New facial reconstruction technology applied to the skull of one of the members of the ill-fated Franklin expedition may rewrite accepted history. The skeleton long believed to be that of Henry Le Vesconte, a lieutenant aboard HMS Erebus, is now believed to be that of Harry … Continue reading
Category Archives: History
Two hundred and seventeen years ago today, March 27, 1794, the United States Congress authorized the construction of six frigates, the first ships of the United States Navy, the USS Constitution, the USS Chesapeake , the USS Constellation , the USS President, the USS … Continue reading
Every US naval ship and most American merchant ships carry aboard a copy of the American Practical Navigator, which most refer to simply as Bowditch, after Nathaniel Bowditch, the author of the first edition in 1802. On March 26, 1773, Nathaniel Bowditch, the fifth of seven children, … Continue reading
On March 24th, 1945 the USS Lancetfish was decommissioned after less than thousand hours in service. She never put to sea under her own power and never had a crew. Delivered from the Cramp Shipbuilding Company of Philadelphia, she was towed to … Continue reading
Today is the 100th anniversary of the tragic sinking of the passenger ship SS Yongala in a cyclone off Australia with the loss of 122 lives. Yongala Centenary Expedition CAIRNS tourism pioneer Charles Woodward is today heading for the shipwreck … Continue reading
On March 20th, 1602 the Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie, the VOC, or in English, the United Dutch East India Company was established as a chartered company. It would dominate European trade with Asia for almost 200 years. Dutch East India Company … Continue reading
Claude Choules, the last surviving combat veteran of World War I celebrated his 110th birthday with family and friends in Perth earlier this month. Though he served in two World Wars, the first in the Royal Navy and the second in … Continue reading
The US Coast Guard Barque Eagle, built in Hamburg, Germany, in 1936, arrived in Philadelphia on Friday, on the first stop of her 75th anniversary tour. The tall ship Eagle has landed _ in Philadelphia … Continue reading
The German submarine U-106 was believed to have hit a British mine when it sank on October 7, 1917 off the coast of the Netherlands. WWI submarine found off Dutch coast … Continue reading
Researchers believe that they may have found the location of the lost city of Atlantis in a coastal Spanish marsh. Plato described the legendary island-city in about 360 B.C. as having “in a single day and night … disappeared into the depths … Continue reading
When the sun was out the Vikings could navigate with “sun compass,” a sort of modified sundial. According to legend, when the sky was overcast the Vikings used a “sunstone.” A new study suggests that the sunstone might not … Continue reading
Commander Nigel Matthews Commander Nigel Matthews, who has died aged 89, survived being run over by an aircraft carrier and flew again the same day. Nigel Matthews died on December 19. His first wife died in 1977; he married, secondly, … Continue reading
Robert Prescott, a marine archeologist, believes that he has located the final resting place HMS Beagle. The Fate of HMS Beagle After Darwin´s Voyage to the Galapagos Islands HMS Beagle was the ship that sailed around the world with … Continue reading
The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Acushnet, oldest commissioned Coast Guard cutter, and the officially designated “Queen of the Fleet” will be sold as surplus at an online auction scheduled to end on March 16th. Current bidding is $66,000. (Updated 4/04) US NAVY … Continue reading
We have posted previously about the discovery of the Yukon Gold Rush iron sternwheeler A.J. Goddard which sank in a storm in Lake Labarge in October of 1901. Now with the discovery of a gramophone and three recordings, the music of the … Continue reading