The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse marking the shoals which have become known as the “graveyard of ships,” is often referred to as Hamilton’s lighthouse. (The current lighthouse is the second built at the site.) The story goes that when the teen-aged Alexander … Continue reading
Category Archives: Ships
On Memorial Day, an updated repost from six years ago about the last mission of the USS Olympia in 1921, when she carried an American unknown soldier killed during World War I from a cemetery in France back to the Washington to be in … Continue reading
Here is a fascinating new video from Mystic Seaport Museum describing the restoration of Mayflower II at the seaport’s Henry B. duPont Preservation Shipyard. Mayflower II is a reproduction of the original Mayflower built from 1955-1957. Restoration Continues: Mayflower II … Continue reading
It is Fleet Week in New York City. For a list of the ships participating and where they can be visited, click here. For a schedule of Fleet Week events and activities, click here. Fleet Week Kicks Off … Continue reading
For those near New York harbor, there is a very interesting exhibit opening on the historic USCGC Lilac at Pier 25 in the Hudson River. The exhibit “Great Shipwrecks of New York’s ‘Great’ Lakes and The Hidden Hulks of New … Continue reading
Derelicts, abandoned ships often waterlogged and just barely afloat, are fascinating ghosts which wander the seas according to the vagaries of the winds and the currents. They are also significant hazards to navigation. In the later half of the 19th … Continue reading
On May 10th, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Tamaroa was sunk approximately 26 miles off shore from Cape May, NJ to help develop an artificial reef. ; Sinking of the USCGC Tamaroa Built in 1943 as USS Zuni, the 205-foot fleet ocean/salvage … Continue reading
In an interview with Time, the notional Commander in Chief again showed his willful ignorance by calling for steam catapults rather than “digital catapults” on the new Gerald R. Ford class of aircraft carriers. Aside from the limitations inherent in … Continue reading
In September, we posted about an upcoming voyage on the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry into Canada’s Northwest Passage. Apparently there berths still available for those who would like to join in the adventure. From the OHPRI website: Earn your “Blue nose” … Continue reading
The oil fields beneath the North Sea are running out of oil. As there is less oil to pump, costs rise per tonne of oil delivered from the now aging offshore platforms. A decline in oil prices only makes the economics … Continue reading
A short video aboard the schooner, Margaret Todd, sailing in Frenchman Bay from Bar Harbor, Maine. Built in 1998, Margaret Todd is the only four-masted schooner to work in New England in over a century Aboard the Margaret Todd … Continue reading
Here is a fascinating video showing the construction of a traditional cruiser built by a master boat builder and his crew. Chummy Rich is a fifth generation boat builder from Bernard, Maine. Like his forebears going back to the 1800’s, he … Continue reading
The most common response to the Hyper-Sub is that it looks like something from a James Bond movie. The decidedly strange hybrid craft is a high-speed long-range speedboat which can also turn into a submarine. The craft has a capacity for … Continue reading
In early April, the Hamburger Abendblatt newspaper reported that the heavy-lift ship Combi Dock 1 will carry windjammer Peking home to Germany to restored in its original home-port of Hamburg for restoration. Last Friday, Will Van Dorp posted photos on his Tugster … Continue reading
The sloop Clearwater has been sailing since 1969, spreading a message of caring for the environment and for restoring clean water to our rivers, streams and oceans. Now that clean water is again under attack by the new administration, the … Continue reading
New York can be a tough town. Despite rough and tumble struggles over real estate, the vagaries of city politics, economic downturns, and not the least, being struck head-on my a monster hurricane which sent a 10′ storm surge through its … Continue reading
Happy birthday to Mystic Seaport‘s schooner Brilliant! On April 23, 1932, the 61′ schooner was launched from the yard of Henry B. Nevins at City Island, New York. Now 85 years later, she is still sailing and still a beauty. … Continue reading
If you are in Manhattan next Monday night, April 24, feel free to stop by the meeting of the New York Ship Lore and Model Club. Stephen Hopkins and I will be giving a joint presentation on three remarkable ships. … Continue reading
The Clipper Round the World Race is a race around the world held every two years sailed with a professional captain and paying amateur crews. In nine races starting in 1996, the contests were sailed without loss of life. That tragically changed … Continue reading
Last October, we posted that the USCG Cutter Tamaroa, ex-USS Zuni, was to be reefed by the end of the month. The 205-foot ex-fleet ocean/salvage tug and ex-Coast Guard Cutter was to be sunk as part of an artificial reef … Continue reading