Although Crosby initially thought he spotted a porpoise, the submarine more closely resembled a whale. The undersea vessel had been privately constructed in Mobile, Alabama, based on the plans of marine engineer Horace Lawson Hunley. Even if they hadn’t been bearing down on a mighty warship, the eight men were already undertaking a dangerous mission simply by being inside the submarine that had already claimed the lives of 13 men, including its inventor, during training exercises. Hunley.Īs all hands raced to their stations on Housatonic, seven Confederate sailors inside the primitive submarine turned a handcrank that powered the propeller as another man steered toward the 1,240-ton sloop-of-war. Only four months before, USS New Ironsides had been partially damaged in an attack by the semi-submersible CSS David, and this windless, moonlit winter night offered perfect conditions for operating the approaching submarine, H.L. But as the murky shadow rippled closer to the warship, the Navy officer sounded the alarm as he realized that the strange object closing in on Housatonic was actually a cutting-edge naval weapon-a submarine.īased on information gleaned from Confederate deserters, Union ships had been on alert for undersea vessels lurking in Charleston Harbor. At first, Crosby thought it could be a surfacing porpoise or perhaps a log. ![]() The moonlight shimmered on Charleston Harbor’s still surface as Housatonic patrolled the South Carolina waters as part of the Union naval blockade that was slowly strangling the Confederacy.Īs Crosby gazed out at the placid harbor around 8:45 p.m., Housatonic’s officer of the deck suddenly saw something shatter the water’s glassy surface only 100 yards away on the starboard side. Dixon’s seat.On the clear but chilly night of February 17, 1864, John Crosby stood on the deck of USS Housatonic a little less than six miles and three years removed from the launching point of the Civil War, Fort Sumter. The collection shown here is an example of some of these components ranging from wrought iron plates, rivets, bolts, tools, viewing ports and some organic materials such as the crew member’s bench, and Lt. ![]() Several components of the submarine have been removed over the years in order to be treated and conserved separately. In 2010 the submarine was rotated into an upright position so scientists could access the starboard side and also to begin the painstaking job of removing the hard crust of concretion (a mixture of shells, sand and silt) covering the submarine’s hull. This kept its contents undisturbed and allowed for a more accurate excavation. ![]() Upon recovery the submarine also sat in a 45 degree angle, the same position as it was found. The submarine has sat in a tank of fresh water under an impressed current system, since it was recovered in 2000 in an effort to stop further corrosion of the iron. It took nearly 150 years for the salts to become integrated in the structure so it will take a little while before they can be extracted. Salts from the sea water slowly penetrated the iron hull creating a series of changes that if left untreated the submarine would rust and crumble within a matter of months. While the Hunley was lost at sea, it was going through a series of physical and chemical changes. The exterior hull is comprised of wrought-iron plates of various sizes, several cast-iron fittings and glass view-ports. Hunley represents one of the most complex composite structures ever recovered by an archaeological team.
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