Salty Dog 502, X-47B Drone, First to Land on Aircraft Carrier

A US Navy’s X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System drone, nicknamed Salty Dog 502, successfully landed on the deck of the aircraft carrier USS George HW Bush at sea.  The Navy press release reads, in part: “Today’s demonstration was the first time a tailless, unmanned … Continue reading

Groups from Mare Island and Port Royal Still Trying to Save USS Olympia

Two groups on opposite coasts of the United States are frantically working to save the 1895 built, SS Olympia, Admiral Dewey’s flagship in the Battle of Manila Bay and the last, just barely, surviving war ship from the Spanish-American War. The Mare … Continue reading

Exploring The “Caraquet” Shipwreck

A new video released by the Bermuda Department of Conservation Services explores the wreckage of the British mail steamship “Caraquet” which came to grief on the island’s reefs 90 years ago. Caraquet 1864 – Bermuda Shipwrecks from Conservation Services on … Continue reading

Great Lakes Tall Ships Challenge & the Battle of Put-in-Bay

This September, a fleet of tall ships will reenact the 1813 Battle of Put-in-Bay, Ohio, also known as the Battle of Lake Erie.  The reenactment is part of the Great Lakes Tall Ships Challenge which kicks off today in Cleveland, OH through the … Continue reading

The Sorry Saga of the Ore/Oiler A Whale – From Miracle Skimmer to Bankruptcy & Abandoned Sailors

Unfortunately, the story is not that unusual. A ship owner in financial trouble and sailors find themselves abandoned on a ship, far from home, with no wages, and running out of food and fuel.  This is what has happened to … Continue reading

July 4th on Whichever Coast – New York, San Diego & the Adirondacks

This year the 4th of July fireworks in New York, sponsored by Macys, will be set off over the Hudson River. The North River Historic Ship Society is sponsoring their Fifth Annual Fireworks Gala offering views from the rooftop of … Continue reading

The Boat Factory – A Complicated Love Story about a Shipyard: A Review

My wife and I recently saw “The Boat Factory” a two actor play, starring Dan Gordon and Michael Condron, which celebrates the sprawling Harland & Wolff shipyard in Belfast, Northern Ireland.  That’s right, a play about a shipyard. But not just any … Continue reading

King James Jesse Strang and the Mormon Pirates of Beaver Island

We recently posted about the Michigan State Senate passing a resolution which officially recognized “International Talk Like a Pirate Day”. (It appears that they nothing better to do, in a state with a gaping budget deficit, collapsing cities and failing schools. … Continue reading

Historic Schooner Nina and Crew of Seven Missing Off New Zealand

The 70′ schooner Nina and her crew of seven have been reported missing. They sailed on May 29, from Opua in the Bay of Islands, New Zealand bound for Newcastle, Australia.  They were last hear from on June 4th, 370 nautical miles west … Continue reading