768, the entry for California reads: CALLIFORNIA, a large country of the West Indies, lying between 116° and 138° W. long. and between 23° and 46° N lat. It is uncertain whether … Continue reading